Press

Used paperbacks change lives behind bars, even with growing prison book bans (The Washington Post)
How Sharing Books with My Dad in Prison Made Life Bearable for Both of Us (Literary Hub)
Brooklyn Program Provides Books To Inmates Across The Country (Bklyner)
Despite Cuomo Action, Thousands of Prisoners Still Denied Access to Books (Village Voice)
There’s a war on books in prisons. It needs to end. (Washington Post)
For New York Prisoners, a Package Policy that Effectively Pits TV Against Books (In Justice Today)
New York Prisons Allow Books, But Not Information (BTR Today)
The book that changed my life… in prison (The Guardian)
Restricting Books Behind Bars (American Libraries)

COVERAGE OF THE SUSPENSION OF NY STATE PRISON DIRECTIVE 4911A:

Governor Cuomo Calls to Rescind New York Prisons’ ‘Flawed’ Book Policy (Vulture)
Cuomo Halts a Controversial Prison Package Policy (NY Times)
Cuomo scraps program that kept books from inmates (NY Post)
Gov. Cuomo’s Announcement on Directive 4911A Welcome News For Inmates’ Right to Read (PEN)
New York to end ‘flawed’ program that cut people in prison off from books, fresh fruit (Think Progress)
New York Suspends Program That Would Have Limited Prisoners’ Access to Books, Food From Outside  (Jezebel)
After outcry, Cuomo suspends program to limit care packages to state prisons (Times Union)
New York Prisoners Can Once Again Read Whatever They Want to (WNYC)

COVERAGE OF OUR OPPOSITION TO NY STATE PRISON DIRECTIVE 4911A:

What Can’t You Send to an Inmate in New York? Apples, Used Books and More (NY Times)
To Make Prisons ‘Safer,’ Some Are Banning . . . Books (NY Times)
Why Prisoners Can Choose Cheetos, but Not Chaucer (NY Times)
This Is How a New New York Policy Hurts Nonprofits Like Books Through Bars (NYN Media)
Banning Books Behind Bars (The Brian Lehrer Show)
Inmates Can’t Receive Donated Books Anymore (WNYC)
New York Makes It Harder for Inmates to Get Books (New Yorker)
A lame-brain way to stop prison contraband (NY Post)
Will This New Policy Stop New York’s Inmates From Reading? (Vulture)
New York will only allow prisoners in three facilities to read 77 specific books (Fader)
New York Prisons Are Making It Much More Difficult to Send Books, Fresh Food to Loved Ones (Global Citizen)
A new program in New York is severely restricting the books available to people in prison (Think Progress)
This Prison System Has Severely Limited The Books And Fresh Food That Can Be Sent To Inmates (Buzzfeed)
New York State’s Efforts to Restrict Access to Books in Prisons Shows Troubling Disregard for Right to Read (PEN)
New Program Would Restrict New York Prisoners’ Access to All But the Dumbest Books (Jezebel)
New York State prisons’ vendor program bars charity from sending books to inmates (NY Daily News)
New York Department of Corrections Puts Severe Restrictions on Books Prisoners Can Receive (The Root)
New York prisons crack down on books (NY Post)
New Jersey Prisons Back Off Ban of The New Jim Crow, But Censorship Behind Bars Is Still Widespread (Reason)
New York Prisons Impose ‘Draconian’ Rules Limiting Books Inmates Can Read to ‘Sex Novels, Bibles and Coloring Books (Newsweek)
Prisons are making new moves to control what books inmates can read (LA Times)
New York Directive Restricts Inmates’ Literature Options (Smithsonian)
A New Program Restricts The Selection Of Books NY State Prisoners Can Receive (Vibe)
The Politics of Privatizing Prison Care Packages (Teen Vogue)
State crackdown on care packages to inmates draws protests (Times Union)
New York Prisons Experiment With Promoting Illiteracy. That’s Not a Typo. (Wonkette)
A Test Policy Makes Getting Books in Prison Harder (amNewYork)
DOCCS’ Secure Vendor Program Wants to Limit Contraband by Shutting Out Care Packages (Amsterdam News)
In New York Prisons, a Crackdown on… Books (Daily Beast)
Book Donations Were Banned In Three New York Prisons, And Every American Should Be Concerned (Bustle)
As New Jersey Prisons Lift Ban on ‘The New Jim Crow,’ New York Restricts Inmates’ Access to Books (Atlanta Black Star)

ARCHIVES:

BRIC TV: Brooklyn Stories
In a Basement on Columbia Street… (Pardon Me for Asking)
What Does a Book Have to do With a Movement? (Waging Nonviolence)
Donate Your Books to Prisons: What, Why, and How (Book Riot)
A Holiday List You Should Definitely Check Twice (The Nation)
Prisoners’ Rights and NYPL Correctional Services (New York Public Library)
#RuthInAmerica Books Through Bars (Wits Justice Project)
I Am Brooklyn Video Feature