The podcast of “Jacktown! The Alcatraz of the West!”, our December episode of The Living Room, is posted! The radio story aired on Michigan Radio December 19th. It features interviews I conducted with a former inmate of 33 years, his former corrections officer and 
the first female psychologist in an all male corrections facility. Earlier in the fall I joined the Jackson Historic Prison tours and stepped inside 7 block, a closed, but fully intact cell block on the Jackson Prison grounds. There I met a series of speakers who were former employees and inmates at Jackson Prison and started to interview them. I was so struck by the power of their stories that I later went to interview them in their homes or offices to get a more in depth picture of life inside Jackson Prison. The 10 minute piece is only the tip of the iceberg, but offers us all much to grateful for in our own lives. If you are interested in the stories, consider buying Lionel Stewart’s book “Quiet Blood” written during his 30 years in prison or Jean Becker Walsh’s book “There’s a Woman in Here!” about her years as the first female psychologist in an all male corrections facility. I host The Living Room and co-produce the storytelling series with Zak Rosen. Thanks for listening!
