Witness in the Era of Mass Incarceration

With more than eight percent of its population behind bars, Louisiana is the most incarcerated state in the United States. What happens to the voices of the men and women inside? What can their stories tell us about the criminal justice system, education, and the importance of bearing witness?

Professor Doran Larson is the creator and director of the American Prison Writing Archive, a digital collection of writing by incarcerated people in the United States that bears witness to their experience behind bars. On Monday, he leads a talk at Loyola University New Orleans.

The American Prison Writing Archive is the largest digital archive of non-fiction writing by currently incarcerated people and is funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.