Hi friend,

For a while now, I've been curious. As FAMM's director of Storytelling, I work on stories from affected family members and stories about their loved ones in prison every day.

But what about stories from incarcerated people themselves? What are their hopes, fears, dreams? How can we work to change the laws that affect them and their families unless we hear their stories?

And that's how FAMM's 1,000 Stories Project was born!

Last month, I asked the almost 40,000 federal prisoners on our email list: Tell me a story. Get creative, I said. What's the best letter you've ever received? What's your prison nickname? What's the most annoying myth about prison you'd like to dispel? What makes you laugh?

I was so excited when they responded the very next day, with stories about a daughter forgiving her mom, dining hall etiquette, how "Big Platinum" finally came to be proud of his nickname, and so many others.

We've made a new part of our website where the stories will live, and we'd love you to take a look. Dip into the collection and see what you find. And then come back—the collection is a living document, meaning that it will grow and change all the time.

We hope 1,000 Stories inspires and informs — and brings you closer to the issues that are so important to all of us.

I'll close with this part of a poem by Joshua L.:

Me, I'm just like you.
I like peanut butter and jelly and pancakes too! ...
I have scars on my heart and it occasionally breaks
and I miss my family when I'm so far away.
my son is three and he doesn't know his father,
no visits or phone call, his mother doesn't bother. ...
I bet he acts like me. I bet he's just like me.
me, I'm just like you.

Best,


Ann Espuelas
Director of Family Outreach & Storytelling, FAMM