Communication
Rather than encouraging people in prison to stay in contact with their loved ones, prisons and jails frequently restrict communication -- and even partner with private companies to exploit families trying to stay in touch. We're exposing these abusive practices and fighting back.
Below is some of our key research and organizing. (See also our related organizing around preserving face-to-face family contact in prisons.)
Campaigns
Regulating the prison and jail phone industry
Families still pay exorbitant rates just to stay in touch with their incarcerated loved ones, while companies rake in huge profits and develop new ways to squeeze money out of those who can least afford it.
Protecting postal mail
Increasing prices and and efforts to eliminate physical mail threaten a vital connection between incarcerated people and their families. Through research and advocacy we're fighting back.
Protecting in-person visits from the predatory "video calling" industry
We uncovered how jails collude with telecom companies to eliminate human contact, by replacing in-person visits with expensive, low-quality video chats. Our research and campaign is helping preserve face-to-face visits.
Investigating electronic messaging and tablets in prisons
Prisons and jails are partnering with private companies to offer email services, but there's a catch: The companies charge incarcerated people for every message they send. We're staying ahead of these profiteers by exposing the hidden costs in their digital offerings.
Regulating the prison and jail phone industry
Protecting postal mail
Protecting in-person visits from the predatory "video calling" industry
Investigating electronic messaging and tablets in prisonsBriefings
- Breaking news from inside: How prisons suppress prison journalism, by Brian Nam-Sonenstein, June 15, 2023
Building on data from the Prison Journalism Project, we find that most states enforce restrictions that make practicing journalism extremely difficult and sometimes risky. - Both sides of the bars: How mass incarceration punishes families, by Leah Wang, August 11, 2022
New data shows that, with 1.2 million minor children with a parent in state prison, mass incarceration causes generational harm. - Research roundup: The positive impacts of family contact for incarcerated people and their families, by Leah Wang, December 21, 2021
We've rounded up over 50 years of empirical evidence that visitation, mail, phone, and other forms of contact between incarcerated people and their families have positive impacts for everyone — including better health, reduced recidivism, and improvement in school.
Footnotes
For more information, see Bowing to pressure from jails and companies, FCC raises phone rate caps. ↩
For more information, see Bowing to pressure from jails and companies, FCC raises phone rate caps. ↩
For more information, see Bowing to pressure from jails and companies, FCC raises phone rate caps. ↩
For more information, see How much do incarcerated people earn in each state? ↩
For more information, see Following the Money of Mass Incarceration 2026. ↩
For more information, see Ella Baker Center, Who Pays? The True Cost of Incarceration on Families. ↩
For more information, see Worth Rises, The Power of Free Communication in Prisons and Jails. ↩
For more information, see Worth Rises, The Power of Free Communication in Prisons and Jails. ↩
For more information, see Worth Rises, The Power of Free Communication in Prisons and Jails. ↩
For more information, see Worth Rises, The Power of Free Communication in Prisons and Jails. ↩
For more information, see Worth Rises, The Power of Free Communication in Prisons and Jails. ↩
Recommended Reading:
The unmet health needs of people in prison
States fall far short of their duty to meet the health needs of incarcerated people.
All profit, no risk
The bail industry exploits cracks and loopholes in the legal system to avoid accountability, while growing its profits.
Compare your state's use of the prison to the world at large
Criminal justice policy in every region of the United States is out of step with the rest of the world.
Prison Gerrymandering Project
We are leading the movement to protect our democracy from the Census Bureau's prison miscount.