For more than three years, Auburn Correctional Facility inmate Cliff Graham has felt his voice is silenced by the barriers of the criminal justice system. 

But in November, The Daily Orange Opinion section launched a project called Absence of Light, which provided Graham and other incarcerated individuals a platform to make their voices heard. Contributors to the series share what are often untold stories of life behind bars. 

As an intern with the Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, Gabe Stern, enterprise editor for The D.O., wrote a story on Auburn Correctional Facility’s inconsistent and inadequate COVID-19 policies. The experience made Stern realize the inmates are rarely able to share their insights on such issues with the public. 

Stern felt The Daily Orange was one of the few publications that could offer a space for their unfiltered perspectives. He brought the idea to then-Editorial Editor Nick Robertson in late August. 

Robertson quickly jumped on board. The project aligned perfectly with the Opinion section’s goal of amplifying voices in the greater Syracuse community. Earlier this year the D.O. Opinion section began accepting guest columns and personal essays. Both introduced voices outside of regular columnists to the paper. The Absence of Light column expanded on this mission.

With the greenlight from Robertson, Stern and the D.O. Opinion staff worked to bring the project to life. But communicating with the incarcerated contributors was tricky. 

Phone calls are typically limited to about 15-20 minutes, monitored and subject to immediate termination. Emails are also an option, but they are reviewed by Department of Corrections and Community Supervision staff and often delayed.

While these lines of communication have been important to the project, Robertson and Stern found they were not always reliable.

“It’s extremely difficult to organize a project of this size and complexity with people who you can only communicate with through emails that are delayed for days or phone calls that are only 10 minutes long,” Robertson said. “The logistics of the prison system make it difficult to do a project like this.”

The most feasible solution was for Robertson or Stern to travel 45 minutes to Auburn Correctional Facility to talk with the contributors in person. Each made the trip multiple times to brainstorm with Graham and pick up any columns or illustrations done by hand. 

The technical difficulties shed light on the smaller injustices of the criminal justice system. Jewel Jackson, who served as an assistant editorial editor during the fall semester, remembers being taken aback when she saw the word count on a handwritten column, thinking about the added effort of manually counting the words to make sure the piece didn’t exceed length requirements. 

“It showed certain things that we take for granted,” Jackson said. “It was small stuff like that actually showing someone’s passion and someone’s need to get their voice out.” 

The project also required a financial commitment. Phone calls and emails required consistent payments from Robertson and Stern. Limited access to computers made it difficult for the incarcerated contributors to write columns on a tight deadline. So editors turned to Haley Robertson, fundraising coordinator, for help raising money to purchase a typewriter for Graham. 

The easiest part was naming the project. Graham came up with the “Absence of Light” title early in the process.

“I think it’s good that it comes from Cliff because it’s the perspective of inside the prison and he can best catch the temperature of what’s happening in there,” Stern said.

After two months of figuring out how to overcome the barriers of communication and funding, the first two pieces of the project were published on Nov. 8.

For Stern, Robertson and Jackson, the Absence of Light project is only the beginning of a new era for The Daily Orange Opinion section. 

“There’s a lot more perspectives to be given that come from directly inside prisons rather than quoting people who may have some contacts in there,” Stern said. “I’ve learned how much more candid it can be if it’s coming right from inside.”

Robertson hopes people will start to recognize the value in highlighting the perspectives of incarcerated people. 

“I think as a publication, we should make it a goal to share their thoughts and ideas with our audience because they should be heard,” he said. “And I think with some additional fundraising we can really be able to do that a lot more effectively.” 

The D.O. Opinion section is slowly evolving to amplify voices that have not traditionally appeared in its pages. Jackson hopes to expand that effort to the greater Syracuse community.  

 “A common concern and argument is that we, The Daily Orange, forget about the Syracuse community,” Jackson said. “With the success that the Op section has had, this is a good time to push that narrative because we’ve been able to cover so many different perspectives. I think that it helps to show the direction the paper is aiming toward when we talk about diversity and inclusion.”

Published on December 16, 2020 at 6:24 pm