The Marshall Project

The Isolation of Being Deaf in Prison

“I didn’t have a way to communicate. And they basically just flipped me the bird.”

When I was in state prison in Georgia in 2013, I heard about a class called “Motivation for Change.” I think it had to do with changing your mindset. I’m not actually sure, though, because I was never able to take it. On the first day, the classroom was full, and the teacher was asking everybody’s name. When my turn came, I had to write my name on a piece of paper and give it to a guy to speak it for me. The teacher wrote me a message on a piece of paper: "Are you deaf?"

Life Inside Perspectives from those who work and live in the criminal justice system. Related Stories

“Yes, I’m

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