Personal Narrative-Coalition For Women's Prisoners

When it comes to marking the “moment” you became an adult or when you find your ultimate life’s purpose, usually there isn’t one crucial second where your life shifts in an unforeseen direction, there isn’t a sudden epiphany that immediately hits you, generally it’s an assortment of moments contributing to the gradual progression towards adulthood. However, I can, with relative certainty, recall an event that did alter my entire outlook. Two years ago, I was preparing for a simple, unremarkable interview. Forced to write a music review for my high school radio station, which I predicted would be extremely tedious to produce, I chose a band with a unique sound that used the lead singer’s volunteer service with the California Coalition for Women’s Prisoners as a focal point for their new album, We the Common. Before I knew it, I scheduled a phone interview with Samantha Rogers, who, on several occasions, worked with the lead singer, Thao Nguyen, at CCWP.

Feeling shunned from the moment she was placed behind those walls, her savior from this dark time was CCWP. When Samantha spoke, I felt the passion in her voice, her love for the people who granted her a second chance at life and with her family. Heartbroken, humbled, and angry all at once, I was faced with questions I’d never before contemplated. How was I not hearing about the horrors these women go through? Our conversation continued and by the end, I felt a connection to Samantha, who willingly opened up about one of the lowest points in her life to an absolute stranger. Unlike most people, Samantha maintained a resolve and purpose to her life; she devoted herself to serving others because she experienced firsthand the horrors of being a female inmate in the failing prison system. If she prevented one person from suffering the pain she endured, all of her devotion to this cause was