Freethought Books Project

Today in the fight for church-state separation, CAIR (the Council on American Islamic Relations) is challenging the existence of segregated living quarters for Christian inmates in Virginia.

Muslim Group Challenges Virginia Jail’s Christian-Only “God Pod” This should not be permitted.

"Prisons operated by companies like CCA (recently rebranded as CoreCivic), which was founded in 1983 and is now a $3.04 billion publicly traded concern, don’t typically grow crops or manufacture anything of value. Inmates themselves are the commodities, and money is made by persuading legislators that a private operator can confine and care for them more cheaply — in Winn’s case, $34 per inmate per day — than the state."

The Dickensian Conditions of Life in a For-Profit Lockup To write “American Prison,” the prizewinning reporter Shane Bauer spent four months undercover at a privately run Louisiana prison. What he found was shocking.

Stephen Fry Receives Richard Dawkins Award For Lack Of Faith In this setting, Fry comes across as an example set apart from other skeptics. He thinks and trades at the intersection of critical thinking and creativity, frequently cavorting on the outer bounds of rationalism to discover and invent.

"Access to the monthly magazine Prison Legal News (PLN) is one of the few ways prisoners learn about criminal justice issues, including their rights as prisoners. Most incarcerated individuals across America have access to the publication.

The exception? Every prisoner in Florida."

Will the Supreme Court Strike a Blow Against Prison Censorship? The Court will soon decide whether to hear a case arguing that Florida’s ban on Prison Legal News is unconstitutional. One of the authors of a supporting brief explains why upholding the First Amendment for prisoners is in everyone's interest.

We are currently looking for volunteers (local) in the Amherst, NY area who are willing to help pack and ship books out to participants in our freethought books program. You can reach out here if you are interested.

Opening up letters from prisoners this afternoon. One said that he had collected "a small freethought library" full of books, but when he was moved to a new facility, he was told he could only bring 5 books along from the whole collection. One of the 5 he chose was his copy of The Skeptic's Annotated Bible/Quran/Book of Mormon which was donated to our project years ago. This inmate has started a humanist group that meets regularly in his current prison.

To reduce recidivism rates, give prisoners more books A 25-year-old program started by a literature professor teaches empathy, complexity, how to face shame, and how to build personal dignity.

In light of the U.S. presidential election season that is underway, please take note of this CFI policy:

Comments made on this page express the views and positions of the person submitting the comment alone. CFI does not endorse any candidate for public office, nor does it otherwise intervene in political campaigns. CFI requests that candidates or those affiliated with a political campaign refrain from posting comments. Upon determining that a comment has been posted by a candidate or the staff of a candidate, CFI will remove such comments.

Our pen pals write letters for all different reasons. Here's what one of our newest additions to the pen pal program had to say: "I'm not writing letters to 'reach out.' I'm doing this because I too can feel alone in my skepticism, and it shouldn't have to be that way."

If you're interested in taking part in the prisoner pen pal program with Freethought Books Project, email us at [email protected]! The program specifically caters to the needs of freethinking, skeptical, and non-religious inmates.

Educational initiatives for inmates are a great path to reduce recidivism and a humanistic, science-based method to save costs to taxpayers. Plus, Pell grants for inmates may even help reduce the religious influence that has become so rampant in our criminal justice system. FBP supports President Obama in this new initiative!

Obama Restores Some Prisoners’ Pell Grant Eligibility A pilot program will revisit a two-decade ban on federal student aid for the incarcerated.