July 20, 2009
Last week I went to my first “release class”. It is odd that when you come to prison you go to classes about how to do time, how to avoid conflict with staff and inmates, how to avoid disease, sexual assault and other pitfalls.
Then just before you leave you go to classes to relearn how to be free. In between the two, you forget that you were even a part of the free world. Relationships by mail become normal; you are accustomed to rarely, if ever, seeing you loved ones. Violence is a way of life; you have no privacy and constant oversight. Then one day a computer program spits out your name because it has calculated that you only have X amount of days left and you need to take release classes so that you can adjust to a completely different world with different expectations.
I’m fortunate, I don’t need these classes, but many people do.
No, my challenges will not come from reentering society. I have not lost myself in here. I have amazing support and will be coming home to my family and friends, my own place, a job, and school. Life is ready and waiting for me. My challenges will be reconciling that I have spent nearly a decade of my life in prison.
I know that I have achieved a lot from behind these walls. That the strength of my support, my contributions to eco-activism and the media work I’ve done from prison are a testament to my accomplishments. It is these reasons that I carry my head high. I know that despite the hardships and obstacles I have fulfilled my duty to myself, my family, my beliefs, and this struggle.
I remain proud of the actions that brought me to prison. I am proud of my conduct as a political prisoner, never wavering in my integrity.
But it is difficult to come to terms with having sacrificed so much of my life only to return and find the battle still being waged. Our struggle to stop human-induced climate change, pollution, and environmental destruction is far from over. Our struggle for social justice, human liberation, and animal rights is far from complete.
From time to time each of us must redefine our commitment and contributions to activism. We are not always capable of giving 110%. What matters is that we continue to give what we can.
After my release you may not find me on the front lines battling tooth and nail to win. But whether in or out of prison I’ll never stop standing up for what is right and doing my part to make this world a little better.
I’ve given, hell, my life to these struggles I see no reason to stop there.
-Jeffrey Free Luers