In the Media

Highlights of Freedom Reads and its work in the media.

The Search for Beauty in a Prison Cell
The New York Times by Reginald Dwayne Betts November 25, 2022

Freedom Reads Founder & CEO Reginald Dwayne Betts writes on regaining his freedom after eight years of incarceration and why he feels an urgency to bring beauty to those left behind.

Holding a Gun
The New York Review by Reginald Dwayne Betts and Serhiy Zhadan November 24, 2022

Freedom Reads Founder & CEO Reginald Dwayne Betts in conversation via letters with Serhiy Zhadan, Ukrainian poet and novelist.

Between the Lines: PW Talks with Titus Kaphar and Reginald Dwayne Betts
Publishers Weekly by Natalie Zacek November 23, 2022

Artist Titus Kaphar and poet and Freedom Reads Founder & CEO Reginald Dwayne Betts discuss their latest collaborative collection, Redaction.

More 'freedom libraries' arrive in Louisiana state prisons: 'If we build it, they will come'
The Advocate by Jacqueline DeRobertis November 21, 2022

James Washington, Freedom Reads Library Fabrication Supervisor embedded with the Revival Workshop in New Orleans, reflects on giving back to those incarcerated after serving 25 years.

The years that we've lost
Yale Alumni Magazine by Dylan Walsh November 1, 2022

Freedom Reads Founder & CEO Reginald Dwayne Betts reflects on his journey and how the years behind bars inform his life now.

Freedom Reads
Poets & Writers by Alissa Greenberg November 1, 2022

An in-depth look into Freedom Reads, including Literary Ambassadors, events, and Book Circles.

Rikers jail gets book donation from group led by ex-prisoner; 'Trying to show up in a way that matters'
New York Daily News by Graham Rayman October 29, 2022

Freedom Reads brings beauty in the form of 2,500 books into the Robert N. Davoren Center on Rikers Island.

From the Studio: Reginald Dwayne Betts
Spokane Public Radio by E. J. Iannelli October 24, 2022

Freedom Reads Founder & CEO Reginald Dwayne Betts speaks on poetry, activism, and Freedom Reads.

Prison Letters Project Responds to Incarcerated People
Yale Law School September 19, 2022

Freedom Reads hosts the database for the Prison Letters Project, a new initiative seeking to ensure every letter from incarcerated people in prison is read and answered.

How I Became a Prison Poet — And So Much More
Prison Journalism Project by Kate McQueen September 14, 2022

Reginald Dwayne Betts, Freedom Reads Founder & CEO and award-winning author and poet, chatted with the Prison Journalism Project about growing as a writer from behind bars.

Plan the Visit (with Dwayne Betts)
Pod Save the People by Deray Mckesson August 30, 2022

Deray Mckesson interviews Reginald Dwayne Betts on Freedom Reads' innovative work bringing literature into America's prisons.

Reginald Dwayne Betts Explains Origins of Freedom Reads
C-SPAN by About Books podcast August 7, 2022

Freedom Reads Founder & CEO Reginald Dwayne Betts discusses the origin of Freedom Reads and the importance of books.