“One day, I will make a difference”: Examining Muslim Subjectivity among US Prisoners Through the American Prison Writing Archive
Open Access DepositedThe study of Islam and its adherents in United States prisons has garnered significant attention from scholars and policymakers. This study utilizes the American Prison Writing Archive (APWA) to investigate the subjectivity of self-identified Muslim prisoners who submitted essays (and occasionally poetry) on subjects of their choosing, but mostly describing their everyday experiences within the prison environment. The core research question considers whether and how these incarcerated people relate these experiences to their faith. This approach allows for an exploration of Muslim prisoners’ perspectives and experiences without the constraints of predetermined interviewer questions, offering a nuanced understanding of their lived experiences and how that relates to their faith. The study found that only a small minority of self-identified incarcerated Muslims chose to write about their faith identity. Indeed, race, conditions of confinement, and themes other than faith predominated in the majority of the essays. The focus of this study is on the subjectivity and perspectives of the imprisoned Muslims who did focus on their “Muslimness,” and shows that their relationship with Islam cultivated a pro-social identity, from internal discipline and remorse for crimes, to being leaders and role models within the prison community. Essays highlighted both many pains of imprisonment and ways in which these were sometimes managed through a recourse to their faith. There was relatively little focus on experiences of discrimination, with a more frequent focus on topics such as aspirations for leadership, hopes for the future, self-rehabilitation, masculinity, prison conditions, and familial and intimate relationships, often framed or inspired by faith and Islamic values and requirements.
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