Inmates take part in music, art expose
On Sunday morning, Joshua Ishmael Toralba and his band, The Logos, stood on a low carpeted stage inside a small chapel.
The nine men, wearing matching green shirts tucked into matching green pants, picked up their respective instruments and played an intricate song called "Jeova," before going directly into a second song, "Me a Mostrado El Camino."
The 30 to 40 audience members clapped wildly in neat rows of silver folding chairs, most wearing the same green shirts and pants.
The band and the majority of the audience are inmates at the minimum security Federal Prison Camp in Pensacola for men, and participated in the "Celebrate the Change" music and arts expose, in celebration of National Reentry Week. Paintings, drawings, wood and leather work, and poetry were also included in the event.
During National Reentry Week, April 24-30, Bureau of Prisons facilities throughout the country host jobs fairs, Legal Aid clinics and Department of Motor Vehicles events in order to support the inmates' successful reentry into the the community. The inmates then receive detailed information about finding housing and employment, reconnecting with family and friends and organizing personal and financial affairs.
"It is the philosophy of the Bureau of Prisons that preparation for reentry begins on the first day of an inmate's incarceration," said Warden Angel Motta of FPC Pensacola. "Today's event highlights our goal to prepare the inmates to be successful when they reintegrate into society."
According to the U.S. Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Prisons, more than 41,000 inmates from federal prisons return to their communities each year. The goal of the reentry program is to help the former inmates adjust to their new surroundings and to keep the inmates from returning to prison.
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Most of the inmates performing Sunday talked about looking forward to the future and the celebratory "reentry" theme of excitement was palpable.
"This is what I used to sing on the streets — it's part of my past, but now I'm 100 percent singing for the Lord," Toralba said, as he and his band broke into a cover of John Waite's "Missing You."
The three back up singers moved in time with one another, clapping with the rhythm.
An inmate identified as Mr. Johnson took the stage next and talked about keeping a journal making daily observations. He read a poem called "The Locker" which referenced the 3-by-5-feet lockers the inmates use for their personal belongings on a daily basis. He followed the first poem by another called "The Visit," that describes the lack of emotion the inmates sometimes show when family comes to visit them.
"When others can't see, that weak we might be, I'm just a man who loves you enough to cry," he read.
He also read a letter he'd written recently for his 18-year-old grandson, in which he noted that people don't have to be defined by their greatest accomplishments or their biggest mistakes, and that kindness and compassion are what make us human.
Another singer followed
Johnson, identified only as Mr. Barksdale, a gospel singer from Mississippi with 30 years of singing experience.
Barksdale's rendition of "Amazing Grace" resonated within the walls of the tiny chapel and several audience members silently wiped tears off their cheeks before giving a him a standing ovation.
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In between each of the performances, an inmate identified as Mr. Dinsbeer handled the duties of the emcee, introducing and thanking each performer, and making jokes to offset the heavily emotional moments.
The inmates voiced their sorrows and hopes, and the general mood of the morning felt honest and celebratory.
"I used to play the sax in the '70s, but when I came to prison, music made me very sad," an inmate identified as Mr. Morales-Rosario said, as he pulled his black-rimmed glasses out of his shirt pocket in order to read the sheet music in front of him.
Before playing a melodic saxophone solo, Morales-Rosario told stories about his childhood dream of studying aviation and cracked jokes about finding the perfect wife (his method involves closing one eye.)
Next, an inmate identified as Mr. Jefferson sang a version of Hoobastank's "The Reason," before singing a duet with Toralba.
Another band, Maranata, made up of some of the same musicians as the first group, played a round of lively and original songs with echo-y vocals. The lead singer of the band spoke Spanish, and a translator translated his words to the audience before they finished.
"To my wife and kids, I know we will be together and be happier than ever," the translator and bongo player said before the group played their last song.
The last man to perform, identified as Mr. Barrientos, played two songs on the piano, and ended with an upbeat tune called,"Change," which encompassed the theme of the day.
Two inmates in the front row again wiped away tears and put an arm around each other's shoulder as Barrientos sang the line,"I know the change starts with me."