The Prison Library Project’s mission is to provide free reading materials to inmates nationwide. We prioritize educational and self-help literature as well as recognize the value of literacy development through active engagement with books in general. The PLP serves a wide range of communities within the prison system: librarians, chaplains, drug/alcohol recovery groups, domestic abuse and HIV/AIDS support groups and others. Our goal is to promote literacy, personal responsibility, reflection, and growth.
We openly invite inmates to embrace the PLP’s mission and foster a deep appreciation for the world of books, ideas, and education. We hope to help those who receive our materials learn to take charge of their lives in positive ways and to return to society with new abilities, awareness, and the confidence to contribute to their families and communities in meaningful ways.
Why?
Rehabilitation was at one time a stated goal of the prison system. Today, funding for most educational and rehabilitation programs, including prison libraries, has been cut or completely eliminated. It is a distressing fact that U.S. prisons are increasingly about punishing people and warehousing human beings, not about, rehabilitation, or education. This is where PLP enters. We believe that everyone deserves access to literature and educational materials, including people trying to work towards social change, self-empowerment or rehabilitation within the incarceration system. The U.S. has less than 5 percent of the world’s population, but more than a quarter of the world’s prisoners. Nearly one percent of American adults are incarcerated, the highest rate in the world, but many prisoners have little access to books or educational material. They face substantial barriers and are cut off from family and friends on the outside. While some prisons have libraries, many do not. Of those that do, access and selection can be extremely limited. Usually, prisoners are not allowed to receive books from friends or family. Thus, programs like ours are one of the few options available to these individuals.
What We Do
The PLP receives nearly 300 letters a week from inmates. We mail over 11,000 packages of books, audio books, and magazines each year to individuals and libraries in 600 state and federal prisons and detention centers throughout the United States. Our weekly postage bill is about $500.00. Boxes of books are made available to individuals with access to prison libraries or book collections, such as guards, educators and human and health services. We also provide inmates and others with our online Ways and Means Resource List – a compilation of over 200 different service and legal organizations that assist prisoners and those returning to society following incarceration.
How You Can Help
The PLP is a non-profit organization, staffed almost entirely by volunteers. It is funded by donations and activities sponsored by the Claremont Forum. The books we provide are obtained through donations by publishers, bookstores and private individuals.
Our Book Wish List | We have many requests for these titles, please help!
, , , ,
Our bookshop/community center hours of operation:
Tuesday: 12:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Wednesday: 12:00 - 7:00 PM
Thursday: 12:00 - 7:00 PM
Friday: 12:00 - 8:00 PM
Saturday: 12:00 - 8:00 PM
Sunday: 12:00 - 5:00 PM
Need a different time to help?
Our bookshop is open 12:00 PM - 7:00 PM Tuesday - Sunday, call ahead and let us know you will be coming by at (909) 626-3066.