Domestic Diversions

“wondering if people are thinking of me”

The New York Times gives space to D. Nurkse and creative writing workshops for kids in custody. The article links to the poems of 6 teenage inmates at Rikers Island.

D. Nurkse writes (excerpt):
In 1998 I was hired to lead poetry workshops at Island Academy, one of three public schools on Rikers Island. The first time I taught creative writing there, I suggested a broad theme: “My Life.” I watched a teenager smooth out a piece of paper and write those words at the top, then his street name, then his name. An hour later he was still writing.

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