By Alondra Magallanes
POPS isn’t an ordinary club about robotics, math, religion, or sea creatures.
POPS is about prison.
My brother Ariel accompanied me to the first meeting of the club that meets in Room 120. We entered the classroom, grabbed a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a cup of lemonade and chocolate brownies—the best deep chocolate brownies. Then we sat in a circle and waited for more students to arrive.
At least 15 students showed up, probably more, and what happened over the next 25 minutes was not what I could have ever anticipated.
I thought I was alone when it came to prison.
My brother and I who are usually quiet people became surprisingly open and talkative. Ariel began pouring out his emotions. He couldn’t stop. I followed.
And everyone actually listened. Almost everyone spoke openly about why they were there. Not everyone was directly affected by prison—a few came just for the food, which was fine because they all listened and understood some of what we felt when they heard our stories. Hearing my schoolmates’ stories that first day made me realize I had taken for granted the time with my dad when he was a free man.
Talking helped me break out of my shell, helped me gain the confidence to try out for the drill team, and helped me bring up all my grades.
I released the shame I felt about my relationship to prison.
In that room students who never noticed each other on campus sat together and listened to each other. In that circle, we acknowledged each other’s talent in writing poems, essays, stories, and in music. The meetings brightened every Wednesday.
Over the next few months, many speakers visited. Some of their stories made us cry or made us angry about what goes on inside prisons. Not every speaker expressed shame. Some regretted decisions they had made in the past. It was obvious that in one way or another, in the long run, their prison experience had made them better people. Now they worked twice as hard as they had worked before just to get by. Some suffered great losses like the loss of a mother, being expelled from every school in the country, racking up huge legal bills, becoming homeless and wasting years of their lives. One speaker explained how her life became so difficult she turned to drugs and alcohol and her sister attempted suicide multiple times, but now she and her sisters have become successful businesswomen and turned their loss and sadness into a non-profit organization that helps women who have become victims of violence.
The club helped push me in the right direction mentally and emotionally, allowed me to make long-lasting friendships, and provided me with unforgettable memories. It filled me up on brownies and lemonade every Wednesday, and I’m grateful to those who listened to my stories and accepted my past. Most of all I’m thankful for all that I’ve learned through every experience in Room 120 at lunch.
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