Jesse J. Self was 19 years old and a much different person, when he went on a two-week robbery spree in Kentucky. Caught up in a small draconian town during pre-election times, he was sentenced to 70 years in prison. Jesse served 151⁄2 years of the sentence before being granted parole and released on September 21, 2010. After two years of freedom, glimmers of hope are peaking through the horizon. In May 2013, he graduated summa cum laude from Northeastern Illinois University, a double major in Interdisciplinary Studies and Social Work. Jesse recently started working for the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR), and next year – if all continues well – he will begin advanced standing graduate studies at the University of Chicago’s School of Social Service Administration. His hope is that writing will continue to give him new insights as he moves forward and that it will take him places far removed from the dank prison cells where he has spent most of my adult years. He can be reached by email at jesse.self720@gmail.com.
