If you would like to go ahead and write to someone then you can apply to join as a full member. The only stipulation we have is that our members must be at least eighteen years old. However, it is not something you should go into lightly. We ask people to make a definite commitment to writing, barring exceptional circumstances, because it can be devastating for a prisoner if their penfriend stops writing for no apparent reason. It should also be borne in mind that some prisoners can become disturbed owing to the pressures of life on Death Row, and there is also the possibility that your penfriend could be executed, although of course our office holders within Human Writes will always support you through these circumstances so you would not have to go through this alone.
If you decide that you would like to support Human Writes but that you would prefer not to become a penfriend at this stage, you can join us as an associate (non-writer) member at a reduced rate. This way you can still receive a newsletter, attend conferences etc. and be part of the organisation. Should you decide to become a penfriend at a later stage, full membership can be applied for.
Information on our membership database will not be passed to any other organisation and will be kept entirely confidential. We ask that you include a letter about yourself and why you have decided to join us; we just want to be sure that you have thought things through and we feel obliged to screen applicants to protect the people on Death Row from those who are in search of excitement rather than making a serious commitment of being a friend to someone who is desperately in need of one.
For an application form that you can print out, click here. Requires Adobe Acrobat, which can be downloaded here.
If you would like to contact us regarding membership, please visit our contact page.
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