I Cried
I cried for companionship for loneliness is such great pain.
I've written thousands of letters for just one friend to gain.
I've searched for love from rich women to poor,
From coast to coast from shore to shore.
But no one hears me or seem to really care,
All they want are material things fortune and fame, not love to share.
This world can be so cruel uncaring with disregard
No love or understanding just greed and hate in the heart.
I've cried out "injustice" brutality and rejection
I've cried out of the denials degradation and represssion.
But my cries are all unheard and upon deaf ears they fall.
Everyone's for self or not at all.
Am I fighting a losing battle - are all my tears in vain?
Or is there a love out there for me to eventually obtain?
Is there someone special who will take me in arms and hold?
Who will cherish a relationship and together we grow old?
Is there any caring person who would take time to write?
To share a moment of kindness and ease my enduring plight?
Someone who will wipe these tears of pain and loneliness within,
So I can finally say I have found myself a friend???
By Al Cunningham, California
Please note: all prisoners' work is copyrighted. If you wish to copy any work, please ask by contacting us.
In a Death Row prisoner‘s own words:
“It‘s about my penpal she has changed my life from a mental hell, her letters have rolled back the clouds in my life and allowed the sunshine to burst thru. I am so impressed by this beautiful women that I am not ashamed or embarrassed to acknowledge her as my friend – Best Friend. I couldn’t love her more.”
“It‘s about my penpal she has changed my life from a mental hell, her letters have rolled back the clouds in my life and allowed the sunshine to burst thru. I am so impressed by this beautiful women that I am not ashamed or embarrassed to acknowledge her as my friend – Best Friend. I couldn’t love her more.”
Human Writes Patrons
"The very essence of the death penalty is to tell people that they are somehow sub-human, not fit to live. Yet even those people I have represented who did what they were accused of - a surprisingly limited number - have always been much better people than their worst fifteen minutes, as are we all. Those who recognise this by reaching out to the men and women on death row are true heroes, though I suspect they gain as much as they give to the relationship."
Clive Stafford Smith OBE, Founder of Reprieve and Patron, Human Writes
"As a journalist who has lived and worked in the United States, the horror of death row is one of the issues that never leaves you. The thread of humanity that Human Writes manages to sustain with men and women on death row is a profound contribution to keep alive the hope of life. Capital punishment is now on the retreat in America, but the numbers awaiting their fate are still very considerable. I am very honoured to have become a Patron of Human Writes and will hope to do my best to put my shoulder to the wheel".
Jon Snow Broadcaster and journalist, Patron, Human Writes
"I know what it is like to live in a cell for decades and feel that the whole world hates you. I never expected to be able to live again as a contributing member of a community. Prison life was precarious and unpredictable but I met people who worked there who wanted to help me and people like me - and I'm lucky that I live in a society graceful enough to offer me a second chance. At least I had hope. Hope for many of the people supported by Human Writes has all but been extinguished. Letters to people on Death Row let them know that however low they may have fallen, they are still human beings. They still have value and are worth caring about and letters might just help to keep hope alive. That is why I am honoured to have been invited to be a patron."
Erwin James 1957 - 2024, author and Guardian columnist, Patron, Human Writes
Prisoner Art and Writing
"The volunteers of Human Writes seek to hold out the hand of friendship to men and women facing the death penalty. I am pleased to encourage them in their writing"
Most Reverend and Rt Hon George L Carey, former Archbishop of Canterbury
"No matter its circumstances, dying is one of the most important things we ever do. I applaud all who offer compassion and hope to those facing death, especially in the terrible circumstances of Death Row. May God bless your work."
His Eminence Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster