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the Prison Monastery

in 2023

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Live Updates

Gary York, 30 year Correctional Officer veteran, and spokesperson for Guards to Guardian, wrote an article about the program in Corrections1. Read the article here
Art of Soulmaking is now in 121 facilities across the United States
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) has accepted our application for the Art of Soulmaking program to be used at 10 facilities in California, with the potential of reaching 110,000 incarcerated individuals.
The Earth Program met with the founder of Archangel Ancient Tree Archive based in Michigan to provide the us with baby trees of the most evolved tree DNA in the world for the Earth Program’s prison program.
Free Food has now served over 12,000 meals this year, most of them sit downs in Ukiah, CA and Harlem, NY
Free food Harlem received 300+ lbs of donated produce from Fairway for our delicious farm to table meals
Free Food Oakland had its first pop up in July, serving enchiladas, Spanish rice and homemade cookies to those living on the streets of Oakland
Keisha and Casey Ernst, graduates from the Soil Food Web and of Catalyst BioAmendments, visited our property in Northern California and did testing of our living soil with a 40x video enhanced microscope. They’re helping the Earth Program develop our curriculum to include elements of the Soil Food Web school, the premier methodology of soil education in the world.
Matt Sherman, member of Black Box, recently posted about his experience in New York City. Check out his blog post here
Volunteers harvested snap peas and lettuce from our farm for this week’s Free Food Philo meal
Mendocino County Jail received a chicken coop donation from Carolina Coops, and Founder Matt DuBois flew in to help build it with the male and female garden crews
A state prison in Alabama has approved the inception of it’s first ever yoga program, held by members of the Art of Soulmaking community there. UFP is sending over 25 yoga mats and yoga blocks to be used on the death row unit yoga group.
Matt Sherman, a member of BlackBox, is on a Black Joy & Genius Tour along the East Coast. Read his latest blog here
Soulmakers have been sending us beautiful art work as they go through the program. This is an art piece from California Medical Facility
Earth program awarded a $50,000 grant to fund our prison botanical sanctuary program at Mendocino County Jail, a program that will both promote ecosystem restoration, community contribution, as well as education and employment for the incarcerated population at the jail. Watch our video here

Rehumanization:
FROM DISCARDED
TO FLOURISHING

Rehumanization is the process of restoring marginalized people and groups to dignity; it sees each of us as an essential element to a thriving human ecology.

Mission Statement

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter featuring short essays and stories about rehumanization told by program participants, their families, Unconditional Freedom staff, contributors, and partners.

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Read our previous issues

REHUMANIZATION APPLIED

Activating the unique expression of the discarded

Unconditional Freedom Project

Turning prisons into monasteries

Restoring prisons to their original intent; penitence. 
Spaces for contemplation, transformation, and
contribution.

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students enrolled
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death row residents nationwide

FREE FOOD

Liberating food for those in need

Free Food is about emptying what is full, and filling what is empty. This program provides dignified, nutritious healthy meals to those who otherwise could not afford them, and the opportunity to express love and contribute for those who have more than they need.

Over 22,000 meals served.

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EARTH

Soil into Climate Salvation

The Earth Program is our initiative to rewild the Earth. When we tend to the restoration of the earth, we are healing ourselves through healing the earth. We provide immersive training in ecological restoration practices both on The Land and to discarded populations.

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Black Box

Black into Power

Black Box 1 (1)
https://player.vimeo.com/video/666216717?h= 35e4bb9576
Black Box 2 (1)
https://player.vimeo.com/video/666120035?h=3aa6dca853
Black Box 3 (1)
https://player.vimeo.com/video/666119778?h=a0883d569d
Black Box 4 (1)
https://player.vimeo.com/video/666119836?h=89c3831a6b

A movement towards the reclamation of the innate power of Blackness, towards a world where the power of Blackness is overt, and is offered freely and it is in service to all of humanity.

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Labs

Programs in development

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Addiction

Recovery into Discovery

Learn More
Click here

Erotic Justice

Proposing a paradigm shift towards love and unity

Learn More
Click here

Woman

Feminine power and personal and collective responsibility

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From the Blog

Image 1-3-23 at 3.31 PM
January 3, 2023

Persimmon Muffins

After the leaves are gone, the persimmons remain on the tree, hanging there like Christmas ornaments, and slowly beginning to ripen and turn sweet. We were picking ripe, luscious fruit in the middle of December!
Image 1-3-23 at 3.15 PM
#poetry
January 3, 2023

Pain to Purpose

I’ve found a way to turn my pain into a purpose, with my words and a pen, Let the oasis of heartache flow, for a higher purpose or worthy end, We all must make the best of this life that we’ve been given, No matter if we’re living it on the streets or in prison.
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#Free Food
January 3, 2023

Impermanence and the Transitory Nature of Food as Art

At 5 p.m. the meal comes together. All the items are assembled for the first time on the first plate which is set in front of the first patron. It’s like the last grain of sand, the final puzzle piece is in its place.
Image 1-3-23 at 10.54 AM
#Letters from Prison
January 3, 2023

Training to Train; Practicing to Practice

I started training to train. Practicing to practice. I discovered it doesn’t matter what we practice, if we have self-discipline, we can accomplish anything!
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#Unconditional Freedom
January 3, 2023

Freedom Within

A day in the garden was like freedom to my heart... It was so satisfying to sit down to a meal and see the vegetables we grew on our plates. I would always announce to the others with a smile, “I planted and harvested that.”
Image 12-8-22 at 8.48 AM
#Recipe
December 8, 2022

Turkey Barley Soup

Another thing I am always grateful for at Thanksgiving is the leftovers. I love to be able to open my refrigerator door, to look inside and dream about the possibilities of what to do with all those leftovers.
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#Free Food
December 7, 2022

Sharing Abundance, Sharing Love

Alongside the food were large canisters of sparkling water, still water, and a homemade fruit beverage, providing each guest with a choice of drink before sitting at one of the well-made tables to enjoy a restaurant-quality meal.
smaller tree file
#Unconditional Freedom
December 7, 2022

Desert Tree

The Art of Soulmaking program brought me to a fuller understanding: That “dead” part of the tree is still part of the tree’s life. It is a crucial support for the tree, grounding it more fully, allowing it to flourish.
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#BlackBox
December 7, 2022

Dependency, a Helluva’ Drug

You understand that obligation doesn’t actually exist. It’s not real. It’s merely a place where you won’t take responsibility for what you want.

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