On Repeat
The inevitable monotony of another day decays your precious time, alongside your brain cells as you get trapped listening to those who surround you once again.
ISSUE NO. 8
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5 MIN READ
Ike Curtis
Donate Here
Running for Your Life!
George discusses the running club at his prison
Letters
No Real closure
James wonders if closure is really possible
Experiences
Voting in Prison
The Australian election is coming up soon!
Legal corner
All about naloxone
Life saving tips to prevent drug overdose
Health
Another Day in Paradise
By Noah
Prison reflects you like a mirror, you regret every mistake in your life. Everything. And if you want, it brings you back on the right way.
ISSUE NO. 8
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2 MIN READ
‘Maximum Security (The Zoo)’ by Tony, 2022, acrylic on canvas, Boom Gate Gallery
Running for Your Life
By George
I was 40 years old when I was incarcerated and I could barely run around the block.
ISSUE NO. 8
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3 MIN READ
Daniel Olah on Unsplash
By Paul
I now live in hope that I can find peace within myself, and there is a faint light at the end of a very long tunnel.
ISSUE NO. 8
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3 MIN READ
By Wendy
I'll never come back to this place, but I’ll always respect the time that I’ve spent in here, and I understand now how and why people return to this place.
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4 MIN READ
By Rachel
Wow, I won the caption comp for December… I’ve never won anything and the whole jail is congratulating me.
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2 MIN READ
By Kerrin
With even the prison staff in industries agreeing that our pay rates are ridiculous, how do things stay the same?
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4 MIN READ
By Patrick
The lack of housing is creating a backlog for inmates who otherwise would be eligible for parole.
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3 MIN READ
By Alex
Dad would always say “there’s something about toiling in the garden, getting your hands in soil, it earths me out.”
ISSUE NO. 8
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3 MIN READ
By George
I am the volunteer garden billet and some of my responsibilities are garden plot allocation and seed distribution.
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2 MIN READ
Victoria and ACT Cut the Price of Prison Phone Calls in Half
From the start of February, people in prison in Victoria will now be charged 25c per minute to make a mobile phone call, down from the previous 57c per minute rate.
ISSUE NO. 8
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9 MIN READ
Ike Curtis
Around the Country – February 2025
Including Labor pushing for mandatory minimums for hate crimes and terror offences, the Age of Criminal Responsibility rising in 2025 in the ACT, new NSW laws to target antisemitism and hate speech and more.
ISSUE NO. 8
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2 – 3 MIN READ EACH
Ethan Cassidy
Recognising the Rights of Incarcerated Workers
By Andreea Lachsz
Prison work differs across the country.
ISSUE NO. 8
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7 MIN READ
'Innovations of Identifications', by Geoff, 2003, Boom Gate Gallery
Pride Without Police
By Stacey Stokes
The Midsumma Pride March sees tens of thousands march down Fitzroy Street in St Kilda, with many more turning out to cheer them on.
ISSUE NO. 8
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4 MIN READ
Pride March in St Kilda in February 2025
Reflections From a Prison Teacher
By Paul A MacNamara
Education is not regarded as the most significant risk factor for reoffending but there is an undeniable link between a lack of education and crime.
ISSUE NO. 8
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5 MIN READ
'Muster (Long Bay, long day)', by Peter, 2000, acrylic on canvas, 107cm x 108cm, Boom Gate Gallery
No Real Closure
By James
I needed closure to help me live a normal life, but it was not forthcoming. I was reaching out for closure but it never came.
ISSUE NO. 8
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7 MIN READ
'What a Waste of Time' by Brian, 2018, courtesy of Boom Gate Gallery
Gardening, for Those With and Without
If you’ve experienced gardening, you’re likely well acquainted with the mental health benefits of getting your hands dirty.
ISSUE NO. 8
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5 MIN READ
“But No One Died.” Why We Feel Grief in Response to Life Changes
Grief does not discriminate as to whether the loss is ‘good’ or ‘bad’ for you; it is about the absence of something you have held close for a long time.
ISSUE NO. 8
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6 MIN READ
'Escaping Cloth' by Allan, 2000, 85cm x 108cm, Boom Gate Gallery
Everything You Need to Know About Naloxone
Naloxone is a medicine that can be used by anyone to reverse a potentially fatal opioid overdose.
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7 MIN READ
AIVL
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3 MIN READ
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3 MIN READ
The Federal Election: Voting and More
The federal election is coming up. It happens about every three years. It’s for electing the government for the whole country – the federal government.
ISSUE NO. 8
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9 MIN READ
Voting boxes for the Senate and House of Representatives – Source: Australian Electoral Commission
Common Human Rights Issues in Prison
By Prisoners’ Legal Service (Queensland)
This article discusses some of the human rights that may be relevant in prison with reference to human rights protections under the Human Rights Act 2019 (QLD) in Queensland.
ISSUE NO. 8
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6 MIN READ
Legal Q&A – No Body, No Parole
By About Time
I wonder if you could explain the new "No Body No Parole" law in New South Wales, where now people charged with murder or manslaughter need letters from the head of police?
ISSUE NO. 8
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3 MIN READ
Ethan Cassidy
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Legal Q&A
Do you have a general legal query that you want answered?
Is there an area of law that you think people inside should know more about? Submit your question in the provided form, and we might publish an answer in the paper.
Submit Your Question
Getting a Job After Prison
Getting a job after prison is hard for most people. If you had a job before you went in, you may not be able to go back to it, or you might not want to.
ISSUE NO. 8
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10 MIN READ
Ernie Journeys on Unsplash
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Mob
Government Report on First Nations Healthcare in Prisons Calls for Urgent Changes
A wide-ranging report commissioned by the federal government has called for “urgent and proactive” system-level reforms to improve the standard of health care provided to First Nations people in prison.
ISSUE NO. 8
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2 MIN READ
'Freshwater Gooya' by Andrew, $350, #5293, 60cm x 75cm, acrylic on canvas
Artwork From The Torch – Issue No. 8
This is my interpretation of Country. The greens and browns take me back to the quiet and secluded areas I've worked on and stayed on whilst camping and living off Country.
ISSUE NO. 8
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2 MIN READ
Chippa (Palawa) ‘Country’ 2024, Acrylic on canvas
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
Reviewed by Mark
I've read thousands of novels over the last fifty-odd years and not one of them was romance, but while I'm trying new things – like paraplegia and prison – I might as well add in a romance novel to my life experience.
ISSUE NO. 8
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3 MIN READ
Hachette Australia
Movie Review of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
By Vincent
Welcome to the planet where the apes are rulers and the humans – as far as we know – are reduced to a subspecies.
ISSUE NO. 8
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2 MIN READ
20th Century Studios
Crochet
Here's just a few of my crochet art projects – this is what you can achieve if you learn how to crochet!
ISSUE NO. 8
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2 MIN READ
Education Area Transformed by ‘Resident Artist’
Most of the day in school I would spend in art as my teacher Mrs Crawford was the only one that seemed to understand me and get my ADHD. She made me feel equal.
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4 MIN READ
Gemini
By Luke
There is a kind of peace that comes with routine. A familiarity that numbs you to the monotony of everyday life.
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3 MIN READ
Craig, Woodford Correctional Centre, QLD
For Rich or For Poor, Sickness And In Health
By Courtney
To me it means hard work and rough times, you have to work for what you want and there will always be barriers and things/people trying to bring you down.
ISSUE NO. 8
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2 MIN READ
For rich or for poor, sickness and in health, By Courtney, Acrylic on canvas, 2024
By Robert
Tears on my pillow, pain in my heart. The day they put me in prison, my whole world fell apart.
ISSUE NO. 8
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2 MIN READ
By Leslie
Lights on, doors slam, go running to the phone. Dial the number hit the hash, and wonder if they're home. Spend the first minute saying hello, fight to say a word. Tell them that you love them and hope that you are heard.
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3 MIN READ
By Storm
It's about time, I outline, the walls we're within. No doubts fly, no routes fine, the way I'm living.
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3 MIN READ
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Play
Bad Jokes
If you have a better joke please send them to us because these ones are terrible!
Markus Winkler
Caption This...
What would you caption the below photo? Click through and tell us in the comments!
Photo by Oner Mopo on Unsplash
Boggle
Discover as many words as possible. A word can only be formed if each letter is side-by-side, above or below, or on the diagonal with the next.
Crossword
Can you find all the words from the clues?
Card Game – Slapjack
Play this card game with your friends!
Aditya Chinchure
Quiz
How many of this month's quiz questions do you know?
Jason Leung