u/BootAffectionate9425

Background: Pelican Bay State Penitentiary, Crescent City, California. Level 2 security. Released 2023.

Tl;dr A lifer gave me protection while incarcerated, and in return I got him his freedom with the parole board. Expand your social circles in prison; never self-isolate.

People who have not been incarcerated will tell you while in prison to have your head down, mind your own business, and keep to yourself.

This is wrong. Your strength comes from your friends, your allies, and other useful relationships while in prison. Why fight your foes yourself when you can have someone else do the dirty work. The bigger and stronger your social circles in prison, the more informed you are about potential threats and the easier you can parlay them.

A first timer, I had multiple strikes against me. I was Jewish, I was fat, and I suffered from depression, which led me to struggle maintaining my hygiene. It was an uphill battle from the start. However, by the grace of God, I was able to gain acceptance through an influential paisa there. He saw my potential, placed me under his wing, and made sure no one attacked me physically, raided my cell, and if anyone had a problem with me they came to him and he taught me how to behave better.

This paisa was serving a life sentence with possibility of parole. However, 33 years in and he was constantly being rejected by the parole board, at least 9 times rejected for release if I remember correctly. But he had a merciful heart, made a mistake, and I saw there was good in him. So I was able to get a renowned academic professor on the outside to use their prestigious itinerary and reputation and write him a stellar, unique, and brilliant recommendation for him for the parole board. While every other person attempting parole had recommendations from the same staff in prison, my man had something unique, useful, and extraordinary to show the board. And that recommendation I got him was enough to grant him his freedom.

Prison is scary, and your first instinct is to self isolate. To shut off from others. To “mind your own business”. Don’t do this. Do the opposite: go out there, build up your networks of friends, allies, and useful people, and you’ll see how much easier it is when others fight your battles for you and you develop real, lasting, and meaningful connections.

Back when I went to Northeastern the acceptance rate was 30%, everyone was saying computer science was going to be the most lucrative major, and the newest building was International Village. Plus my freshman dorm was White Hall, which I see has been bulldozed. So I’m sure things have radically changed since then, but I’d still like to share about my time there.

Location matters in a campus, and Northeastern has it best. Engrained in the city, there were so many natural hangout spots where you knew you could bump into people you knew, whether it was Symphony Sushi, Panera, or one of the many Northeastern bars around the area.

Ethos also matters, and at Northeastern you felt you were part of this juggernaut of an institution constantly redefining its identity from commuter school to an elite and desirable education. On campus, there was this entrepreneurial spirit that encouraged people to grow and create and live their best lives.

It was not all sunshine and rainbows at Northeastern. My co-op was an unmitigated disaster and a low point in my life, I was constantly pressured by business and engineering majors to change my degree from something other than liberal arts, and living in Boston, even on campus, was just plain expensive.

Overall, I’m grateful for my time at Northeastern and do believe it helped me form the identity I live with today. I think Northeastern is a great investment, great school, and great experience overall. But Northeastern does come with caveats, as should be expected anywhere you choose.