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Prison Libraries Committee

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Who we are:

The Prison Libraries Committee (PLC) of the Manitoba Library Association (MLA) is a volunteer group that provides collections, programming and library awareness for people who are incarcerated in Manitoba.  Formed in 2012, the PLC’s volunteers provide service to:

  1. Winnipeg Remand Centre (WRC) in Winnipeg
  2. Women’s Correctional Centre (WCC) in Headingley, Manitoba
  3. Headingley Correctional Centre (HCC)
  4. Milner Ridge Correctional Centre in Beausejour, Manitoba
  5. The Pas Correctional Centre in The Pas, Manitoba.
  6. Manitoba Youth Centre (MYC) in Winnipeg

Programs have also been provided in other sites as part of reintegration and partnered initiatives. Activities of the PLC are continually evolving as we learn, grow and connect within justice and reintegration services in Manitoba.

What we believe:

We believe prison libraries and literacy play an important role in peoples’ reintegration into communities. Thoughtful programming and access to meaningful and relevant reading materials can help improve individuals’ quality of life both inside and outside of correctional institutions.

Please read our Prisoners Right to Read statement adopted by the Canadian Federation of Library Associations.

And the MLA-PLC action statement in support of the Black Lives Matter movement

What we do:

  • collect and deliver and organize books to the prisons
  • offer an Email Reference Service to HCC, WCC, Milner Ridge, and MYC
  • create library awareness for incarcerated Manitobans to inform on the resources and tools of the library for when they are released
  • commit to work together with partner sites and organizations towards the mutual goal of providing incarcerated and reintegrating individuals with relevant reading material and information
  • act with respect to both incarcerated Manitobans and workers in the justice system
  • advocate for the greatest access to reading materials and information possible within the environments of individual correctional institutions
  • operate library services and programming inside the prisons
    • we arrange special guests such as author talks, writing workshops, and songwriter visits
    • you can read a copy of the Create Chapbook online created by the women inside WCC (link takes you to the U of M – Institute for the Humanities website)

 

Read media coverage about our committee

Contact

General questions can be directed to the Chair of the PLC: prison.library@mla.mb.ca

For questions about volunteering please contact:  mla.plcvolunteer@gmail.com

For questions about donating books please contact: mla.plcdonate@gmail.com

To join our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/MLA.PLC

THANK YOU

To our donors, those who have donated books and money.

To Highwater Press, Portage & Main Press, University of Manitoba Press, Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry, and McNally Robinson for their book donations

To the staff at the Winnipeg Remand Centre, the Women’s Correctional Centre, Headingley Correctional Centre for Men, Milner Ridge Correctional Centre, the Manitoba Youth Centre, and The Pas Correctional Centre for their support, advice and encouragement as we continue to develop and present library programming and services inside their respective correctional institutions.

To the Winnipeg Public Library for their continued support in the form of storage space for our collections, for donations of post-book sale books, and much more.

And a final heartfelt thank you to our prison library users,  the incarcerated Manitobans who inspire us to do this good, hard, and important work. Thank you.