Julie

Narrator: Karren Jaime Summary: Karren Jaime grew up in Puerto Rico and later moved to New York City. She was incarcerated multiple times at Rikers Island. She found comfort and felt most at home at the Rikers Island church. She also found community and hope through the jail's NA and AA meetings. While at Rikers,

Narrator: Ivelisse Gilestra Summary: Ivelisse Gilestra migrated to New York from Puerto Rico in 1992. Within two years, she was visiting Rikers Island to see friends and loved ones. Gilestra later served 13 years in another prison. "Rikers has been an extension of our communities," she notes. She was socialized to normalize the experience of

Narrator: Brandon Rodriguez Summary: Brandon Rodriguez grew up in Staten Island, New York. He was incarcerated at Rikers Island twice, including a one-month stint when COVID-19 first swept through the facility in 2020. He coped with stressful conditions inside the jail by writing, rapping, praying, cleaning, and sleeping as many as 17 hours a day.

Narrator: Tahtianna Fermin Summary: Tahtianna Fermin lives in New Jersey and works as a recovery coach and group facilitator. While she was never incarcerated at Rikers, she is close to many individuals who were detained there: her brother, her husband, and many friends, including a close friend who died there. As a transgender woman, Fermin