I can’t remember when it started, or specifically why, but over the last few years, I—and Mark, although presumably it goes back further for him—have become increasingly interested in the hows and whats of food in prison. How it’s served, what’s served, are there choices, are there vegetables, is there yogurt, is every food that’s served ultraprocessed?—the questions do not end. Which is why preparing for today’s interview was so tough—where to begin, where to end?
In 2020, Impact Justice released the first-ever national examination of food in prison. With her book, Eating Behind Bars: Ending the Hidden Punishment of Food in Prison, Leslie Soble—in partnership with Impact Justice—digs deeper, and let me tell you, she answers a lot of my questions. Eating Behind Bars reveals a systemic drive to cut costs at the expense of health and decency—no surprise there—but it’s also a story of resistance and hope, showing how incarcerated people and their allies are fighting back.
Of note: This was Leslie’s first time on a podcast! She started off by telling us how nervous she was, and then she ended up being one of the most polished people we’ve talked to, in a good way. She obviously worked so incredibly hard on Eating Behind Bars, and is a fountain of knowledge. I hope you find this conversation as fascinating, horrifying, and hopeful as we did.
One more thing: we published an excerpt from Eating Behind Bars—you can find that here.
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