Saturday, January 15, 2000
Inmates study ideas of peace, harmony
Group uses time to grow spiritually
BY DAVID ECK
Enquirer Contributor
TURTLECREEK TWP. — Martin Luther King Jr. died 32 years ago, but his idea of cultural understanding lives on in churches, universities and cities across the country.
It also thrives within the walls of Warren Correctional Institution.
“He had the power to be able to transform people from what they were to what they could be,” Sharon Draper, writer and former teacher of the year, told inmates Friday.
“If Martin Luther King were alive today, he would want you to laugh. He would want to see the hope and happiness I see on your faces tonight.”
Mrs. Draper was keynote speaker for a program on Dr. King by the prison's Cultural Awareness Association (CAA), an inmate organization that promotes unity and peace through understanding.
Mrs. Draper read several of her short stories that helped crystallize the essence of Dr. King: family, peace, culture and church. For nearly 40 minutes Mrs. Draper had the 50 inmates laughing and cheering, and sometimes reflecting.
Several choirs, one composed of inmates, performed during the two-hour program.
Checks for $150 each were presented to charitable organizations. The money was raised from the sale of the Umoja Men's Choir album that was released in 1996. That inmate choir at WCI is part of the Warren Chapter of Wilmington College.
CAA, which promotes awareness of cultures, has helped give some inmates a new positive attitude toward life, they say. About 80 inmates belong to CAA.
“It helps me to regain trust,” said Chris Maupin, who is on the CAA's executive board. “I have learned a strong sense of my culture. There is no reason to look at anyone in a negative way. It helped instill a sense of people of other cultures.”
The program incorporates seminars, workshops and even movies to promote harmony and brotherhood.
CAA president Laiq Burge said the group is based in a positive outlook, and has helped him learn and grow.
“I was real arrogant. I didn't want to listen,” he said. “Once you're able to understand everyone around you, you can better understand yourself. There are a lot of positives to a negative environment.”
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