A prison is like a little city. It has a library, a beauty shop (which is just a fancy name for a hair cutting room), a medical wing, a rec yard... Of course, facilities vary from institution to institution, but if we exclude countries that have a different philosophy on incarceration altogether, most places are pretty similar.
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So we're told. For the average person, life behind bars remains a mystery. And quite an intriguing one. How do people organize themselves under such extreme circumstances? What do they miss? How do they spend their days? A TV show, for example, might give us an idea but if we constructed our worldview based on what we saw on the screen, we'd end up like Truman Burbank. In an illusion.
Instead, let's take a realistic look at how inmates get by — the subreddit r/PrisonWallet is perfect for this job.
#1 Prisoners From Indiana Were Given Cats To Look After As Part Of A Rehabilitation Scheme. Here Is One Prisoner With A Hat He Knitted For His Cat!
Image credits: log00
#2 “Lady”, An Electric Guitar Built Illegally By An Inmate In A Pennsylvania State Prison
Image credits: chicametipo
Naturally, not everything that gets made in a cell is as innocent as you see in these pictures. "I'd, unfortunately, say one of the most common items to craft in a prison is a shank, [probably] due to how easy it is and the inadequate system of rehabilitating prisoners," a representative of this subreddit's moderator team told Bored Panda. "Many of them stick to crime or violence while inside of prison."
"Zip guns utilizing .22 ammunition are also popular because [the rounds] are easy to sneak in. Not to mention the fact that when you break down a gun to its bare bones, it's a simple machine that's quite easy to replicate."
However, we decided to leave guns out of the equation. We already know about them, plus there's so much more! "I [also] see a lot are tiny figures or artworks made of what is practically trash," the person running the subreddit added. "It allows prisoners to express their creative intentions while locked up."
#3 These Are The Best Chess Figures I Have Ever Seen And These Were Made In Prison
Image credits: shyter351
#4 Prison Issued Bleach Soap Carved With A Plastic Spoon And Empty Bic Pen
Image credits: tacollama82
#5 The Face Of A Guard Made With Soap By A Prisioner In Brazil. All Made With Soap Even The Eyes
Image credits: NarcosdaMouraria
Interestingly, in 2019, the U.S. incarceration rate fell to its lowest level since 1995, according to recently published data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), the statistical arm of the Department of Justice. (It is not yet clear how the coronavirus pandemic may have affected these numbers as statistics for 2020 are not expected to be released until later this year.) But despite this downward trend, the United States still puts more people behind bars than any other country for which such data is available.
The American criminal justice system holds almost 2.3 million people in 1,833 state prisons, 110 federal prisons, 1,772 juvenile correctional facilities, 3,134 local jails, 218 immigration detention facilities, and 80 Indian Country jails as well as in military prisons, civil commitment centers, state psychiatric hospitals, and prisons in U.S. territories.
#6 The Paper Mache Heads Made By Frank Morris, John Anglin And Clarence Anglin When They Escaped Alcatraz Prison
Image credits: flysoup84
#7 Asked An Inmate To Draw His Interpretation Of The Prison System. They Are Only Allowed A Blue Pen. Color Was Done By Melting Skittles And M&ms
Image credits: gendarme_
#8 Model Of Hms St George Made By Pows Of The Seven Years War
Image credits: Tzuvembi
#9 Made Out Of Rolled Paper, Cardboard, Craft Paint, Bed Sheets, And Floor Wax (Clear Coat)
Image credits: nesheelahs
The moderator of r/PrisonWallet who took their time to reply to us considers the subreddit's community pretty diverse in their background and intention of joining. "I've talked to members who are former police officers, former prisoners, some interested in the craftsmanship of the people stripped of their freedom, some similar to me in the way I greatly care about prison system reform."
If you took a look at the subreddit's newest posts, you wouldn't see many. The latest one goes back 21 days. However, members are still engaging with them. "The community is somewhat active but ... and you can even notice older posts getting comments, showing new members are fairly common as well!" Maybe you want to be one of them?
#10 Trained Cockroach Smuggles Cigarette Into Prison Cells, June 1938
Image credits: Gvazeky
#11 Found This In A Small Town Museum Today. Made By A Prisoner In Angola Prison Out Of Match Sticks And Pebbles From Prison Grounds
Image credits: Itsme_dandelion
#12 Anytime You Feel Life Isn’t Nice, Remember This Brazilian Prisoner Who Dug An Escape Tunnel For 5 Years To Burst Out In A Guard Room...
Image credits: NarcosdaMouraria
#13 Asian Prison Art Made By Liv Bao Jin, A Chinese Refugee, Made And Sold To Pay Legal Bills, 1993
Image credits: reddit.com
#14 Toilet Paper Dice
Image credits: definetlynotfbi
#15 Flashlight Made By Prisoner
Image credits: Gvazeky
#16 Prison Lamp Made From Popsicle Sticks
Image credits: widdidam
#17 A Way Prisoners Make Rose's For Their Loved Ones Made Of Jolly Ranchers
Image credits: VlClOUSLY
#18 Carved By A Death Row Inmate Using Only A Spoon
Image credits: gbrook00
#19 Two Picture Frames Made Out Of Chip Bags An Inmate Had Given My Mom Whilst Working The Jail As A Nurse
Image credits: dickdownchickens
#20 Pen Art On Prison Linen
Image credits: brownberet45
#21 Pokemon Cards Made While In Prison
Image credits: mysticwelsh
#22 Hand Crafted Mah-Jong Set By A Japanese Prisoner Of War, Ww2
Image credits: reddit.com
#23 Prison Chess Set Made In The 1950s - Made Out Of Toilet Paper, Dried Bread & Shoe Paste
Image credits: topher181
#24 Inmates Bug The Guards’ Rooms With “Bugs” To Listen For Cell Shakedowns
Image credits: KarmaPharmacy
#25 Hand Painted Playing Cards Made By French War Prisoners, Hampshire 1796
Image credits: reddit.com
#26 Prison Made Harley Motorcycle Sculpture
Image credits: reddit.com
#27 Table Made From Ramen Noodles And Masking Tape
Image credits: Jamesvaughan711
#28 "The Last Supper" As Carved By An Inmate On A Jailhouse Door
Image credits: Glittering_Concern
#29 The Convict Cookbook, Made By Convicts At Washington State Penitentiary For Charity
Image credits: reddit.com
#30 Toy Dachshund Made By A Prisoner Of War In Bristol, Gifted To A Family Near The Prison, Ww2
Image credits: reddit.com
#31 Prison Made Celluloid Bakelite Ring, Gifted To A Prison Guard, 1930s Ww2
Image credits: reddit.com
#32 This Prison Tattoo Gun
Image credits: Gvazeky
#33 This Tin Can Grill
Image credits: Gvazeky
#34 19th Century Carved Bone Prison Ring, Made In Libby Prison, Richmond, Virginia
Image credits: reddit.com
#35 A Snazzy New York Prison Crafted Box, Circa 1866
Image credits: Gvazeky
#36 This Water Heater Made In Prison
Image credits: Gvazeky
#37 Flip Flops
Image credits: KarmaPharmacy
#38 DIY Dumbbell Made Of Old Battery’s Crafted In Jail
Image credits: Gvazeky
#39 1970s Prison Made Japanese Kokeshi Doll
Image credits: reddit.com
#40 9 1/2" Sabre Tooth Tiger Made In Folsom Prison
Image credits: reddit.com
#41 Hotplate Made From A Brick
Image credits: Dangerous_Change
#42 Prison Made Turkish Beaded Snake, Ww1
Image credits: reddit.com
#43 Embroidered Belt Made By A Prisoner Of War, Ww1
Image credits: reddit.com
#44 This Radio
Image credits: Gvazeky
#45 19th Century Prison Made Bone Corpus Christi
Image credits: reddit.com
#46 A Tattoo Gun Made In Prison. Functions Off Of Vibration. This One Is Powered By An Electric Toothbrush Motor
Image credits: Blackflag312
#47 A Canteen Radio Made By Pow Brian Hitchison From A Ww2 Prison Camp
Image credits: Gvazeky
#48 Cigarette Lighter Made In Prison
Image credits: Gvazeky
#49 “The Cross” Created By A Woven Winston Packaging And Made At The Louisiana State In Penitentiary, Angola
Image credits: Gvazeky
#50 Prison Made Kool Cigarette Purse, Clutch And Case Made From Folded Cigarette Packs
Image credits: reddit.com
#51 Carved Skull Beads Made By A Napoleonic Prisoner Of War
Image credits: reddit.com
#52 Prison Made Mermaid Soap Sculpture
Image credits: reddit.com
#53 Prison Made Cooking Device, Made By Prisoners Of War In Germany, Ww2
Image credits: reddit.com
#54 When I Saw This Subreddit I Immediately Thought About These Inmates That Built A Computer Near My Hometown
Image credits: reddit.com
#55 1943 Colorado State Penitentiary Prison Art Pyrography Box
Image credits: Maybeiwillbeokay
#56 Toilet Paper, Toothpick And Toothpaste Chess Pieces
Image credits: sryyourpartyssolame
#57 Water Powered Tattoo Gun
Image credits: PatrickSutherla
#58 A Guy Was Sent To Lockup And I Was Tasked With Cleaning His Cell. I Found This Left Behind In His Locker
Image credits: JDst4r
#59 Some Soap Sculptures From The 1950s
Image credits: MissRxbbit
#60 Cellphone Chargers
Image credits: lucascsbbruce
#61 Interlocking Heart Of Playing Cards, Made By A Florida Doc Prisoner
Image credits: HurricaneBetsy
#62 German Prisoner Of War Made Trench Art Box, Us Camp #16, France, 1945 Ww2
Image credits: reddit.com
#63 Fake Gun Used In Prison Escape
Image credits: catharticanimus
#64 Pruno; Wine Made In Prison Using Fruit And Yeast From Bread. This Bag Was Found Inside The Base Of A Sink In A Prisoner’s Cell
Image credits: Blackflag312
#65 Prison Made Folded Purse And B Cup Bra
Image credits: reddit.com
#66 Just Read The Text On The Sign, Title Is Unnecessary
Image credits: Gvazeky
#67 Chess Pieces And Board From An Abandoned Prison In NY
Image credits: Slipacre
#68 This Wrench Made To Unscrew Windows To Escape
Image credits: Gvazeky
#69 Literal Prison Wallet. Made By East Tn Inmates 4 Years Ago
Image credits: Eliot_Lochness
#70 Pipe Made In Prison
Image credits: Gvazeky
#71 Mini Tattoo Gun
Image credits: cyril_figgiss
#72 Prison Made Candle
Image credits: Gvazeky
#73 Prison Glue, Not Toothpaste
Image credits: reddit.com
#74 Dice Made From Ibuprofen, Courtesy Of @rianjean11 On Tik Tok
Image credits: Gvazeky
This post first appeared on How Movie Actors Look Without Their Makeup And Costume, please read the originial post: here
