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From December 2023 until April 2024, I interned for Evie Litwok and her organization, Witness to Mass Incarceration, as a journalist. Under her guidance, I wrote and researched the lives of previously incarcerated individuals who had overcome hardships and uphill battles to open their businesses. The insight that I gained from this internship provided me with the ability to understand, empathize, and seek justice for those who have been affected by mass incarceration.

Bi-weekly, we met to discuss our written articles, which were crafted to tell the stories of those who had survived and conquered their hardships and succeeded on their own merit. Afterward, we would carefully analyze our articles and offer each other strong but encouraging criticism. Evie’s critiques focused not only on improving our skills as writers but also as storytellers. The creativity she inspired helped us broach heavy topics, allowing us to invoke empathy and sympathy for the individuals we wrote about.

More importantly, Evie was passionate about what she believed in. Every Sunday, she would take time to teach us the importance of what the foundation of her organization advocated for. From her personal experiences with the prison system to the broader history of incarceration, we learned about important terminology and the greater implications of our current laws.

Interning for Witness to Mass Incarceration broadened my perspective and pushed me to work harder for myself and to imagine a better future for everyone. I was taken out of my comfort zone multiple times, which led me to become more experienced, open-minded, and attentive. Overall, my positive experience proved how much this organization is dedicated to creating change not only on a local level but on a national one as well.

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My 2023 internship with Witness to Mass Incarceration has colored my life with golden insight. Monday through Friday I attended general intern meetings overseen by dedicated founder and executive director Evie Liwtok. As a cohort, the team watched heartbreaking but life-changing videos that provided a unique exposure into the lives of the marginalized and inmates. Examples of covered topics were lack of healthcare, the three strikes law, substance abuse, and redlining. Evie skillfully established a safe space for open dialogue to follow the videos - where even a shy intern, like me, learned to find her voice!

In addition to my general meeting duties, I also participated on the voter registration team. It was here that Evie put life into terms I thought I knew, but that I eventually learned I had no understanding of at all. She can be described as nothing short of a revolutionary. Evie taught me what democracy, civic engagement, and voting truly meant. My collaboration, research, and leadership skills deepened working under Evie and alongside voter registration interns. Evie was available nearly any time of the day to get assistance and her fiery passion was infectious! Further, I enjoyed how Evie always went out of her way to get feedback from the interns. She was genuinely interested in how members of the team were doing and feeling. As the daughter of FIPS and someone who spent years in foster care because of my parents’ substance abuse, I felt at home.

How beautiful is it that we live in a world where I - a Black queer future lawyer who statistically should have been behind bars, on the streets, or dead - can find such warm mentorship from a Jewish, lesbian, former Wall Street girl boss, social justice warrior?

I cannot thank Evie, her inspiring parents, her cute dog BooBoo, my fellow interns, and the rest of the Witness team enough. I’d recommend this internship to any passionate individuals hungry to see the world in a new light and implement concrete change with their newfound knowledge.

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The summer I spent working for Witness was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. Though I’ve always been passionate about ending mass incarceration, I’ve learned so much more through this internship. With every Witness meeting, I grew more and more passionate about the issues facing incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people. A big part of that was Evie Litwok’s passion and work ethic. The enthusiasm she brought to work every day inspired and motivated me to work even harder.

As a journalism intern, I wrote long-form and short-form profiles on formerly incarcerated people to promote their businesses or organizations on our E-commerce site. My favorite part of that work was doing the research for these profiles, as I was gripped by the perseverance and determination of everyone I wrote about. Every day I worked at Witness felt purposeful, which made it an extremely rewarding experience. Later in the summer, I was able to interview Evie herself. Hearing her story was so emotionally captivating, and I'm grateful to have been a part of it. I came out of this internship not only a better writer, but also a better person, and I look forward to supporting whatever Witness does in the future.