Ear Hustle

Thick Glass

Parenting is never easy, but from prison it's especially challenging. In this episode, incarcerated fathers share their stories of striving to be present in their children's lives. One inmate reconnects with his son after 20 years. Another stays very involved through letters and visits. And a third gets the opportunity to give his teenaged son a haircut. 
 
Thanks to the fathers who shared their stories: Derrick, John and Maverick, and to Derrick Jr. for talking with us. 
 
Thick Glass was scored and sound designed by David Jassy and Antwan Williams, with contributions from Lee Jaspar (aka Matthew Lee Jasper), Eric “Maserati E” Abercrombie and Charlie Spencer. You can download Thick Glass here.  
 
Find out more about the show at <a href="https://www.earhustlesq.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">earhustlesq.com</a>, including how to send us a question (by postcard) that might get answered in a future episode. Ear Hustle is a proud member of <a href="https://www.radiotopia.fm/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Radiotopia</a>, from PRX.
p.s. Speaking of parenting, have you ordered your children (or parents) an Ear Hustle <a href="https://www.chopshopstore.com/products/ear-hustle-brand-id-tee" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">t-shirt</a> yet?

Ear Hustle is prison slang for eavesdropping, and that’s what listening to the show feels like: a raw, often funny, and always surprising peek into the reality of life inside prison. 
Hosts Nigel Poor and Earlonne Woods co-created the show that launched in 2017 while Earlonne was incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison, where Nigel was a volunteer teaching photography. Since Earlonne’s release in 2018, the show has expanded to include stories from prisons across the state, including the California Institution for Women, as well as stories about getting out of prison and starting over, post-incarceration.
From finding romance, to grappling with a life sentence, to trying to parent via 15-minute phone calls, Ear Hustle stories deliver what This American Life host Ira Glass calls a “"very real” and “untragic” take on prison life. 
Ear Hustle is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX, a network of independent listener-supported podcasts. Discover audio with vision at radiotopia.fm and learn more about Ear Hustle at earhustlesq.com.