SUMMER 2026 NEWSLETTER
Summer Highlights and Reflections
Message From Program Co-Founder
Edwin E. Chavez
This summer, we celebrated the graduation of our third class at San Quentin. As I reflect on how our program has evolved, one of my proudest accomplishments has been working with our founding team at San Quentin to ensure that our trauma-informed curriculum is fully bilingual in English and Spanish. Programs addressing trauma are rarely designed to be accessible to Spanish speakers, despite Latinos making up 47% of California’s prison population. The entire team was committed to not just making the program accessible to monolingual Spanish speakers, but also fully integrating them into the program, so they could attend workshops and share this transformational journey together with their English speaking counterparts. It is here that these men learned a new language.
I witnessed people who were strangers at the start of the program begin to heal, open up, and embrace vulnerability together—including myself. The power of a safe space is difficult to put into words, especially for members of our Spanish-language group. Many of them face additional barriers including growing up in a culture of extreme machismo where vulnerability and crying were not allowed. One participant was bullied as a child, and now understands how being bullied made him a bully himself. Others cannot read or write. One person is healing at 70-years-old. Through the program’s curriculum and with the help of facilitators, I have witnessed all these men doing the work by sharing their stories of accountability. Some of the participants call their family and share or ask questions to their parents or relatives in order to gain a better understanding as to who they used to be and who they are now. Trauma-informed healing is not the cure for events of the past, but through educating ourselves, we can reap the benefits of internal liberation from its pain.
This summer has been one of growth and solidarity. This edition allows us to reflect on our work to rewrite the narrative. From collaborative film screenings to coalition lobby days to our prison childhood narrative workshops, we are grounded in the belief that everyone’s story is important and has the power to build a better future by helping us to see our common humanity. Thank you for your support and for being part of this journey with us.
Collaborative Film Screenings
Reflections for Freedom
On June 9th at the New Parkway Theater, in collaboration with BAY-Peace, Back to the Start hosted a duo-film screening of our film, "Reflections Behind Bars," and a film created by BAY-Peace called, "Free Our Kids.” Our executive director, Dr. Jenny Espinoza, moderated the intergenerational Q&A panel following the screenings which included, Brian Asey Gonsoulin, Leilani Salvador, Anthony Ammons, and Tandi "Tae" Thomas.
One of the most powerful moments, among many, was when The BAY-Peace Youth Arts Company did an interpretive dance performance to the words of a poem by Jessie Milo, one of our incarcerated co-leads, called: "Change the Future.” Artwork from BAY-Peace and by incarcerated artists was displayed reflecting on what freedom means.
We are so grateful for the opportunity to work with BAY-Peace, and it was a great experience to hear different perspectives on the need for childhood investments in upstream development. We are excited to continue working with allies and help spread the word through film and stories about the important work being done to drive systemic change so that all children can reach their full potential.
To watch our trailer, click here.
21st Annual Youth Court Summit
"Reflections Behind Bars" was shown at the 21st Annual Youth Court Summit hosted at UC Santa Cruz. Dr. Jenny Espinoza was the keynote speaker and hosted a fireside chat with Markelle Taylor (“26.2 to Life”) and Anthony Ammons Jr. (“Q-Ball”) who were formerly incarcerated at San Quentin and are dedicated to justice work. The conversation shed light on their childhood stories, first instances of police contact, struggles at school, as well as bright points from their youth and lessons learned.
We are inspired by the insight, empathy, and curiosity of the young people who attended the summit, and are grateful to the California Association of Youth Courts for the opportunity to share the power of storytelling with the next generation of changemakers.
Upcoming Events
Stay tuned on social media and on our events page. We will be making announcements soon regarding an upcoming film screening collaboration with the California Film Institute. We are also finalizing plans for upcoming screenings in the Bay Area, including a screening in San Francisco.
Also, if you are interested in collaborating or sponsoring a film screening, please email us at info@backtothestart.org or click here.
Legislative Advocacy
Priority Bills
The end of summer also marks the final push in advocating for our priority bills this legislative cycle. Our priority bills, chosen by our incarcerated team, are aimed at upstream solutions to disrupt the cradle to prison pipeline.
Four of our priority bills have passed both houses of the state legislature and are on the governor’s desk for signature. While two of our initial priority bills (AB 1851 and AB 2441) did not make it out of appropriations in this challenging budget year, it is remarkable that the remaining four are so close to the finish line. We are grateful to everyone helping move this work forward.
We are not done, however, since the governor can sign or veto the bills. Please find links at the bottom of this newsletter under ‘Ways to Support’ to submit letters of support to the governor.
AB 2247: T.H.R.I.V.E Act for Youth Survivors of Gun Violence AB 2247 provides funding for youth survivors and witnesses of gun violence to receive free, timely mental health and counseling services regardless of immigration status or prior/current involvement with the juvenile justice system. See section below to read an Op-Ed in LA Times by Back to the Start co-lead, Jessie Milo. AB 1969: It Takes a Village Act of 2026 AB 1969 provides grant funding to neighborhood and regional partnership entities to implement place-based solutions to reduce child poverty and advance economic mobility for children and families disproportionately affected by intergenerational poverty. SB 1009: Limiting Unnecessary Youth Detention SB 1009 limits unnecessary detention in juvenile hall by prioritizing placing minors who are awaiting a court hearing at home or in less restrictive alternatives, except when it is necessary that the minor be detained in juvenile hall for their own or another's protection. AB 1659: Supporting Youth Transitioning From Custody Into School Districts AB 1659 strengthens support for juveniles transitioning out of custody and into local school districts by requiring that a school district transition liaison ensures timely school placement and transfer of credits completed while in custody. Additionally, Back to the Start has been actively supporting several other bills, in solidarity with our coalition partners, aimed at breaking cycles of intergenerational trauma and incarceration. Check out our social media page here to learn more. |
Op-Ed on AB 2247
Back to the Start Co-lead, Jessie Milo’s, op-ed on AB 2247 was recently published in the L.A Times! In this piece, Jessie uplifts why it is so important to address firearm-related trauma, and brings to light how AB 2247: The THRIVE Act, will help break cycles of both trauma and incarceration. His article has since been shared by publications across the country including the Sacramento Bee, the Miami Herald, the Kansas City Star, and more.
Read the article here.
Advocacy at the Capital
At Back to the Start, we believe that accomplishing systemic change is a collaborative effort. Throughout the legislative cycle, our team attended lobby days with the Ella Baker Center, Transforming Prison Works, Initiate Justice, the Alliance for Boys and Men of Color (ABMoC) and the California Justice Coalition to meet with legislators and provide testimonies on legislation in support of upstream change for vulnerable and system-impacted communities.
Prison Program Narrative Writing Workshop Updates
San Quentin 3rd Cohort Graduation
We are thrilled to announce that Back to the Start's 3rd cohort completed our narrative writing program at San Quentin! During their final workshop, participants joined together in a large circle to reflect on their experiences and takeaways, and receive their certificates. "My childhood mess is my greatest message," said one participant, illustrating how giving voice to the hardships these incarcerated writers faced in childhood can help inform policies to safeguard future generations of vulnerable kids and their families. This cohort had 32 participants, and we are incredibly proud of their growth as writers and learners throughout the program.
Poetry Workshop Expansion and Upcoming Book
Following our successful pilot for our second cohort, Back to the Start is continuing our programming at San Quentin with a poetry writing workshop hosted by Marin County Poet Laureate and Back to the Start Advisory Board member, Francesca Bell. She runs the poetry workshops alongside incarcerated facilitator and poet extraordinaire Jason Jackson (who was a participant last year). We are very excited that so many of our participants are continuing to grow in their writing and storytelling skills through poetry, and are happy to announce that their work will be published into an anthology! Please stay tuned for updates about our participants’ upcoming book.
Upcoming San Quentin Graduation Banquet and Awareness EventBack to the Start will be honoring the transformative learning and growth of our workshop participants at a formal graduation and banquet in early 2027. This event is an opportunity for our graduates to share their stories with the larger community, and will be accompanied by a screening of our film, “Reflections Behind Bars,” inside San Quentin (which many of our participants are featured in, but have yet to see). We will be inviting legislators, collaborators, community members, prison staff, and incarcerated residents. If you are interested in being added to the guest list, please reach out to us at admin@backtothestart.org. Putting on a special event of this nature and providing a nourishing meals for over 300 attendees is a large undertaking, and if you would like to help support this event, please consider donating. |
CMF Launch Update
We are excited to share an exciting update about our expansion to Correctional Medical Facility (CMF) in Vacaville! This effort is being led by paroled Back to the Start co-founder, Brian Asey Gonsoulin. We have selected six incredible incarcerated facilitators and are currently training the team and finalizing our workshop curriculum.
We are also delighted to announce a new second component of our program at CMF. Following our core childhood narrative writing curriculum, participants will have the opportunity to learn basic filmmaking skills and bring their stories to life in multimedia form. Led by award-winning filmmaker, Brian Asey Gonsoulin, this new component will give participants another creative avenue for sharing their experience, and allow these powerful stories to be preserved beyond the page.
Our CMF program is expected to launch in Fall 2027, and we can’t wait to embark on this next chapter with our participants!
Summer Internship Program
This is the second year of our full-time summer internship program, and we welcomed eight exceptional young leaders who came to learn and work together to rewrite the narrative. From policy advocacy to writing grants to working with our incarcerated participants and co-leads, each of our interns brings their unique skills and perspectives to the table. They are committed to challenging the cradle-to-prison pipeline, and we are honored to be part of their journey as justice advocates. To learn more about our summer interns, read our news blog post here.
Sneak Peak!
Intergenerational Podcast Initiative
We are thrilled to share that we are collaborating with Youth Transforming Justice and the Multicultural Center of Marin on a youth-led podcast initiative. We are planning to launch a first-of-its-kind podcast in which youth interview Back to the Start incarcerated graduates about their childhoods—creating a space where audiences hear directly from people whose lived experiences challenge assumptions and deepen our collective understanding of how cycles of harm take hold and how they can be broken. Through a structured educational curriculum and hands-on media production, youth participants will critically examine the underlying drivers of incarceration, including trauma, racism, and systemic inequities, while building skills in public speaking, storytelling, and advocacy. If you are interested in learning more or exploring sponsorship opportunities for this initiative, please contact us at info@backtothestart.org.
Ways to Support
—Donate—
Every donation is deeply impactful and appreciated. Your support makes it possible for incarcerated storytellers to continue sharing their experiences, for communities to gather in dialogue, and for evidence-based policies to take root where they can do the most good.
—Send a letter of support—
Because many of our bills are in their final vote on the legislative floor, we urge you to send a letter of support to Governor Gavin Newsom requesting his vote and continue advocating for these initiatives. Templates can be found below, please submit all letters here or email them to leg.unit@gov.ca.gov.
