By Samantha Naus, SSPM Mercy University Intern (2025)The mission of Mercy University's History Majors Internship Program at the Sing Sing Prison Museum is to teach museum and archives practices, non-profit administration, museum office culture and professional practices, and/or public education methods through project-based work and hands-on activities. The students’ projects include research, writing, and collecting information and resources. Students see first hand how history is applicable to the workplace. At the end of each internship, students create something intended for the museum's audiences. When asked what the objective of our state prison system should be, most New Yorkers would agree that reformation should be the priority. One of the most successful available avenues to reach this goal is providing incarcerated people with access to literature. Access to books and literature not only provides a productive avenue for incarcerated people to focus their time, but also a way to help build skills and work towards rehabilitation and reintroduction into society. Studies such as the one conducted by the Mackinac Center have shown a positive correlation between prison educational programs and a reduced return rate for incarcerated individuals (https://www.mackinac.org/s2023-01). As this has been proven to be true time and time again, it might surprise us to know just how little access to literature incarcerated people in New York State prisons, like the Sing Sing Correctional Facility (SSCF), actually have.  A. Berghaus, 1878 The New York Department of Corrections and Community Supervision promotes programs such as the General Library Program on their website, claiming to allow requests for literature and books throughout the Westchester library system. However, the reality is that it is more difficult than ever for the those serving time to gain access to any literature at all, including through the permanent library on the Sing Sing campus. It is only through conversation with the men who have been formally incarcerated there that the public has any knowledge of just how far these systems of access have broken down. The prison’s library, though limited, could often be the one possible avenue for any book. Since the National Guard was deployed to state prisons in February, during the correctional officer’s wildcat strike, and remain active until today (8/20/25), library access has been completely halted inside. As the situation becomes increasingly dire, it is more important then ever to put the focus back on simple and beneficial rehabilitation efforts. The addition of a library to the Sing Sing facility was first proposed by Reverend Chaplin John Luckey in the early 1840’s when he served as the prison Chaplin. Originally focused on religious text, the mission was eventually expanded to include non-religious based texts after a push by Eliza Farnham, the Matron of the incarcerated woman at Sing Sing. Access and censorship fluctuated wildly over the decades depending primarily on the Warden in charge and their personal rehabilitation philosophy. When the Section 285 law was passed by the New York State Senate to allocate funds to state prison libraries, it seemed like proper access might finally be achieved. Much of these programs however are depended on a prison librarian to make them function, and Sing Sing has been without one for many years, compounding the access problem in the prison. This however leads to a glimmer of hope, as a new Librarian has recently been hired by Sing Sing; a good sign that some gears might start turning again. Though having to adhere to a strict set of rules, primarily the NYDCCS Media Review directive no. 4572, the librarian is allocated a certain amount of money per incarcerated individual to spend on acquiring books and literature. Although this amount only equates to roughly half a book per prisoner a year, without a librarian to utilize it this allocation of funds often does not reach the prisoners. In addition to the inter-prison library, communication with other Westchester libraries to engage in the General Library Program has also ground to a complete halt. Many librarians are unaware of such programs, but eager to help if possible. This is especially true in the case of the Ossining Public Library, located just over a mile from the SSCF. Viewing the incarcerated men in Sing Sing as part of the larger Ossining community, local libraries are keen to work with the prison library to help them bring more literature into the prison. Ideas have even been floated about book clubs or projecting recorded lectures or other ways for the public library to help those inside, but all at the moment are just wishful thinking. Setting up a relationship between the incarcerated and the local library however would not only benefit those with years left on their sentence but can also help to develop pathways to community for those that are finally released. With the local librarians eager to help, state government funds already allocated, and the long overdue hiring of new prison librarian, all the pieces to provide meaningful rehabilitation are in place and can hopefully soon begin to serve the men inside. In addition to the public sector, Non-profits have also popped up to try and tackle the problem of access. One such organization doing meaningful work in this area is Freedom Reads. Created by CEO Reginald Dwayne Betts, he leaned upon his own experience of being incarcerated for almost a decade to try and provide other incarcerated people with the same lifeline he depended on: books. Freedom Reads builds bookshelves, with an amazing curated set of books, placed in living quarters not the library. This program brings literature access to the spaces where the incarcerated spend the most down time. Proven a success time and time again, Freedom Reads is another example of the benefits literature can have for those inside. Sources: https://www.mackinac.org/s2023-01 https://doccs.ny.gov/general-library-program https://www.untappedcities.com/sing-sing-prison/ https://www.nysl.nysed.gov/libdev/outreach/corrgdln https://nysfocus.com/2025/07/22/new-york-doccs-prison-staffing-crisis-guard-strike https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/EDN/285 https://doccs.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2024/12/4572.pdf https://freedomreads.org/about/reports Related:
Recent news regarding banning books in an ICE Detention Center near Buffalo, NY: https://nysfocus.com/2025/10/08/batavia-buffalo-detention-center-ice-book-ban
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