HOUSTON – The state of Texas has, by far, the highest number of incarcerations in the United States.
Currently, in the Lone Star State, there are a total of 133,772 prisoners behind bars.
Within that large number lives juveniles who are imprisoned. Despite statistics showing that the number of juveniles in prison has decreased over the years, The Texas Tribune reports that there are still hundreds of juveniles locked away in state prisons.
That large number once included community activist Dieter Cantu, who has made it his life mission to ensure that those youth behind bars are not forgotten.
Back in 2005, Cantu was sentenced to serve 10 years for his first offense while his three adult counterparts received no time at all. Cantu has said that due to the lack of proper legal representation in court for his case, he went ahead and signed a plea bargain.
Since being released in 2009, Cantu developed his nonprofit organization, the Cantu’s Books for Incarcerated Youth Project, with the goal of sending books and other literature to those young people which can help them pass the time while giving them knowledge so that they are prepared upon their release. These books have the potential to overwhelmingly reduce the rate of recidivism for those youth who have the chance to get out.
The organization has already donated more than 5,000 books to various Texas facilities and has also developed several partnerships including with the Houston Texans, The Larry Hoover Project, and others across the U.S.
Cantu has been recognized for his work with imprisoned youth in front of the Texas Senate Advisory Commission, provided a Ted Talk speech entitled ‘The Child Who Believed He Could,’ and was most recently named the recipient of the 2022 Reebok Human Rights Award.
When asked how those partnerships impact his program, Cantu said “They definitely help kids amplify their stories. A lot of times, the youth that are housed in TJJD or any juvenile detention center, they’re going through the same thing that I went through, you know? It takes a lot for somebody to advocate on their behalf when they’re not around.”
He was also quoted on his website stating, “I’m a product of my thoughts, I’m not a product of my environment. This mindset helped me to cope with all environments, not just incarceration.”
Want to get involved? Here’s how you can
The organization is seeking the following books:
- Language Books
- ESL-English as a Second Language
- Trade Skills (Welding, Plumbing, HVAC, etc)
- Test Prep Books -GED, SAT
- Law Books
- African American Studies
- Latino Studies
- Psychology and Self Help
- Books on social movements and autobiographies
- Business. Books About Running or Starting a Business.
- Dictionaries
- Encyclopedias
- Thesauruses
- Instructional Art. Tattoo Art.
- Career Choice Books
- Academic Journals
Books they can NOT accept:
- Hardback fiction
- Romance novels
- Books that contain nudity
- Children’s picture books
- Magazines
- Books with written notes or highlighting
- Out-of-date texts or reference books
- Any books that are very old or in poor condition
- Missing pages or cover
- Spiral or comb-bound