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Inside Organizers

400+
Inside Organizers

35
Senior IOs

16
Mentors

Our Inside Organizers (IOs) are currently incarcerated members of our organizing team. The process to become an IO takes about two months. First, they engage in grassroots organizing by learning about what we do and passing it on. Then, they get a correspondence curriculum that teaches about the legislative process, inclusion, and fairness. It explains the possibilities and importance of organizing and power-building from the inside.

Once through that process, many IOs chose to become Senior IOs or Mentors, which is more training and responsibility, focused particularly on connecting our Outside Organizing efforts with our Inside Organizing efforts. They are led through this process with the help of our outside Phone Trainers.

How we support

We have about a dozen Curriculum Reviewers and about a dozen Phone Trainers who volunteer and are trained to be part of this academic process. We send a monthly newsletter inside to all IOs which updates them on appropriate communication channels and action items of the time period, as well as any legislative updates.

Read about our Workshop in Sacramento State Prison!