A Letter from the Editors

Dear Readers,

Can you believe we are turning 40 this year! What better way to celebrate with us than by enjoying a delicious slice of cream city prose or a scoop of poetry.

Over the last few years, our staff has worked so hard to make sure we will still be around for another 40 years. We are proud to announce that it is now possible to purchase subscriptions and back issues of cream city review through our website. We have reactivated the cream city foundation, for those who would like to donate, and we are just finishing up work on a Community University Partnership grant project. This grant, which was a collaboration with project RETURN, allowed ccr volunteers to mentor incarcerated writers in the city of Milwaukee.

One of the reasons we were inspired to work with people who have experienced incarceration is that, as we updated our website and streamlined our submission and subscription process, we realized how few journals these days even accept paper submissions. As we look to the future of cream city review, we also feel it is important to recognize and include voices that technological advancements may be silencing. To that end, this issue features a curated folio entitled “Other Side of the Mirror,” after the name of our grant project. It includes poetry, fiction, and memoir from a range of people who have been impacted by incarceration or are currently incarcerated.

Of course, more important than access to submissions is the epidemic rates of incarceration in the U.S.. Numerous studies have shown that exposure to learning opportunities decreases recidivism rates. According to Wisconsin’s Department of Corrections, an average of 38.7% of released offenders return to prison within three years of their release. In the article, “Illiteracy Is a Crime Waiting to Happen” James E. Casey notes that 7% of the nearly 22,500 inmates in Wisconsin read below a fourth-grade reading level and 49% read below a ninth-grade level. We believe it is essential to provide opportunities that will give people who have been incarcerated greater access to tools that will help them voice their agency and provide learning opportunities.

The folio, however, reflects a wide swath of experiences. D.M. Aderibigbe dedicates his poem to a father killed in a Nigerian prison. Jess Smith writes of the profound impact domestic violence and incarceration has on survivors of abuse. And Jacqueline Balderrama’s work details the experience of teaching those who are incarcerated.

This issue also features beautiful work from a diverse group of writers, including the piece, “The Swifts of Fez” by Ihab Hassan, who was a longtime supporter of cream city review. His recent passing has saddened us all, but we couldn’t be more proud that he is among the names of contributors in the issue that marks the beginning of our 40th anniversary.

Here is to 40 more years!

Loretta & Mollie