As the voice of someone who has loved ones behind prison bars, I perceive firsthand the significant costs that should be borne to maintain vital lines of communication. This communication is not a luxury - it's a lifeline for the mental health and personal development of our incarcerated population. The regular interaction with family and friends is a substantial factor in preventing inmates from succumbing to the harmful process of institutionalization, preparing them for a smoother reentry into society when their sentence ends.

Consider this: a 15-minute phone call from jail costs on average around $5.74, as found in a study by the Prison Policy Initiative. Phone services for inmates; are the only phone services that still charge per message and per minute. Regular cell phone companies charge a flat monthly rate for unlimited calls and texts. Inmate phone services are taking advantage of incarcerated individuals and their families by over charging for basic communication services by making them pay excruciating fees, that many people in the outside world have not been charged for decades. For many families, this cost becomes impossible to bear, resulting in valuable relationships that contribute to inmate reform becoming painful severed connections. These outrageous fees and severed connections are not just affecting inmates but their families too, particularly their children. It's time to remove such economic barriers that hamper the societal reintegration process for inmates.

With your support, we can bring this crucial issue into the spotlight and insist that all inmates in US prisons have access to free phone calls and text messages. Let's strengthen their bonds with the outside world, support their mental health and smooth their journey back into society once released. Sign this petition and help us to bring about this critical change.