“The bridge to Rikers Island is called the Bridge of Pain....

“The bridge to Rikers Island is called the Bridge of Pain. You’re on this bus. You see the city behind you. And in front of you, you see nothing but four walls. I was sent there for a year when I was nineteen years old. My friends and I got caught stealing copper pipes from a construction site. All of us grew up together. I thought they had my back. But none of them came to see me in prison. I had zero visits. Nobody put money in my account. So I haven’t talked to any of those guys since I got out. I work two jobs now. I stay out of trouble. I’m trying not to be a negative person anymore. I still have anger problems. I think it’s because there was so much yelling and violence in my house growing up. But whenever I feel the anger coming on, I just close my eyes and rub my ears. My baby brothers used to rub my ears when I was growing up. When things got bad in the house– it always used to calm me down.”