Our Consultant and Co-Founder, Steve Brooks, brings over 30 years of lived carceral experience, having survived in some of California's most dangerous facilities. He began his journalism career during the COVID pandemic while incarcerated. Steve is also the co-founder of The People In Blue, a group of incarcerated individuals working to change the culture of prison. He is the former Editor-in-Chief of San Quentin News and a former co-producer for Uncuffed and Ear Hustle podcasts. Steve's writing has been featured in Sports Illustrated, TIME, Prism, and The Appeal. He is a 2023-2025 California Local News Fellow; a member of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ). Steve has won multiple awards, including a 2020 Excellence in Commentary Award from SPJ, multiple California Newspaper Publishers Awards and Incarcerated Journalist of the Year. Steve's work inside is vital to our mission of amplifying the voices of incarcerated individuals and advocating for a more humane carceral system.