Meet Leo, Featured Volunteer for June 2026!

What got you interested in BTP to begin with, or what made you start volunteering? Does it tie in to the rest of your life in any meaningful way?

I first heard about Books to Prisoners at the 2021 Seattle anarchist book fair, took a pamphlet and promptly forgot about it. One day I was going through my bookshelf and I found the pamphlet and decided to get involved. I’d already been involved with the People’s Harm Reduction Alliance and found great personal fulfillment in mutual aid. Books to Prisoners fits within my personal framework that everyone deserves access to basic human rights, which includes the pursuit of knowledge and joy of reading.  

Is there anything you especially like about volunteering with us? What are your favorite parts of the process?

My first thing I liked about volunteering, which I discovered before even coming to BTP, was that there was a masked required volunteer day. Many immunocompromised folks aren’t able to participate in mutual aid due to lack of accessibility in this area so I was really excited about that. My favorite part of the process is seeing all the different kinds of books that an author likely spent blood, sweat, and tears working on, and now it was going to bring great joy to someone who otherwise wouldn’t have access to a book. 

Everybody starts off by responding to letters, even if they eventually move on to wrapping or other tasks. Some of the letters can be memorable. Are there any requests that surprised you, or that you remember standing out in any way?

The request that stood out to me most was a trans woman who wrote to us about discovering her identity as a woman while in a male facility and was looking for resources. I know how hard it was for me to grapple with my trans-ness while in a progressive City like Seattle so my heart went out to her. I think of her often.

In the time that you’ve been here, do you think that your views on the prison system, or what it’s like to be incarcerated, have changed? Please feel free to talk about those views if you would like.

Luckily I came in pretty radicalized so it would be hard for my views to get any more anti-carceral than they were prior to volunteering. I think my understanding of the horrific loneliness of solitary confinement has expanded by reading letters saying that knowing they would maybe get a book made them feel like they weren’t completely forgotten by the world.

Do you have any book recommendations for us? Is there anything you especially like to read in your spare time?

I deeply enjoyed:

1.  “How Nonviolence Protects The State” by Peter Gelderloos

2. “Scapegoat” by Daniel Pennac

3. “Mother night” by Kurt Vonnegut