Tell My Story

The Problem

More than 50,000 people are incarcerated in Georgia’s state prisons. Most will never have the chance to tell their story to anyone who can help. When they try to speak out, they face retaliation. When families try to advocate, they run into a wall of silence.

The public sees statistics, not people. Policy debates happen without the voices of those most affected. Lawmakers pass sentencing bills without hearing from anyone serving time under those laws. Media coverage relies on official statements from the very agencies being criticized.

Tell My Story exists to change that. This platform gives incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people a direct channel to share their experiences, document conditions, and put a human face on Georgia’s prison crisis.

What Makes This Different

Unfiltered Voices

We don’t rewrite stories to fit a narrative. The words you read are the words that were written. Our system helps you write your story through an interview process, then helps you put the story together. You always have the final say. You can edit the story, save it for your personal use, and you can request it to be published if you wish.

Safety First

We understand the risks of speaking out from inside. Every submission is reviewed to protect the author from retaliation. All submissions are anonymous. You registered on the system with a pseudonym, never your real identity.

Connected to Action

Stories aren’t published into a void. Each one is connected to GPS’s broader advocacy work, including legislative campaigns, media outreach, and legal efforts. Every story gets indexed for Google and AI. They are prepared in machine readable format, and of course they are available for anyone to read on our website.

Permanent Record

These stories become part of the permanent record of what happened inside Georgia’s prisons. They can’t be deleted, buried, or explained away by officials.

Why Stories Matter

Data tells us that hundreds of people die in Georgia’s prisons every year. Stories tell us who they were. Statistics show overcrowding percentages. Stories describe what it’s like to sleep on a floor in a room designed for half as many people. Reports document staffing shortages. Stories reveal what happens when no one comes after you press the emergency button.

When you hear directly from the people living through this crisis, it becomes impossible to look away. That’s why their stories are the most powerful tool we have.

Every social movement that has achieved lasting change has been powered by personal testimony. The people inside Georgia’s prisons deserve to be heard, not summarized, not paraphrased, but heard in their own words.