Reflecting Humanity

This is equally a response to the May 14 Inbox submissions from readers as it is to the original article (“Life on the Run,” cover story, March 19).

To Alice Goffman *10: Thank you for shedding light on the issues of over-incarceration and the need for prison reform. You went to great lengths that very few would ever do, for the sake of understanding.

I found your research closely familiar. I, too, lived among drug dealers and robbers — however, not for the sake of research. It was simply my life. They were my neighbors, friends, classmates, and boyfriends before I ever arrived on Princeton’s campus. This was the environment in which I grew up. You appropriately reflected humanity where so many try to claim it doesn’t exist. Keep up the good work.