11 million people cycle through the American jail system each year. That means one out of every three people that get locked up today are at a local jail. If you want to send your inmate postcards, first know you are not alone.
More than 94% of the prison population will eventually be released from prison and return to our communities. How do you foster your relationship with your incarcerated family member or friend until then? It can be frustrating to figure out the system during this stressful time, but you want to be supportive of your imprisoned family member or friend.
Every county jail has its own set of rules, but the most commonly excepted, surefire way to get your letter past the man is sending a postcard. Read on for tips to write your inmate postcards that get approved quickly and are still special.
The USA has the largest prison population worldwide and numbers are constantly increasing. In 1980 the number stoof at 500,000 prisoners, in 2000 it had already become 2 million. Currently, over 2,400,000 people are held in American prisons.
Letters are no reliable way of communication
If one of your relatives is sentenced and torn out of their usual environment, it is especially important to stay in contact. But naturally, the distance between prison and hometown can pose a problem.
Therefore many relatives use a traditional way of communication to stay in touch: sending letters. However, unfortunately there is a high risk that your handwritten letter will never reach the recipient. This is due to restrictions for communication between prisoners and the outside world, which are particularly strict in the USA. Letters are always opened for security reasons and often damaged in the course of the controls. This might result in disappointment for both the sender and the recipient.
MyPostcard postcards are the solution
The advantage of sending postcards is that they are almost always delivered without any controls. With MyPostcard you can even personalize your postcards and add your own photos. That’s a perfect solution to sending personal photos without the hassle you have with letters. It’s simply the easiest way to make imprisoned friends or relatives especially happy. Just send your family picture or sexy selfie and get it delivered straight to the imprisoned recipient.
By the way: If you are thinking about sending them a sexy selfie to get them thinking about you, here are 7 amazing tips on sexy posing.
Once you’ve downloaded the app from the play store, it is extremely user-friendly. You can choose a pre-made design, a template to incorporate one of your photos, or a photo layout of up to nine images.
You can either take a new imagine in-app with your phone, or use a preexisting image or selfie from your gallery or Instagram. You can then write your text online (choosing from 4 different fonts and sizes.
The final step is to include the address for your inmate. And the best part is that you can create a profile to save the address for a one-click experience in the future.
And if all of this sounds too good to be true, get this, prices start as low as $1.99. You can barely buy a regular postcard so cheap, let alone have it personalized and include postage! You can also use PayPal to purchase your postcards.
What Not to Do When Sending an Inmate Postcards
Every jail has different restrictions – even for postcards. So please be sure to visit the prison website to double check before sending your inmate postcards.
Nudity
Photographs are allowed but under certain restrictions. Some jails only allow you to send photos as the graphic side of a postcard. We understand that you want your man to remember what he is missing out on, but nudity is restricted.
Add-Ons
Additions taped or glued to your postcard are restricted. I know it can be tempting to add something cute but do not place any labels or stickers on your inmate postcards. We can solve this problem by sending your postcard directly to the prison.
Gang Symbols
Gang symbols or references are strictly prohibited. Any mention of weapons or violence will see your mail confiscated. Even if you think you want to show some support for your crew, make sure you’re not mentioning anything gang related–especially if it refers to any form of retaliation.
Additional Restrictions
Look out for other restricted written content in your inmate postcards. Beyond gang references and violence there are more topics that you will need to avoid. Any form of supremacy writing or text that promotes hatred of a class or group of people for example.
Finally, most jails will not accept postcards in languages besides English and Spanish. If you would like to write to your family member or friend in another language, you will need previous approval to have it translated at the jail for content.
Suggestions to Include in Your Inmate Postcards
It can be daunting writing that first postcard but don’t over think it. Support is the first step toward recovery or rehabilitation for addicts and criminals. Simply receiving that note at all, regardless of the content, will mean a lot to your inmate.
Ask Lots of Questions
If you aren’t sure what to say then starting with questions is an easy solution. Start by asking how he is doing, then feel free to ask any questions you may have about jail. You could ask what the food is like, or ask for a day-in-the-life breakdown. You may even want to ask if there is anything he would like. Some jails allow you to send a book or magazine, but once again check the jail website for restrictions.
Include Photographs
Send pictures on your inmate postcards! Photographs are a very important tool for someone to take their mind off of their environment. You may want to use a picture of the two of you together, or a picture of familiar scenery. If the inmate has children, you will definitely want to include pictures of them.
Stay Positive
Try to stay positive in your writing. You might be feeling hurt and frustrated, but if you want to be genuinely supportive try not to be judgmental or put pressure on your inmate using postcards. Chances are he already knows that he’s messed up. He has all day to think about it after all, and little else to occupy his mind.
You can begin by telling him or her how much you care about them. That you will miss them and that you are supporting them as much as you can. You may even want to talk about activities you would like to do with them when they are released (remember to keep it clean).
If it is only a quick ‘Hello’ or some emotional or longing words – these postcards mean the world to prisoners.
P.S. If you want any more ideas on what to write in your postcard, then read through all of our tips and ideas here!
Comments are closed.