Can incarcerated women dye their hair? Do they have enough tampons and pads? What makes them happy, and how realistic is “Orange Is the New Black”? Ear Hustle listeners have questions about life inside a women’s prison, so we head to the California Institution for Women for answers.

To learn more about donating books to the library at the California Institution for Women, contact Ricky Dela Cruz or Ashleigh Lewis at CIW. To learn more about donating books to San Quentin, visit the Friends of the San Quentin Prison Library. To learn more about donating books to other prisons, visit the Prisoners Literature Project, or this list of organizations from the American Library Association.

Big thanks to Guim’Mara Berry and Warden Ron Broomfield for their support of the show, as well as to Lieutenant William Newborg at the California Institution for Women for welcoming our team inside.

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