Alexandra Kirby Sokolow

“Buddhism Behind Bars” explores Buddhism in US prisons and traces how dominant notions of religion, race, criminality, and American belonging have shifted since the late nineteenth century. Drawing on archival research, media analysis, and oral history, the project examines how Buddhist chaplains, prison authorities, political leaders, and incarcerated people have together shaped the possible meanings of and approaches to prison Buddhism in the US. “Buddhism Behind Bars” analyzes both how incarcerated people engage with Buddhism in their daily lives—creatively negotiating power through embodied practices—and how the repetition of discourses that celebrate incarcerated people for transforming from “criminals” into “buddhas” can normalize the disciplining, subject-making, and racializing work of the state.