Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Piper Kerman

Quote by Piper Kerman

Author

Piper Kerman
Piper Kerman

Piper Kerman (born September 28, 1969) is an American memoirist and writer best known for her bestselling memoir "Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison" (2010). The book chronicles her 13-month experience in federal prison for drug trafficking. Her memoir was adapted into a critically acclaimed Netflix television series (2013-2019). Kerman works as a writer, speaker, and advocate for prison reform. more

You May Also Like

“I knew that I would have to be brave. Not foolhardy, not in love with risk and danger, not making ridiculous exhibitions of myself to prove that I wasn't terrified--really genuinely brave. Brave enough to be quiet when quiet was called for, brave enough to observe before flinging myself into something, brave enough to not abandon my true self when someone else wanted to seduce or force me in a direction I didn't want to go, brave enough to stand my ground quietly.”

WantSelfEnoughWantedForceRiskDangerQuietProveBraveRidiculousAbandonTerrifiedTrue SelfBe BraveSeducingExhibitionsFoolhardy
Author:Piper Kerman
Create image

“If I could forgive, it meant I was a strong good person who could take responsibility for the path I had chosen for myself, and all the consequences that accompanied that choice. And it gave me the simple but powerful satisfaction of extending a kindness to another person in a tough spot.”

IfsPersonsChoicesStrongSimplePowerfulResponsibilityKindnessPathToughConsequenceForgivingSatisfactionChosenSpotsIf I CouldTaking ResponsibilityGood PersonExtending
Book:Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison
Create image

“Prison is quite literally a ghetto in the most classic sense of the word, a place where the U.S. government now puts not only the dangerous but also the inconvenient—people who are mentally ill, people who are addicts, people who are poor and uneducated and unskilled. Meanwhile the ghetto in the outside world is a prison as well, and a much more difficult one to escape from than this correctional compound. In fact, there is basically a revolving door between our urban and rural ghettos and the formal ghetto of our prison system.”

PeopleWorldWellsFactsGovernmentDifficultPoorDoorsDangerousPrisonIllClassicUrbanFormalAddictGhettoCompoundsOutside WorldInconvenientUneducatedMentally IllRevolvingRevolving DoorsPrison SystemUrban And Rural
Author:Piper Kerman
Create image

“I went back to work right away [after prison]. I was very lucky — a friend of mine created a job for me at his company. Most prisoners who come home face really significant challenges when it comes to finding work. It’s very, very hard for most people who have a criminal record to get a job. I think the system is very wasteful of taxpayers’ dollars. It’s also very wasteful of human potential. I found that most people whom I was locked up with were, you know, good people who have skills and value. Prison is a missed opportunity to nurture those things.”

PeopleThinkingKnowsHumansHardHomeJobsFacesValuesFoundOpportunityChallengesCompanyRecordsMinesLuckySkillsFindingsDollarsPrisonCriminalsSignificantWorking ItComing HomePrisonerGood PeopleLockedNurtureTaxpayersLocked UpHuman PotentialBack To WorkMissed Opportunity
Author:Piper Kerman
Create image