For African Americans and people of color who have been incarcerated in the United States, the road back into society can be a long and arduous journey. After release, with hopes of a new lease on life, some inmates leave prison with acquired education and certified training skills, only to be met with hostility, prejudice, and resentment from an unforgiving society that believes ex-cons aren't deserving of equal rights. This feeds an endless problem of many inmates entering a cycle of re-incarceration over and over again. In the early years of his sentence, author and Navy veteran Steven Troy Hanserd quickly learned the pros and cons of being both gang-affiliated, and unaffiliated. In Wounded, the author's harrowing memoir of his incarceration trials and tribulations, Hanserd gets an up-close-and-personal view of living within a system that too often recycles inmates and forces them into a nefarious web of prison gang violence. Inmates like Hanserd often have to choose between being protected as a gang member, or being forced to pay for personal protection as a non-gang "neutron." Having endured multiple incarcerations within this vicious cycle, Hanserd became a devout Christian and student of "The Word," which has allowed the awesome and miraculous power of God to transform his life, and inspire this book. His story is a must-read faith testimony for all who still struggle to break the toxic cycles found in their lives, and to find the courage to make a fresh start.
