Don’t shake the Spoon
“Sitting in these hot, concrete coffins, we burn more calories than we consume. We are allotted the minimal amount of proteins and carbohydrates to carry us to the next meal. God forbid you do pushups. There goes the biscuit from our already meager trays. And that’s if they didn’t shake the spoon. ”
Don’t Shake the Spoon is a literary journal published by Exchange for Change. Its title refers to the request incarcerated people often make to the kitchen—don’t shake the spoon so that those few extra crumbs can make it to the plate.
Volumes one through three of the anthology are available for purchase on Amazon and AmazonSmile. Don’t Shake the Spoon Volume 4 contains students’ stories, poems, and essays spanning 2022 - 2023.
The Don’t Shake the Spoon Curriculum and Resource Guide is a FREE resource for engaging and interacting with both volumes of the literary journal. Designed for high schoolers and undergraduates, it dives into topics of mass incarceration and systemic racism and offers a chance to craft creative responses to the material.