Rights and Wrongs

Righting wrongs

Salad (so much more
tasty than porridge)

My journey today took me to a coffee shop in the little village of Askham Richard near York. Nothing unusual in that, you may say. Except this one is different - it is in the grounds of a women’s prison. All the food and delicious cakes are made by prisoners. The waiting staff are prisoners. The garden centre next to the coffee shop sells fruit and veg which has been grown by prisoners. 

HMP Askham Grange is one of only two open prisons for women in the U.K., catering for those coming to the end of their sentences. It is all about rehabilitation and reintegration into the community. And it has proved very successful in helping its residents to turn their lives around.

It’s a place where those who have done wrong can learn to do right. If you’re in the area I would encourage you to visit The Grange Coffee Shop.

Wronging rights

Freda and Barry’s favourite 
lets its writers down badly

Meanwhile in the world of magazine writing there is trouble. The rights of short story writers are under threat. 

Copyright and the moral rights to be acknowledged as the author of a piece of writing are now being demanded by Woman’s Weekly. 

Most of the professional and regular writers for the magazine are refusing to agree to these terms. 

Outrage is also being expressed by high profile authors in social media. And there has been strong support from the writing press, with both Writers’ Forum and Writing Magazine reporting on the issues. 

More information is available in this post by Joanne Harris on the Society of Authors website.

Protecting our rights is important.

Doing what’s right is important too. Let’s hope Woman’s Weekly realise this soon.