Bio

“Hello, my name is Mikailah Sweetgrass-Turner. I am an incarcerated Indigenous American and Filipino transgender woman. I have been incarcerated for over twenty years. I began my artistic journey during my formative years. I realized early on that I had some talent for drawing. I did not realize my talent for beading until later in life. During incarceration I found my culture. While exploring what it meant to be biracial I found beading. I excelled at this method of artistic expression. I spent many years honing both my drawing and beading skills. it is through artistic expression that I have found meaning and redemption. the discipline necessary to become good at any artistic pursuit, has prepared me for returning to a life free of the shackles of my past, and to make something special out of my life.”

Contact Mikailah

Please consider writing to Mikailah if you like her work! You can contact her online through Securus, the e-messaging platform used by Washington prisons, or by snail mail. For more instructions and Mikailah’s contact information, see our guide here.