Self Surrender to a Federal Prison Camp, Part 2

Ok, the officer just left and there I was alone with a mesh bag full of toiletries, bedding and clothing. I remember everybody looking and staring at me because I was the new inmate in the dorm. A very uncomfortable feeling to say the least but with God’s peace upon me I soon dismissed it and started putting my things away in the locker assigned to me.

As I was making my bed, I was approached by a Hispanic who thought I was Hispanic because of my black hair and dark skin. He started speaking in Spanish to me but he soon realized that I was not Hispanic and he asked me what nationality I was, “I am an American Indian” I told him and he calmly walked away. I later found out that he was the leader of a Hispanic group in the camp and wanted to recruit me into his little gang.

Then God provided me a friend. Jaime, a short Hispanic who was not associated with the gang but a family man of four children. He had the bunk next to me. He took the time to explain and answer many question I had regarding the prison camp and about the rules, he had already been there about 8 months before I arrived.

Praise God! I knew then that God would protect me with the assurance of providing a friend to help me adapt to my new surroundings. His blessing continued as the eyes that were once looking at me became handshakes and friendly introductions. I then realized that I was being welcomed into a family who understood what I was going through and they were very helpful as I adjusted to my new surroundings.

1. 
   1Tony
   Rickey,
   I am expected to self surrender on 2/23. I don’t know exactly where yet, but several of my coconspirators have already been sentenced to (FCI) Federal camps so I am expecting the same. I ran across your “Self Surrender to a Federal Prison Camp” article while attempting to do some research on what to expect. One thing that jumped out to me in your article was the paragraph:
   “As I was making my bed, I was approached by a Hispanic who thought I was Hispanic because of my black hair and dark skin. He started speaking in Spanish to me but he soon realized that I was not Hispanic and he asked me what nationality I was, “I am an American Indian” I told him and he calmly walked away. I later found out that he was the leader of a Hispanic group in the camp and wanted to recruit me into his little gang.”
   This caught my attention because I am of mixed race (hispanic & black). I have a hispanic last name, but look biracial. I do not align myself with any particular race and have always had friends from every background and ethnicity. In your experience, what should the exceptions be for someone like myself? Are the FCIs as segregated as some of your state prisions? Is there a large gang presence in the FCIs?
2. 
   2Rickey
   Tony,
   There will be no exceptions, you will make friends the same way you did before, by talking to new people from different walks of life, cultures and professions.
   I never saw segregation as a real issue in the prison camp because of how far we have come to eliminate it. However there are still a selected few who choose to remain segregated.
   No, there is not a large gangs present in the camp. Inmates have to be on their best behavior, any fighting or hint of serious gang activity, those inmates would be taken out of the camp.