Fidelio
We Shall Be Free, We Shall Find Peace
Wir werden frei, wir finden Ruh
An exhibit of art by incarcerated persons at
San Quentin State Prison.
Audiences at our Fall 2021 production of Beethoven’s Fidelio may have noticed something strikingly different in the lobby — an exhibit of art by incarcerated persons at San Quentin State Prison, We Shall Be Free, We Shall Find Peace
Presented by San Francisco Opera’s department of Diversity, Equity and Community, the exhibit invited audience members to connect with the voices and expressions of an unseen and forgotten community and highlighted the importance of providing arts education to the most marginalized and ignored citizens in our society. The collection of works was curated in partnership with the William James Association, a Bay Area non-profit organization whose mission is to promote work service in the arts, environment, education, and community development.
GET INVOLVED
California Coalition for Women Prisoners, Oakland
CCWP is a grassroots abolitionist organization—with members inside and outside prison—that challenges the institutional violence imposed on women, transgender people, and communities of color by the prison industrial complex.
Become a Writing Warriors Advocate
Donate
TGI Justice Project, San Francisco
TGI Justice Project is a group of transgender, gender variant and intersex people–inside and outside of prisons, jails and detention centers–creating a united family in the struggle for survival and freedom.
Donate
Insight Prison Project, San Quentin
A pioneer in the field of Restorative Justice, IPP offers transformational programs for prisoners and parolees, which are supported by crime victims and community volunteers.
Volunteer
Donate
Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, Oakland
The Ella Baker Center has been working to advance people-powered campaigns for racial and economic justice for twenty-five years. The Center organizes with Black, Brown, and low-income people to shift resources away from prisons and punishment, and towards opportunities that make our communities safe, healthy, and strong.
Read Defund Fear
Donate or Become a Member
Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth, Oakland
Founded in 2005, RJOY interrupts cycles of violence and incarceration by promoting Restorative Justice practices and policies in schools, communities, and the juvenile justice system.