‘Orange Is New Black’ author to speak at SIU

Piper Kerman, author of “Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women’s Prison,” the bestselling book that became a Netflix series, is coming to Southern Illinois University Carbondale, and free tickets for her presentation are available.

Kerman is scheduled to speak at 7 p.m. Nov. 4 in Shryock Auditorium on the SIU campus. 

Her presentation is part of the Elmer H. Johnson Criminology and Criminal Justice Lecture Series. A book signing will follow at 8:30 p.m.

Kerman’s New York Times bestseller is a memoir of her experiences in a federal prison, where she served time for a crime she committed a decade earlier while briefly involved with the drug trade. 

The subsequent Peabody Award-winning television series it inspired ran from 2013 to 2019, giving millions of people a look at the issues surrounding the female prison population. 

Kerman will share her story at SIU, as she has in venues across the country, including the White House and the U.S. Senate. 

Although there is no cost to hear Kerman and everyone is welcome, tickets must be claimed online in advance. 

Tickets can be obtained by visiting https://sjps.siu.edu/.   

SIU is committed to protecting the community, so all those attending Kerman’s presentation must follow current campus and state pandemic safety protocols and wear masks. 

A few additional measures will be taken as well in the interest of public health and safety. These include:

There will be social distancing at the event, with seating capacity limited to 50 perecent in the auditorium and Kerman unavailable for pictures with those attending the event.

During a book signing which is planned afterward, Kerman will sign books purchased on-site and present them to purchasers. For those who bring a book from home, she will sign a bookplate that they can affix to their book.

Sponsors of the presentation include the Criminology and Criminal Justice Program, the School of Justice and Public Safety, the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, the College of Liberal Arts, the College of Health and Human Sciences and the Student Programming Council.

For more information about Kerman’s presentation or for disability accommodations, contact the SIU Student Programming Council at 618-536-3393.