Nicole Richardson

Nicole Richardson is the typical American housewife. She cooks, cleans, feeds the dog (and the snake), teaches public school, performs in shows, and sings karaoke in her spare time. Nothing about Nicole is out of the ordinary, except for one thing. Her husband is in prison. Nicole and her husband are waiting out a term of over 25 years (which qualifies as a natural life sentence in some states). Contrary to popular belief, she and her husband receive no conjugal visits, are never alone in the same room, and she travels ten hours round trip to go see him.

Everything about Nicole has two sides, from her name, to her family relations, to her teaching career, she constantly plays one role for one audience and is only able to remove the mask around certain people. Her husband's conviction has forced her to move jobs, towns, and lose most of the people she once thought were her friends.

This might seem crazy, but this is the truth for a vast amount of women in America (who leads the world in mass incarceration). Broken Silence is a collection of the thoughts, feelings, and experiences of Nicole, and many other men, women, and families across the nation.

Nicole resides in the Republican controlled Bible belt, spends as much time with her step-daughter as possible, and spends her free time volunteering for Strong Prison Wives and Families.

She can be reached at shatteredstigma@gmail.com

Twitter: shattered_stigma

Instagram: shatterdstigma

Facebook: Nicole Richardson