When Trudy Murray was first carted off to prison she was 22 years old and pregnant with her daughter Alexis Rose.
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Carrying a baby behind bars sounds like a nightmare start to motherhood, but Trudy said at the time prison felt like a safe place where she could stay off drugs and away from bad influences.
“I first came into the AMC at 22 when I was pregnant. That was a blessing because I didn’t use while I was pregnant,” she said.
“That was the only way I was going to stay off it.”
Two years later Trudy is back in the Alexander Maconochie Centre after breaching the conditions of her intensive corrections order.
This time around, she said she was eager to pick up some skills that would help her when she gets outside again.
“I’ve been here since the 20th of April. The past few months have been pretty good,” she said.
“I’m working in the bakery, which is something I’ve picked up since I’ve been in here.
“I’m going to try and do something with it when I get out. I’ll get a job and stay away from bad influences.”
On Monday Trudy was visited by her family as part of a prison celebration for NAIDOC Week.
Cradling her daughter and speaking of her drive to turn her life around, she stood as a stark illustration of this year’s NAIDOC theme, “Because of her, we can”.
“I didn’t really have much of a plan before I came in. Now I just want to get my daughter back,” Trudy said.
“For the last six years I’ve been caring for my brother Jeffrey. I had to help raise a lot of my siblings. I had to step up so they had a good life.”
Hundreds of people packed into the prison’s indoor basketball court to kick off the family day event, which was introduced to the Alexander Maconochie Centre six years ago.
Detainees mixed freely with friends and family members, identified only by their blue or maroon prison-issue jumpers.
A traditional Aboriginal dance was performed to start the celebrations, followed by a barbecue lunch and a performance from Johnny’s AMC Detainee Band.
It might have only lasted a couple of hours, but Trudy said it made a difference.
“It means my family can spend some time with me, and I get to enjoy some time with my daughter.”
