Events
Event Spotlight
Rio Grande Valley — 85 to Stay Alive Mock Cell and Prison conditions Exhibit Community Event
October 3, 2026
TPCA invites you to Harlingen Market Days for the 85 to Stay Alive: Mock Cell Event. This is an opportunity to step inside a replica prison cell and confront realities that are too often unseen.
Why it matters
Triple-digit temperatures have returned to Texas. For thousands of people incarcerated in Texas prisons, summer is more than uncomfortable — it can be deadly.
Approximately 90,000 people in Texas prisons lack adequate air conditioning, and internal temperatures can exceed 120°F.
Take the 7-Minute Challenge
Step inside the mock cell. See the visual exhibit.Learn what extreme heat, overcrowding, fear and isolation can mean for people living behind prison walls.
Address & Time
502 E Tyler Ave, Harlingen, TX 78550, USA
9:00am - 3 pm
Change begins with showing up.
Every conversation, community event, webinar, and public demonstration helps bring the realities of Texas prisons into public view.
Whether you're attending an event, inviting TPCA to speak, or hosting a community gathering, your participation helps educate others and build momentum for meaningful change.
Explore past events, learn about our signature 85 to Stay Alive exhibit, and find opportunities to get involved
Featured Program: 85 to Stay Alive
Experience the reality. Inspire action.
Each summer, TPCA brings our 85 to Stay Alive Mock Cell Experience to communities across Texas. Designed to demonstrate the dangerous temperatures endured by incarcerated Texans, the exhibit gives visitors a powerful, firsthand understanding of the conditions inside many Texas prisons.
The experience includes:
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A life-size heated mock prison cell
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Educational displays about extreme heat in Texas prisons
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Conversations with formerly incarcerated individuals and impacted families
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Resources for advocacy and civic action
More than an exhibit, it's an opportunity to connect statistics with lived experience, and to understand why climate control in Texas prisons is a public health and human rights issue.
Interested in hosting a Mock Cell?
Complete the Hosting Form below and our team will be in touch.
Community Events: Workshops, Webinars & Speaking Engagements
Throughout the year, TPCA participates in conferences, community events, educational panels, and virtual trainings. These gatherings bring together advocates, impacted families, researchers, healthcare professionals, students, policymakers, and community members to learn, ask questions, and take action.
While upcoming events vary throughout the year, this page serves as an archive of our community engagement and a place to learn how you can participate.
Event Calendar
October 10, 2026
27th Annual Death Penalty March – Austin Capitol
Join TPCA in Austin for the 27th Annual March to Abolish the Death Penalty. We’ll be tabling, holding banners, and marching alongside advocates from across Texas, with Dr. Amite Dominick speaking during the event.
Where:
When:
2:00 PM – 4:00 PM
October 7, 2026
Austin — Mock Prison Cell Exhibit @ Woodridge Park
Join TPCA in Austin for an outreach event connecting with local attorneys and judges and raising awareness about prison conditions in Texas. Interested in volunteering? Get in touch to join us for part of the day.
Where:
900 Guadalupe St, Austin, TX 78701, USA
When:
11:00 AM - 4:00 PM
October 3, 2026
Rio Grande Valley — 85 to Stay Alive Community Event — Harlingen Park
Join TPCA and the 85 to Stay Alive community at Harlingen Park for a day of conversation, connection, and action for humane prison conditions in Texas. Stop by to meet the team, learn about the campaign, or volunteer for part of the day.
Where:
1217 Fair Park Blvd, Harlingen, TX 78550, USA
When:
7:30 AM - 3:30 PM
September 28, 2026
Community Conversations: The Texas Restore Act
Join TPCA in Houston for Community Conversations: The Texas Restore Act, a free public event presented by the Texas Federation of the People Foundation.
TPCA will be on site with a Prison Conditions Table & Exhibit, sharing information about conditions inside Texas prisons and opportunities to learn, connect and take action.
This collaborative community event brings together advocates, organizations and members of the public for conversation around the Texas Restore Act and the future of Texas communities.
Where:
3100 Cleburne St, Houston, TX 77004, USA
When:
6:30 to 8:45 PM
September 23, 2026
Answering The Call @ St David's Episcopal Church, Austin
2:00 pm- 6:00 PM Experience:
The 7-minute Mock Cell. Step inside a full-scale replica of a Texas prison cell and feel, for seven minutes, what our loved ones endure for days.
The Prison Conditions Exhibit. Built entirely from what incarcerated people and their families have told us is real.
The Memorial of Stolen Lives. The names and faces of those we have lost, so that no one is reduced to a number.
6:00PM to 7:00 PM
The Interfaith Vigil. Clergy and faith leaders across traditions gather to answer the call, joined by families and the press.
Where:
301 E 8th St, Austin, TX 78701, USA
When:
2:00 to 7:00PM
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