The Columbia Flier has a piece on how Chess is being used in jails to help prisoners overcome obstacles, facilitate communication, or simply give them something to do.

Russell Davis, 24, learned to play chess in jail.

Now, the inmate at the Howard County Detention Center, facing an armed robbery charge, is hoping the game will help keep him out of jail in the future.

“It reflects life,” Davis said of chess. “If you can learn to get over some of the obstacles on a chess board, you can get over some of the obstacles in life.”

“It forces you to think in difficult situations, you can’t just react,” Davis said.

(source)