"Orange Is the New Black" Season 6 Has the Women Striving for Peace and Community More Than Ever

Candice Frederick
Updated
It is not only how they survive — it is how they thrive.

The fifth season of Orange Is the New Black ended with the riots sparked by Poussey's death finally coming to a close and the Litchfield women bracing themselves for the consequences of their fight against prison conditions. The beginning of the Netflix show's sixth season picks up soon after that, and things for the Litchfield inmates have been unbearable, to say the least. Taystee (Danielle Brooks) has now been wrongfully accused in the death of correctional officer Desi Piscatella and is facing a devastating new sentence. The crestfallen yet determined Litchfield community, now at the mercy of guards with revenge on their minds, has been shaken to the core. As the new season of Orange Is the New Black highlights, the mistreatment of the women has reached an all-time high, and the factions that once segmented many of the Litchfield inmates are long gone. But in the midst of utter despair, these women of different backgrounds have come together and have an incredible desire to find a sense of happiness — by any means necessary.

For Black Cindy (Adrienne C. Moore), who has to watch her friend Taystee fight the system and lose, it means she is left to navigate Litchfield on her own with a gaping hole in her heart. She feels powerless because there’s little she can do to protect her friend, but she later comes to the realization that the only way she can move forward is to find a space within this nightmare where she can retain some sense of her identity. That comes when she is enlisted to cohost an amateur talk radio show by fellow inmate Flaca (Jackie Cruz), who’s also recently found herself adrift without her friend Maritza (Diane Guerrero) by her side. The two develop an unlikely friendship based on their shared interest in mindless banter to get them through each day, finding new camaraderie as their typical scene partners from the past couple of seasons are off elsewhere.

Similarly, Piper (Taylor Schilling) perpetually spends her days watching her back in fear of saying or doing something that might set off the other inmates and trying to find moments when she can sneak away for a quick cuddle session with her girlfriend, Alex (Laura Prepon). Even with the companionship of Alex, Piper is miserable. So she is compelled to come up with a way to achieve personal peace and bring a sense of kinship to Litchfield, and that comes by way of a new softball team. That’s right, amid a potential blood battle, Piper goes around the prison lobbying for enough signatures to present a solid case to the guards for a recreational activity. It seems completely absurd — some inmates even tell her so — but in this environment where rage and depression have become the default for many, the idea takes on a surprising urgency.

Despite the madness that constantly surrounds the inmates, the softball game isn’t just about filling up time in between scheming and plotting; it gives them a drive to forgo their differences in order to fulfill a common need to feel like they’ve accomplished something positive. As idealistic and silly as something like establishing a sports activity in jail may seem, it takes on a deeper meaning for women who are exhausted from the daily task of fighting and just barely surviving.

This season proves that like anyone else, these women crave joy and peace despite what is continually presented to them. Most profoundly, they desire love — for themselves and for each other. In addition to Piper and Alex, pregnant Lorna (Yael Stone) shields herself from the agony of Litchfield with the mere illusion of romance. It’s a guise she’s cloaked herself in since the beginning of Orange Is the New Black as she continued to hold on to a long-ended relationship with an ex, but now it takes on an even greater significance as she struggles to confront her tragic reality while bracing for motherhood. Her passionate fantasies no longer seem like frivolous nonsense. Rather, they’re what keeps her hopeful when all seems so lost. Showing the surprising ways women find strength, even in the worst of times, is something that this series has always been good at. It reminds audiences that these characters are human, with vulnerabilities just like the rest of us, and will stop at nothing to rise above them.

That’s also what’s so poignant about this season, particularly after coming off the mayhem resulting from the riot. Even as they bear witness to seemingly insurmountable despondency and antagonism, the women of Litchfield still yearn to come together. They also have an inherent need to play, laugh, and engage in simple conversations without having to think about their lives being threatened or being in a constant state of anguish. It is their path to self-care when everything around them disputes the mere notion of it. It is not only how they survive; it is how they thrive.

Let us slide into your DMs. Sign up for the Teen Vogue daily email.

Want more from Teen Vogue? Check this out:

See the video.