justice system
GRITtv: Justice on Trial: Mumia Abu-Jamal and the Prison Industry
"The new face of American racism is in the prison system," says Johanna Fernandez, producer of the film Justice On Trial, about Mumia Abu-Jamal and the American justice system. Adds reporter Linn Washington, "The issue is not hiding what has been hidden in plain sight. The issue is doing something about it." It's not just Abu-Jamal's case that showcases the inequality in the justice system. It's stories like that of the Scott sisters, discussed here earlier this week, and statistics that show that one in 10 people in prison worldwide is an African-American man. Fernandez and Washington join us in studio to discuss the ongoing questions around race and justice in America.
Email this pageGRITtv: Susan Burton & Kimberle Crenshaw: Hope After Prison
Hope is in short supply these days, particularly for those in America's packed prison system. California incarcerates more women than any other state, and when those women get out of jail they often have nothing more than $200 in their pockets and hope to go on. Susan Burton was one of those women once, and now she's founder and executive director of A New Way of Life Reentry Project, a nonprofit organization that helps formerly incarcerated women get their lives back together. Susan has been named one of CNN's ten Heroes this year, and is in the running for the top spot, and she joins us via Skype, along with Kimberle Crenshaw, who explains just why Susan's nomination gives her hope in a bleak time. You can vote for Susan here.
GRITtv: From "Tough on Crime" To "Smart on Crime"
The United States incarcerates more of its population, both in aggregate numbers and per capita, than any other country in the world--four times as much as China, which has more people and makes no pretense at being a democracy. This is just one of the troubling facts about the prison industry in the US that Robert Perkinson uncovers in his book, Texas Tough: The Rise of America's Prison Empire. He traces the modern prison complex to its Southern roots, and connects its racial disparities to the backlash against the civil rights movement. All this might sound depressing, but Perkinson and Leonard Noisette of the Criminal Justice Fund of the Open Society Institute note that the economic crisis and a new administration have combined for one of the best chances for real prison reform since the Johnson administration. They join Laura in studio to discuss.
GRITtv: June 24 2010
The U.S. Social Forum kicked off this week in Detroit, with over 20,000 attendees from around the country determined to create solutions for the many problems the country faces. ; One of the ongoing struggles that fans of GRITtv will understand is the fight to create a thriving, independent media without corporate dollars--one that puts the concerns of real people ahead of profits.Don Rojas, Executive Director of Free Speech TV (GRITtv's satellite home on DISH network and now DirectTV as well) joins us to talk about the media collaborations happening at the Forum and beyond.
SourceCode: Eco Dissent/Not Terrorism
With the Patriot Act in effect engaging in activism or dissent, particularly pro environmental dissent, redefines you as a terrorist. Explore the criminalization of dissent. Hear from the Center for Constitutional Rights about how far the Feds can go once they label you a terrorist. Take a look at America's history of non violent dissent. Look back at one of the first actions of the radical environmental movement with Edward Abbey.
SourceCode: Justice for Whom?
Justice for Sale: when private interest groups pressure judges to rule according to popular sentiment, by hiding behind controversial subjects like abortion, Americans can't get their day in court. Come to Tennessee where judges are refusing to hear unpopular parental notification cases, and turning teens away.
