Tuesday, September 29, 2009

A National Speaking Tour of the CEDP


LYNCHING THEN, LYNCHING NOW:
THE HISTORY OF RACISM AND THE DEATH PENALTY IN AMERICA.
A National Speaking Tour of the CEDP



STOPS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY THIS FALL AND SPRING.
IN AUSTIN THIS SPRING (DATE TBA)

The 2009-2010 Campaign to End the Death annual national speaking tour will be a teach-in Tour on the historic link between the death penalty and lynching in the United States. Today there is a critical need to rebuild civil rights struggle and dismantle this country’s execution chambers. This tour will bring together those who have been freed from death row, activists and scholars to explore the role of racism in our criminal justice system, and how and why the death penalty and unjust sentencing can be abolished.

The changing political landscape has created new openings to discuss the continued impact of racism in America on our criminal "injustice" system. That's why the teach-in aspect of this year's tour is important. There is a thirst among many people to learn about historical anti-racist movements - and how those lessons can help in building the struggles of today.

SPEAKERS INCLUDE:

Stephen Bright - Director, Southern Center for Human Rights. http://www.schr.org/ <http://www.schr.org/>

Martina Correia
- Sister of Troy Davis, Innocent Georgia Death Row Prisoner. Board Member, Campaign to End the Death Penalty.
http://troyanthonydavis.org/ <http://troyanthonydavis.org/>

Alan Bean
- Executive Director, Friends of Justice.
http://friendsofjustice.wordpress.com/ <http://friendsofjustice.wordpress.com/>

Yusef Salaam
- Exonerated in Central Park Jogger Case (NYC). Board Member, Campaign to End the Death Penalty

Brian Jones
- Author, "King's Last Fight". Board Member, International Socialist Review Magazine.
http://www.isreview.org/issues/58/feat-MLK.shtml <http://www.isreview.org/issues/58/feat-MLK.shtml>

Darby Tillis - Exonerated Death Row Prisoner from Illinois

Lawrence Hayes - former NYS death row prisoner.

Mark Clements
- former police torture victim, sentenced as a juvenile to life without parole in IL.

Ronnie Kitchen - police torture victim and former IL death row prisoner, freed in 2009.

Marvin Reeves - freed in 2009 after serving 21 years for a wrongfull conviction in IL.

If you are interested in bringing the Tour to your city, please email our National Tour Organizer Lee Wengraf at nyc@nodeathpenalty.org with any questions or to inquire about speakers.

There is a blog for the tour at http://cedptour.blogspot.com/. This blog will be updated with speakers, as well as dates for Tour stops, and reports from different cities on their events, so stay tuned!

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