One week from today Chris and I will be arriving in Hong Kong to start our 6 month journey to London! The process to get here has been a bit daunting as we have had to navigate international visa requirements, currency conversion, a half dozen vaccinations, language barriers as we reconnect with old friends and make new friends via Couchsurfing.org, determining what exactly we will need to pack for a 6 month long trip that spans three very different seasons, and, of course, convincing our moms we are prepared and will be safe...
This December we celebrated the one year anniversary of the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana (JJPL) in partnership with the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) welcoming home their first clients after they were released from the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. Together these men served nearly a century in prison (pictured above as they walked out of the prison gates). Their release was due to the United States Supreme Court decision in the case of Graham v. Florida which made life without parole for juveniles unconstitutional in cases where a murder did not occur. As we celebrated I was reminded of what it took to not only get them home that night, but also how that week after their release was at times so tough that those huge smiles were ripped away by feelings of doubt. After spending nearly their entire lives in prison and walking out with only a pillow case and $10 checks to start their new lives, we were first faced with the harsh reality that to even cash that check we would need $15 to pay for a birth certificate (because both of their families had lost their homes and their possessions in Hurricane Katrina - a common reality amongst those serving JLWOP) to get a State ID. Essentially, they were starting out $5 behind.
A year later we are thrilled to see the United States Supreme Court consider extending the Graham ruling to even more cases, but also concerned about how we will be able to keep that hope alive once they walk out of those prison gates. Annually, it is estimated that around 700,000 people return home from prisons and jails. Many despite a strong work ethic and goals to succeed on the outside will end up homeless because of barriers to employment, and the simple fact that most come home with nothing besides the clothes on their backs to start their new lives. This concern is why we have decided to dedicate our trip to raising money for those, who we hope, will be at home with their families next holiday season. Please visit our Sponsorship Page to learn more and make a donation. Every penny will go towards paying the high costs of re-entry for people given a second chance after being sentenced to life without the possibility of parole as youth in Louisiana.
We have started our outreach to academics and activists for our research and have been thrilled about the reception we have received. Today, we were sent the photos below from Amnesty International's (AI) office in France documenting events they put on through the month of December for AI's Global-Write-A-Thon. This year, AI focused on 15 people facing human rights abuses - including, Christi Cheramie, a young woman in Louisiana serving JLWOP! In France alone, over 250,000 signatures were collected during this years write-a-thon! Hundreds of letters and emails were also sent on Christi's behalf to Governor Jindal and President Obama asking them to end JLWOP and commute Christi's sentence.
To learn more about Christi's case and JLWOP in the United States, please follow the embedded links.
