Join us for a conversation with Christopher Blackwell, Stanley Howard and Renaldo Hudson as part of the Journey to Justice Tour, a national bus tour designed to end the use of torture in the U.S. carceral system, specifically solitary confinement. The event will feature a discussion of Blackwell's new book, Ending Isolation: The Case Against Solitary Confinement and the fight to end solitary confinement and torture in U.S. prisons.  

The injustice and cruelty of the U.S. carceral system reach their peak in solitary confinement—once deemed torture by the Supreme Court, yet now a routine “solution” to overcrowding and violence. Hear firsthand accounts from the speakers about their experiences inside and the ways in which they organize against injustice, through radical journalism and inside/outside movement building. 

**We ask that all attendees wear masks in the event space during the program for the health and well-being of the speaker and other guests. We will have a reception afterwards with light refreshments and books available for purchase.**

Speakers:

Christopher Blackwell, is a Washington-based award-winning journalist currently incarcerated at the Washington Corrections Center. He is serving a 45-year prison sentence and has been incarcerated since 2003. He is the co-author of Ending Isolation: The Case Against Solitary Confinement. He will be joining us live via video for the event. 

Stanley Howard is a survivor of police torture who spent 39 years in Illinois prison, including 16 on Death Row. He currently works as a paralegal with the Uptown People’s Law Center. He has worked as a jailhouse lawyer, organizer, and social justice advocate for over 30 years. He is an accomplished author who has written about his experience both in a solo performance piece and in his book, Tortured by Blue.

Renaldo Hudson is an educator, minister, and community organizer, and focuses his work on ending perpetual punishment in Illinois. After being sentenced to death row, Hudson worked for 37 years while incarcerated in the Illinois Department of Corrections, where he became a leader, educator, and founder. Hudson developed and implemented groundbreaking programs inside the Department of Corrections, including the prison-newspaper Stateville Speaks and the Building Block Program, a transformational program run by incarcerated people within the Illinois Department of Corrections.

This event is sponsored by Journey to Justice and Haymarket Books. While all our events are freely available we ask that those who are able make a donation to support our ongoing programming work.