Donna Hylton, who was abused as a child, spent 27 years in prison and wrote a book about how she turned her life around. She said her mission today is to be “a voice for the silenced” women still in prison. At age 20, Hylton was sentenced to 25 years to life for her role as a nonviolent accessory to kidnapping and second-degree murder. She is finally freed. Hylton’s childhood was a living hell. She was abandoned by her mother in Jamaica, N.Y., at age 8, according to the article by The Glow Up. At that time, she was subjected to … [Read more...] about Formerly incarcerated author, Donna Hylton
Black women
Becoming Ms. Burton: … by Susan Burton
Of the many memoirs that have landed on my desk, Becoming Ms. Burton: From Prison to Recovery to Leading the Fight for Incarcerated Women (2010) is one of the most inspirational. In the foreword, writer Michelle Alexander sets the stage by drawing a comparison between the memoir’s author, Susan Burton, and the legendary Harriet Tubman. Tubman helped create the Underground Railroad for runaway slaves yearning to be free; Burton helps women held captive by our prison system make a constructive break for freedom and rebuild their lives. “African … [Read more...] about Becoming Ms. Burton: … by Susan Burton
FBI report reflects historical similarities
The FBI in 1956 created its secret Counterintelligence Program—COINTELPRO—to take action against Black organizations viewed as subversive. Sixty-one years later, on Aug. 3, 2017, the FBI published an intelligence assessment titled Black Identity Extremists Likely Motivated to Target Law Enforcement Officers. The two FBI approaches had striking similarities, despite the passage of 50 years. The “official use only” Black Identity Extremists report follows the November 2014 Grand Jury decision to exonerate the police officers involved in the … [Read more...] about FBI report reflects historical similarities