RATTLING THE BARS
Rattling the Bars, hosted by former Black Panther and political prisoner Marshall “Eddie” Conway, puts the voices of the people most harmed by our system of mass incarceration at the center of our reporting on the fight to end it.
Rattling the Bars offers an honest look at the lives of prisoners, returning citizens, their families, and their communities. With Rattling the Bars, by presenting hard data and real-life stories, we examine and seek to shift public opinion around the misconception that incarceration, punishment, and increased policing make cities safer—the truth of which has been disproven by countless studies. The series examines the history and root causes of the current so-called justice system. It showcases individuals and communities nationwide who are grappling with real solutions to problems created by the prison-industrial complex.
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Latest episode
TRNN’s Eddie Conway: Prisoners have power in their own words
Forty years ago, Eddie Conway spoke to fellow prisoners at the Maryland Penitentiary as part of the “Say Their Own Word” program, which he helped organize as an inmate. A free man now, Conway reflects on the program and the ongoing struggle against the carceral state.
Recent episodes
COVID-19 spikes four times higher in prisons and jails: ‘This lack of concern for human lives is calculated’
As COVID-19 cases explode exponentially in the U.S., a glaring component of this public health crisis is being ignored: Prisoners are contracting the virus at four times the national rate, and these spikes will spread to the larger community.
Update: Forced-hysterectomy victims in ICE detention deported
Eddie Conway talks to Azadeh Shahshahani, Project South Legal and Advocacy Director and lawyer for Dawn Wooten, a nurse at Irwin County Detention Center and the whistleblower who sounded the alarm on ICE abuses, including the case of ICE detainees being forced to have hysterectomies while in custody
Bruce Franklin 40 years ago: ‘American empire is coming undone’
At a prisoners’ educational outreach program in 1980, Franklin made predictions that ring true today.
The US has been moving toward fascism since Goldwater
Forty years ago, Askia Muhammad spoke to prisoners at the Maryland Penitentiary about imperialism and the stifling of dissent as part of the ‘Say Their Own Word’ program. Eddie Conway interviews him 40 years later as he draws parallels to the 2020 election.
Thousands of ex-felon first-time voters in Florida could help decide the 2020 election
In 2000, with all eyes on Florida, a young lawyer named Amy Coney Barrett helped swing the controversial Bush v. Gore decision, securing a Republican presidency. In 2020, the courts could again be decisive in swing states. Voting rights activist Desmond Meade is working to get court costs paid and ex-felons registered to vote.
Prisons are COVID-19 cluster sites, but this federal law denies recourse for the incarcerated
The Litigation Reform Act makes it harder for prisoners to file lawsuits—Including over unsafe conditions that could put them at risk of COVID-19.
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