Doomed to Repeat: The Legacy of Race in Tennessee’s Death Penalty and Criminal Legal System
Hosted by TADP and American Baptist College
Friday evenings from 6:00-7:30 pm CT beginning Oct. 13 through Nov. 17, 2023
Help TADP to spread the word about this incredible series based on the Death Penalty Information Center’s report released in June 2023
Schedule of Events
October 13: Laying the Groundwork: A conversation with Tiana Herring, author of Death Penalty Information Center’s 2023 report, Doomed to Repeat: The Legacy of Race in Tennessee’s Contemporary Death Penalty and Reverend Stacy Rector, Tennesseans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (TADP) Executive Director
October 20: Art Imitating Life: A Conversation with Jerome Moore, Founder and CEO of Community Changers, explorer of social change, best selling author, TV show host, producer, and creator & host of Deep Dish Conversations and Ndume Olatushani, who was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death in Tennessee, serving 28 years in prison and 20 of those on death row for a crime he didn’t commit. Ndume taught himself to paint on death row and his most recent art exhibit is opening at American Baptist College on October 20
October 27: The Risk of Wrongful Conviction: A conversation with Sabrina Butler Smith, a death row exoneree from Mississippi, who resides in Memphis and who serves on the Tennesseans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty board. She is active with Witness to Innocence, an organization of by and for death row exonerees to be effective voices in the fight to end the death penalty and reform the justice system in the U.S; Jason Gichner, Deputy Director and Senior Legal Counsel with Tennessee Innocence Project; and Joyce Watkins, who spent 35 years in prison for a murder she did not commit and is the only Black woman exonerated in Tennessee
November 3: Color of Compromise and Criminal Legal System with Jemar Tisby: Jemar Tisby is the New York Times bestselling author of The Color of Compromise and the award-winning How to Fight Racism. He is a historian who studies race, religion, and social movements, and serves as a professor at Simmons College of Kentucky, a historically Black college. He is also the founder of The Witness, Inc. an organization dedicated to Black uplift from a Christian perspective. He has written for national news outlets such as The Atlantic, the Washington Post, and the Religion News Service. He has offered television commentary on CNN and is frequently called upon to provide expert insight on current events related to race and Christianity. He has spoken nationwide at colleges, universities, and other organizations.
November 10: Addressing the Harm: A conversation about restorative justice with Rafiah Muhammad-McCormick, TADP Community Outreach Coordinator and Mothers Over Murder Board member; Travis Claybrooks, Founder and CEO of Raphah Institute; and Ashlee Sellars, Director of Restorative Justice Initiatives of Raphah Institute, an organization addressing issues surrounding youth incarceration and victim trauma using restorative practices.
November 17: Be the Change You Want To See: A conversation about where we go from here with Jerome Moore and Tennessee Senator Charlane Oliver and others
