Past Events
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A Question of Freedom
Roundtable Discussion about Youth in the Adult Criminal Justice System
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| Location: | OSI-New York |
| Event Date: | September 25, 2009 |
| Speakers: | R. Dwayne Betts, Michael Corriero, Nancy Ginsburg, Chino Hardin, Kyung Ji Kate Rhee, Liz Ryan, Leonard Noisette, Terrance Pitts |
At 16 years old, R. Dwayne Betts carjacked a man and spent the next 9 years in some of the toughest adult prisons in Virginia. Now a poet, author, and national spokesperson for the Campaign for Youth Justice, he's written a book based on his experiences, A Question of Freedom: A Memoir of Learning, Survival, and Coming of Age in Prison.
The Campaign for Youth Justice's Join the Movement! initiative, the Institute for Juvenile Justice Reform and Alternatives of the Center for NuLeadership on Urban Solutions at Medgar Evers College, and the Open Society Institute Criminal Justice Fund hosted a book signing and discussion about trying youth as adults in the criminal justice system.
Participants
- R. Dwayne Betts, Poet and Author of A Question of Freedom
- Liz Ryan, President and Chief Executive Officer, Campaign for Youth Justice
- Michael Corriero, Executive Director, Big Brothers and Big Sisters
- Nancy Ginsburg, Director, Adolescent Intervention and Diversion Team, The Legal Aid Society
- Chino Hardin, Community Organizer, Institute for Juvenile Justice Reform and Alternatives
Leonard Noisette, Director of the OSI Criminal Justice Fund, and Terrance Pitts, Program Officer for the OSI Equality & Opportunity Fund, introduce the event. Kyung Ji Kate Rhee, Director of the Institute for Juvenile Justice Reform and Alternatives, moderates.
