Gasping For Justice
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GASPING
​FOR JUSTICE

DECLARATIONS FROM PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY JAIL
We don't have cell phone footage inside Prince George's County jail. We have sworn statements. Of people fighting for their lives. This is their lawsuit, reimagined. Hear them. 
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Gasping For Justice
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01. STATEMENT OF THE CASE

THE UNCONTROLLED OUTBREAK

In the Prince George’s County jail where hundreds are held presumed innocent awaiting trial, there is an uncontrolled outbreak fueled by the jail’s actions, a 23 hours-a-day lockdown, and sustained by the inaction of district judges and Aisha Braveboy, the state’s attorney.
VIEW FULL LAWSUIT
Introduction
READ STATEMENT OF THE CASE ➔​
The Factual Allegations
READ FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS ➔​
The Plaintiffs
READ THE PLAINTIFFS ➔​
02. SWORN STATEMENTS

THE EXPERIENCES INSIDE

The People jailed in Prince George's County refuse to be silenced. They are fighting back. These are their sworn statements, amplified.
​​READ BY JESSE WILLIAMS / ACTOR
​"We've been on lockdown for months."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY QIANA JOHNSON / FOUNDER, LIFE AFTER RELEASE
"Are we about to die?"
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY ALEC BALDWIN / ACTOR
"I could barely breathe."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY JOSIE DUFFY RICE / PRESIDENT, THE APPEAL
"I couldn't call my family."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY BRITNEY COLEMAN / ACTOR
"It's like we're lab rats."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY DWAYNE BETTS / POET, MEMOIRIST, & TEACHER​
"The C.O.s refused to help me."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY BARATUNDE THURSTON / WRITER & COMEDIAN
"I did not get fresh clothes for 13 days."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY CIARA RENEE / ACTOR​
"It made me feel like the scum of the earth."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY JAMES FORMAN / LEGAL SCHOLAR & AUTHOR
"I begged to go to medical, but I was ignored."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY JONATHAN BURKE / ACTOR​
"I can't breathe."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY FIONA APPLE / SINGER-SONGWRITER
"I've lost my spirit."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY ANGELA WILLIG / DEAN, BOSTON U. LAW SCHOOL
"I thought I was about to die."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY CHRISTOPHER GURR / ACTOR
"Something is wrong with my lungs."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY RABIA CHAUDRY / ATTORNEY & AUTHOR
"It's like I am not even human."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​​READ BY GARRY JENKINS / DEAN, U. OF MINNESOTA LAW SCHOOL
"It's just a matter of time."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY JESSIE HOOKER-BAILEY / ACTOR
"Social distancing was not happening."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY ANTUAN RAIMONE / ACTOR​
"We are still human, not animals."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY MEENA HARRIS / LAWYER & AUTHOR
"The C.O.s have been more hostile to us."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY MOLLY CRABAPPLE / ARTIST & WRITER
"It is so hot, it feels like my heart is being stuck with needles."
​READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY KIMBERLY MARABLE / ACTOR​
"I was unable to call my family."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY JONATHAN RAPPING / FOUNDER & PRESIDENT, GIDEON'S PROMISE
"It's a scary situation."
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
EXPLORE MORE
03. JUSTICE DENIED

JUDGES ISSUE FORM DENIALS

​​READ BY DWAYNE BETTS / POET, MEMOIRIST, & TEACHER​
Public defenders continue fighting every day to release the people they represent to protect them from infection and death, but judges continue to ignore humanity.

​Even worse, to save time, judges have now begun simply to issue form denials without a hearing. This is cruel indifference. 


READ ROUTINE DENIAL

TAKE ACTION

An urgent movement across the country is underway. We are reckoning with police violence and abuse perpetrated against BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) lives. Yet we cannot disconnect this visible violence from the violence inflicted on Black and Brown lives trapped inside inhumane jails, presumed innocent while awaiting trial, and without adequate medical treatment as the COVID-19 pandemic spreads.
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VOLUNTEER TO COURT WATCH
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SOCIAL MEDIA TOOLKIT

ADD YOUR VOICE

Make these stories heard. Join the growing chorus of voices amplifying these declarations. Click the button below. Choose one to read. Record yourself. Post to social with the hashtag “#GaspingForJustice” alongside our calls to action.
FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS
​​READ BY KRISTIN FULTON / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY ALEX BRIGHTMAN / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY ILHAM ASKIA  / EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, GIDEON'S PROMISE 
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY JOSHUA ROBINSON / ACTOR​
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY NATHAN RILEY / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY WHITNEY ANDREWS / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY JOEY STONE / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT  ➔​
​​READ BY FRANCIS JUE / ACTOR​
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY JASMIN WALKER / ACTOR & DIRECTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY ISABELLE MCCALLA / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY ASHLEY SELDON / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY LAUREN PATTEN / ACTOR 
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY DANYEL FULTON / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY LIA-SHEA TILLETT / CHOREOGRAPHER
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY ANDREW BARTH FELDMAN / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY SHAINA TAUB / SONGWRITER
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY MARIA DIZZIA / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY BREANA OGALDEZ / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
R​​READ BY BRITTANY LAURELLE / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY AFRA HINES / ACTOR & DANCER
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY SOPHIE SAGAN-GUTHERZ​ / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY ESTHER MIRA / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY SEAN ALLAN KRILL / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY SHERYL KALLER / DIRECTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY LENNE KLINGAMAN / ACTOR & SINGER
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY TIFFANY RENEE THOMPSON / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY RICHARD HICKS / CASTING DIRECTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY SAMMI CANNOLD / DIRECTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY SARAH BOCKEL / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY KIRSTEN SCOTT / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY BARRY KOHN / FOUNDER, PHYSICIAN VOLUNTEERS FOR THE ARTS​
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY GINA M. JACKSON / PROFESSOR & ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY JESSICA ALMASY / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY ANDREA GRODY /  MUSIC DIRECTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY BOBBY CRONIN / COMPOSER
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY BIANCA BARRAGAN / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY RACHEL SUSSMAN / PRODUCER
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY GIDEON GLICK / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY BETSY HOGG / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
​​READ BY JONALYN SAXER / ACTOR
READ SWORN STATEMENT ➔​
  • 01. STATEMENT OF THE CASE
  • 02. SWORN STATEMENTS
  • 03. JUSTICE DENIED
  • 04. TAKE ACTION

Gasping For Justice is a project of Hear Us, an impact advocacy initiative that shares first-hand accounts of the human impact and cruelty of criminalization and incarceration.

​The model for this project evolved from The Flores Exhibits, developed by The Broadway Advocacy Coalition and Waterwell Theater Company.

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  • Hold Power Accountable
  • Donate to Bail Fund
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