#ExposeBRJail: Social Media and Fundraising Campaign to Expose Inhumane Conditions of East Baton Rouge Parish Prison (EBRPP)
NEW ORLEANS – The Promise of Justice Initiative (PJI) is launching a campaign to expose the conditions in the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison (EBRPP) and raise funds to enable change #exposeBRJail.
The campaign launched with a video detailing the tragic, preventable deaths of two young men of color, Lamar Johnson and Jonathan Fano, while they were in the jail’s custody. The fundraising goal for the campaign is currently set at $50,000 and donations can be made here. Within minutes of the video being tweeted, activist DeRay Mckesson, who personally experienced the horrific conditions of the EBRPP when he was detained there for peacefully protesting the police shooting of Alton Sterling in July 2016, re-tweeted the video which has now been viewed more than 13.2 thousand times.
PJI preceded its social media campaign with an investigation and release of a report, Punished Protestors: Conditions in East Baton Rouge Parish Prison, detailing the inhumane conditions in the jail based on the accounts of many protestors detained following the protests in response to Alton Sterling’s death. An additional report is forthcoming.
PJI also hosted community meetings to discuss the conditions of the jail and helped launch a community coalition in partnership with Voice of the Experienced (VOTE) and the Progressive Social Network of Baton Rouge. Individuals shared their stories some of which can be found here, and in the local newspaper’s coverage here.
The next meeting is scheduled for:
Monday, March 12, 2018, 6-8pm
East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library
7711 Goodwood Blvd
Baton Rouge, LA 70806
Contact:
Mercedes Montagnes
504-529-5955