Leon Benson's guest appearances

Leon Benson

The Final Straw Radio

Busy Being Black

Cory Doctorow

Joshua Clover

Kevin Tucker

Jeremy Bentham

Sophie Lewis

Leonard Peltier

Scott Campbell

Hurricane Michael

Chelsea Manning

Herman Bell

Barry Pateman

Nora Samaran

David Forbes

Andy Fleming

George Jackson

OwlTail

At just 23 years old, Leon Benson was sentenced to 61 years in prison for a murder he did not commit. At 47 years old, Leon is a free man after his case was taken up by lawyers at the University of San Francisco Law School’s Racial Justice Clinic. Over 25 years, Leon consumed as much knowledge as he could get access to, which helped him explain the complex dynamics of not only his physical form in relation to confined space, but also of how his mind made sense of the injustice of his experience and the experiences of those like him. We explore the parallel experiences of those confined within and beyond the walls of prison, the awakenings and reckonings that helped him build emotional and psychic resilience and the near impossible task of embodiment in a place that traffics in sensory deprivation. We discuss the moments and people in 2020 that would be instrumental in his release and how people born guilty in America maintain faith in the idea of justice, which he believes is a natural human impulse and, like hope, is also a spiritual practice.About Leon BensonLeon's case was championed by The Racial Justice Clinic at the University of San Francisco’s School of Law and led by all-star attorney and author Lara Bazelon. The particulars of his case are the focus of season three of investigative podcast series Suspect. Leon performs as EL BENTLY 448 and shares his survivor's journey on Innocent Born Guilty, an explosive hip hip record full of poetry, philosophy and world history, inspired by Black-led social justice movements. Innocent Born Guilty is available now from Die Jim Crow Records.Throughout his incarceration, Leon was supported by family, friends and strangers on the internet, like Shannon Coleman and Steve Willet. For those interested in supporting charities in the UK addressing miscarriages of justice and prison reform, please consider supporting the work of Appeal and the Prison Reform Trust.About Busy Being BlackHelp me shape the future of Busy Being Black by filling out this short listener survey: https://forms.gle/y7y3iQ7RPievyGFP8Busy Being Black is an exploration and expression of quare liveliness and my guests are those who have learned to live, love and thrive at the intersection of their identities. Please leave a rating and a review and share these conversations far and wide. As we continue to work towards futures worthy of us all, my hope is that as many of you as possible understand Busy Being Black as a soft, tender and intellectually rigorous place for you to land. Thank you to our funding partner, myGwork – the business community for LGBT+ professionals, students, inclusive employers and anyone who believes in workplace equality. Thank you to my friend Lazarus Lynch for creating the ancestral and enlivening Busy Being Black theme music. Thank you to Lucian Koncz and Stevie Gatez for helping create the Busy Being Black artwork Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At just 23 years old, <a href="https://www.diejimcrow.com/news/leon-bensons-letter-of-gratitude" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Leon Benson</a> was sentenced to 61 years in prison for a murder he did not commit. At 47 years old, Leon is a free man after his case was taken up by lawyers at the University of San Francisco Law School’s Racial Justice Clinic. Over 25 years, Leon consumed as much knowledge as he could get access to, which helped him explain the complex dynamics of not only his physical form in relation to confined space, but also of how his mind made sense of the injustice of his experience and the experiences of those like him. We explore the parallel experiences of those confined within and beyond the walls of prison, the awakenings and reckonings that helped him build emotional and psychic resilience and the near impossible task of embodiment in a place that traffics in sensory deprivation. We discuss the moments and people in 2020 that would be instrumental in his release and how people born guilty in America maintain faith in the idea of justice, which he believes is a natural human impulse and, like hope, is also a spiritual practice.About Leon BensonLeon's case was championed by <a href="https://www.usfca.edu/law/engaged-learning/law-clinics#:~:text=Racial%20Justice%20Clinic%20students%20represent,her%20education%20is%20at%20stake." rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Racial Justice Clinic</a> at the University of San Francisco’s School of Law and led by all-star attorney and author Lara Bazelon. The particulars of his case are the focus of season three of investigative podcast series <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/suspect/id1580881826" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Suspect</a>. Leon performs as EL BENTLY 448 and shares his survivor's journey on Innocent Born Guilty, an explosive hip hip record full of poetry, philosophy and world history, inspired by Black-led social justice movements. Innocent Born Guilty is available now from <a href="https://elbently448.bandcamp.com/album/innocent-born-guilty" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Die Jim Crow Records</a>.Throughout his incarceration, Leon was supported by family, friends and strangers on the internet, like Shannon Coleman and Steve Willet. For those interested in supporting charities in the UK addressing miscarriages of justice and prison reform, please consider supporting the work of <a href="https://appeal.org.uk/our-work" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Appeal</a> and the <a href="https://prisonreformtrust.org.uk/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Prison Reform Trust</a>.About Busy Being BlackHelp me shape the future of Busy Being Black by filling out this short listener survey: <a href="https://forms.gle/y7y3iQ7RPievyGFP8" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://forms.gle/y7y3iQ7RPievyGFP8</a><a href="https://www.busybeingblack.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Busy Being Black</a> is an exploration and expression of <a href="https://www.york.ac.uk/media/english/documents/newsandevents/E.%20Patrick%20Johnson%20Quare%20(1).pdf" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">quare</a> liveliness and my guests are those who have learned to live, love and thrive at the intersection of their identities. Please leave a rating and a review and share these conversations far and wide. As we continue to work towards futures worthy of us all, my hope is that as many of you as possible understand Busy Being Black as a soft, tender and intellectually rigorous place for you to land. Thank you to our funding partner, <a href="https://cms.megaphone.fm/organizations/81a8496c-a46f-11ec-9c25-e367ce834a47/podcasts/37711e5a-4557-11eb-a531-a3b4a4c4541c/episodes/c1fab51e-3fc3-11ed-b46b-f73cac274b5b/mygwork.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">myGwork</a> – the business community for LGBT+ professionals, students, inclusive employers and anyone who believes in workplace equality. Thank you to my friend Lazarus Lynch for creating the ancestral and enlivening Busy Being Black theme music. Thank you to <a href="https://www.luciankoncz.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Lucian Koncz</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/stevie.gatez/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Stevie Gatez</a> for helping create the Busy Being Black artwork Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Leon Benson – I'm Living Like I Died Before

First, you'll hear from Koby Bluitt talking about her father, Leon Benson and his struggle for release after 23 years in prison, 10 of which was in solitary confinement, for a murder charge in 1998 that he has consistently claimed to have not committed. More on Leon at freeleonbenson.org or leonbenson-freeleonbenson on facebook. The Mass Release &amp; Clemency for Leon rally in Indianapolis is July 25th at Tarkington Park. [00:04:44] Then, youll hear from Landis Reyonolds, a founder of IDOC Watch currently held in Westville Correctional Institution and whos been in since he was a juvenile, and Ray, an outside organizer with the South Bend, Indiana chapter of IDOC Watch. They talk about their work to start study groups in prison, promote Prison Lives Matter, support jailhouse lawyers and recruit outside lawyers through the Prison Legal Support Network alongside the NLG and more. More info at IDOCWatch.Org or find them on twitter, instagram or fakebook. You can support them via their patreon as well! [00:38:08]  Transcript PDF (unimposed) Zine (imposed PDF)  PLSN contact info If you are or know an incarcerated paralegal in IDOC: Please send a letter to: IDOC Watch P.O. Box 3322 South Bend, IN, 46619 or leave us a voicemail at (423) 281-5009 with your name, DOC #, a brief introduction, and legal training/experience. We will contact you by GTL. If you are an abolitionist-minded lawyer, law student, paralegal, or have legal expertise and would like to assist: Email Ray (PLSN outside facilitator) @ RaddishGreens@protonmail.com Prison Lives Matter:  Visit us at www.supportprisonlives.org Write to us at PO Box 9383, Chicago IL, 60609  Sean Swain on Texas abortion laws at [01:19:58] Announcements Abolitionist BBQ in Richmond Join abolitionists on June 5th, 2021 at Chimborazo Park from 2-6pm for an Aboliton Assembly &amp; BBQ, hosted by the VA Prison Abolition Collective and Prison Lives Matter. You can find that and more events across Turtle Island at ItsGoingDown’s Upcoming Events page. Drop The Charges in PDX The Portland Anti-Repression Defense League, or PADL, is launching a campaign to demand all charges from the 2020 BLM protests get dropped. You can find a link to the press release in the One Year Rebellion post of the IGD column, In Contempt. And you can contact the organizers at pdxadl@protonmail.com. International Solidarity with Palestinians Revolutionary Abolitionist Movement and the Muslim-Jewish Anti-Fascist Front have called for weeks of actions in support of the people of Palestine under the title “International Solidarity Is The Weapon of the People.” We’d like to remind you that while occupied Palestine is no longer in the news as Hamas and Israel signed a ceasefire:  the everyday brutality of the blockade on Gaza has been going since 2007 Israeli courts, cops, military and settlers continue to displace and ethnically cleanse Palestinian Muslims, Jews, Christians, Atheists and others from the occupied territories as they have since the Nakba began the US government ok’d more weapons sales to Israel during this recent assault that left dozens of Palestinian adults and children dead, destroyed water treatment, housing, media, medical and other infrastructure  Eric King &amp; CLDC Are Suing BOP The Civil Liberties Defense Center, on behalf of incarcerated antifascist, vegan and anarchist prisoner Eric King has filed a lawsuit about the ongoing cruelty and torture Eric has faced since he was incarcerated in 2014 for an act of sabotage in solidarity with the then-Uprising in Fergusson, MO, after the brutal murder of Mike Brown, Jr, by police. Eric cannot be abandoned or forgotten, notably since he’s in the crosshairs of the state and white supremacists for his anti-racist and anarchist views. You can find an announcement of the lawsuit at the  CLDC website, you can find a great writeup on the situation by Natasha Leonard on The Intercept, and you can hear our interview with Eric and his partner from 2019 at  our website. Skelly of CLE4 In A Halfway House Joshua “Skelly” Stafford, a part of the Cleveland 4, 4 young anarchist men recruited out of Occupy Cleveland and entrapped by a paid FBI informant into a conspiracy, was released to a halfway house recently. We are excited to see Skelly on his way to full release. Keep an ear out for more details and possible ways to support Skelly post-release. . ... . .. If you want to support The Final Straw, our ongoing transcription and spreading of these topics and guests voices, here are a few suggestions:  make a onetime donation via paypal or venmo, an ongoing donation via paypal or liberapay, grab some merch on our bigcartel store, all of that can be found at TFSR.WTF/support. You can also become a patreon supporter and receive benefits, more info at patreon.com/tfsr rate us on itunes and other such things, share our podcasts, print our zines and leave them in public places or mail them into prisoners you support, follow us on social media. You can find our social media at TFSR.WTF/links and find our zines at TFSR.WTF/zines talk to your local community radio station about getting our free, weekly, 58 minute, fcc-friendly radio version on your local airwaves. More on that at TFSR.WTF/radio  . ... . .. Features Tracks:  Printmatic (Instrumental) by Soul Position from 8 Million Stories Innocent by Leon Benson / EL BENTLY 448 · MeachThaGod Stoned Is The Way Of The Walk (instrumental) by Cypress Hill from Cypress Hill 

First, you'll hear from Koby Bluitt talking about her father, Leon Benson and his struggle for release after 23 years in prison, 10 of which was in solitary confinement, for a murder charge in 1998 that he has consistently claimed to have not committed. More on Leon at <a href="https://freeleonbenson.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">freeleonbenson.org</a> or <a href="https://www.facebook.com/freeleonbenson" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">leonbenson-freeleonbenson</a> on facebook. The Mass Release &amp; Clemency for Leon rally in Indianapolis is July 25th at Tarkington Park. [00:04:44] Then, youll hear from Landis Reyonolds, a founder of IDOC Watch currently held in Westville Correctional Institution and whos been in since he was a juvenile, and Ray, an outside organizer with the South Bend, Indiana chapter of IDOC Watch. They talk about their work to start study groups in prison, promote <a href="https://www.supportprisonlives.org/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Prison Lives Matter</a>, support jailhouse lawyers and recruit outside lawyers through the <a href="https://www.idocwatch.org/prison-legal" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Prison Legal Support Network</a> alongside the NLG and more. More info at <a href="https://www.idocwatch.org/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">IDOCWatch.Org</a> or find them on <a href="https://twitter.com/IDOCWatch" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/idocwatch/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">instagram</a> or <a href="https://www.facebook.com/idocwatch/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">fakebook</a>. You can support them via their <a href="https://www.patreon.com/IDOCwatch" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">patreon</a> as well! [00:38:08] <ul> <li><a href="https://thefinalstrawradio.noblogs.org/post/2021/05/30/idoc-watch-leon-benson-and-abolitionist-organizing-in-indiana/#idocwatch" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Transcript</a></li> <li><a href="https://archive.org/download/idoc-watch-leon-benson-and-abolitionist-organizing-in-indiana/IDOC-watch.pdf" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">PDF (unimposed)</a></li> <li><a href="https://archive.org/download/idoc-watch-leon-benson-and-abolitionist-organizing-in-indiana/IDOC-watch-zine.pdf" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Zine (imposed PDF)</a></li> </ul> PLSN contact info If you are or know an incarcerated paralegal in IDOC: Please send a letter to: IDOC Watch P.O. Box 3322 South Bend, IN, 46619 or leave us a voicemail at <a>(423) 281-5009</a> with your name, DOC #, a brief introduction, and legal training/experience. We will contact you by GTL. If you are an abolitionist-minded lawyer, law student, paralegal, or have legal expertise and would like to assist: Email Ray (PLSN outside facilitator) @ <a href="mailto:RaddishGreens@protonmail.com">RaddishGreens@protonmail.com</a> Prison Lives Matter: <ul> <li>Visit us at <a href="http://www.supportprisonlives.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.supportprisonlives.org</a></li> <li>Write to us at PO Box 9383, Chicago IL, 60609</li> </ul> Sean Swain on Texas abortion laws at [01:19:58] Announcements Abolitionist BBQ in Richmond Join abolitionists on June 5th, 2021 at Chimborazo Park from 2-6pm for an Aboliton Assembly &amp; BBQ, hosted by the VA Prison Abolition Collective and Prison Lives Matter. You can find that and more events across Turtle Island at ItsGoingDown’s <a href="https://itsgoingdown.org/upcomingevents/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Upcoming Events</a> page. Drop The Charges in PDX The Portland Anti-Repression Defense League, or PADL, is launching a campaign to demand all charges from the 2020 BLM protests get dropped. You can find a link to the press release in the <a href="https://itsgoingdown.org/in-contempt-one-year-rebellion/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">One Year Rebellion</a> post of the IGD column, In Contempt. And you can contact the organizers at <a href="mailto:pdxadl@protonmail.com">pdxadl@protonmail.com</a>. International Solidarity with Palestinians Revolutionary Abolitionist Movement and the Muslim-Jewish Anti-Fascist Front have called for weeks of actions in support of the people of Palestine under the title “<a href="https://www.revolutionaryabolition.org/news/international-solidarity-is-the-weapon-of-the-people-global-week-of-action-in-solidarity-with-palestine/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">International Solidarity Is The Weapon of the People</a>.” We’d like to remind you that while occupied Palestine is no longer in the news as Hamas and Israel signed a ceasefire: <ol> <li>the everyday brutality of the blockade on Gaza has been going since 2007</li> <li>Israeli courts, cops, military and settlers continue to displace and ethnically cleanse Palestinian Muslims, Jews, Christians, Atheists and others from the occupied territories as they have since the Nakba began</li> <li>the US government ok’d more weapons sales to Israel during this recent assault that left dozens of Palestinian adults and children dead, destroyed water treatment, housing, media, medical and other infrastructure</li> </ol> Eric King &amp; CLDC Are Suing BOP The Civil Liberties Defense Center, on behalf of incarcerated antifascist, vegan and anarchist prisoner Eric King has filed a lawsuit about the ongoing cruelty and torture Eric has faced since he was incarcerated in 2014 for an act of sabotage in solidarity with the then-Uprising in Fergusson, MO, after the brutal murder of Mike Brown, Jr, by police. Eric cannot be abandoned or forgotten, notably since he’s in the crosshairs of the state and white supremacists for his anti-racist and anarchist views. You can find an announcement of the lawsuit at the <a href="https://cldc.org/cldc-files-civil-rights-suit-on-behalf-of-anti-racist-political-prisoner-eric-king" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> CLDC website</a>, you can find a great writeup on the situation by Natasha Leonard on T<a href="https://theintercept.com/2021/05/28/bop-prison-white-supremacist-anti-fascist/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">he Intercept</a>, and you can hear our interview with Eric and his partner from 2019 at <a href="https://thefinalstrawradio.noblogs.org/post/2019/08/25/we-need-to-keep-that-spirit-alive-anarchist-prisoner-eric-king-and-partner-speak/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> our website</a>. Skelly of CLE4 In A Halfway House Joshua “Skelly” Stafford, a part of the Cleveland 4, 4 young anarchist men recruited out of Occupy Cleveland and entrapped by a paid FBI informant into a conspiracy, was released to a halfway house recently. We are excited to see Skelly on his way to full release. Keep an ear out for more details and possible ways to support Skelly post-release. . ... . .. If you want to support The Final Straw, our ongoing transcription and spreading of these topics and guests voices, here are a few suggestions: <ul> <li>make a onetime donation via paypal or venmo, an ongoing donation via paypal or liberapay, grab some merch on our bigcartel store, all of that can be found at <a href="https://tfsr.wtf/support" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">TFSR.WTF/support</a>. You can also become a patreon supporter and receive benefits, more info at <a href="https://patreon.com/tfsr" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">patreon.com/tfsr</a></li> <li>rate us on itunes and other such things, share our podcasts, print our zines and leave them in public places or mail them into prisoners you support, follow us on social media. You can find our social media at <a href="https://TFSR.WTF/links" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">TFSR.WTF/links</a> and find our zines at <a href="https://tfsr.wtf/zines" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">TFSR.WTF/zines</a></li> <li>talk to your local community radio station about getting our free, weekly, 58 minute, fcc-friendly radio version on your local airwaves. More on that at <a href="https://tfsr.wtf/radio" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">TFSR.WTF/radio</a></li> </ul> . ... . .. Features Tracks: <ul> <li>Printmatic (Instrumental) by <a href="http://www.myspace.com/soulposition" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Soul Position</a> from 8 Million Stories</li> <li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJwmyuT3eAI&amp;t" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Innocent</a> by Leon Benson / EL BENTLY 448 · MeachThaGod</li> <li>Stoned Is The Way Of The Walk (instrumental) by <a href="http://www.cypresshill.com/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Cypress Hill</a> from Cypress Hill</li> </ul>

IDOC Watch, Leon Benson and Abolitionist Organizing in Indiana