Photo Gallery:

In the

Community

6/15/24- F.I.R.E. with New GA Project

The chapter tabled and provided free hot/chili dog plates to the Mechanicsville community on Saturday, June 15th, at New Georgia Project's  F.I.R.E (Formerly Incarcearted Restoration & Engagement) event aimed at connecting formerly incarcerated community members to voter engagement resources. Shanequa, Chay and Waleisah engaged with dozens of citizens about our campaign to #endslaveryinGA, support the ending of felony voter disenfranchisement and how to join the chapter. We gave away a $25 gift card to our Slavery in GA quiz winner and gained new supporters. Special thanks to Chef Meeko of Down Home Southern Catering, LLC. for providing the hotdog & chili dog plates!

#RetiredSlave #involuntaryservitudeisslavery #endslaveryinGA

4/8-4/11- Chapter Member Attends Housing Conference

Shanequa, attended the 2024 Housing First Partners Conference in Atlanta to connect with housing partners and others working to prioritize and address housing issues, barriers and solutions. Housing exclusion and discrimination is an issue that directly impacts formerly incarcerated and justice-involved Georgians and the lack of housing is one of the top barriers to a successful reentry.

3/6/24- AOUNGA chapter member speaks before Senate about SB535 & SB 179

In case you missed it! On March 6th, our very own Page Dukes spoke before the Georgia Senate Committee on Ethics on 2 bills pertaining to felony disenfranchisement and the harm of passing bills that are said to help some but exclude others.

Page gave testimony on both SB179, a bill by Sen. Josh McLaurin bill that would restore voting rights to all people with felonies and SB 535, Sen. Jones' bill, which would only restore voting rights to those without drug  related charges. Of course, she spoke in favor of SB179 and opposed SB535.

Page spoke passionately, drawingupon her own lived experience to advocate that people impacted by the legal system be treated with the same dignity as others, which includes having access to democracy. Way to go Page! In case you missed it (or just need to hear the truth again), you can watch Page (mark 35:40), followed by Voter Rights activist and our friend Kareemah Hanifa, here.

2/29/24- Chapter Tables at Justice Day at the Capital

Chapter members, Shanequa, Chay and Waleisah tabled at the annual Justice Day at the Capitol, hosted by the Justice Reform Partnership, a coalition of 80 organizations and individuals working towards reform in Georgia. While there, they engaged with over 300 attendees about the importance of ending prison labor in Georgia. Waleisah also hosted 2 screenings of her film  "Working in Captivity: A Woman's Quest to End Slavery in GA".

2/22/24- Chapter Member Hosts Community Conversation on Issues that Impact Underserved Communities

Shanequa works at Mercy Care and was given an opportunity to do a 30 minute event to educate her work community on issues that impact the clients the clinic serves. Among the topics were criminalization of poverty, lack of housing, lack of employment,  voter suppression, voter disenfranchisement, mass incarceration and prison labor. Attendees watched, short films "Working in Captivity: A Woman's Quest to End Slavery in GA" and "Until We All Count", short films produced by chapter members Waleisah Wilson  & Page Dukes respectively.  Attendees signed our #endSlaveryinGA at https://www.change.org/EndSlaveryInGA

2/10/24- Chapter Members Speak at Ebenezer Baptist Church's Social Justice Ministry's Black History Month Program

Waleisah and Nikki spoke at Ebenezer's SJM's Black History Program that gave attendees some legislative updates, engaged them in Black History trivia and introduced them to the chapter's campaign to end prison slavery.

2023

Chapter Christmas Fellowship & Secret Santa Exchange- Dec. 15, 2023

Metro ATL chapter members gathered to relax, fellowship, eat good food and exchange gifts. It was an opportunity for members to get in much needed shared space to laugh, reflect and spend time as a "family" while we took a break from activism.

Anniversary Gala in Oakland- October 12, 2023

Chapter member Shanequa represented the GA Chapter at Legal Services for Prisoners with Children's 45th Anniversary & All of Us or None's 20th Anniversary Celebration "Continuing the Legacy: Embracing Change and Building for the Future" in Oakland, California on October 12th. The gala honored the legacy, history, and successes of LSPC's 45 years of organizing and advocating. LSPC and AOUON helped remove gang injunctions in Oakland, eliminates long-term solitary confinement in California, and Banned the Box for over 265 million people nationwide, marking the next chapter of organizing and transformation for all incarcerated and formerly-incarcerated people. The ceremony also honored and payed tribute to Dorsey Nunn & Hamdiya Cooks-Abdullah, Ellen Barry, Helena Huang, Karen Shain and Aleah Bacquie Vaughn. The gala was not just a celebration of our organization's achievements and milestones, but it was a testament to the strength of our community. It's your constant belief in our mission that propels us forward, empowering us to continue our work with renewed dedication and determination. If you missed the event, you can view photos, a highlight video and virtual tributes to the honorees from Hip Hip Artist Common, Bryan Stevenson, and actvist Angela Davis by visiting LSPC's website at https://prisonerswithchildren.org/45gala/

Shanequa engaged with AOUON, LSPC and advocates that attended the gala and enjoyed connecting with LSPC & AOUON networking events that continued the next day.

10/12-23-10/15/23- Chapter Members attend #FreeHer2023 in Puerto Rico

9/19/23#EndSlaveryinGA/End The Exception Mural Revealed in Cabbagetown & Chapter Lead gets Congressional Proclamation for her advocacy.

Our collaborative #endtheexception & #endslaveryinGA mural was revealed and installed on 9/2/23 in Cabbagetown at 727 Wylie St. SE in Atlanta. Stop by and take a look! Our mural was the 1st in a series of murals that will be installed in the South by Worth Rises & Mural Arts Philadelphia. Chapter Lead, Waleisah, and the chapter received a proclamation from Congresswoman Nikema Williams honoring the chapter's work and our campaign to end prison slavery in Georgia!

The mural reveal was followed by a screening (of  Chapter Lead's Waleisah's "Working in Captivity: A Woman's Quest to End Slavery in GA"), a discussion and dinner. The event was featured in ARTS ATL magazine: "Today in Street Art: Cabbagetown Mural Advocates for Change in 13th Amendment"

Congresswoman Nikema Williams, along with Senators Jeff Merkley & Cory Booker, reintroduced the federal abolition bill into Congress in 2023 to amend the exception in the 13 amendment that legalizes slavery for people convicted of a crime. This exception has been the "excuse" used to exploit, traffic and lease human beings simply to hold on to slavery!

Support the ending of the exception by signing our petition to #endslaveryinGA and by supporting the NATIONAL campaign efforts at https://endtheexception.com/

Stop 2 of our #endslaveryinGA Liberation Tour was hosted by Women on the Rise in Hapeville. Guest panelists discussed Atlanta's horrid  and Grisly History of the Chattahoochee Brick Company, highlighting the slavery and abuse of incarcerated laborers at the Chattahoochee Brick Company, the increase in the incarceration of women and girls, Women in Convict Camps, the physical and sexual exploitation of incarcerated women forced to work as laborers, Georgia's notorious history of being the first state to build the first all-female work camp in 1885 in Atlanta where the wome were required to make the 40,000 odd bricks used to build the adjacent Fulton County Almshouse and what Atlanta can do to embody its slogan of "Moving Atlanta Forward" where it is equitably applied to ALL Atlantans, including incarcerated individuals and their families. Watch the Live Facebook Stream of the ATL screening & Discussion.

4/20/23- Columbus #EndSlaveryInGA Screening & Discussion

Stop 1 of our #endslaveryinGA Liberation Tour was in Columbus, GA. Guest panelists discussed Columbus' ranking as the being the #1 city in the state that uses the most incarcerated laborers, the massive profit it makes from exploiting slave labor, its refusal to hire those same individuals for  a paying wage, the city's plans going forward and how it can become a change agent and leader in ending the practice of leasing human beings in exchange for profit!

10/6/22-10/9/22-  Formerly Incarcerated, Convicted People & Families Movement (FICPFM) biannual convening in Atlanta

On 10/6/22-10/9/22, several chapter members attended FICPFM's National convening in Atlanta where hundreds of formerly incarcerated people and our familles from across the country gathered to connect, take action and most importantly, FREE THE VOTE for justice impacted people enslaved by the felony voter disenfranchisement laws throughout the country!

3/3/22-3/4/22- AOUON's 2022 National Conference at Alcatraz Island

Three of the ATL chapter members (Waleisah, Robyn & Tabatha) flew to Oakland for All of Us or None's 2022 National Conference to represent Georgia to build the movement to end mass incarceration from the inside out (of Alcatraz). AOUON members from across the country converged onto Oakland for a weekend to strategize and convene on ending mass incarceration and its collateral and lifelong consequences. Members connected, participated in workshops, toured Alcatraz Island and prison, honored a Native American land dedication and visited local historic sites such as bakery that used to be the office of the Black Panther Party. Chapter Lead, Waleisah co-facilitated a workshop with the ALL of US or NONE Eastern Washington chapter on busting the myths that perpetuate media driven fear of people on the sex offender registry.