Nationwide
Vigils
Send
the
Message,
"Two
Million
is
Too
Many"
2/18/00
Kristy Gomes, George Washington University Students for Sensible Drug Policy, [email protected] On February 15, the day that the US prison and jail population was expected to reach two million prisoners, The November Coalition and other drug policy reform groups organized over 40 "Two Million is Too Many" vigils nationwide. Vigils were held in front of prisons, city halls, courthouses, and in Washington, DC. Tom Murlowski of the November Coalition told The Week Online that the day of vigils was successful in a number of ways. "Most of the vigils featured speakers and other participants with loved ones serving long mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses,” Murlowski said. "It was great for them to see the support that is growing around the country for the reform of those sentencing laws. We also feel like the vigils have helped to forge solidarity between a number of disparate groups. We are certainly pleased, and we intend to continue to hold vigils to raise awareness of the tragedy of mass incarceration in the land of the free." At a vigil held steps from the Capitol in Washington, DC, Karen Garrison spoke about her twin sons, Lawrence and Lamont, who are incarcerated for 15.5 and 19.5 years respectively for allegedly having played minor roles in a conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine. They were convicted on the testimony of an admitted drug dealer who then received a reduced sentence. There was no evidence of either drugs or money in their case and Lawrence and Lamont maintain that they are innocent. Eric Sterling, president of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation, also spoke at the DC vigil. Sterling said that reaching the two million mark was not an indictment of those in prison, but of all Americans. He spoke of the families that are destroyed by mandatory minimum sentencing, highlighting the case of Dorothy Gaines, who is serving 20 years for a drug trafficking offense. Organizers around the country reported overwhelming public support to end the war on drugs and mandatory minimum sentencing. The largest vigil, held in Spokane, Washington attracted more than 200 supporters to the King County Jail. In Dallas, Texas and Gainesville, Florida, demonstrators dressed in black and white prisoners' costumes.
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