Common Fights for Prison Reform in ‘Hope & Redemption Prison Tour’ [WATCH]
As a way to fight for prison reform, Common teamed up with producer Scott Budnick, the Anti-Recidivism Coalition and the California Endowment to tour four California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation prisons.
Documenting his visits in a series called The Hope & Redemption Tour, the Chicago rapper has released his latest video which focuses on excessive sentencing. Speaking with a group of prisoners who were sentenced to life without a parole for nonviolent crimes, Common highlights how unethical the sentence is.
“Life without a parole is something that only exists in this country,” Common says of the United States. “We as citizens, by allowing that to be, are supporting that.” The video ends by stating the United States “is the only country that sentences people to life without parole.”
Of his tour, Common said, “The Hope and Redemption Tour was one of the greatest and most awakening experiences of my life. It inspired me, as I met some of the most humane and enlightened people. For them to be in such difficult circumstances, yet be aspiring toward hope and their own and others’ humanity, was amazing.”
Check out the video above.
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