On September 16th, the Drop LWOP Coalition, alongside the Death by Incarceration is Torture Coalition, presented the Abolish Death by Incarceration webinar. Organizations from across the country came together to share updates about international advocacy at the United Nations to end death-by-incarceration sentences including LWOP (life without parole).

The event also honored political prisoners and the historic Attica Rebellion of September 1971, and contextualized the collective work in the long term goal of abolishing the racist punishment system. More than half of people serving life without parole are Black, and a majority of all people serving life sentences are people of color. Specific data shows that Black Americans make up over 50% of the LWOP population, with some states (Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Maryland) reporting over 70% of their LWOP population are Black. 

In 2020, 15% of the total prison population, or 203,865 people, were serving life or virtual life sentences. The United States’ extreme prison sentencing policies and practices, including life without parole, life with parole, “virtual life,” (a prison sentence of a term of years so long that the individual is expected to die in prison, even though they are not serving a formal “life without parole” sentence) and other sentences that exceed life expectancy. These extreme sentences effectively condemn individuals to death by incarceration, while also violating the prohibition against torture, violating the prohibition against racial discrimination, violating individuals’ right to life, and are cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment and an arbitrary deprivation of liberty. 

You can watch the webinar here —>>> Abolish Death by Incarceration

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