Tonight in Berkeley, join the California Coalition for Women Prisoners (CCWP) and partners for a Bay Area premiere screening of the “Free Joan Little” documentary film with Yoruba Richen, the film’s director. This new documentary tells the story of the 1975 groundbreaking case of Joan Little who was the first woman in U.S history to be acquitted for using deadly force to resist sexual assault in a jail. The story from over 50 years ago told in this film still connects directly with today’s struggles against sexual abuse in women’s prisons and jails.
At 20 years old, Joan Little, a Black woman, was incarcerated in North Carolina when she killed a white jailer who tried to rape her. With rare archival footage, contemporary interviews and the folk anthem by Sweet Honey and the Rock that carried her story, “Free Joan Little” captures the spirit of resistance that made history.
Let’s honor Black August by uplifting this critical victory, its context in the Black Liberation struggle, and connecting with organizing efforts happening now.
Tonight’s events:
- Panel and Q&A with Yoruba Richen, Film Director & Producer, alongside survivors & advocates resisting prison staff abuse today
- Honoring activist elders who were part of the Free Joan Little campaign (please reach out if you know anyone who participated)
You can purchase tickets here —>>> When We Win: FREE JOAN LITTLE – Bay Area Premiere with Film’s Director
- Where: La Peña Cultural Center, Berkeley, CA
- When: Tuesday, August 18; 7:30 PM – 9:30 PM
- Price: Sliding Scale Tickets: $15 – $35 | No one turned away for lack of funds | FREE for La Peña Members. Tickets available online and at the door until capacity is reached.
All are welcome. Seating will be theater-style.
California Coalition for Women Prisoners (CCWP) is a grassroots abolitionist organization, with members inside and outside prison, that challenges the institutional violence imposed on women, transgender people, and communities of color by the prison industrial complex (PIC). CCWP sees the struggle for racial and gender justice as central to dismantling the PIC and prioritizes the leadership of the people, families, and communities most impacted in building this movement.
