Beyond Prisons

Brian Sonenstein and Kim Wilson speak with Akeem Browder, founder of the campaign to Shut Down Rikers Island and the Kalief Browder Foundation. Akeem’s brother, Kalief, died by suicide in 2015 after spending three years at the notorious jail complex. His tragic story helped catalyze reform efforts in New York City. During the interview, Akeem tells the story of his own unjust arrest and experiences on Rikers as a young teenager, years before Kalief's incarceration. He relates how they both experienced the New York City Department Of Corrections' infamous culture of brutality firsthand and endured numerous assaults by law enforcement and other inmates. He shares advice he gave Kalief based on his own experiences and addresses the urgent need to improve mental health research, diagnoses, and treatment regarding incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people. Akeem also comments on the status of the campaign to close Rikers Island and the $1 billion earmarked for new "community jails." He described his experience