Shut Down Rikers: Meet Akeem Browder, Fighting to Close the Jail That Took His Brother's Life

democracynow.org - We continue our coverage of Rikers Island. In October, the Browder family held a memorial service for Venida Browder, who died "of a broken heart" 16 months after her own son, Kalief, hanged himself in his Bronx home after spending nearly three years at New York’s Rikers Island jail. In 2010, when Kalief was just 16, he was sent to Rikers Island, without trial, on suspicion of stealing a backpack. He always maintained his innocence and demanded a trial. He spent the next nearly three years at Rikers, even though he was never tried or convicted. For nearly 800 days of that time, he was held in solitary confinement. Near the end of his time in jail, the judge offered to sentence him to time served if he entered a guilty plea, and told him he could face 15 years in prison if he went to trial and was convicted. Kalief still refused to accept the plea deal. He was only released when the case was dismissed. While in Rikers, Kalief was repeatedly assaulted by guards and other prisoners. He also told Huffington Post Live that he was repeatedly denied food by guards while he was in solitary confinement. These experiences traumatized him, and ultimately, after his release, Kalief Browder took his own life on June 6, 2015, when he was 22 years old. For more, we speak with Akeem Browder, Kalief’s older brother. He is the founder of the Campaign to Shut Down Rikers.
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[@marlock6573]

They need to hold the DAs responsible for delaying trials in order to force plea deals on defendants who either can't make bail.

[@andygarcia8813]

the kid who accused him will get karma the police who decided to bring him in without proof will get karma the judge who allowed all this on an innocent boy will get karma

[@ryandarko2115]

@WOKE SOCIETY LLC yes it does you smart ass. what goes around comes around

[@Amy-zb6ph]

Akeem, if you ever want to talk. I will listen to you all day and all night. If you feel seriously depressed, definitely seek help. They can't do as much as we wish they would, but it's a nice stress pressure relief value to talk to someone who will listen.

[@jaykay415]

I don't understand how 80% haven't even been convicted?!?!?! I don't understand how someone suspected of stealing a backpack can be imprisoned?!?!?!? What is wrong with people?!?!?! I remember when this young man committed suicide, and it broke my heart to hear his story.

[@Isummerfresh]

This young man lived in hell and someone need to be held accountable!!!!!

[@elizabethmiro4359]

This poor guy was tortured beyond belief. Absolutely horrible & disgusting the way he was treated. Heartbreaking

[@GermanLeftist]

What needs to happen is a reform of the US prison system and how they are run, not to shut them down, that's not going to help at all. Hell, the entire justice system has to be reformed, since it's broken beyond relief. But I wouldn't hold my breath with the current political system and no matter who wins on Tuesday, neither Trump nor Clinton will push for a nation wide reform to stop this from happening.

[@ShazWag]

I just watched the Netflix series and am lost for words. It's _beyond_ tragic. Kalief was such a beautiful human being, inside and out. That was very clear. It's absolutley heartbreaking to watch. Also, the strong psychotic medication he was given can cause dependency and, importantly, is known by psychiatrists to alter individuals' personalities. It's also known to _increase_ paranoia and anxiety. These should _not_ be given to people with PTSD, which Kalief was clearly suffering from, or those with suicidal ideation. Then, after being shot, he was given medication that more than probably made it much worse. *Rest in peace dear Kalief and Venida Browder ~ two beautiful souls* 🌹❣ . Your pain and suffering is over, but it will never be forgotten. The messed up system in the U.S. needs a complete overhaul, and those so-called "correction" officers should be incarcerated!!! There's more than enough evidence!!! No resources? The U.S. has just handed over billions of dollars to "Israel" to help murder more innocent children. It's the axis of evil.

[@discocrisco01]

What is the alternative to this problem? The reality it is either (i) massive infusion of cash to speed of the court system (which exists in a very high tax state already) ,(ii) rebuild the entire jail because it is so old and antiquated so that they build letter, (iii) force mandatory sentencing guidelines that force judges to provide probation over imprisonment, or (iv) make significant bail reforms that only hold most seriously violent offenders in imprison or offenders violate the terms of bail.

[@iheard5128]

I think you are a little short sighted 1to speed a corrupt system 2 no need to rebuild as there are enough prisons already and enough restorative measures that can be used to reduce inmate numbers did you consider most these people never even been tried nor guilty...3 maybe but no time to drag out the dialogue ditto 4

[@joolenka]

What a bright incredible human being Akeem is. Amy Goodman is annoying asking him questions about facts he had already stated. Pay attention, lady!

[@emiliobello2538]

Can’t believe this

[@weedgood6656]

They killed him because more people would have come forward

[@bonniejones9327]

My heart really goes out I can't watch anymore it hurts so bad. God does everything for a reason everything.

[@rexrichardson8834]

If Akeem cared about his brother, why he bail Kalief out, the bail was a mere 3,000$ ?

[@empressvibes4705]

if u were paying attention you would have known his mom came up with the money but by time they went to bail him out there was a hold out on him due to them re arresting him for something he didnt even do while on 5 yrs probation ...and he don't need your sympathy but u truly are an ass ...that's what happens when you assume

[@rexrichardson8834]

sinceretys Please, go back to school, and learn, the English language. Then you can cast ad hominem attacks, at me.

[@lekishajones1178]

Rex Richardson you should have bailed him out since you had the money . How do you know his family had the money ?

[@rexrichardson8834]

Leisha Jones If Kalief wanted me to bail him out, he should have called me. kalief's family live in New York City, and with all the oportunities that exist, in this great country, would have easily been able to come up with a mere 3,000$, there was 9 members in Browder family, that's a mere 333.33$ a piece, if they don't have that much, then they have messed up in life.

[@lekishajones1178]

Rex Richardson don't speak on the financial situation of this family of you don't know about it personally your making yourself look ignorant .

[@janetvanstry7193]

#DumpTrump !!!

[@janetvanstry7193]

#DumpTrump!

[@westernciviliznation]

"Just because of the color of our skin". Look what you've done Amy. You've helped to create a whole new generation of Eternal Victims. They'll never get free from these psychological shackles. SAD.

[@gannibalof21st]

Kat Ruby thats not eternal victim. you speak to the truth, and you fight back. you're only a victim if you feel and act defeated. this man is speaking out means he is fighting. Stop creating a narrative that telling the truth is being a victim. This is a dystopia we live in, maybe in a parallel world we can all think like you. I rather die standing up fighting than on my knees with rose glasses on.

[@westernciviliznation]

J Past You know as well as I do, he can fight without _throwing the fight_ in the first round. No worries. Other "minorities" are figuring it out, he will too. We both wish him God's speed.

[@Nutrollio]

Kat Ruby Don't forget people of color commit the vast majority of crime in NYC.

[@jimmyok3874]

Kat Ruby The people that are jailing us, are imprisoning your economic future. Black images are too narrowly defined by white people. Any people who could endure all that brutalization and keep together, who could undergo such dismemberment and resuscitate itself, and endure until it could take the initiative in achieving its own freedom, is obviously more than the sum of its brutalization. The triumph of white propaganda over reality is over. You do not get to define us. It is against this background and within the context of the concepts enunciated above, we strive to operate outside of the white power structure as much as possible. Your symbolic confusion stems from the tendency on the part of some wypipo to identify black people with the degradation of the conditions imposed on them. You are misinformed and in spite of what YOU believe, Black is NOT misery. Black is transcendence of misery and degradation. Save your condescending, righteous indignation for something else.

[@gannibalof21st]

Kat Ruby what minorities? You mean asians? Japanese in this country? What minorities? White women? LGBT? Handicap? Indians? Please elaborate.

[@nycpeopleareidiots]

So say we do close Rikers, what do we do with the people that belong there? Yes, this is a sad tragic story, but it doesn't negate the fact of how many actually belong behind bars that are in Rikers. Believe it or not, there's bad guys in this world! This extremist response loses all respect for your stance, and makes a mockery of it overall.

[@Cszoke121]

To solve the problem of "bad people", we treat them like animals and caged them for a specified amount of time while the guards perpetuate the violence atmosphere. Sounds like a great environment to help rehabilitate the "bad people." The prisons are stuffed with colored people who will be forever labeled as "bad people." These "bad people" are placed in a hostile environment to try and survive in, then they are thrown into the real world with very little chance of getting employed by anyone because of the scarlet letter they carried around that labels them as felons. Throw the " bad people" in the hole and watch them suffer even long after they left the hostile hole.Sounds sadistic and immoral to me.

[@jaykay415]

most of them have not even been convicted.

[@nycpeopleareidiots]

jaykay415 Doesn't mean they don't belong there.

[@nycpeopleareidiots]

Cszoke121 "The prisons are stuffed with colored people who will be forever labeled as "bad people." Wow, make it a race issue and completely avoid any substantive debate.

[@Cszoke121]

nycpeopleareidiots the numbers and facts make it a race issue. Too ignore the fact that all prisons in America are mostly occupied by people of color only perpetuate the race issue in America. It's easy to judge 'bad people' when you have main stream media portraying people of color as thugs and drug pushers. Try to walk into the shoe of someone already portrayed and treated as criminals before they even think about doing a crime. You treat people as 'bad people' and wonder why they won't get rehabilitated after years in the animal abuse centers we call prisons. Propaganda works. When you hear someone like Trump portray black people as thugs when he praises unconstitutional police tactics like stop and frisk. Stop and frisk, racial profiling, war on drugs, and prisons packed with colors are all race issues that won't be solved if we don't acknowledge them as systemic racism. .

[@LittleBillysWorld]

Reason #146 to move to Europe. Goddamn, three years without a trial? Sixth amendment, where art thou?

[@Nutrollio]

LittleBillysWorld In Europe, prisoners are radicalized to be Muslim extremists, it's no better there.

[@maryspencer791]

this breaks my heart