Plague Talk

Lawrence Archer had done time as an eighteen-year-old for a felony. Thirteen years later, having committed no crimes in the interim, he was a happily married, successful business owner with a child on the way.While visiting a local business, two men inadvertently involved him in something none of them knew was a crime, out in the open for all to see. A passing police officer stopped, learned that Lawrence had a record...And the rest is a case-study in  witness tampering, abuse-of-power, confirmation bias and systemic corruption that cost Lawrence over six years in prison and everything he had worked so long and hard to achieve.Now released, he candidly opens up about it all. 

Melissa was living her normal life, like anybody else, when a merciless and relentless abusive entity invaded and took over her world, and that of her entire family. That dark entity is our so-called Criminal Justice System.Her brother Rick was falsely accused of a crime. And the crime was of a type that, even the hint of a possibility of association with it, in any form, is enough to unhinge, unravel and contaminate a life and reputation forever. With zero evidence and, therefore, no recourse to contest or disprove the accusation, he was given the choice of dying in prison or pleading guilty and being eligible for parole within a decade.Which option would you choose?From the moment her family learned that Rick had been arrested – and bear in mind the trauma, shock and grief inherent in that event – every step along the way, from ignominious arrest at his place of work all the way through to his eventual parole was made unnecessarily complicated by a criminal justice network that was obstructively uncooperative to the point of hostility. Indeed, if a person is innocent until proven otherwise, the system in practice is stunningly bereft of that principle.When the reality of their nightmare was finally undeniable, and Rick was IN prison, one would think the family would have despaired. Instead, something so full of grace transpired as to fill even this confirmed atheist with a sense of reverent awe. In calls and letters, Rick began to ask for his family to carry messages from fellow inmates to loved ones. And they did. These favors, a small thing for the provider, were monumental for the imprisoned. And over time, they grew into a messengers-of-mercy mission that has dominated Melissa’s life, and the non-profit organization of which she is the She-E-O:Adopt an Inmate.By pouring their lives into connecting the incarcerated with their loved ones, and those with scant to nonexistent correspondents or support to caring “adopters”, if only to let them know somebody still regards them as part of the human family – some one still knows they exist at all -- Melissa and family found that not only were they bringing joy to inmates, they were giving own grief and frustration purpose and transforming it into something wonderful. To quote Sarah Silverman, “When God gives you AIDS, make Lemon-AIDS”. And so they did. Their database of inmates now exceeds 10,000 incarcerated. And, as you are about to hear, Melissa has formed a very special relationship with a very special member of our discarded, invisible and commoditized people.True Justice: Bryan Stevenson's Fight For EqualityBryan Stevenson is our hero. We highly recommend his book "Just Mercy," and the movie with the same title. As Stevenson says, "We are all more than the worst thing we've ever done."Outcry TrailerRick was in the same dorm with Greg Kelley, whose case was very public in Texas. Rick said when he watched what happened with Greg, who was obviously innocent, he knew he was not going home anytime soon. We followed the story as he fought his case, and were thrilled to see him released and exonerated in 2019. When They See Us TrailerWhen this documentary series about the Central Park Five case was released on Netflix, we received a slew of new adopters, who searched the internet to find ways to get involved and help.Our Amazon Wishlist Adopt an InmateAI's Amazon Smiles Charity LinkJacob's Facebook Page  To message Jacob directly through Jpay.com, create an account using his state (Washington), and DOC #711473. The Freedom Project Interaction Transition As the Washington Department of Corrections struggles with health care, cancer patients say they suffer

Jacob Ivan Schmitt on FacebookAdopt an Inmate 

Gordon Davis was 16 when he was tried as an adult and sentenced to from 25 years to life in prison.After 3 years in jail, he was transferred at 19 to the Clinton Correctional Institute. And from there, the harrowing and dehumanizing effects of our prison system just got worse.He applied and, after the third attempt, was accepted into the Bard Prison Initiative that has since been made famous by Lynn Novick’s documentary series “College Behind Bars”.Mr. Davis committed to and met the challenges of Bard’s grueling course work, which is equal to and in some ways more demanding than that of its New York campus counterpart. He earned a BA in literature from Bard and an MA in professional studies from the New York Theological Institute.His life is proof that the notion of “once a criminal always a criminal” is not only bogus but counter-productive. It leads to branding, marginalizing and destroying human lives based upon a thing they did or — as the Innocence Project has proved time and again — did NOT do, at the single worst moment of their lives.Mr. Davis’s determination to broaden his mind and improve his life, coupled with the opportunity to do so via a college education in prison, has made all the difference in the world.He was was granted release at his very first appearance before the New York State parole board and left the walls, bars and razor wire behind him on May 11th of this year.Now you can hear his first-hand account of growing up behind bars, the emancipatory power of education, how language changes structure, what life is like for our incarcerated citizens during a pandemic, and what improvements are necessary for a brighter future for humanity.Gordon Davis (a short film)Gordon’s FacebookGretchen Primack: The friend and patron mentioned but unnamed in the episodeFree Minds Book Club & Writing Workshop

George Saulnier knew he wanted to be an actor when he was knee-high to a footlight. Smart, sensitive, and unswayable by peer pressure into macho posturing he became a constant bully target and outsider at a young age.But his empathy, intelligence and creativity found a home in his high school theater and he’s been treading the boards ever since.He studied at Trinity Rep Conservatory in Rhode Island and Emerson College in Boston Has performed with the Foothills Theatre, the Greater Boston Stage Company and Chamber Theater Productions for which he played Blaise Pascal in a national touring, math-centric children’s show called Eureka.He played Uncle Vanya for the Cutting Ball Theater in San Francisco and was most recently enjoyed in Pittsburgh as Chillingworth in Prime Stage Theatre’s production of The Scarlet Letter.I’ve seen his work and you can take it from me:So should you.George is also a guitar player, songwriter, poet, blogger and – at least once – novelist, father and bread maker. George also suffers from depression that can be overwhelming and immobilizing. I knew he had undertaken a bold, multifaceted regimen to turn his life around and was well on his way when pandemic came to town and cut all those new lifelines. Here's some perspective from one who has long struggled with that invisible but all too real darkness on living under lockdown with depression .George's YouTube - Songs and MonologuesGeorge's WebsiteGeorge's Facebook

Deborah's a lifelong practitioner of yoga who began teaching it in 2001 while pregnant with her first child and is now an advanced yoga teacher in Seattle, Washington where she offers both public and private sessions often adjusted for therapeutic needs, most notably for PTSD, Trauma of many types, Multiple Sclerosis, other neurological challenges and chronic pain.Her passion is discovering a unique practice for each person.We talk about her incredibly busy life before and after lockdown, the journey through naming, accepting, and healing from our traumas, the unfathomables in the lives of others and how lockdown - though a pause for those poised with the privilege to enjoy it is for countless persons in abusive relationships and in poverty a time of magnified vulnerability and accelerated trauma.We also look at roots of racial and tribal violence and how it will predictably increase in a time of collective stress and tension. And about ways to face and heal from monumental and longstanding systematic oppression, invalidation and violence.Deborah also bravely addresses her personal experience of abuse and how it has shaped her life, practice and philosophy of how to be there for herself and others.This interview has breathtaking relevance for the birth pains our society is going through right now in way-past-due movements to end inequality and usher in a world of real unity and humane values.I pray it will be a source of hope, wisdom, direction and healing for all of you who are this moment living with trauma and abuse.Deborah King YogaNational Domestic Violence HotlineSuicide Prevention LifelineVashon Dove Project : Building Community. Ending Abuse.Multiple Sclerosis CenterFor MS Class: erin.carper@swedish.orgFor Navigating the Cancer Journey: melita.lynch@swedish.orgMy Grandmother's Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and BodiesRadical Dharma: Talking Race, Love and Liberation

Dr. Amesh Adalja is a Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security and expert on emerging infectious diseases, pandemic preparedness and biosecurity. He gets us up-to-date on the latest COVID 19 news, best current hopes for treatments and best ETA for a vaccine.We discuss a world in which the novel coronavirus is here to stay and how best to navigate our new normal in responsible and realistic ways. He examines how early mishandlings and misinformation led to extreme responses such as Lockdown that otherwise wouldn’t have needed to be considered, and how we can learn from those to be prepared for a possible even much worse pandemic.We also give some attention to how the relentless plague of partisan politics creates wedge issues out of what ought to be seen as a common enemy that we should all unite against - COVID 19 - and how conspiracy thinking and armchair epidemiologists exacerbate an already difficult to contain pandemic, and confuse the general public into self-defeating ideas and behaviors.Dr. Adalja has been keeping an eye on emerging infectious diseases and candidates for potential pandemics for a long time and has wise, specific and instructive things to say about how to weather the crisis, when and how to return to work, and why panic is the worst possible mindset for a plague-beset world. Dr Adalja's Bio on the Center for Health Security SiteFollow Dr. Adalja on TwitterDr Adalja's In-Depth Episode of Sam Harris' Making Sense PodcastDr Adalja compares COVID 19 to past pandemics on The Drive with Peter Attia

Nancy Mosser has been a casting director in Pittsburgh since 1990 and been involved in the casting of 90 films and television productions and hundreds of commercials and rubbed elbows with some of the biggest names in the business. We talk about her life in casting, the changes she's witnessed over the years, the importance of a strong state film tax credit. Then we talk about how COVID 19 has ground much of the entertainment production world to a halt, and what changes it has brought to our professional and personal lives, some permanent.

Los Angeles Photographer, Filmmaker & World Traveler Bumdog Torres has been homeless by choice-for-thirty years. We talk about how his city has changed and how COVID 19 has made an already hardscrabble existence much harder for the homeless.

World-renowned arranger, composer, pianist and producer and television and movie score composer talks about his battle with COVID 19 and how he has dealt with the many calamities along the journey of his spectacular life.

Acclaimed, Dublin-born singer-songwriter discusses the profound effects of COVID 19 upon his life, work and hopes that this time to breathe and think will result in a more humane and sensible future normal.

Actor, zumba instructor and paint-pour artist Sandy Zwier talks about how life in lockdown has slowed the rest of the world down to meet her at her current level of physical capabilities. We also discuss how COVID-19 has affected her daily activities, art mission, friends and New York.