SCOTT SISTERS APPEAR ON THE MONIQUE SHOW

From: BET.com / 5-11-11

Tonight on The Mo'Nique Show: NAACP President Ben Jealous Joins the Scott Sisters to Discuss Their Landmark Case

Also, Grizz Chapman talks about his kidney scare and VaShawn Mitchell sings for the Scott sisters.
By BET-Staff

BET's The Mo'Nique Show is the boldest talk show on TV. Tonight the Queen of Late Night welcomes:

LOCAL HEROES GLADYS AND JAMIE SCOTT, WHOSE LIFE SENTENCES WERE CUT SHORT. The Scott sisters discuss their 16 years in prison, how they overcame their circumstances and the deal that ultimately set them free.

NAACP PRESIDENT BEN JEALOUS, WHO CAME TO THE SCOTT SISTERS' RESCUE. Ben Jealous joins the Scott sisters on the couch to discuss what attracted the NAACP to the Scott sisters' case and how they were able to land another major victory in Civil Rights history.

ACTOR GRIZZ CHAPMAN, WHO WENT FROM PERSONAL SECURITY GUARD TO PLAYING ONE ON TV. Chapman talks about his real-life kidney-transplant scare as well as his role on the hit sitcom 30 Rock.

GOSPEL SINGER VASHAWN MITCHELL, WHO DEDICATES HIS PERFORMANCE TO THE SCOTT SISTERS. VaShawn Mitchell explains the history of "Nobody Greater" to Mo'Nique before delivering an emotional performance in honor of the Scott sisters.

4/23 SCOTT SISTERS FEATURED IN BROOKLYN EVENT

SATURDAY, 4/23: SCOTT SISTERS SPEAK IN BROOKLYN!


Malcolm X Grassroots Movement & National Conference of Black Lawyers To Host Forum featuring Jamie & Gladys Scott and Chokwe Lumumba, with panelists Michael Tarif Warren, Marc Lamont Hill, and Rukia Lumumba, moderated by April R. Silver:

April 23 at Restoration Plaza, 1:00pm


WHO: Featured Guests: Jamie and Gladys Scott (aka the Scott Sisters) will be featured guests via teleconference.


Panelists: Chokwe Lumumba (legal counsel to the Scott Sisters); Michael Tarif Warren (lawyer activist), Marc Lamont Hill (activist, author, scholar), and Rukia Lumumba (activist); April R. Silver (activist, writer), moderator.


Organizers: The Malcolm X Grassroots Movement and the National Conference of Black Lawyers.


WHAT: Mississippi, Goddam! The Scott Sisters Speak in Brooklyn – a community forum regarding the case of the Scott Sisters (see background note below). Attorney Chokwe Lumumba will give updates about the current state of affairs of this case and will provide information about the campaign for their full release. Jamie and Gladys Scott will be teleconferenced in live to share their experiences as well as their ongoing commitment to help others with similar cases. This forum is free and open to the public.


WHEN: Saturday, April 23, 2011 from 1:00 pm – 3:00 p

WHERE: Restoration Plaza, First Floor –
Multi-Purpose Room

Located at 1368 Fulton St Brooklyn, NY 11216

CONTACT: For more information, contact Lalit Clarkson at 917.468.7348 or info@mxgm.org. freethescottsisters.blogspot.com

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BACKGROUND

In 1993 in Mississippi two young Black women, Jamie and Gladys Scott were each sentenced to double life sentences for an $11 robbery. The trail and conviction of the then 19 and 22 year old women wreaks of the blatant race, gender and class oppression that is rampant throughout the criminal justice system in America. Their defense attorney, who was later disbarred for unrelated incompetency, never called a single witness in the sister's defense. One of the witnesses who testified against them has since recanted his testimony saying he was threatened by police. Ultimately, two of the three men who indeed committed the robbery served 2 years in prison in exchange for testifying against the Scott sisters. Jamie and Gladys maintain their innocence


While in prison, Jamie and Gladys suffered all of the usually physical and psychological abuses of incarceration. The lack of decent health care and nutrition put Jamie Scott in critical need of a kidney transplant. Support for their release grew over the decade and a half of their incarceration, ultimately leading to a suspension of sentence in January of this year - conditional on Gladys donating a kidney to her ailing sister.


Today, the Scott family and their supports urge the governor of Mississippi for a full pardon. Under the suspended sentence they must pay $52 a month for parole, abide by a strict curfew, and live with the constant fear of a parole violation - which would land them back in prison to serve their double-life sentences. Furthermore, without a full pardon, they still live with the stigma of being convicted felons. As felons, they are unable to get jobs, decent housing, and other critical services.

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APRIL SCOTT SISTERS INTERVIEW!

Links to Two New Scott Sisters Articles

MS Rally was held yesterday in Jackson, MS - http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20110331/NEWS/110331027/Mississippi-Gov-Haley-Barbour-No-pardon-Scott-sisters


Barbour Refuses to Grant Pardon - http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20110331/NEWS/110331027/Mississippi-Gov-Haley-Barbour-No-pardon-Scott-sisters

Petitions by Change.org|Start a Petition »

1/27 SCOTT SISTERS INTERVIEW ON NPR

PRESS RELEASE: Jamie Scott Hospitalized

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: MRS EVELYN RASCO
850-375-4336

E-Mail: thewrongfulconviction@gmail.com

JAMIE SCOTT HOSPITALIZED - BROTHER IN AFGHANISTAN NEEDS TO COME HOME

(Pensacola), FL – 1/25/11 – Jamie Scott has been hospitalized with an excessively high potassium level. The sisters were released from prison to serve life on parole and have had a very rough time adjusting with little funds to support themselves. Their mother is on a fixed income and unable to make necessary repairs as a result of storm damage to the house. These
repairs require immediate attention to accommodate Jamie upon her release from the hospital.

Currently, their brother serving in Afghanistan owns the home and is the only person who is able to conduct business regarding the house -- the insurance company will not comply with Mrs. Rasco. Willie James Scott Jr., is in need of your assistance to get home. Please contact all media outlets and make this information public.

--
Nancy Lockhart, M.J.
http://www.nancylockhart.blogspot.com
843.217.4649