Salons at Stowe: James Tillman and The Power of Conviction

Welcome to the conversation!

Welcome to the conversation!

Harriet Beecher Stowe's (1811-1896) best-selling anti-slavery novel Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), made her the most famous American woman of the 19th century and galvanized the abolition movement before the Civil War.

The Stowe Center is a 21st-century museum and program center using Stowe's story to inspire social justice and positive change.

The Salons at Stowe programs are a forum to connect the challenging issues (race, gender and class) that impelled Stowe to write and act with the contemporary face of those same issues. The Salon format is based on a robust level of audience participation, with the explicit goal of promoting civic engagement. Recent topics included: Teaching Acceptance; Is Prison the New Slavery; Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North; Creativity and Change; Race, Gender and Politics Today; How to be an Advocate

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Monday, June 8, 2015

James Tillman and The Power of Conviction

In conjunction with the Mark Twain House & Museum and Community Partners in Action, the Stowe Center presents The Power of Conviction tonight, an author event with James Tillman, co-author Jeff Kimball, and moderator John Motley. The Power of Conviction focuses on Tillman's story in the Connecticut criminal justice system through his wrongful conviction, appeals, and ultimate exoneration after 18 years.

James Tillman, after his release

Originally convicted in 1989 for multiple charges of sexual assault, larceny, kidnapping and robbery, Tillman began to receive legal aid in 2005 from The Innocence Project, a non-profit organization focused on overturning wrongful convictions through use of DNA testing. Through use of advanced DNA testing that was not available at the time of Tillman's original conviction, Tillman was proved innocent and was exonerated in 2006.

Since the conception of the Innocence Project, 329 individuals across 37 states have been exonerated through DNA testing. What do these statistics say about the success of the U.S. justice system? How can Tillman's story contribute to the fight for criminal justice reform?

1 comment:

Jim said...: Sounds like a great event! When is it? Will it be at the Stowe Center?; June 8, 2015 at 10:45 PM