Joel Castón was incarcerated when he was 18 years old. He’s now 45 and in November of last year, just two months ago, Joel was released after serving over 26 years. While incarcerated, he received a degree through the Georgetown Prison Scholars Program and started a mentorship initiative called Young Men Emerging. And, because D.C. changed the law to allow incarcerated people to vote, he ran for office, and he won: he is now an Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner in Washington D.C. representing the 7th Ward including the jail that he just walked out of. He’s the first incarcerated person in D.C. history to win elected office. Joel joins us today to talk about his experience, what he’s focusing on as a newly elected commissioner in D.C., and how he’s changing the public narrative about incarcerated people.

How to Win an Election From Jail

On October 8, the Supreme Court will hear a set of cases deciding whether LGBTQ employees are protected under federal sex discrimination laws. In one of those cases, the ACLU is representing Aimee Stephens, a trans woman who was fired after she came out to her employer. Chase Strangio, one of Aimee's lawyers and deputy director of the ACLU's LGBT and HIV Project, discusses the stakes of the case.

Dimmy

The Historic Trans Rights Case Before the Supreme Court

Sergio de la Pava is a critically acclaimed novelist (A Naked Singularity, Personae, Lost Empress) and a full-time public defender who has represented thousands of criminal defendants over the last two decades. Earlier this year, he joined At Liberty live at the Brooklyn Public Library to discuss his literary and legal work and his approach to life.

Sergio de la Pava on Literature and Law

At Liberty is a weekly podcast from the ACLU that explores the biggest civil rights and civil liberties issues of the day. A production of ACLU, Inc.

How to Win an Election From Jail

At Liberty

Related tracks