By Jess Hoffert
Three years ago, I became penpals with Franklin Davis, an
inmate on death row in Livingston, Texas. We were matched through the Death Row
Support Project, a Church of the Brethren organization that has connected
thousands of inmates with writers like myself.
Recently, Franklin and other inmates received electronic
tablets in their cells that allow them to make 30-minute phone calls. He had
the idea to turn our phone calls into episodes of a podcast. This was a great
opportunity for him to get his story out into the world, and I couldn't say
"no".
On October 21, Franklin and I launched "Give Love: Life
on Death Row," a podcast that chronicles his life leading up to his prison
sentence, as well as what he has learned and experienced behind bars. A new
episode will be released each Wednesday through December 18 (with 10 episodes
total), and we cover everything from the darkest depths of isolation in a cell
to the vivid dreams of Franklin's future. Four episodes are live now, with the 5th
episode coming out next Wednesday the 13th.
You can listen to the podcast at rss.com/podcasts/givelove
or via your favorite podcast app (Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more). NOTE: It
can be challenging to understand Franklin due to the quality of the connection
on his end. To help understand his words, when you click on each episode at the
RSS.com link, there's a "Transcript" tab to follow along. It was
automatically generated, so it's not perfect, but it definitely helps.
I hope you enjoy getting to know Franklin and learn a few
things about life from him. I certainly did. And I made a new friend in the
process.
For more information about Death Row Support Project, and to
become a penpal yourself, visit brethren.org/drsp.
Jess Hoffert is Senior Projects Editor with Dotdash
Meredith Travel and is also a member of the Iowa Peace Network Joint Oversight
Committee, a representative for the Northern Plains Church of the Brethren.
No comments:
Post a Comment