Free Cyntoia (2019)

Free Cyntoia (2019)

Adult Memoir
"My knees shook as I stood in the courtroom. Any moment now,
the jury would file in. Twelve men and women had spent the last six
hours debating whether I should spend the rest of my life behind bars...
I didn't expect to walk out of that courtroom a free woman.
That doesn't happen when you kill someone--especially when you're a
biracial girl who kills a white man. But I did hope for some sort of
mercy."
We've been sixteen. Some of us have had sixteen-year-old
children. I think we can all agree that most sixteen-year-olds are
still works in progress. Science would back us up on this. It has
been discovered that the part of the brain in charge of cognitive
judgement making is not fully developed until twenty-five.
When Cyntoia Brown was sixteen she shot a man--an adult in his
forties who was driving around at night looking for young girls to use
for sex. If you're saying that she shouldn't have gone with him,
there's more to the story. She was being trafficked by a physically,
sexually, and psychologically abusive pimp. The only way she had to
not get brutally beaten was turning tricks and handing over the
money. Think of what being treated as commodity was doing to her
sense of self, her ability to think beyond moment to moment survival.
Cyntoia was tried in adult court. The jury rendered a guilty
verdict. She was sentenced to life.
What were you getting ready for at sixteen? College? A summer
job? The prom? I'm sure it wasn't spending the rest of your natural
life in prison, being given the message that you were already beyond
hope of redemption.
Cyntoia Brown Long's Free Cyntoia tells the events that led up
to her arrest and conviction. It also tells of how, behind bars, she
managed to earn associates and bachelors degrees and begin working to
help other juveniles behind bars. It tells the story of a young woman
who, even in the harshest of conditions, showed a lot of potential for
not only personal success, but for helping to change society for the
better.
I wonder what role race had to do with the jury's decision.
Research has shown that ordinary people, the kind of whom juries are
composed, adultify girls of color, perceiving them to be much more
sexually mature and culpable than white peers, less in need of
protection and nurturance. What kind of verdict would had been
delivered if Cyntoia had been white and the guy had been biracial?
I hope you will read this excellent book. I hope it will make
you angry. Any system that allows children to be tried as adults and
to be discarded rather than treated is, in my opinion, a system badly
in need of reforming.
On a purrrsonal note, it's been a good week other than the Christmas
tree coming down. But by January 19 it had had a nice long run. I
altered a fruitcake recipe to feature my personal fruits and nuts
blend. It was my first fruitcake and it was delicious! I learned
where the emojis live on my smartphone. Next week spring semester
starts. While I'd actually be over the moon if I could be picking
just the right outfit this weekend for first day of class (I mean
online I attend in my pajamas) and looking forward to seeing my
friends in person, I am slightly more subdued looking forward to the
new term. I sure hope campus and the bus system are safe and I'm
vaccinated by September. That would be the best birthday present I
could get. (Jules)
Good fruitcake! (Tobago)
A great big shout out goes out to all the profs who are getting lesson
plans ready for online, in person, or mixed teaching.
Tobago and Jules Hathaway


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