Scott Sisters return home

By Benjamin Todd Jealous

Courtesy NAACP

Gladys and Jamie Scott are returning home for the first time in 16 years.

This evening, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour suspended their sentences -- handed down in the extreme and biased ruling of Judge Marcus Gordon that condemned each of the women to double life sentences for an $11 robbery.

The moment I landed in Jackson, Mississippi, Governor Barbour called to tell me about the suspension. And as I prepare to meet with him tomorrow, along with Derrick Johnson, President of the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP, I want to be clear about one thing: This vindication is because of you.

The Scott sisters have read your notes and letters of support. Now please join me in welcoming them home. Sign the NAACP's welcome home card to Gladys and Jamie:

http://action.naacp.org/WelcomeHome

Jamie and Gladys always described the moment the police arrested them as a nightmare. Not just for themselves, but for their family -- for their children.

So we united together. We fought the injustice -- just as the NAACP has done for more than 100 years.

When we couldn't visit the Scott sisters, we wrote letters and notes to let them know we remembered them. When we wouldn't be heard by the political and judicial powers that be, we spoke louder. And because of that perseverance -- because of your perseverance -- the nightmare is finally over.

Celebrate this victory for Gladys and Jamie, and also for the NAACP community, by sending them a welcome home message. They would love to hear from you:

http://action.naacp.org/WelcomeHome

Last time I was in Mississippi was to file the petition for clemency with the Scott sisters' lawyer, Chokwe Lumumba, and Charles Hampton, Vice President of the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP.

Today, thanks to you, I get to return to show the world that the NAACP will not stand idly by as our sisters and brothers are wrongfully accused.

I am humbled by how far your support has taken the Scott sisters on the road to justice and freedom. And with every step forward, we will secure a brighter future for their children, our children and our children's children.

 
Shared by the California Coalition for Women Prisoner's