Witness

An Insider's Narrative of the Carceral State

Lyle C. May

$46.95

Paperback

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English

Haymarket Books
24 July 2024

Memoirs; Ethical issues: capital punishment; Social classes; Penology & punishment

A first-hand account of the death penalty's wholly destructive nature.

, Lyle C. May offers a scathing critique of shifts in sentencing laws, prison policies that ensure recidivism, and classic ""tough on crime"" views that don't make society safer or prevent crime. These insightful and analytical essays explore capital punishment, life imprisonment, prison education, prison journalism, as well as what activism from inside looks like on the road toward abolishing the carceral state.

challenge the myths, misconceptions, and misinformation about the criminal legal system and death in prison, guiding readers on a journey through North Carolina's congregate death row, where the author has spent over twenty years of his life.

shows there is more to life under the sentence of death than what is portrayed in crime dramas or mass media. Lyle C. May's life, journalism, and activism are a guidebook to abolitionism in practice.

By: Lyle C. May
Imprint: Haymarket Books
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 215mm, Width: 139mm,
ISBN: 9781642599718
ISBN 10: 1642599719
Pages: 240
Publication Date: 24 July 2024
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Section A—State of Violence: Capital Punishment and Death Row On Death Row, Eating to Live A Confirmation of Faith Secrecy and the Death Penalty Beyond the wall Death Row Phenomenon Jesus as a Man on Death Row Learning to Die Section B—Carceral State: Life imprisonment Life Without Parole is a Silent Execution A Tale of Two Henrys Paroling Michael Pinch Death by Incarceration Mob Mentality and Politics: The viral space where bad laws are made Section C—Culture of Control: Higher Education and Prison Journalism Draconian Ideals Obstructing Reform Resilience and Resistance Freeing the Press in Prison Prison Journalism: Fighting the Narrative of Control NC Innocence Inquiry Commission Does Not Save Every Innocent of Death Row Section D—Witness: Speaking Out The Digital Abolitionist Twitter Feed: Lisa Montgomery Science vs. Anti-Intellectualism and the Death Penalty Inside the Tinderbox: COVID-19 in Prison The Economics of Capital Punishment Qualified Immunity When the Thermometer Breaks The Myth of Deterrence No Man Left Behind Section E. Activism Front Line Snapshots of Activism On Retaliation against Incarcerated Writers The Hole: To Live Means to Resist The Fury of Our Resistance

Lyle C. May is a prison journalist, abolitionist, and Ohio University Alum currently pursuing a bachelor's degree in sociology, with a criminology major. He is a member of the Alpha Sigma Lambda Honor Society and the Author's Guild. Lyle's writings have appeared in Scalawag Magazine, Perspectives on Politics, The Intercept, AmericaMagazine, Inside Higher Ed, and elsewhere. Lyle is also a coauthor of Inside: Voices from Death Row (Scuppernong Editions, 2022) and contributor to Right Here, Right Now: Life Stories from America's Death Row (Duke University Press, 2021). He routinely lectures to high school and university students, church groups, and community organizations on the politics, policies, and experiences of mass incarceration. As he pursues every legal avenue to overturn his wrongful conviction and death sentence, Lyle advocates for greater access to higher education in prison.

Reviews for Witness: An Insider's Narrative of the Carceral State

“Lyle May has written a powerful, must-read book for those embedded in the struggle for freedom, justice, and abolition. Witness is essential reading. ” —Mariame Kaba With fierce beauty, Witness brilliantly chronicles the everyday and intimate layers of life on death row in a US prison. May's detailed reporting - and, as powerfully, his critical analysis of the prison industrial complex - illuminates crucial pathways to strengthen our movements for healing and liberation for all."" —Erica R. Meiners, co-editor of The Long Term and co-author of Abolition. Feminism. Now. ""Lyle May is a voice for the voiceless. He draws the reader into his experiences and perspectives as a man living with others condemned to death. Remarkably circumspect, he explores ineffective and deadening attempts to deal with crime and criminals that do not redeem the lost and forgotten. Whether or not you agree with him, it is important for us to listen to him. There are some passages in this book that may touch your soul."" —Alice Lynd, co-author with Staughton Lynd of Moral Injury and Nonviolent Resistance: Breaking the Cycle of Violence in the Military and Behind Bars ""From death row, May not only presents a searing, unflinching and damning first-hand examination of North Carolina's death row, but also walks the reader through the decades of punitive policies that have built this house of hopelessness."" —Victoria Law, journalist and author of ""Prisons Make Us Safer"" & 20 Other Myths About Mass Incarceration