ELPC’s Justice and Worship Music and Arts (WMA) Committees invite you to attend an art show, September 22–October 20, featuring selected work from the permanent collection of Let’s Get Free: The Women and Trans Prisoner Defense Committee. The show, “Abolitionist Expressions,” includes paintings, collages, and other artwork created by people who are or have been incarcerated.
Let’s Get Free’s mission is working to “…end perpetual punishment, build a pathway out of the prisons back to our communities through commutation reform, support successful possibilities for people formerly and currently incarcerated, and shift to a culture of transformative justice.” The organization’s efforts are in line with the goals of both our Justice and WMA Committees, and we are thrilled to partner with them on this initiative.
The artwork will be displayed in the Highland Room and the Trustees Room, and will available for the public to view on Sundays, 12–2 pm, and Wednesdays, 5:30–7 pm. We’re in need of volunteer “gallery sitters” who are willing to be onsite during the times when the show will be open to the public. If you’re interested and available, please contact Vivienne Selia to sign up.
On Sunday, October 13, immediately after the 11 am Sanctuary Worship Service, please join us in the McKelvy Room for a panel presentation exploring the experience of incarceration from multiple perspectives. Light refreshments will be available. Our panelists are:
etta cetera
etta has been collaborating with people in prison for collective liberation for 25 years. etta has co-founded many Pittsburgh based organizations including: Book ‘Em; Pittsburgh’s Books to Prisoner program; and HRC – FedUp!, the Pittsburgh chapter of Human Rights Coalition that advocates for incarcerated people who are suffering human rights abuses. etta currently spends most of her time with Let’s Get Free: The Women & Trans Prisoner Defense Committee.
Rev. Dr. Tami Hooker
The Rev. Dr. Tami Hooker is the retired Chaplaincy Director of both SCI-Pittsburgh and SCI-Greene and Assistant Religious Services Administrator for the Department of Correction’s Bureau of Treatment Services. She worked for Prison Fellowship Ministries, the Program for Female Offenders, and helped develop and implement a pre-release program called HOPE, which is still in operation at the Allegheny County Jail. In addition, she is a published author who contributed an essay on volunteering in prison to a book on Urban Ministry.
Barbara Jewell
Barbara is an artist, retired teacher, and trained Stephen Minister. Through Pennsylvanians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, she volunteered to correspond with a prisoner named Daniel Gwynn, an artist with whom she regularly corresponded for three years. Daniel was recently exonerated after 30 years of wrongful incarceration. He and Barbara remain in touch.
Rita Nordquist
Rita is a friend of ELPC. Her youngest son was first in trouble at a very young age and has dealt with law enforcement and incarceration for a good part of his life. Part of her message is: “A mother is a mother, so she always has hope.”