This interview was conducted by Shawn Grant and published at The Source on April 16, 2020. It is being re-posted with the permission of Eric Brown.
Eric Brown, aka TRU.ENation, grew up in a prison. Sentenced to life without parole, Brown began his sentence at age 16, before studying law and working toward his release at age 41. During his 25-year prison stint, Brown experienced inhumane conditions.
“I’ve seen overflowed sinks that have flooded whole cell blocks; bobcats, alligators and other rodents walking around units and the prison telling the inmates to remove it,” Brown shared. “The showers have holes in the tile where rodents come through, holes in the floor of the shower tiles. Cells only sanitized at the inmates' financial expense.”
Those conditions have only intensified during the
coronavirus outbreak as those inside do not have proper protection for their
own health and the lack of care paid to the scene is alarming.
In addition, Mr. Brown pointed out the wrongful conviction
of many inmates due to corrupt officials, which he has experienced along with
his close friend C-Murder.
“We need a major overhaul with the criminal justice system
in the United States. We need to free the innocent. The criminal justice system
was not designed to protect African Americans,” Mr. Brown says. “It was
designed to enslave us. If you are black and get caught up in a system, you are
not guilty until proven innocent. You will most likely be found guilty because
of corrupt cops, DAs, and judges. They will do everything in their power to
convict you, too.”
In a conversation with The Source, Mr. Brown details the
conditions and reports coming from Angola, along with other facilities, how the
justice system wrongfully convicted him and C-Murder and more.
