Life After the Impact hosted it's 3rd Community Townhall: Pastors on Politics, Policy and Power. We are asking: Where is the Black church in the 21st century fight for civil rights?It’s no secret the church was “a vehicle and driving force for the civil rights struggle,” as Henry Lewis Gates said in his book, “The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song.”But what is the role of the Black church in today’s fight for Justice — in the fight against police violence?As Reverend Dr. Gardner said, while the community is “no longer waiting on the permission of the church to go out and take action, we still look to the Black church for direction in the Black community.”Addressing these questions were our guests: Pastor Gary Holland, Dr. Adrinne Blackstock, Reverend Michael McBride, Reverend Anthony Galloway, and Reverend Dr. Greta Carter-Willis.

This episode of Life After the Impact with LaToya Benton and Roxane Johnson features Rebecca Duran, whose son Donovan Lewis was shot and killed by Columbus police one year ago on August 30th, 2022.Police officer Ricky Anderson was recently indicted on murder and reckless homicide charges for shooting Donovan in the abdomen while Ricky was in his bed, simply holding a vape pen.Tune in to learn more about how you can support the fight for justice for Donovan Lewis.

Life After the Impact hosted its 2nd Virtual Community Townhall on August 15th, 2023. For this special episode Roxane Johnson and LaToya Benton interviewed panelists: Joshua Cole, former member of the Virginia House of Delegates; Jolicia Ward, candidate for the Virginia State Senate; Jim DeSimone, Civil Rights Attorney; Adrienne Hood, candidate for Columbus City Council in Ohio; and Jackie Glass, Virginia State Delegate. This panel will be discussing what voting and accountability look like and what we can do to seek justice within the legislature.

Deanna and Andrew Joseph joined us at Life After the Impact, to discuss the fight for Justice for their son Andrew Joseph III who was killed in Tampa, Florida. On February 7, 2014 during the Florida State Fair, 14 year old Andrew Joseph, III a student, was attending a school district supported fair with friends and was struck and killed by a motorist as he tried to cross Interstate 4 on foot after being wrongfully detained, ejected, transported and then abandoned miles from the fair by law enforcement officials with no call to parents. After years of legal battles, the Joseph’s won a wrongful death lawsuit and have been instrumental in establishing new policies with law enforcement and the fair to ensure young people are protected. The Joseph’s also established The Andrew Joseph Foundation and advocate for other families impacted by police violence throughout the country. Tune in to learn what YOU can do to support the actions the Joseph’s have taken to ensure no other families experience tragedy at the hands of law enforcement.

Mother of Amir Locke, Karen Wells, wasLIVE with Life After the Impact’s LaToya Benton and Roxane Johnson, to discuss the current state of the fight for justice for her son, who was killed in a matter of seconds by Minneapolis police on February 2, 2022 after MPD employed a no-knock warrant.Despite the DOJ’s recent findings on the Minneapolis Police Department’s pattern and practices, city attorneys filed to dismiss the lawsuit filed against MPD for the murder of Amir. As the family’s attorneys stated: “The efforts by the City to try and dismiss this case should be a red flag for the community that city officials publicly stood next to and supported the Locke family in the aftermath of his killing, but the City now seeks to avoid ALL accountability for Amir’s death. This continued refusal to police from within is a textbook example of why the federal government must police the Minneapolis police.”In addition to the lawsuit, Amir’s family has been working to advance legislation against no-knock warrants, so this kind of senseless murder won’t happen again locally or federally.Tune in to learn what YOU can do to support this case and further advance this legislation.