Star of the documentary, “Free Angela and All Political Prisoners,” Angela Davis poses for a portrait, on Thursday, April 4, 2013 in New York. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Invision/AP)
Angela Davis
Angela Davis, an activist, scholar, and “global hero of the left” became a recognized progressive leader nearly 50 years ago when she supported three California inmates of Soledad Prison accused and wrongfully convicted of murdering a white prison guard. Davis spent 16 months in prison after guns she had purchased were used in an attack that was aimed at freeing the inmates–John W. Cluchette, Fleeta Drumgo and George Lester Jacksor. Four people died. “Free Angela” become a rallying cry while she was incarcerated. Davis became a professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She taught history of consciousness and spoke at many events on the criminal justice system and women’s rights. In 2017 Davis spoke at the Women’s March in Washington, D.C. after Trump’s inauguration.
