Concerts for Indigent Defense livestream, March 18 at 7pm EDT

Concerts for Indigent Defense the phenomenon of musicians and their communities standing together in support of the constitutional right of every person accused of a crime in America to be represented by a lawyer.   Concerts for Indigent Defense are not fundraisers; they are awareness-raisers, about how this constitutional right is badly neglected every day in states across the country.
 
Concerts for Indigent Defense: New Orleans launched this effort in 2017.  Working with the Orleans Public Defender, we secured a variety of significant local TV, radio, print, and social media coverage.  Supportive defenders and musicians in Denver, Bridgeport CT, and NYC also designated their shows as Concerts for Indigent Defense, and the overall success and enthusiasm created great hope for our planned nationwide rollout in 2018.  Terribly, however, our friend and co-producer John Thompson passed away in late 2017, and the project was paused.  
 
In 2022, Concerts for Indigent Defense will re-launch with a video montage of music and perspective to celebrate Gideon’s 59th anniversary, which will livestream at www.ConcertsforIndigentDefense.org on March 18 at 7pm EDT.  
 
On March 30, we will begin celebrating Gideon’s 60th year with local legend Walter Wolfman Washington presenting a live show from d.b.a. New Orleans, which will also be livestreamed nationwide.  This will be the first of a series of live shows from different states across the country in Gideon’s 60th year, leading to simultaneous concerts nationwide we’ll foster on the weekend of March 18, 2023.
 
Concerts for Indigent Defense unites all us in respect for the Constitution.  It welcomes us all to come together, to call for – and actually create – respect for this constitutional right.   Because if the criminal process starts with disrespect for the Constitution, what can we say about criminal justice in America?
 
We genuinely welcome your thoughts, support, and local participation as we present live Concerts for Indigent Defense throughout year ahead, across the country, to celebrate the 60th anniversary year of the constitutional right to counsel.   To do so, please connect with me at Stephen@ConcertsforIndigentDefense.org, and we'll look forward to collaborating with you…