Join us in Richmond, Virginia for a FOIA workshop and other community events in memory of the Community Justice Network's Lillie A. Estes • MuckRock

In the Richmond, Virginia area? Join MuckRock, the Community Justice Network, and the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for a public records workshop, book reading, and other events to celebrate the life of Lillie A. Estes.

Estes, who passed away suddenly in January, called Richmond, Virginia home, but her role as a community strategist and cofounder of the Community Justice Network resonated across the country. You can read more about her life and work here.

This weekend and next week, the Community Justice Network marks her 60th birthday with a book talk by another Bostonian friend, author Jean Trounstine; a bridge walk and resource fair featuring a public records workshop; and a commemoration at the Charles S. Gilpin Community Farm.

On Saturday, author/activist Jenise Justice Brown will host Trounstine and community leader Tobias Estes for a discussion of Trounstine’s book, Boy With A Knife: A Story of Murder, Remorse, and a Prisoner’s Fight for Justice. This is the culmination of an idea that Lillie had before she died, after her son, John, Tobias’s brother, was murdered. Boy With a Knife invites a discussion on restorative justice, a discussion Lillie hoped to take place in Richmond and across the country.

On Sunday, in collaboration with the Houston Institute, we will gather at 1100 E. Leigh St. for a brief program overviewing the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Bridge and its role in the city. We will then walk across the bridge to Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School, where we will hold a resource fair featuring speakers from the Virginia Poverty Law Center, Richmond Transparency and Accountability Project, Richmond for All, Legal Aid Justice Center, Advocates for Youth and more. This resource fair will also include a Richmond-specific overview of public records through a MuckRock lens.

Some recent MuckRock in Richmond examples:

The Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s continues to thwart transparency as it makes moves that will displace public housing residents.
The Richmond Police Department has a previously undisclosed incentive program with the Ring home surveillance cameras.
Richmond Public Schools released its full budget, but not before taking action on it.

Read more about more information about CJN’s upcoming events, email info@communityjusticenetwork.com.