I feel like Im leaving my brothers behind.. The story follows David Luis 'Suave' Gonzalez from boy to man, and explores incarceration, redemption, and the often unusual relationship between a journalist and a source. Suave's Story - Latino Rebels In the corner of 8th and Somerset, Maria encourages Suave to talk about that night, which theyve never discussed in nearly three decades of friendship. Thats how you get the street credibility. What starts as a brief conversation leads to decades of communication between the two, walking the boundary between a journalist-source relationship and true friendship. NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with David Luis "Suave" Gonzalez and journalist Maria Hinojosa about their podcast Suave by Futuro Media. You had life without parole. - 'cause it was like it was not going to happen. Hes become a man and built a life behind bars. America is infatuated with prisons and incarceration. Released in 2017 and now in his 50s, the series follows Suave as he transitions to life on the outside and tries to live as a model citizen, yet he soon realizes there are limits to how much freedom he can ever truly have. When you first heard the news that juvenile life sentences were going to be reconsidered, how much of you actually believed that you would be released back then? David Luis "Suave" Gonzalez was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole when he was 17. Everyone out there struggling to get through life, you need to find one thing to hold on to and never let go. Congratulations to the team behind Suave., Journalist Maria Hinojosa and David Luis Suave Gonalez (Photo by Julieta Martinelli/Futuro Studios), Inremarksduring the announcement of this years winners, John Daniszewski of the Associated Press and co-chair of the Pulitzer Prize Board, stated: These stories sometimes right injustice, sometimes they illuminate a deeper context of the local communities in which we live. You came out when you were in your mid-40s. You could be the voice for the voiceless.. In 1988, Gonzalez was found guilty of a first-degree homicide committed when he was 17 years old. And that's good journalism. People dying in the streets and that need a helping hand. You know, it was scary because even though I went to college, I got my degrees, I educated myself, transformed myself, I never thought about living as a free man, as an adult. In 1988, David Luis Suave Gonzalez was found guilty of first-degree homicide. Follow her on Twitter and sign up for her newsletter, College Inside, on the future of postsecondary education in prison. David Luis Suave Gonzalez was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole when he was 17. December 6, 1986. Accuracy and availability may vary. CHANG: And Suave, can you take me back to that moment? A new podcast from Futuro Media follows. But in journalism, a source is somebody that could report what - the injustices taking place behind these prison walls that society don't know about. As a reporter for NPR, Hinojosa was among the first to report on youth violence in urban communities on a national scale. About Us | Death By Incarceration Podcast Born & Raised in Paterson, Father & Husband, Former Paterson School Board Commissioner, Homeowner/Ta Fantasy Premier League FPL Lessons: David Luiz wins out in Sarri shake-up. GONZALEZ: That I am a human being that committed a mistake, paid for it and still trying to work on myself. In embarrassing fashion, all the Trump-appointed Supreme Court justices went along. CHANG: And when you became a free man - I mean, let's just think about this. It's important that the Latino community knows that these [Esperanza's] resources exist.". They told me I couldnt get a degree, and I left there with two degrees. Her stories about immigrant youth, life in prison and what happens after have aired nationally on NPR programs, including Here and Now, Morning Edition, All Things Considered and Weekend Edition. I'm still learning. Thats how you get the street credibility. Earlier this week, the United States Supreme Court ruled in the Montgomery v Louisiana case that people like Suave, called juvenile lifers, have the right to be re-sentencedwhich means his life sentence could be reduced to time he has already served. He was eventually let out of prison in 2017, after being locked up in 1988 for a crime he committed as a 17-year-old. On the first day of his release, after 31 years in prison, Luis "Suave" Gonzalez was determined to give back to the community. She has also mixed and done sound sweetening for indie films and documentary series, such as America By The Numbers and Miss Sharon Jones! At Graterford State Correctional Institution in Pennsylvania, Suave joined the largest population of juvenile lifers in the countrymen considered by the justice system to be irredeemable for acts committed when they were just teenagers. Maria Hinojosa is the Anchor and Executive Producer of the Peabody Award-winning show Latino USA, distributed by PRX, as well as Co-Host of In The Thick, Futuro Medias award-winning political podcast, Hinojosa has informed millions about the changing cultural and political landscape in America and abroad. Suave also reckons with complicated emotions, wavering between the unparalleled joy of his upcoming release and the guilt of leaving behind the men hes considered his brothers for nearly three decades. He is also a street artist, with his art mirroring his advocacy work: critical of injustice, but exploding with compassion for those forced to carry its burden.. GONZALEZ: I always understood what a source meant. Suave, as he likes to be called, was. Learn how your comment data is processed. Her narrative podcast Aftereffect from WNYC Studios won a Newswomens Club of New York Award, a National Center on Disability Journalism Award, and was a Scripps Howard and Third Coast finalist. You know, it was scary because even though I went to college, I got my degrees, I educated myself, transformed myself, I never thought about living as a free man, as an adult. She was an NPR Next Generation Radio fellow and 2019 Ford Foundation 50 Women Can Change the World in Journalism fellow. When Calle Walton lost her sight for good 10 years ago, she began to change her dreams of acting, andfocus on teaching instead.Typically positive Stay informed with our free email updates, Concord Monitor Report For America Education, Concord Monitor Report For America Health, Support the The Courts analysis was rooted in a long-standing rule that the Eighth Amendment embodies evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society.. CHANG: I want to bounce what you just said off of Suave. Justice Kennedy, writing for a 6-3 majority, found that children are constitutionally different from adults in their level of culpability. Kennedy wrote that the severest penalty must be reserved for the rarest of juvenile offenders, those whose crimes reflect permanent incorrigibility., Justice Kennedy was responding to research that showed that because of developing brains, children were less culpable for their crimes and were more likely to be rehabilitated than adult offenders. In the nearly three decades that you've been watching the system evolve, can you just describe what has happened to get us to this point, with Suave released and no longer serving a life sentence? The Futuro Media Group is a non-profit 501(c)(3) funded by supporters like you. I spoke with Suave a few days before the decision was ruled. All Rights Reserved. Podcast 'Suave' Explores 1 Man's Life After His Release From Prison - WFAE Luis "Suave" Gonzalez was only 17 at the time, making him a juvenile, but he was tried as an adult and given a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of ever being released. That's when it hit me. Since 2014, The Marshall Project has been curating some of the best criminal justice reporting from around the web. It does, however, demand that most children be spared from punishments that give no chance for fulfillment outside prison walls, no chance for reconciliation with society, no hope., In Jones, the Court ignored the plaintiffs significant steps toward rehabilitation and maturity. But over the years, they became close. Like they think that they could incarcerate the way out of every problem in America and they cant. When Suave is finally released from prison, he is placed on house arrest and tries to adjust to his new reality while he awaits his chance to plead his case in front of a judge. I can send you a list with hundreds of schools that will offer you correspondence courses for free. Suave is a seven-part podcast series about the criminal justice system that sentences juveniles to life in prison particularly young men of color and what happens when, decades later, theyre suddenly granted one more chance at freedom. Winner praises the Pulitzer board's commitment to the 'heart' in Futuro Studiosis the new creative division of the Futuro Media Group, an independent nonprofit organization producing multimedia journalism that explores and gives a critical voice to the diversity of the American experience. HINOJOSA: Because things change, Ailsa. Thats true, but its also bullshit because I was a lifer and I did it. And Suave, you've been talking to Maria for so many years. Maggie Freleng is an investigative journalist, producer and the host/producer of Unjust & Unsolved, a podcast about wrongful convictions and the crimes that are consequently left unsolved. This years awards honored work produced in 2021. This is an incredible moment for American journalism the choice to recognize a piece going deep into the humanity of not just the source, but also the journalists. Open Campus national reporter Charlotte West contributed to this story. And even though I've been home three years, I'm still lost, you know, because this world moved fast. As the decades pass, Suave becomes a mentor for younger men and a model citizen inside the prison. She found her passion for radio at Indie 103.1 FM in Los Angeles, as an engineer, producer, and on-air personality. Futuro Media also produces Peabody Award winning Latino USA, the longest running national Latino news and cultural public radio program; In The Thick, an award winning political podcast; and Latino Rebels, a pioneering digital news outlet founded by journalist Julio Ricardo Varela. At Futuro Media, Hinojosa continues to bring attention to experiences and points of view that are often overlooked or underreported in mainstream media, all while mentoring the next generation of diverse journalists to delve into authentic and nuanced stories. Jennifer Amell. A conversation with Maria Hinojosa and David Luis "Suave" Gonzalez exploring the Pulitzer-Prize-winning podcast 'Suave.'Maria Hinojosa spent nearly 20 years . Journalist Maria Hinojosa met David Luis "Suave" Gonzalez in 1993 while speaking at the Graterford State Correctional Institution in Pennsylvania. 70% of all juveniles serving life without parole are people of color. Hard work pays off for David Luiz. At Graterford State Correctional Institution in Pennsylvania, Suave joined the largest population of juvenile lifers in the countrymen considered by . And so it was like this long-haul battle. So I was able to encourage them to go to school. Additionally, Hinojosa was the first Latina to anchor a PBS FRONTLINE report: Lost in Detention which aired in October 2011 and was the first to explore abuse at immigrant detention facilities, garnering attention from Capitol Hill as well as both the mainstream and Spanish-language media. Suave returns to prison. Ear Hustle from Radiotopia and PRX was a finalist in 2020. In 1988, David Luis "Suave" Gonzalez was found guilty of first-degree homicide. Support for Suave was provided by the Art for Justice Fund, a special project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, and The Heising-Simons Foundation: Unlocking knowledge, opportunity, and possibilities. After the Montgomery v Louisiana ruling, Suave spoke with producer Michael Simon Johnson. Meanwhile, Maria travels to Philadelphia and Suave anxiously awaits the decision from a judge that could finally grant him the opportunity to experience life on the outside as an adult for the first time. Marlon Bishop is a Peabody Award-winning radio producer and editor with a focus on Latin America, immigration, identity and society, music and the arts. From prison to podcast: 'Suave' explores the friendship between a

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