This post was first published by Naptown People’s Radio on 23 September 2025.
Dr. Akili Shakur, an organizer, retired professor, and wife of Shaka A. Shakur, joins Naptown People’s Radio based out of the Indianapolis Liberation Center–the national headquarters of the Shaka Shakur Freedom Campaign, to discuss the expansive impacts of mass incarceration.
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This week’s Naptown Breakdown begins with a glimpse of our ability to transform our city-when we’re organized. On September 22, after months of struggle, our power was on full display we forced Google to withdraw their plans for a new data center. As we celebrate this victory, we stay ready to fight new potential proposals and continue to fight the monopoly energy corporation’s latest request for a rake hike, one that would impact residents more than businesses. Co-hosts Dani Abdullah and Derek Ford discuss the arrest of a Herron student for bringing a gun to school, how the students acted to protect their fellow classmates, and why cops and metal detectors are not the answer.
Akili Shakur stopped by the studio while she was in town for the preview of the new Shaka Shakur Freedom Campaign documentary, “Soul in Exile.” Akili and Derek cover the significance of Shaka’s forthcoming book, Manifestations of Thought: When the Dragon Comes (2025) and Akili details the devastating and inhumane impacts of the Interstate Corrections Compact.
This week’s Circle City Shout Out goes to Indianapolis-based artist Gina Lee Robbins, a visual and teaching artist who creates sculptural objects and installations that currently shed light on the prison system. Her exhibit, “On the Count,” is on display alongside “Prison Reimagined: Presidential Portraits” at the Indy Art Center until October 5. Over the weekend, she helped bring together incarcerated curator Caddell Kivett, Death Penalty Action Executive Director Abe Bonowitz, local art-ivist Vernon T. Bateman, and Derek for an action panel on prisons, art, and transformative justice. Dani closes out by reminding us again that organizing and engaging in activism look different for everyone.