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JustUs: Stories from the Frontlines of the Criminal Legal System with The ReMINDers & Special Guest Readers

In this special Motus Theater performance, Colorado judicial, DOC, and legislative leaders stand on stage with a Motus JustUs monologist and co-read their stories.

Hear 12th Judicial District Court Judge the Honorable Martín A. Gonzales; Deputy Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Corrections Ruth Coffman; Colorado Legislators Representative Leslie Herod and Senator Pete Lee co-read the personal stories of Astro Allison, Brandon Wainright, Daniel Guillory, Dereck Bell, and Juaquin Mobley about the impact of the carceral system on their lives. The monologues explore themes such as racial bias in sentencing, human rights abuses in prisons, criminalizing substance abusers, employment obstacles facing people with former felonies, and the systemic racism and poverty that pushes people into illicit economies.

Each story will be followed by a special musical response from the seamless, soulful sounds and roots music of The ReMINDers. 

This performance will be coming to you in-person from The Gold Room in Downtown Colorado Springs with the goal of mobilizing discussion and inspiring action toward true justice. A perfect event for thoughtful dialogue and reflection on the ongoing civil rights and racial justice challenges of the criminal legal system.

The JustUs project was developed by Motus Theater in 2019 and premiered as a keynote at the National Association of Community and Restorative Justice Conference in front of 1,600 stakeholders. Since then, JustUs monologues have served as keynotes for 8 national and international conferences. In 2021 Motus presented JustUs monologues in front of 55 DAs at the  Fair & Just Prosecution Conference. Executive Director Miriam Krinsky had this to say: “Motus’ JustUs presentation… truly surpassed even our incredibly high expectations. Motus’ performances will make a difference in decisions made by DAs across the country and, as such, in the willingness to rethink punitive approaches that simply waste more lives.”

Rep. Leslie Herod credited JustUs monologues with inspiring 2 pieces of criminal legal reform legislation: Colorado HB21-1314 that eliminates the ability for courts to revoke one's driver's license for small, non-driving-related infractions, and HB21-1315 that eliminates fines and fees within Juvenile court.


This performance is made possible in part by the contributions of audience members like you. Please consider making a meaningful contribution to Motus Theater today.

You can also support Motus by filling out our evaluation form after the event:
Motus Theater Evaluation Form

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The JustUs project is funded by Arts in Society, Ford Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, and Rose Community Foundation. For more information about Motus Theater’s funders, click here.