Find an event in your area and join the movement to end the death penalty!

Advocates will mark the 50th anniversary of the return of the death penalty to the United States with the US Supreme Court decision in Gregg v. Georgia. Advocates will display a 20 foot banner calling on Gov Newsom to commute all death sentences and 570 candles illustrating the number of people under sentence of death in California. Speakers will include leading state civil rights and faith leaders. Advocates will deliver petitions to the Governor’s Office urging him to commute all death sentences, and an original work of art, “Justice through Mercy.” 

Elizabeth Vartkessian will be speaking about her new book, The Deserving, at the NewSouth bookstore in Montgomery, Alabama at 6 PM local time. She will be in conversation with Carla Crowder, Executive Director of Alabama Appleseed, about how mitigation is moving empathy, dignity, and understanding into the criminal legal system and beyond.

The Deserving: What the Lives of the Condemned Reveal About American Justice is out now and available at all major retailers. Order your copy today! Outside the US? You can purchase your copy here.

Event #1: 20 Years With No Executions:
What Have We Learned?
Tuesday, June 23
12–1:15 PM ET
Zoom

Event #2: 20 Years With No Executions
Bearing Witness
Tuesday, August 18
6:30–8:30 PM ET
Pullen Memorial Baptist Church
Raleigh, NC

Event #3: 20 Years With No Executions
Beyond the Death Penalty
Saturday, August 22, 2026
1–4 PM ET
Eno River Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
Durham, NC

The TCADP Book Group meets every six to eight weeks on Zoom and reads a mix of fiction, non-fiction, and memoirs. Our next book selection is Secrets of the Killing State: The Untold Story of Lethal Injection by Corinna Barrett Lain. We will discuss this book on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, at 7:00 PM CT on Zoom. As a special guest, Professor Lain will be joining the discussion! All are welcome.

TCADP will hold a special webinar on Tuesday, June 30, 2026, from 12:00 to 1:00 PM CT to mark the upcoming 50th anniversary of Jurek v. Texas, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case that upheld the constitutionality of the death penalty in Texas in 1976. Professor Ana M. Otero, the Eugene Harrington Professor of Law at Thurgood Marshall School of Law in Houston, Texas, will explain the implications of the ruling, which affirmed Texas’s updated capital sentencing procedures, including the notorious “future dangerousness” language. She will also explain how Jurek emerged from the post-Furman effort to rebuild capital sentencing and how Texas’s statute has evolved over the last 50 years. Attendees will gain insight into why Jurek remains central to today’s debates about capital punishment.

This event will feature the Pulitzer-Prize winning author Lawrence Wright. This inspiring event will be held on October 22, 2026 from 12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. at the Four Seasons Hotel in Houston, Texas. 

Every Monday, community members gather outside Central Prison in peaceful opposition to the death penalty. Open to everyone; no RSVP required.

On the First Friday of each month, CMN invites you to a virtual prayer vigil, a sacred space to lament upcoming executions and bear witness to the sanctity of all human life. Join us to stand in solidarity with people facing execution, their victims, and all who are impacted by the unjust system of capital punishment. The vigils include time for guided prayer, petitions, Scripture reflections, and contemplative silence. Catholic bishops, ministry leaders, and allies often lend their voices.

You are welcome to attend regularly or drop-in when you have ideas and time to engage. Each session will offer tools and strategies for grassroots organizing as well as updates and opportunities for taking action. Contact info@scadp.org for the next date!