Freedom Road Podcast Maya Moore Irons and Jonathan Irons: Love and Justice
This month we are joined by Maya Moore Irons and Jonathan Irons! Basketball icon, Maya is a two-time NCAA champion, two-time Olympic gold medalist, four-time WNBA champion, and WNBA MVP. In February of 2019, Maya revealed that she would miss the upcoming season to focus on family and ministry dreams. Later that year, in a New York Times feature, Maya first went into detail about Jonathan Irons and his wrongful imprisonment and later opted to miss the 2020 season to continue focusing on Jonathan’s case and was ultimately successful when his conviction was vacated in March 2020, and he walked free that July. Maya has since come to be recognized as one of sport and culture’s most important social justice icons.
Jonathan Irons was only eighteen-years-old when he was wrongly convicted by an all-white jury for a crime that occurred when he was sixteen. With no physical evidence tying him to the crime, Jonathan was handed a fifty-year prison sentence, of which he served twenty-three years. After a twenty year long effort by Jonathan, Maya, her family, and other supporters, Jonathan was finally released in July of 2020. The next day, Jonathan proposed to Maya, and weeks later, they were married. Despite over two decades of unjust incarceration, Irons turned his cell into a classroom, pursuing legal studies and advocacy. His fight for exoneration highlighted systemic flaws and inspired a movement for change. He mentored fellow inmates, advocating for rehabilitation and societal reintegration. Upon release, he became a leader in criminal justice reform, advocating for the rights of marginalized groups and offering insights into reentry challenges. Additionally, he mentors disadvantaged youth, demonstrating the transformative power of resilience and determination. Jonathan's story is a call to action for justice, equity, and compassion, inspiring him to change and hope for a better world.
Maya and Jonathan were invited to talk with us about their new book, Love and Justice: A Story of Triumph on Two Different Courts.
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