Details: Directed by Brandon Kramer, the film is scheduled to be screened Wednesday at the AFI DOCS Festival in Washington, D.C., and can be watched online until June 27.
- The film shows Jones bringing Black activists from South Central Los Angeles together with white people in West Virginia as they discuss ways to battle the opioid crisis.
- It also highlights the commentator's attempts to get a compromise bill on prison reform through a divided Congress and to Trump's desk.
- During his fight, Jones endured harsh criticism from some Black advocates for agreeing to work with Trump officials on a bill while conservative activists called Jones a Communist at public events.
Following the film, Axios' Russell Contreras will host a panel discussion with Jones and activists about their roles in battling the opioid crisis and fighting for prison reform.
The intrigue: Jones, a former Obama official who supports progressive causes, has publicly chided the orthodoxy of "wokeness" that he believes prevents coalition-building and runs from debates and engagement.
- It's similar to the critique from some Latino intellectuals who call young, well-meaning activists misguided "wokosos" (combining the term "woke" with the Spanish word "mocosos" — snot-nosed brats).
Don't forget: The First Step Act reduced some sentences and gave judges more sentencing flexibility.
- The bill led to the release of at least 3,000 inmates by the end of 2019, according to NBC News.
- Trump later told people he regretted following some of son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner's political advice on criminal justice reform, three people with direct knowledge of the president's thinking told Axios' Jonathan Swan.
