Ray Fishman's Fundraiser:

UPDATE (October 24, 2013):  I am happy to report that I completed my 1500+ mile journey from Amsterdam to Barcelona during 4 weeks in July, 2013.  It was awesome!  We went through seven countries and over the Alps and the Pyrenees and saw some amazing countryside, villages and people with many different cultures and languages.  We carried all our gear with us and cooked and camped every night.  The steep downhills in the Alps were my favortie part!

I am also happy to report the attainment of my $1500 fund-raising goal for the Innocence Project.  That's $1.00 per mile, and I want to thank all my supporters and contributors.  Fundraising for the Innocence Project made my bike trip more meaningful and worthwhile.  The activities of the Innocence Project will help free people who have been wrongfully convicted and imprisoned and give them the freedom they deserve. It was a privilege to contribute to the work of the Innocence Project.

Ray

THE EVENT (written June 1, 2013)  This summer I am going on a bike trip of 1500 miles from Amsterdam to Barcelona.  I cannot quite imagine what this trip – which goes through many small villages in six countries and over the Alps and the Pyrenees – will actually be like.

But what is even more unimaginable to me is that there are many innocent people who have been wrongly convicted and are serving lengthy terms in prison – and some are even on death row.  These people have been wrongfully denied freedom, and cannot even experience simple pleasures like walking down the street or hugging their children or parents (there are actually teenagers who have been wrongfully convicted!).

The Innocence Project is a 501c3 organization that works to exonerate prisoners who were convicted of crimes they did not commit. They do this primarily by using DNA evidence to prove that the prisoner did not commit the crime.  Over 300 people have been exonerated and freed based on DNA evidence.  On average they were in prison for 13 years before exoneration, and some were wrongfully imprisoned for even 25 or 30 years.  The Innocence Project also works to change the system that resulted in such injustice.

Changing the criminal justice system is a cause I am passionate about.  What better way to start than with helping to free prisoners who are the victims of the existing system.  As I ride this summer all 1500 miles, I will be thinking of the injustice of those who have been wrongfully convicted and have lost their freedom – and those who have been exonerated and face uphill battles because their lives have been stolen by a faulty system.  I am hoping I can raise $1.00 per mile, or $1500.

You can find out more about the Innocence Project at http://www.innocenceproject.org/

You can read about some of the people who have been exonerated at http://www.innocenceproject.org/know/Browse-Profiles.php