Maurice Carter goes to Trinidad!

 When I first met Maurice Carter in the mid-1990s he was unknown…simply a Black man serving time in the Michigan prison system for a crime he swore he did not commit. 

History will show that he and I fought side-by-side for his freedom for nearly a decade. He was granted a medical release in 2004 and died 3 months after his release. BUT, during that 9-year campaign, the name Maurice Carter became well known…internationally! 

Maurice is gone, now…but the impact of his story lives on! It’s told in my book SWEET FREEDOM; in the award-winning documentary WRONGED---THE MAURICE CARTER STORY, produced by Nate Roels; and in the powerful stage play JUSTICE FOR MAURICE HENRY CARTER, written by award-winning Toronto playwrights Donald Molnar and Alicia Payne. And this story is about that play. 

The playwrights were pleased when their drama was chosen for presentation at Toronto’s famous Fringe festival last year. 

But, here’s what no one realized at that time. 

Another presentation in the festival was a stage play written and produced by the Drama Club members of Naparima College in Trinidad. Naparima is a secondary education facility for boys, ages 12-18, founded in 1894. While at the festival, the cast members attended the presentation of our Maurice Carter play. Their teacher, Jeanelle Archer-Chan, said, “I can't express the joy and gratefulness I feel for the exposure and inspiration that the performance of ‘Justice for Maurice Henry Carter’ bestowed on the boys of the Naparima College Drama Club (NCDC). The story and performance resonate even now.” 

That’s not the end of the story! 

The Carter story so moved a member of the drama club, Syre Hutton, that he contacted our playwrights. He planned to present a monologue in upcoming drama competition. He asked if he could use some of the Maurice Carter quotes. Don and Alicia happily prepared a 5-minute monologue for the lad. If you have 5 minutes, take time right now to see and hear his amazing presentation: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8UiC638TEg 

There’s still more! 

On January 15, 2026, Syre was awarded 2nd place in the monologue category of the Secondary Schools’ Drama Festival in Trinidad with his performance from JUSTICE FOR MAURICE HENRY CARTER! 

I am sending copies of the book SWEET FREEDOM to Syre, his teacher as well as the library of his school.

 The story of my friend Maurice Carter is alive and well and with far-reaching impact! 

“When you met Maurice he was a forgotten man; he died a celebrity. When you met him he was reviled as a dangerous criminal; he died a symbol of wronged innocence. When you met him he had no real friends; he died surrounded by love.  ---Phil Campbell, Toronto attorney

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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