The Coalition to Free Vernon T. Bateman is a growing coalition of community members in Indianapolis, Indiana, the United States, North and South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa who share one objective: exonerate Vernon T. Bateman as soon as possible. Our ranks include service workers, lawyers, academics, nurses, teachers, technicians, artists, and workers from all walks of life and all divisions of labor.
The Coalition is the product of the Indianapolis Liberation Center’s mission to serve as an incubator for new movement organizations. We started forming organically after Leon Benson brought volunteers with the Center together with Vernon in March 2023. Although not yet a formal entity, within months we gathered hundreds of signatures on his petition, organized artistic and political events, sought out platforms for Vernon to tell his story, and engaged deeply in the study of his long saga of injustices stemming back from 1998 until the present that resulted in a two-part series of short documentaries.
The Coalition officially launched on February 12, 2025 at a press conference where the Coalition called on the IDOC to immediately stop their continued targeted harassment and victimization of Bateman. Along with such important groups as Arte Mexicano en Indiana, the Indiana Black Librarians Network, Circle City Sangha, and several others, we operate out of and in collaboration with the Indianapolis Liberation Center. However, as with all of the Center’s member-organizations, we are a distinct entity.
Sign and share the petition for Vernon T. Bateman’s exoneration today! You can also make an urgently-needed donation that will go directly to support Vernon in his struggle for his-and our-freedom.