Too Black & The Pendleton 2 Documentary

June 07, 2023

Indianapolis-based poet and spoken word artist Too Black discusses The Pendleton 2: They Stood Up, which he co-directed. The documentary tells the story of the 1985 prison uprising at the Indiana State Reformatory, now the Pendleton Correctional Facility. Prison activists John “Balagoon” Cole and Christopher “Naeem” Trotter, known collectively as the Pendleton 2, were issued de facto life sentences for their role in the uprising. The film explores the policies of the Indiana Department of Corrections, KKK-associated prison guards, solitary confinement and the community effort to push for Cole and Trotter’s release.