This man's youngest brother killed himself after spending 3 years at one of the country's most notorious jails - now he wants to shut it down

Sarah Jacobs

Akeem Browder celebrated what would have been his youngest brother's 23rd birthday by smashing a pinata crafted to look like New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.

"That's what he deserves," Akeem growled as he punched and kicked the papier-mache caricature.

Instead of candy, pictures of Rikers Island guards abusing a then teenage boy spilled out of the pinata's hollow torso. As Akeem spread the images over hot sidewalk outside the Bronx Supreme Court, a rubber "Live For Real" bracelet wiggled around his right hand.

After spending three years at Rikers Island on charges of stealing a backpack, which were later dropped, Akeem's brother, Kalief, killed himself at their mother's house in 2015. He was just 22.

While navigating the darkness that inevitably followed, Akeem started the Campaign to Shut Down Rikers, a grassroots collection of activists dedicated to the swift closure of Rikers Island, New York City's main jail complex and one of the country's most notorious.

Those involved meet regularly to plan events, mostly civil disobedience, in hopes of drawing attention to Kalief's death and convincing politicians to reform the criminal justice system the group believes caused it.