PALEWELL PRESS

A former member of the Crips gang from Los Angeles, Steve Champion is now prominent in the criminal justice reform movement. For 37 years he has been on Death Row at San Quentin State Prison in California.

Together with Craig Ross, Champion co-authored The Architect, a radical social treatise about African American gangs in the 21st century - not just a blueprint for self-transformation and the reconstruction of gang culture, but a unique step-by-step guide that shows gang members themselves how to do it. Champion and Ross’s analysis builds upon – and expands – the work that Crips gang co-founder and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Stanley “Tookie” Williams was committed to before his death. The Architect seeks to change the narrative about gang members by providing them with an independent and self-sustaining plan of action and empowerment.

Published by Palewell Press in the UK, The Architect launched in the States in September 2019. For more information or a Press Release, in the UK contact Camilla Reeve; and in the USA contact Mark Davis.

Previous publications:
Champion’s memoir is titled "Dead to Deliverance" and in 2004 he won first place in the Pen Prison Writing Award for nonfiction for his essay, "His Spirit Lives On: George E. Marshall." Co-authored publications by Champion and Ross include "The Sacred Eye of the Falcon" and three pamphlets, "Walking It Like You Talk It," "The Ninth Ground" and "Everything You Value You Must Carry Without Hands." Further information