Search Results for "poverty"
Green Prisons, Reentry and the New Economy
Published October 15, 2009 @ 07:37AM PT
Today is Blog Action Day, and 8,624 bloggers around the world are writing about climate change -- covering this critical issue from countless perspectives, telling stories from the personal to global. I was happy to see climate change as the focus for today’s day of action, because it’s an issue that affects absolutely every one of us. Prisons, and prisoners, are not immune.
I’ve written before about green initiatives at prisons across the country and around the world -- from an urban farm at a Chicago jail to ecological practices and alternative energy production at prisons in Washington, California and elsewhere.
We shouldn’t only be green inside our prisons, however. We should create a green path out of our prisons. Corrections departments and facilities around the world offer many kinds of training for prisoners, including GEDs and college degrees, vocations like carpentry and plumbing and artistic talents like painting and video production. But prisons are too far behind the curve. Green jobs -- including earth-friendly construction and solar panel manufacturing and installation among many, many other specialties -- are certain to be booming in the years ahead, and prisons are a perfect place to teach these trades. Not only could prisoners work to retrofit prisons for lower energy consumption, but they can learn skills in the process.
A Justice System Decimated by Katrina
Published August 29, 2009 @ 09:25AM PT
Today marks the fourth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast. It's a somber day, marking the worst natural disaster in U.S. history and the day that the terrible racial and economic inequalities in our society became crystal clear throughout the world. My fellow editors at change.org have moving and important posts today on Katrina and housing, poverty and climate change. I want to focus on a much-overlooked victim of Katrina: New Orleans' justice system.
As the storm approached, one of the many fatal mistakes made by city officials was the choice not to evacuate inmates at Orleans Parish Prison. Hundreds of people were stuck behind bars as the deadly storm arrived. As the water level rose, guards panicked and backup plans failed. Eventually prisoners were evacuated by boat and left for as many as three days on an overpass, becoming the subject of famous photos like the one above. The one-hour BBC documentary "Prisoners of Katrina" chronicles the tragic mishandling of these prisoners, and continues through the complete collapse of the system after the storm. For a sobering look at an under-reported injustice caused by the storm, watch the complete film online here.
Blog Action Day 2008: The poverty line runs through the courtroom
Published October 15, 2008 @ 02:05PM PT
Today is Blog Action Day, and thousands of bloggers around the world are posting about the issue of poverty. The connections (and disconnects) between poverty and justice are as obvious as they are many. In the U.S., and in most of the world, you get the justice you pay for. As the U.S. plunges into recession, we're already seeing states with budget shortfalls making cuts across the board. Indigent defense is often among the first to go.
Some recent news from the world of indigent defense:
- A Georgia judge said recent cuts to the state's public defense budget means a crisis for 2,000 people charged with crimes.
- Minnesota's court system has been slowed this year by state cuts.
- Maine is facing wide-ranging criminal justice cuts, which will affect indigent defense.
Rhode Island's Prostitution Mistake
Published August 14, 2009 @ 02:04PM PT
Lawmakers in Rhode Island aiming to "fix a loophole" in the state's prostitution law are missing an important opportunity to address serious problems - and they're punishing exactly the wrong people: the sex workers.
Apparently, R.I. legislators drafted a law in the 1950s with vague language that didn't criminalize prostitution if conducted in private. Lawmakers want to fix that, and there are competing bills in the R.I. House and Senate. The Senate bill seems sensible, with fines for sex workers and establishments on first offense. Here's where it gets ugly. The House bill is tougher, with up to six months in prison - for the sex workers - on first offense. And Gov. Don Carcieri supports the House bill, calling the Senate version "watered down."
This is a big mistake. Punishing sex workers rather than providing services continues the cycle of poverty. I support legalized prostitution, as I've written before, but I don't expect Rhode Island to take it that far this month or this year. I do hope, however, that all lawmakers will learn to support policies that provide services and alternatives to incarceration rather than prison time. If anybody should be immune from punishment, especially on first offense, it's the sex workers.
Rhode Island should focus on stemming human trafficking and stop worrying about putting sex workers in prison.
Restore Felon Voting Rights
Published July 31, 2009 @ 09:32AM PT
Last week, Sen. Russ Feingold and Rep. John Conyers introduced parallel bills in the House and Senate that would restore voting rights in federal elections to more than four million people convicted of felonies and currently denied this civil right
Please join me today in urging Congress to act quickly on the Democracy Restoration Act of 2009, which could, with the stroke of a pen, show millions of formerly incarcerated Americans that they are welcome members of society and that we are committed to including them in our democracy.
New Approaches to Stop Gang Violence
Published July 14, 2009 @ 07:06AM PT
Cities across the country are trying alternative approaches to stem gang violence - from hiring former gangbangers to mediate disputes to offering life coaches and job training - and they're working.
In St. Louis, a program called Aim4Peace is borrowing a page from Chicago's Ceasefire, a non-profit initiative that seeks to treat violence like an epidemic and stem its spread through intervention at critical moments. I wrote about Ceasefire here.
In Kansas City, people like Jason Broom (above left) use their life experiences to intervene before violence can escalate.
"I've done everything they're thinking about doing," Broom said.
Broom and the other half-dozen or so Aim4Peace street intervention workers, also known as "violence interrupters," say they resolved 22 conflicts last year in Kansas City and at least 14 this year. And the east side — where poverty, gangs and drugs have conspired against residents for years — no longer leads the city in killings, according to crime data.
"The work they're doing in that area is having an impact," said Maj. Anthony Ell, commander of the Kansas City Police Department's violent crimes division.
And a great piece in the New Yorker last month profiled a program helmed by John Jay Professor David Kennedy, also called Ceasefire, that brings more of a carrot and stick approach and has been tried by 60 cities, with varying success.
Jobs to Change the Criminal Justice System
Published June 17, 2009 @ 05:48AM PT
One potential silver lining of the worldwide recession we're currently experiencing is a sea change in the way Americans think about work. We're seeing more people enter nonprofit and social enterprise fields, prioritizing doing good over doing well. Perhaps the banking meltdown has opened some eyes to the unsustainability of setting aside morals to chase the dollar. More sustainable models are popping up right and left, and, because of this, the new economy could emerge stronger than ever. We launched Jobs for Change to further fuel this paradigm shift toward work with a mission.
Criminal justice reform organizations are certainly feeling this surge of interest from a new and diverse group of people. Recent college and law school graduates are seeking public interest work in bigger numbers. Seasoned attorneys are making the transition as their firms shrink. I've heard from several of people in just the last few days with questions on transitioning into criminal justice nonprofits or working for reform. It's an extremely good sign - as more talent moves into the sector, the chances for real change in the decade ahead grow stronger.
To make a difference in the world of criminal justice, you can go to law school and work in public interest. We always need more lawyers working for the underprivileged and underrepresented. But there are other paths, too. Criminal justice reform needs policy experts, fundraising professionals, social workers, psychologists, writers, researchers, investigators, health care professionals - and the list goes on.
If you're looking for a job in criminal justice, check out a few great opportunities from Jobs for Change after the jump.
