JustLeadershipUSA Thanks President Biden for His Leadership and Calls on Him to Use His Authority to Deliver Justice Before His Term Ends

This weekend, President Joe Biden announced he would no longer be seeking the nomination of the Democratic Party for president and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris. In response, JustLeadershipUSA (JLUSA) President and CEO DeAnna Hoskins issued the following statement:

“On the behalf of JustLeadershipUSA, one of the nation’s only tax-exempt justice organizations that is both founded by and led by formerly incarcerated people, I want to say thank you to President Biden for his leadership over the past four years and for his patriotism in recognizing the opportunity of the moment and passing the baton, as we each must learn to do as responsible leaders at one point or another.

“President Biden’s actions reach the highest level of courageousness any leader can exhibit. This step clearly states to the world that he is a servant leader who puts the American people before himself and publicly elevates and supports Vice President Kamala Harris. With this announcement, we recognize that President Biden has six more months to serve out his term, and holds enormous power to effect bold positive change.

President Biden has six more months to serve out his term, and holds enormous power to effect bold positive change.

“In our National Platform and Roadmap, we called on the then-incoming Biden-Harris administration to pursue a number of short-term, mid-term, and long-term legislative and executive actions and reforms. We are renewing our call on President Biden again now to take these immediate actions using his authority:

• Repeal and reverse the impact of the 1994 Crime Bill — President Biden, you bear great responsibility in the passage of this legislation that accelerated mass incarceration in this country and disproportionately harmed Black and brown communities. This is your opportunity to recognize the wisdom of hindsight in making amends and begin to undue the harms that have destroyed families and communities.

 

• Deschedule marijuana and pardon all people incarcerated for marijuana charges — Rescheduling marijuana is not enough, because it does not decriminalize marijuana or release individuals with marijuana-related charges who have not become eligible from any of the reforms passed since their conviction. Marijuana is now legal in over half of the country. It’s time to decriminalize and set individuals free.

 

• Fight for the passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act – This bold, comprehensive legislation would make it easier for the federal government to successfully hold police misconduct cases accountable, end racial and religious profiling, and eliminate qualified immunity for law enforcement. The legislation would also ban the use of chokeholds and no-knock warrants—which took the lives of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Eric Garner—at the federal level and encourage states to do the same. This package will finally allow meaningful accountability in cases of police brutality.

 

• Abolish the death penalty — At least 1 in 25 people sentenced to death are innocent. The margin of error intrinsic to capital punishment violates every value of human dignity and respect. In addition, racial bias has long been baked into the death penalty process and outcomes: Black people make up less than 13% of the nation’s population while accounting for more than 42% of those on death row. As President-elect, you pledged to end the federal death penalty. Executive powers still allow you that option today.

 

• Sign an order directing the use of humanizing language across all federal agencies — The current rhetoric being driven around the use of the word “felon” is dehumanizing and reduces people to the worst mistake they have ever made. A presidential directive to all federal agencies would signal the importance of using person-first language in reducing stigma. Please send this message now.

 

• Fight for the passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act — For over a decade, the Supreme Court’s ongoing dismantling of policy and protections for this nation requires immediate action in the form of this legislation. Voting rights for all must be protected.

 

• Eliminate all federal student loans — Your administration estimates that the “Plan B” approach to student loan forgiveness will benefit 10 million borrowers, which is only a fraction of the first round of relief in the SAVE Plan. These loans are holding back consumers, families, and communities. Cancel all student loan debt that you can, Mr. President.

 

• Sign all outstanding clemencies — There are 20,000+ clemency petitions sitting on your desk right now, President Biden. With a stroke of your pen, you can give freedom and hope to so many people who have served their time and paid their debt to society. Do it!

“When you ran for the office of President in 2020, you promised to reduce the prison population by more than 50%. Instead the number has actually gone up, after years of decline. You now have an unprecedented opportunity to make good on some of your promises and add to your legacy as one of the most important and consequential presidents in U.S. history. The 70+ million Americans who have direct experience of the criminal legal system in this country are watching.

“We thank you for your 52 years of public service. We are grateful to you for the leadership you have demonstrated in leading this nation over the past four years. We want you to finish strong! This is what we, as citizens, need you to complete before you pass the torch to the next administration.”

Learn more about how we are elevating issues impacting the 70+ million justice-impacted Americans at the Federal level through the JustUS Coordinating Council at justuscc.org.