“The NYPD’s attack on bail reform is outrageous — but not surprising. Those who benefit economically from imprisoning Black and Brown bodies — including police departments, district attorneys’ offices and the bail bonds industry — are circling their wagons to protect their profits. They are resorting to the same tired, fear-mongering tactics in an effort to divide us and take us backward.
“Opponents of bail reform want to use a one-month spike in crime to overturn a law that barely has been implemented. They point to one month of crime statistics to scare the public into retreating from commonsense bail reforms while we point to decades of experience and data that prove pretrial detention is not only unjust, it’s an unnecessary waste of taxpayers’ money — to the tune of $2.5 billion each year.
“Make no mistake: Those who have been pocketing billions on the backs of Black and Brown people victimized by the cash bail system are not going quietly retreating. They are holding news conferences, spreading sensationalized stories and outright lying in an effort to hang on to their profits.
“As formerly incarcerated people and directly impacted community members, we demand that public officials and elected leaders stand with us in support of the bail reforms passed because those reforms address the systemic marginalization of Black and Brown communities and have already helped reunite families in just one month.
“Rather than attempt to roll back these reforms, our public officials and elected leaders should be asking why those who continue to be held in pretrial detention are disproportionally Black and Brown people. Instead of trying to lock up more of us, the NYPD should investigate the department’s practices and policies and do the hard work of dismantling its inherent racism.”
###
In our 10th anniversary year, JustLeadershipUSA’s work of educating, elevating, and empowering justice-impacted leaders continues and is growing even stronger!
This is going to be a very special time to look back on the past decade of JLUSA’s important work, the 1,600+ leaders we have helped get to the next level in their work, and even more importantly, we will look ahead to the next 10 years and beyond!
We can’t do this without you. We need your support to help us continue to do this work now and into the future. By making a donation in honor of JLUSA’s 10th anniversary year, you are saying to the amazing leaders in our network who represent the 70+ million Americans who have been directly impacted by the criminal legal system, “I see you, and I support you!”
Please give a one-time $100 gift or set up a recurring $10 monthly donation to celebrate JLUSA’s 10th anniversary year, and together we will build a fair and just U.S. Thank you!
Mail that includes checks only:
JUSTLEADERSHIPUSA, INC
P.O. Box 23681
New York, NY 10087-3681
All other mail:
P.O. Box 1730, New York, NY 10037
347.454.2195
© 2024 JustLeadershipUSA. All Rights Reserved.
JustLeadershipUSA is a non-partisan organization. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed belong solely to the individual author or speaker, and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the organization.