Justice – The Public Purpose.

The People’s Response Act: Prioritizing Public Health in the Justice System

By Genny Glembotzky — A transformation of policing to center public health and safety will deliver more equitable criminal justice outcomes, and more importantly, save lives.

Justice, Race & Ethnicity

The Racialization of Innocence on Death Row

By Dakota Engel — Innocence in capital crimes is a pervasive problem further perpetuated by racism, implicit bias, and the presumption of guilt. Policymakers, states, and voters must confront these disparities and prioritize the death penalty’s abolition.

Justice, Politics

The People’s Response Act: Can We Reimagine Public Safety?

By Rachel Timmons — Most Americans do not expect the criminal justice system to prevent crime and ensure a fair administration of justice. If we want to build safer communities and trust in our justice system, the People’s Response Act offers a way forward.

Justice

The Relationship Between State-Level Gun Policies and Gun Deaths

By Christ-Shamma Matalbert — On average, the gun death rates in states with strong gun laws are a fraction of those in states with weak gun regulations. It’s well beyond time that these demonstrated, lifesaving solutions are instituted across America.

Justice

Did You Know That Your Tax Dollars Are Contributing to Police Brutality?

By Christ-Shamma Matalbert — Minorities, specifically African Americans, have a long history of being disproportionately affected by the very “policing” structure that protects others.

Justice, National Security

The Militarization of America’s Police Force

By Mikaela Calcagni — Police departments are increasingly more aggressive when carrying out routine operations, especially within communities of color. Military-grade weapons, equipment, and vehicles have no place within routine police work in American communities.

Health, Justice, Race & Ethnicity

COVID-19 Exposes Inhumanity in the Social Justice System

Call to Action and Curving the Spread of COVID-19 by Christ-Shamma Matalbert, resident editor & columnist COVID-19 has and continues to impact each of us differently; however, the pandemic has further revealed how the United States has continuously failed to address the country’s disparities. COVID-19 has shown Americans that minority communities are the most vulnerable and […]

Justice

We May Be on the Cusp of Substantive Drug Policy Reform

by Samuel Murray, columnist The 2020 election has brought high levels of anxiety, longer than normal vote counts, and a massive voter turnout. Both candidates have received more votes than any other presidential candidate in United States’ history, beating former President Obama’s record in 2008. One benefit that may come out of this election cycle, […]

Justice, Race & Ethnicity

Reimagining American Policing

by Samuel Murray, columnist The United States may be undergoing the largest civil rights movement in American history. The Black Lives Matter protests, beginning on May 26 and surging in June, emerged in response to the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, the murder of a jogger Ahmed Arbury, and the racial profiling […]

Justice, Politics

#GunControl: An Update Since Parkland’s Tragedy

By: Alex Gillett The U.S. media is constantly reporting on a mass shooting, in what seems like every few weeks. Casualties from gun violence are so prevalent, we almost have become numb to them and feel like we are waiting for the next one. In a rare, but tragic event, one survivor of the Las […]

Child and Family Policy, Immigration, Justice, Politics

#FamiliesBelongTogether: The “Zero-Tolerance” Policy Dilemma and Family Border Separation

By: Indira Bhattacharjee

Immigration, International, Justice, Race & Ethnicity

Xenophobic Violence in South Africa

By: Ifeoluwa Olawole As recently as February 2017, a group of anti-immigrant protesters in Pretoria, South Africa set out to protest the presence of immigrants from other parts of Africa like Nigeria, Somalia, and Zimbabwe. This protest led to the looting and ransacking of stores owned by immigrants. Between February 5 and 18, Nigerian buildings, […]

Justice

It’s Time to End Forced Arbitration

What is Forced Arbitration? Many Americans are unfamiliar with binding arbitration clauses, also referred to as forced arbitration clauses or forced arbitration, which force agreeing parties to cede their right to settle potential disputes within the court system. Corporations and businesses often use these clauses in contracts and terms of service agreements with consumers and […]

Justice, National Security, Transportation Policy

FBI’s No-fly List: Efficacy and Transparency Called into Question

The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI’s) no-fly list is seemingly an uncontroversial and comprehensive approach to ensuring the national security of the United States. However, under closer scrutiny the list proves to be flawed. Currently, there are approximately 81,000 suspected terrorists listed post 9/11 as it proves to be the simplest way to ensure suspected […]

Justice

Private Prisons: Profiting from Families, Controlling Inmates’ Fates

While we’ve heard plenty about Big Oil, the gun lobby, and Big Pharma throughout this 2016 Presidential race, few have been talking about another highly influential industry: private prisons. According to ProPublica, private prisons in the United States grew by 37% between 2002-2009. In total, there are now 130 private prisons with approximately 157,000 […]