Category Archives: Prison & the justice system

Hope for the New Year: Community Justice

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Please read my newest on Truthout: Lifting Up Community Voices to Tackle Injustice. It begins:

Community Justic
“Lillie A. Estes calls herself a “community strategist.” Others see her as a force of nature. She has lived in Richmond, Virginia, for 35 years, where she builds and develops innovative alliances between organizations and people. Estes is well-known and respected both in the public housing project where she lives and by many public officials in Richmond. She has been a pioneer in race reconciliation work in the heart of the Confederacy, and is on what she calls a “spiritual journey” to improve her community. This began with her first efforts as a high school student in Newport News, Virginia, and as an active member of the NAACP Youth Council.

In an interview, Estes told Truthout the question she asks in all of her work: “How do you build a platform that allows the adversely impacted community members to step into their power?”

At a time when many are feeling defeated as they try to fight against a racist and non-responsive government, many justice advocates around the country are asking this critical question. They recognize that nothing less than a total sea change in perspective will work: In order to create new policies and enhance community life, community justice organizers must turn to those most impacted. They must seek out community voices to truly improve their lives and the well-being of their communities.” MORE

Mass. ACTION ALERT: Call Your Governor Councillor Now

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Background
 In October, Governor Charlie Baker nominated Colette Santa to fill the vacant seat on the Parole Board. The seat has been open since Ina Howard Hogan became a judge in August, 2016. While Santa, chief of transitional services for the Parole Board, has “two decades of experience in Corrections,”  the Coalition for Effective Public Safety (CEPS) has long advocated for more diversity of experience on the Board.

 Action Needed Now
On Wednesday, December 6, supporters of Colette Santa testified before the Governor’s Council who must approve the Governor’s nomination in order for Santa to be appointed. I testiified against her nomination. Below is my complete testimony which emphasizes why we must speak out for a Board that strives for diversity of training and experience so that the Board is able to more appropriately assess the candidates who come before them, and thus improve our paroling rates, and add to public safety,  

Here is what you can say to your councillor:

Our present Parole Board has five members who have worked in law enforcement, parole, as attorneys, or in corrections, with only one member, Dr. Charlene Bonner, having both experience and training in psychology.  We have no Parole Board members with experience and training in psychiatry, sociology or social work. I oppose Santa’s nomination precisely because in order to fairly judge the potential parolees who come before them, the Board needs more balance in their training and experience. Without more addiction and mental illness specialists, the Parole Board suffers in both scrutinizing and understanding those who come before them. 

Call Before Wednesday, December 13, when the Governor’s Council will vote on Santa’s nomination.

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Find your Governor’s Councillor here https://www.mass.gov/service-details/councillors