On Jan. 28, lawmakers, NAACP-NYS, and more than 500 advocates joined children with currently and formerly incarcerated loved ones to demand “Parole Justice for our futures.“
Specifically, participants called for passage of the Fair & Timely Parole and Elder Parole bills to end permanent punishment, promote rehabilitation and healing, and help build safe communities. Speakers also uplifted and celebrated the many ways formerly incarcerated New Yorkers work to improve safety for all, serving as credible messengers and violence interrupters, re-entry counselors, peer recovery counselors, small business owners and entrepreneurs, non-profit leaders, harm reduction experts, policy change agents and more. Together, they call for the legislation to be enacted to bring home more leaders in this work. Participants made clear that promoting personal transformation, not endless punishment, improves safety for all.
Chris Alexander, Executive Director of the NAACP-NYS Conference, said: “We have been fighting for these bills for too long. It’s time to make parole what it used to be and what it’s supposed to be — an evaluation of who a person is today. They know the problem. They know the cost. These bills have been studied and studied. Now is the time. Pass Fair & Timely Parole and Elder Parole.”
Cayla Reed, age 13, of Brentwood, NY, said: “My parents are the most loving people in the world. After coming home from prison, they fell in love and dedicated themselves to our community. They’ve owned our home in Brentwood for a decade. My mom now works as a care manager supervisor for children in the foster care system or who have been arrested, and my dad works at an insurance company to promote health and wellness. Together they inspired me to follow my passions – I’m a gymnast, a cheerleader, and a girl scout – and to always think about how I can support those around me. I support parole justice because I know so many other kids don’t have their parents around, and their families deserve a fair chance to be reunited.”
Essence Johnson, age 16, of Albany, NY, said: “Having my grandmother home from prison means everything to me. She’s helped to raise me and, as a loving and thoughtful advocate for our community, she’s my role model. Beyond focusing on my school work, I’m a Naval Sea Cadet and practice jiu jitsu. Still it makes me sad that so many other grandmas are behind bars. I was taught that, when we do wrong, we have to be accountable for our actions and learn from our mistakes, but punishment shouldn’t last forever. That’s why I want to see the Elder Parole and Fair and Timely Parole bills passed for other grandchildren to have their grandmas home.”
Trinity Hemingway, 15, a violence prevention advocate with Guns Down, Life Up, said: “I have loved ones locked up, so I got involved with Guns Down, Life Up. Now I’ve joined with RAPP to pass Elder Parole and Fair & Timely Parole. These bills will help my family reunite. I’m calling on Senate and Assembly leadership to call a vote on these bills. Black, white, or in-between, we all deserve a chance at redemption.”
State Senator Shelley B. Mayer (Westchester) said, “Individuals who have served their time and are committed to rehabilitation should have opportunities to demonstrate that they have transformed themselves to rejoin society and support their communities. In the interest of creating safer communities, we must focus on rehabilitation, transparent processes, and community building. Those who have paid their debts and healed ought to have the opportunity to create better lives for themselves and their communities.”
Assembly Member Chris Burdick (Westchester) said: “I am hopeful that this year we will finally be able to pass Fair and Timely Parole and Elder Parole. We are all capable of change. I have had the privilege of getting to know many formerly incarcerated individuals who turned their lives around and are now helping others do the same. In order for people to have this second chance, we need to judge them fairly on who they are now and not solely based on what they did in the past. The past is unchangeable, but the future is not.”
Assembly Member Dana Levenberg (Westchester) said: “Endless punishment does not make us safer, but it does cost taxpayers a lot of money. Enacting parole justice could save us an estimated $522 million every year that we can reinvest in other priorities. If we are serious about making New York safer and more affordable, this year must be the year for parole justice.”
- The Elder Parole and Fair & Timely Parole bills are supported by more than 350 organizations across New York State, including some of the largest crime victims and survivor advocacy groups: The New York State Coalition Against Sexual Assault, Crime Victims Treatment Center, along with the Rev. Al Sharpton, Dr. Hazel Dukes, several U.S. Congressmembers and current and former District Attorneys, The Working Families Party, 1199 SEIU, CWA District 1, VOCAL-NY, Citizen Action, New Hour for Women and Children, LiveOn NY, JASA, the Brookdale Center for Healthy Aging, NY Communities for Change, Center for Community Alternatives, Osborne Association, NYCLU, FWD.us, and more.
- The Center for Justice at Columbia University has estimated that enacting both bills would save $522 million annually.
