National

Community Efforts Urged to Curb Mass Incarceration

Published

11 years ago

June 11, 2015

By Jazelle Hunt
NNPA Washington Correspondent

WASHINGTON (NNPA) – The Black community should take a larger role in curbing mass incarceration and be less reliant on public officials to slow prison growth, says Rev. Hebert Brown III, community organizer and leader of Pleasant Hope Baptist Church in Baltimore.

“In addition to banging on the system and going to the White House and moving on legislation to ban the box, et cetera, et cetera, I think it is a mistake for those who are most directly affected to wait for the experts to come do it,” Brown said.

He made his remarks during a panel sponsored by the Center for American Progress (CAP), a progressive policy think-tank in Washington. The panel was part of an event titled, “Toward a More Perfect Union: Bringing Criminal Justice Reform to Our Communities.”

Brown said, “[During the Baltimore uprising] we started to create the systems that we needed. We’re not calling 911 for everything. Let us move into spaces where we develop the training, skills, and whatever else is necessary, and just be neighbors and sisters and brothers again so that we can help to engage some of the issues that might lead to interpersonal violence.”

Justice system professionals, activists, and community organizers all agree that empowering ex-offenders is one of the best ways to rebuild communities and keep people from re-offending. But more than 5.8 million Americans – 1 in 13 Black Americans – are disenfranchised because of their criminal offenses, according to The Sentencing Project, a nonpartisan research and advocacy group for criminal justice reform. In effect, the people most affected by criminal justice policies are excluded from shaping policy decisions.

Though having a criminal record is no longer rare – 1 in 3 Americans has one – employers are generally unwilling to hire ex-offenders.

For decades, formerly incarcerated people have pushed to “ban the box” on job applications that require applicants to disclose past convictions. It’s often used to disqualify otherwise qualified candidates. The “ban the box” effort is gaining official traction, largely through state laws and updated guidelines from the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. But unless an applicant launches and wins a lawsuit, there are few repercussions for employers who dismiss applicants on this basis.

“What happens is, you have all of these folks who come home and they feel alienated from society, and they don’t feel like there’s any place for them,” said Pastor Darren A. Ferguson at the CAP event. Ferguson leads Mount Carmel Baptist Church in Far Rockaway, N.Y. and works to provide reentry support. The community organizer is also an ex-offender who spent nearly nine years in the New York corrections system.

“They can’t get jobs because they’re afraid to go to a job interview, because they’re going to ask them that magic question that frightens anybody who’s been incarcerated: ‘have you ever been convicted of a crime?’ And there’s a feeling across the board – there’s no place for me, there’s no hope for me, so what else can I do?”

The laws that created mass incarceration have not only failed to make provisions for mass reentry, but have also devastated Black families and communities. Department of Justice data from 2007 found that 6.7 percent of Black children had at least one incarcerated parent, compared to less than 1 percent of White children and 2.3 percent of Latino children.

Among today’s Black twenty-somethings, 1 in 4 had a parent incarcerated during their childhood, according to CAP research. Another study from The Sentencing Project finds that nearly half of all Black women have a currently incarcerated family member, compared to just 11 percent of White women.

Alicia Garza, award-winning community organizer and co-founder of the national Black Lives Matter organization says that part of empowering ex-offenders is to find ways to restore their voice.

“Part of that is having those folks shape what the policies, practices, and systems look like. Because nobody knows better how to shift the trend of criminalization than those who have been criminalized,” she said at the same CAP event. “Not only do we need to center those voices, but we need to put those who have been directly impacted by the systems we’re facing in positions of power. Folks actually need to be able to make decisions that impact their lives.”

Voting is not the only way to raise one’s political voice. Pastor Michael McBride, a San Francisco-based community organizer and a program director within the PICO Network, an organization of religious leaders working for social justice, who was also part of the CAP event. He points out that elected officials are often bending to the whims of private entities.

“Many of these things happen under the cover of night. A lot of our Fortune 500 companies are actually profiting off of private prison labor, and other forms of legalized slavery. And I think we can shame them publicly in a way that at least creates some form of accountability, and we need to do the same thing with elected officials,” he explained. “We have the responsibility to make it known, and then we have another opportunity to hold them accountable through our voting, through where we shop, through our support, et cetera.”

The tide is slowly turning against mass incarceration and unfair sentencing polices. In 2008, then-President George W. Bush signed the Second Chance Act into law, which gives tax perks to employers that hire ex-offenders. In 2010 President Barack Obama signed the Fair Sentencing Act, which significantly reduced the sentencing disparity between crack-cocaine and powder cocaine. And last year, the U.S. Sentencing Commission voted unanimously to raise the mandatory minimum threshold for drug-related offenses, and allow appeals for reduced sentences under the new guidelines.

Still, Black communities do not have to wait to have these disparities corrected by authorities.

“I am thankful for those working at the federal level trying to move things forward there, but…. It takes so long before my day-to-day reality is impacted by something whoever is in the White House signs,” Rev. Brown said.

“We have to continue to build for power socially, economically, politically so that we can … say, no more will we rely on the benevolence of a system that has an appetite for our destruction to decide our destiny. No more.”

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Community Efforts Urged to Curb Mass Incarceration

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Q&A with Steven Bradford: Why He Wants Your Vote for California Insurance Commissioner

Known for his work on issues ranging from energy and public safety to economic development, Bradford has also engaged with insurance policy during his time in the Legislature, serving on the Senate Insurance Committee.

Published

20 hours ago

May 17, 2026

Oakland Post

Hon. Steve Bradford, candidate for California Insurance Commissioner.

By Edward Henderson, California Black Media

As California confronts rising insurance costs, market instability, and growing concerns about access and equity, the race for the state’s top insurance regulator is drawing increased attention.

Among the candidates is Steven Bradford, a veteran public servant with more than two decades of experience in government, including eight years in the State Senate and five years in the State Assembly.

Now, he is making his case to voters for why his background and perspective best position him for the role of California’s next insurance commissioner.

California Black Media (CBM) spoke with Bradford about his campaign experiences, key issues he plans to solve if elected, and his vision for the insurance commissioner role.

For readers who may not be familiar, what does the Insurance Commissioner do, and how would you use that role to address issues impacting communities in California?

The Insurance Commissioner is both a regulator and an administrator. The office oversees the entire insurance market—approving companies to operate, licensing agents and brokers, and reviewing rate increases or decreases.

This role is about oversight and action. The commissioner should be a watchdog, not a bystander, especially in a state like California, which has the third-largest insurance market in the world.

Last year, you shifted your campaign from running for lieutenant governor to the race for insurance commissioner. What spurred that decision?

Insurance impacts every part of people’s lives. You can’t buy a home without it—that contributes to the housing crisis. You can’t legally drive without it—that affects people’s ability to work. And businesses can’t operate without it.

For years, insurance has disproportionately impacted low-income communities and people of color. While everyone is feeling the strain now, those communities have long been hit hardest. That’s why it’s critical that insurance is not just available, but affordable.

What sets you apart from the other candidates in this race?

My record: 26 years of public service. I’ve shown up, stood up, and spoke up for Californians.

A recent Supreme Court decision impacting the Voting Rights Act has raised concerns about representation. What message do you have for voters in California regarding the importance of their vote?

It’s alarming. If people think this doesn’t affect them, they’re mistaken. There’s a real effort to roll back decades of progress and silence voters.

Your vote is your most powerful tool, and we have to use it—every election.

What are you hearing from voters as you campaign across the state?

Affordability and transparency.

People are struggling with rising costs, and many don’t fully understand what their insurance policies cover.

We saw that clearly in places like Altadena and the Palisades—people had insurance but were underinsured. They didn’t realize their coverage wouldn’t meet the cost to rebuild. That’s unacceptable.

We must acknowledge the inequities in the system. The FAIR Plan has roots in discrimination, and today we still see disparities based on ZIP code and income. We need a more competitive and equitable market where consumers have choices.

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Activism

OPINION: The Fire of Oakland’s Justin Jones

Jones made headlines three years ago when he was one of a pair of Justins. Along with fellow State Rep. Justin Pearson (D-Memphis), he fought their removal from the state house in Tennessee and won reinstatement. Now, Pearson is running for Congress and Jones is still fighting for all of us.

Published

20 hours ago

May 17, 2026

Oakland Post

Tennessee State Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville). File photo.

By Emil Amok Guillermo

You may know Tennessee State Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville).

He grew up in Oakland and the East Bay. His mother is Filipino. You can tell by his full name Justin Shea Bautista Jones.

His father is African American.

He is fighting for all of us.

Now, Pearson is running for Congress and Jones is still fighting for all of us.

The recent 6-3 Supreme Court decision barring the use of race in drawing congressional districts marks a major turning point in U.S. history.

The decision took away the Voting Rights Act’s power to assure minority voices were both heard and represented.

“What we’re seeing now is this new Jim Crow system in which Black and Brown communities are without voice in our political process,” he told Fredricka Whitfield on CNN last weekend.

“That’s a canary in the coal mine for the rest of the nation. If they come for one of us, they’re coming for all of us, and some of my message to America is that the South is the front line of democracy,” Jones said. “They are dismantling multi-racial democracy here in the South, in states like Tennessee and Louisiana. But they aren’t going to stop here.”

That’s why Jones said we have to start paying attention to the South, and start helping them fight back there,” he said.

“I want to be clear that this terror, this type of system they’re enacting, are the same systems my grandparents told me about who grew up in Tennessee, a system where people like me couldn’t even be in political office. That’s the time they’re bringing us back to and I’m not sounding the alarm to be alarmist. But I am sounding it because we’ve seen this before in our history.”

Jones talked about Reconstruction and about what happened between the end of the 1800s and the beginning of the 1960s, when there was no Black political representation.

It’s a rebellion to keep our democracy going forward, he said.

“Stand with us and help us fight back against this extremist power grab — this racist power grab against our vision of a multi-racial democracy,” Jones added.

“While there is a litigation strategy, it’s important to maintain what he called a “movement strategy” that leads to the largest voter mobilization and registration that has ever been seen in the South,” he encouraged.

In 2026.

“Tennessee is an oppressed state,” Jones said. “It’s a state where one in five Black voters can’t vote because of felony disenfranchisement. It is where you can use a gun permit to vote, but you can’t use a student ID card to vote.

That’s the Asian American African American voice of Justin Jones.

Read his words for inspiration.

About the Author

Emil Guillermo is a veteran journalist, commentator, and comic stage monologist. His new show “69, Emil Amok: Anchorman—The News Made Me Do It,” is at the San Diego Fringe at New Destiny/Lincoln Park, 4931 Logan Ave. Ste. 102. May 14-23, at various times. Get tickets here.

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Advice

Book Review: Books for College-Bound Students

The kind of workday your Grandpa had is probably over, and you can’t count on toiling at the same place for 40 years for a pension and a gold watch. You already know that, and these books will help you decide your next step. You’ll learn what kind of worker you are, what’s stopping you from finding a job or occupation you’ll love, how to determine the purpose you envision for your future, and how to get where you need to be.

Published

21 hours ago

May 17, 2026

Oakland Post

Book covers. Photo courtesy of Terri Schlichenmeyer.

By Terri Schlichenmeyer

Authors: Various, Copyright: c.2026, Publishers: Various, SRP: $21.00 – $29.00, Page Counts: Various

The videos and news reports were inspiring.

In them, a hesitant prospective college student became a happy, new college-bound student with the click of a key. They were accepted into the college of their dreams – so how can you get the same feeling next spring, when you’re the one with the highest of hopes?

You can start by reading these great books and sharing them with your family…

You probably already know that getting into the college of your choice is not something you do last-minute. In “The People’s Guide to College Applications: A Week-by-Week Approach to Writing, Connecting, and Getting in” (Prometheus Books, $ 21.95), Jill Constantino takes you through each step, but not in a frantic way. There’s no pressure here, just easy-to-grasp, makes-sense methods to apply for the college you want. There are reminders here, things you can’t forget and things you can, hints on asking for referrals and writing essays, and plenty of reminders to take a deep breath. Bonus: it’s also a book for parents, who may feel just as much pressure as their child does.

Okay, but let’s say that you’re an adult, a parent who’s sweating those college applications, classes, and the FAFSA for yourself, ugh! Then you’ll want to read “Student Parent: The Fight for Families, the Cost of Poverty, and the Power of College” by Nicole Lynn Lewis (Beacon Press, $26.97). an urgent call meant for nontraditional students who are also Black, Latinx, gay, Moms, or Dads.

Inside this book, you’ll find stats and stories that may already sound familiar, tales of not enough money, not enough support, not enough arms or sleep or resources. If you’re looking for a book of advice, this isn’t it, though. It’s more of a resource that you’ll want to take to your guidance counselor or any local politician.

Alright, but what if you’ve decided that college can wait? Is that okay? Look for “The Mission Generation: Reclaim Your Purpose, Rewrite Success, Rebuild Our Future” by Arun Gupta and Thomas J. Fewer (Wiley, $29.00) because – guess what? – you have many options for your future.

The kind of workday your Grandpa had is probably over, and you can’t count on toiling at the same place for 40 years for a pension and a gold watch. You already know that, and this book will help you decide your next step. You’ll learn what kind of worker you are, what’s stopping you from finding a job or occupation you’ll love, how to determine the purpose you envision for your future, and how to get where you need to be. This book isn’t just for high schoolers, but for anyone ages 16 and beyond who’s feeling restless, ready for change, or who’s thinking about some kind of purposeful retirement.

And if these aren’t the college-based or not-college-bound books you need, then be sure to ask your favorite bookseller or librarian for help on ideas, how-to’s, test prep books, or study guides. They’ll have books for you, and maybe a little inspiration, too.