Event Rapporteur Blog Post : “Criminal and Juvenile Justice Reform in the U.S.”

On any given day, there are 10,000 juveniles housed in adult prison and jails. While this number might not seem like a lot, we are talking about people that are as young as 14-year-olds. Youth under the age of 18 who are accused of committing a delinquent or criminal act are typically processed through a juvenile justice system. They end up in facilities that are just like jail and prison for adults. Many argue that the condition and environment in these facilities are not beneficial for youth who could rehabilitate. This is the argument of Marc Schindler, the Executive Director of the Justice Policy Institute.

Last week, I attended the “Criminal and Juvenile Justice Reform in the U.S.” with speaker Schindler who shared his work with the Justice Policy Institute (JPI). JPI is a national nonprofit organization that aims to change the conversation around justice reform and policies that support justice and well-being for people in underserved communities. They research and analyze policies that impact people in the system and beyond. They also serve as identifiers of successful programs that are innovative and that have to potential to expand and create significant social change. Schindler's presentation was a bit short and rushed, but he emphasized the importance of justice reform, especially for young people detained. He believes people can have a collective impact by working with government representatives to break America’s addiction to incarceration and help build safer and stronger communities. The speaker also brought up the successes the organization has accomplished in the city. He spent a lot of time talking about the New Beginning Youth Development Center which is under Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services in the DC area. This center is a secure residential treatment for young males. They get to take classes and have more interaction with others, something they wouldn’t be able to do at a standard facility.

JPI has done extensive research on the New Beginning Youth Center and has found that youth can do better in the outside world when there are rehabilitation resources in place. Marc himself is a firm believer that the country can do more to help people in the justice system. That is why he has done a lot of policy work in the country and has testified before local governments to find ways to humanize young people in jail.

Overall, the event was very informative, and it had a call to action. The JPI is a well-established advocacy organization that researches ways to create a reform by humanizing issues that are affecting people in prison. This organization gets to go to government officials to share their findings and how policy impacts the lives of real teenagers that could be easily be rehabilitated if they were wealthy and had the resources.

The message in this event relates to our class because Marc was intentional about humanizing youth by sharing stories that made me reflect on the way the Justice system treats underserved youth. He also emphasized the importance of raising awareness so that more people can join the movement of justice reform in America. He did this by appealing to some of the main moral foundational values involved in social decision making by Matthews. He talked about the care society could provide for these young people who make mistakes, but instead, society harms youth that have potential to be “saved.” Marc also touched on how authorities in America target people of color because most of the people that end up in prison are people of color while whites tend to get away with “mistakes” all the time. This is to show that there is systematic oppression towards people of color in this country and these unjust laws are not fair and need to be reformed.

Overall, the event was excellent; the speaker was able to share the successes they have had and how people can get involved by making a call to Congress or merely donating to their efforts. I think the speaker, with little time, was able to explain why their work is important and why everyone should care about justice reform.

JPI Website: http://www.justicepolicy.org/index.html
Schindler mentioned that they are looking for interns. He said applicants must have specific interest in research, communications, and organizing. Check it out! 
Link: http://www.justicepolicy.org/About1/Employment-Opportunities-Internships.html