NEWS
Stay current with the latest news in Social Justice
Forced labor may be common in US food system: study
BY SAUL ELBEIN – 07/24/23 12:55 PM ET Some of the food on U.S. tables has a high probability of having been picked, prepared or processed by Americans who were forced to do it, a new study has found. And because the U.S. attempts to keep forced labor out of the food supply chain and focus on…
Read More
Officials see promise in a South Carolina prison unit where ‘restorative justice’ has boosted safety
By James Pollard On July 19, 2023 TURBEVILLE, S.C. (AP) — A South Carolina prison unit where older men with lengthier sentences mentor young adults preparing to reenter society is giving officials hope that a different approach to living conditions will reduce violence behind bars. The special housing facility known as a Community Opportunity Restoration…
Read MoreAI could create a disinformation nightmare in the 2024 election
BY JOSHUA A. TUCKER, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR – 07/14/23 8:30 AM ET When social media first burst onto the political scene in the early 2010s, it was hailed as a “liberation technology” that would accelerate the spread of democracy around the world. Yet in the aftermath of the 2016 U.S. elections, experts instead asked, “Can democracy survive…
Read More
Exclusive: DOJ report recommends ways to improve detainee access to lawyers in prisons
By Bart Jansen The review led by the Bureau of Prisons and the Office for Access to Justice coincided with the 60th anniversary of a Supreme Court decision that guaranteed a right to counsel for criminal defendants. WASHINGTON – Criminal defendants hear “you have the right to an attorney” when they are arrested, but getting…
Read More
At New Mexico’s biggest jail for children, toilets and staff are lacking — but strip searches are common.
By Joshua Bowling On July 19, 2023 The décor inside the Bernalillo County Youth Services Center (YSC) is more in line with the children’s wing of your local library than a jail built for kids. The walls and furniture are painted in bright colors and classrooms line a hallway just a short walk from a…
Read More
Voting Rights Restored for Minnesota Felons
Minnesota has passed a new law restoring voting rights for people who are not currently incarcerated. By Kyla Jackson Published: Jul. 13, 2023 at 5:13 PM MDT People across the state are celebrating, now that Minnesota has passed a new law restoring voting rights for people who are not currently incarcerated. This new law will extend voting…
Read More
Michigan governor signs legislation expanding voting rights
Published 4:22 PM MDT, July 18, 2023 LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Tuesday signed a bipartisan package of bills into law to expand voter rights by allowing early voting and early tabulation of absentee ballots across Michigan. The legislation, which resulted from the voter-approved Proposal 2, establishes a website for voters to track when…
Read More
Patrol dogs are terrorizing and mauling prisoners inside the United States
By Hannah Beckler On July 23, 2023 In a photo taken in December 2003, two US military dog handlers, Sgts. Santos Cardona and Michael Smith, corner a detainee at Abu Ghraib, the prison in Iraq used by the US-led coalition and the Iraqi government. Smith holds back his unmuzzled dog Marco, a large black shepherd…
Read More
These States Are Using Fetal Personhood to Put Women Behind Bars
By Cary Aspinwall On July 25, 2023 Hundreds of women who used drugs while pregnant have faced criminal charges — even when they deliver healthy babies. When Quitney Armstead learned she was pregnant while locked up in a rural Alabama jail, she made a promise — to God and herself — to stay clean. She…
Read More