Crime is a symptom of poverty and we will never solve it if we ignore the root causes that exacerbate it. We have one of the highest rates of incarceration in the world and not only that, but within 10 years of release there is an 82% chance that that individual will be arrested again.

We deserve better.

We can have police forces that treat the communities they serve with respect and accountability. We can have schools that no longer need to do active shooter drills and communities where children can play after the sun goes down. We can have prison facilities that prepare people to return to society as productive citizens with the skills to be successful.

Here’s how:

• Abolish for-profit prisons

• Establish rehabilitative jails/prisons reminiscent of the Nordic style

• Expungement of record for felony convictions (minus sexual assault, murder, crimes against children) with sufficient good behavior relative to the sentence 

• Legalization of cannabis at the federal level

• Invest in funding of nationwide police alternatives connected directly to 911 dispatch and violence intervention organizations

• Increased funding for prison programs to teach inmates life skills with a ‘hireback’ program which prioritizes hiring formerly incarcerated people as teachers

• National minimum standard set for policing which includes conflict de-escalation

• Eliminate mandatory minimums in sentencing