It’s Pi Day...which means it’s time for our annual report – Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie 🥧
On any given day, nearly 2 million people are confined in the U.S. But that number only tells part of the whole story. This report gives the most comprehensive view of the deeply flawed and often mysterious criminal justice system.
#incarceration #criminaljustice #piday
As the deportation agenda unfolds, federal agents have assaulted communities across the U.S. Most news coverage has focused solely on agents’ presence on the ground, but what’s less talked about is the key role that local jails and law enforcement have played — even in sanctuary cities. The reality is that your county might be working with federal agents in quiet ways. Here’s how to find out, and what you can do to push back.
#incarceration #criminaljustice #immigration
🚨NEW: The U.S. is spending at least $445 billion on mass incarceration every year, even as crime has declined and fewer people are incarcerated.
All parts of the system, from local jails to fines and fees and prison industries, deserve a clear accounting and a hard look. Learn more from our new report.
#incarceration #criminaljustice #data
Yesterday, SCOTUS upheld nationwide access to the abortion pill via mail — at least, for now. While the decision is a step in the right direction, it doesn’t mitigate the fact that reproductive health care is under attack across the U.S. For people trapped in the carceral system, the situation is particularly dire.
The U.S.’s overreliance on community supervision means that on any given day, 3.6 million people are on probation or parole. And the vast majority of women on probation & parole live in states that ban or restrict abortion AND list travel restrictions as a standard condition of their supervision. For them, traveling across state lines to access abortion care lies in the hands of getting permission from a probation officer.
Access to Mifepristone by mail is more important than ever. Abortion care should be accessible medical care for all, and women trapped in the carceral system can’t be left behind.
#incarceration #criminaljustice #healthcare
A reminder during National Police Week: The U.S. spends more than $200 billion on policing each year — a number that has rapidly increased over 10 years. Keep that in mind the next time somebody tries to use calls to “defund the police” as a scapegoat.
#incarceration #criminaljustice #police
America never fully ended forced labor. It changed the language around it.
Today, incarcerated workers generate billions of dollars in labor while aging behind bars at rates never seen before. Entire towns can inflate their population, political influence, and even “diversity” numbers by counting prisoners as residents, despite those prisoners not being allowed to vote there or truly belong to those communities.
This video breaks down the hidden economics of incarceration, the rise of aging prison populations, prison labor, prison gerrymandering, and how the prison system still shapes political and economic power in America.
Sources include the Prison Policy Initiative, ACLU, Sentencing Project, and Prisoners of the Census.
Today reminds us again that people behind bars are not nameless “offenders,” but beloved family members whose presence—and absence—matters.
Happy Mother’s Day.
#incarceration #criminaljustice #mothersday
In America, motherhood can disappear behind bars… even before conviction. Nearly 150,000 incarcerated mothers are spending Mother’s Day away from their children.
This video was in collaboration with @prisonpolicy through their Creators-In-Residence program. Follow them for more information about the harms of mass incarceration
#mothersday #massincarceration #prison #fypシ❤️💞❤️
Incarcerated people are not insulated from the rising costs of living. For the nearly 2 million people locked up, record-high gas prices mean fewer visits, fewer care packages, and less contact with their loved ones — crucial parts of surviving behind bars.
Incarcerated people in Missouri reveal the devastating reality of less contact with loved ones. With reporting from @prisonjournalism
#incarceration #criminaljustice #gasprices
Yesterday, SCOTUS dealt a devastating blow to the Voting Rights Act — the latest step in a long effort to disenfranchise Black and brown communities. Mass incarceration has been at the forefront of that effort for decades.
Now, 4 million people in the U.S. are denied voting rights due to a felony conviction. And, as with all parts of the racist criminal legal system, Black communities are disproportionately affected.
The right to vote is supposed to be a cornerstone of American democracy, but far too many communities have been stripped of their voice in elections.
#incarceration #criminaljustice #votingrights
