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- Metro IAF Criminal Justice Reform OP-ED: How Fines and Fees Stop Us From Paying Our Debt to Society
- IL IAF OP-ED: We are not Helpless to Stop Gun Violence
- Baltimore City Mayor Joins BUILD & ReBUILD Metro to Celebrate Next Phase of Johnston Square Revitalization
- BUILD Calls on City Officials and Federal Agencies to Invest $1 Billion to Revitalize Baltimore Neighborhoods
- NC IAF Latino Leaders Win Citywide Change on Bonuses Used as Incentives to Retain Bilingual Personnel
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How Fines and Fees Stop Us From Paying Our Debt to Society
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By Stephon Whitley and Boris Franklin for The Star-Ledger
August 7, 2022
We were released from the New Jersey prison system, after serving lengthy sentences for crimes that we committed, over three years ago. However, we are still not free. The whole notion of ʻpaying your debt to society,’ which for us meant imprisonment for a combined total of more than 30 years, did not end when we walked out of the prison gates.
The extraction starts the moment someone is arrested, long before he or she is convicted of any crime, with an immediate $50 county jail processing fee. Imagine if, after every traffic stop, before it’s been determined that a motor vehicle offense has occurred, the officer slapped you with a $50 charge for just pulling you over.
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Boris Franklin, left, and Stephon Whitley say they left prison, but prison did not leave them. They were saddled with debts due to a system of fines and fees in our justice system that exploits the most captive of captive audiences.
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We are not Helpless to Stop Gun Violence
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by Rev David Brawley, Amy Totsch, Richard Townsell, Michael Gecan for Crain's Chicago Business
July 13, 2022
Our nation is stuck right now, paralyzed by the marriage of learned helplessness and meaningless re-enactments.
 The learned helplessness is expressed by all of the rationalizations for inaction that get repeated endlessly in the various news streams. We are told nothing can be done about gun violence because guns are transported from states with loose laws to states, like Illinois, with tough gun laws. We are told that Congress and many state legislators are useless because of the leverage of the gun lobby. We are told that we can't trace guns that show up at crime and massacre scenes, and we can't identify the young men who take their frustrations or fantasies out on shoppers, school children, or parade goers. We have learned to be helpless in the face of all those "nothing can be dones."
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Baltimore City Mayor Joins BUILD & ReBUILD Metro to Celebrate Next Phase of Johnston Square Revitalization
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On Tuesday, July 19, ReBUILD Metro, BUILD, the Johnston Square Partners, and Johnston Square community members were joined by Baltimore City Mayor Brandon Scott, Councilman Robert Stokes, and Maryland Deputy Secretary of Housing Owen McEvoy to celebrate the next phase of rebuilding abandoned properties and revitalizing blocks in Johnston Square.
WBAL News covered the celebration.
Mayor Scott said in his remarks at the event: “When we talk about a renaissance in Baltimore, this is what we’re talking about: a renaissance where people in their communities work to rebuild their community to be what they want it to be…This project is proof that when Baltimoreans commit their collective efforts and resources to taking on some of our biggest issues, it will be a victory for us all." Mayor Scott added: "This neighborhood will serve as a blueprint for Baltimore’s renaissance.”
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BUILD Members and Volunteers Address City's Vacant Housing Issue Through Community Walks
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Member of BUILD and other volunteers led another in a string of community walks in west Baltimore that is part of a renewed effort to address the city's vacant and abandoned homes. This latest August walk marked the sixth neighborhood walk of its kind in west Baltimore and the first in Edmondson Village. Volunteers heard from the people who live near the abandoned homes in the hopes of coming together to do something about it
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BUILD Calls on City Officials and Federal Agencies to Invest $1 Billion to Turn 10,000 Vacant Properties into 10,000 Homes
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With new leadership at its helm, Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development, Baltimore (BUILD) has called on elected officials and federal agencies to make a $1 billion public investment to address more than 15,000 vacant and abandoned properties in Baltimore City.
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NC IAF Latino Leaders Win Citywide Change on Bonuses Used as Incentives to Retain Bilingual Personnel
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Latino Leaders held the Durham City Council accountable for promises to 400 of its leaders last year.
Mayor Pro Tem Mark-Anthony Middleton announced changes to the bonus incentive program on Sunday, July 10th, at a public action organized by the NC Congress of Latino Organizations, an NC IAF affiliate.
The new $2,000 bonus will encourage more bilingual people to become police officers, emergency workers, and other local government employees. The change will benefit all existing and future City staff.
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Check out our website for more updates
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