April 28, 2017 by Bethany N. Carson
*UPDATE 5/4 - Texas legislators have voted a bill out of committee, and it could be heard on the floor as soon as TUESDAY. Please call today!
Background: Read more about No child care licenses for baby jails! Call to stop SB1018!
April 25, 2017 by Cate Graziani
Grassroots Leadership is excited to release Beyond Alternatives to Incarceration and Confinement, which lays the groundwork for a new project area to fight the Treatment Industrial Complex. Our work exposing the TIC has shed light on the private prison profiteers who built billion dollar empires as partners in tough on crime policies and who are now adapting to reforms by rebranding themselves as humane treatment providers and reentry experts. Read more about Grassroots Leadership's latest publication lays the groundwork for a new program area
March 31, 2017 by Jorge Renaud
March 8, 2017 by Cristina Parker
I am pleased to announce that Sofia Casini has joined our staff full-time as our new immigration programs coordinator. To many of you, Sofia is a familiar face. She has been working as our detention visitation coordinator since 2015.
Sofia Casini brings over 15 years of experience working with immigrants, refugees, and victims of trafficking. Read more about Announcing Sofia Casini's new role at Grassroots Leadership
January 10, 2017 by Holly Kirby
Today marks the first day of the 85th Texas Legislature, and we're gearing up for a fight. We are ready to stand with those who have felt the devastation of our mass incarceration crisis first hand. We will fight to protect immigrants and keep families together. And, on February 1, 2017 criminal justice and immigration groups from around the state will converge in Austin for a march, rally, art exhbit and visits to legislators to speak boldly about what we are fighting for. We hope that you'll join us. Read more about What we're fighting for at the Texas Legislature
November 22, 2016 by Jake Crowther
This past week I had the privilege of traveling to the U.S.-Mexico border as part of a border delegation through the Young Adult Volunteer program of the Presbyterian Church USA. Though I had lived on the border for a year and know this particular area quite well, I did not know exactly how this trip would turn out. Read more about Learning from the Borderlands
November 10, 2016 by Rebecca Sanchez
Like many of you, we are shocked, saddened and angered by Tuesday’s national election results. For some of us, the results are traumatizing. Donald Trump spent more than a year on the campaign trail threatening immigrants, making explicitly racist statements, bragging about sexual assault, mocking women, people with disabilities, and Muslims, encouraging supporters to beat up Black protestors, and promoting violent and illegal policies. Read more about We do not consent. We will not comply. We will fight back.
October 31, 2016 by Rebecca Sanchez
Today, we are launching a campaign to reach 40 sustaining monthly donations in 40 days! Our monthly sustainer program is the best way to pledge ongoing support to the work of Grassroots Leadership and our efforts to bring an end mass incarceration, detention and deportation. Read more about 40 for 40 Sustainer Drive!
October 27, 2016 by Holly Kirby
By Alejandro Caceres and Jorge Antonio Renaud
A recent Statesman editorial (Wanted: Sheriff who keeps Austin out of Legislature crosshairs, Sept. 24) about the race for Travis County Sheriff suggested that we cannot have both criminal justice reforms and an end to deportations in Travis County. We couldn’t disagree more. We see everyday why you cannot stack a broken immigration system on top of a broken criminal justice system and expect a more just world. Read more about Incoming sheriff can tackle criminal justice reform while stopping deportations
October 27, 2016 by Jake Crowther
Hilda Ramirez is finally able to leave St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church after she and her son Ivan spent the past 8 months in sanctuary there. Hilda and Ivan were granted deferred action of one year by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which means they are not at risk of deportation for the next year. Read more about Hilda and Ivan are free at last!