September 8, 2016 by Rebecca Sanchez
Victoria comes to Grassroots Leadership with a passion for social, economic, and racial justice. Originally from Miami with family from Peru, she studied Biological Psychology at New College of Florida, where she was the President of Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) and organized around impacts of the war on drugs. Read more about Welcome our new Hutto Visitation Intern, Victoria Jara!
September 8, 2016 by Holly Kirby
We ask our supporters to raise their voices and notify prison officials to recognize the right of incarcerated individuals to assert their humanity and for prison officials to not retaliate against individuals whose non-violent protests demand an end to prison slavery. Read more about TODAY, September 9th, support prisoners demanding their human rights!
September 7, 2016 by Rebecca Sanchez
Jake comes to us as a Young Adult Volunteer. Originally from Clemson South Carolina, Jake studied Spanish and International Health at Clemson University. During this time, he gained a great appreciation for community development, and the desire to work with individuals who have been marginalized by our society. While at Clemson, he began to explore and learn more of the pain and issues that U.S. policy had caused both in Latin America and among Latino communities in the U.S. Read more about Welcome Our New Young Adult Volunteer!
August 18, 2016 by Cate Graziani
Grassroots Leadership is pleased to continue our two-part guest blog, “Hello from South Florida.” In response to an article by Mary Sanchez of the Kansas City Star covering our report, Incorrect Care: A Prison Profiteer Turns Care into Confinement, we were contacted by someone who wants to help expose the so-called care found in t Read more about Hello From South Florida, Part II
August 11, 2016 by Cate Graziani
Grassroots Leadership is pleased to introduce a two-part guest blog, “Hello from South Florida.” In response to an article by Mary Sanchez of the Kansas City Star covering our report, Incorrect Care: A Prison Profiteer Turns Care into Confinement, we were contacted by someone who wants to expose the so-called care found in treatment facilities r Read more about Hello From South Florida, Part I
July 13, 2016 by Bethany N. Carson
Ten years ago, a new policy was named “Operation Streamline.” It is known for mass hearings in which up to 80 migrants are arraigned, found guilty, convicted and sentenced simultaneously for “improper entry,” a misdemeanor. The policy has long been decried by immigrant rights advocates. But the mass hearings, as shocking as they are, are only the tip of the iceberg. Lesser known is the widespread expansion of felony “re-entry” prosecutions and the mass incarceration of migrants that that came with the Streamline program.
Indefensible is an in-depth investigation into the costs and failures of a decade-old bad idea that has wasted millions of dollars and inflicted an incalculable amount of human suffering. Read more about The mass prosecution of migrants at the border, like mass incarceration, is an #Indefensible failure
July 12, 2016 by Cate Graziani
We are happy to welcome Latasha Taylor to the Grassroots Leadership Criminal Justice team as our new Mental Health Organizer! Through a two-year Peer Policy Fellowship from the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, Latasha will be supporting the work of the Justice and Mental Health Coalition and Texas Advocates for Justice. Read more about Welcome Latasha Taylor, our new Mental Health Organizer!
June 24, 2016 by Cristina Parker
Dimmit County leaders are facing the same question that county commissioners in Jim Wells asked themselves earlier this month: Are the legal and financial risks that come with family detention worth it? Widespread opposition from Jim Wells County residents and concerns about financial and legal liability for the local community led county commissioners to wisely reject the proposal. Now, the Dimmit County Commissioners Court has this question on the agenda for their upcoming Monday, June 27 meeting.
Serious legal and financial questions, and the promise of a new president next year means that the family detention policy that fills the facility may not even exist next year. Dimmit County could join the long list of small communities left behind after betting their community’s future on detaining immigrants. Read more about BREAKING: Dimmit County is the latest Texas county to be sold a bill of goods on family detention
June 23, 2016 by Holly Kirby
We need your help! Grassroots Leadership needs to raise $12,000 before July 15th to fund our upcoming Texas Advocates for Justice organizing training in Austin.
Our goal is to bring together 30 formerly incarcerated people — Austin community members who have been locked up in jails, prisons, or immigrant detention centers — and their loved ones to be leaders in the movement to end mass criminalization in Texas. Read more about Help fund a crucial training in Austin, Texas!
June 9, 2016 by Bethany N. Carson
A child detained at a Serco facility in Australia said, "Even if you make this place heaven it is not enough for us because we feel like we are in a cage. We feel people see us like animals in a cage."
Read more about Serco: a bad deal for immigrant families and Jim Wells County