End Mass Criminalization of Black and Brown Youth (89)
The DEA has failed to eradicate marijuana. Some members of Congress want it to stop trying.
Written by Christopher Ingraham | The Washington Post
The Drug Enforcement Administration is not having a great year.
The chief of the agency stepped down in April under a cloud of scandal. The acting administrator since then has courted ridicule for saying pot is "probably not" as dangerous as heroin, and more recently he provoked 100,000 petition-signers and seven members of Congress to call for his head after he called medical marijuana "a joke."
Virginia ramps up its war on pot — and the arrests show a disturbing racial divide
Written by Christopher Ingraham | The Washington Post
As states across the country are relaxing their marijuana laws and federal lawmakers consider doing the same, at least one state is bucking the trend and ramping up its war on pot. Marijuana arrests in Virginia have increased dramatically over the past decade, according to a new report from the Drug Policy Alliance, a group that advocates for drug policy reform. And black Virginians account for the overwhelming majority of this increase, causing the racial disparity in the state's marijuana arrests to widen.
More protests in Minneapolis over police shooting of Jamar Clark
Written by Al lJazeera Staff | Al Jazeera America
Image of police at protest pointing weapon at son of congressman Keith Ellison goes viral
Justice-Reform Bills Reflect Move Away From Mass Incarceration
Written by Lauren Victoria Burke | The Root
After years of Americans being locked up in historic numbers, bipartisan wheels in Congress are turning toward reform.
600 churches publish resolution calling for end of drug prohibition in U.S.
Written by Walter Einenkel | DailyKos
The New England Conference of United Methodist Churches voted this past Saturday on a resolution declaring that the Christian thing to do is end the failed War on Drugs, in part by ending the prohibition on drugs in our country.
The Sex-Abuse-to-Prison Pipeline: How Girls of Color Are Unjustly Arrested and Incarcerated
Written by Malika Saada Saar | The Root
Black and brown girls are first victimized and then punished, often in connection with sexual violence that has been perpetrated against them.
One of the Boldest Cannabis Initiatives in History is Taking Place Right Now in Mississippi
Written by Stephen Bradley | Southern Cannabis
Two Mississippi cannabis reform organizations have joined forces to end marijuana prohibition in their state, and if successful will pull off one of the most comprehensive pieces of citizen-generated legislation dealing with cannabis that we have seen yet. Proposition 48 is a ballot initiative that would not only legalize both medical and recreational marijuana in Mississippi but industrial hemp production as well. Additionally, Prop 48 calls on the Mississippi Governor to pardon all persons convicted of non-violent marijuana crimes.
More Drug War History in the Making: The U.S. House Votes to Weaken the DEA and Support Medical Pot
Written by Phillip Smith | AlterNet
A series of votes on the Justice Department appropriations bill attempt to rein in the rogue agency.
40 Reasons Why Our Jails are Full of Black Brown and Poor People
Written by Bill Quigley | The Huffington Post
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) reports 2.2 million people are in our nation's jails and prisons and another 4.5 million people are on probation or parole in the U.S., totaling 6.8 million people, one of every 35 adults. We are far and away the world leader in putting our own people in jail. Most of the people inside are poor and Black. Here are 40 reasons why.
Chicago Police Put Antlers on Black Man and Posed for Pictures
Written by Juan Thompson | The Intercept
The photo shows two white Chicago Police officers posing with an unidentified black man. The officers — Timothy McDermott and Jerome Finnigan — are holding rifles as the black man lies on the floor with a dazed look on his face and with antlers on his head as if he were a prized, big buck finally hunted down.
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America cannot lock its poor in debtor's prisons to fund its police departments
Written by Corinna Regnier The Guardian
Ray Charles Staten Sr. should have celebrated his 60th birthday this month. Instead, his family marked the fourth anniversary of his death. It all started, according to a lawsuit that settled in March 2015, when a small debt became a death sentence in the spring of 2011.
New Literature Tackles Big Questions on Mass Incarceration
Written by James Kilgore | Truthout
The First Civil Right: How Liberals Built Prison America, Naomi Murakawa, Oxford University Press, 2014
Captive Nation: Black Prison Organizing in the Civil Rights Era, Dan Berger, University of North Carolina Press, 2014
Caught: The Prison State and the Lockdown of American Politics, Marie Gottschalk, Princeton University Press, 2014
A Costly American Hatred, Joe Dole, Midnight Express Books, 2015
Law school dean: If you help Freddie Gray protesters in Baltimore, you can defer an exam
Written by Susan Svrluga | The Washington Post
The dean of the law school at the University of the District of Columbia urged students to take part in protests in Baltimore, even offering to defer an exam for those who help people on the street with legal advice.
Playing Tough: Baltimore's So-Called Justice System Takes Revenge On Those Questioning Its So-Called Justice
Written by Abby Zimet | Common Dreams
Ruthlessly wielding its power over those who dared to take to the streets to challenge it, Baltimore judges and other law enforcement officials have come down insanely hard on protesters, suspending habeus corpus to prolong holding uncharged suspects, setting wildly excessive bail amounts - $500,000 for the 18-year-old kid widely seen smashing the state in the form of a cop car, and disappearing at least one peaceful activist, on live TV yet - abuses that in fact help shine a spotlight on the venal, broken system that sparked it all.
Latest Voting Rights/Election Integrity News
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Trump administration's voter suppression attempts ahead of midterms are not only 'morally wrong,' they're illegal
Imagine going to the polls on Election Day and discovering that your ballot could be collected and reviewed by the…
Read More -
Democrats Just Won a Major Victory in Virginia
On a night of Democratic victories, one of the most significant wins came in Virginia, where the party held onto…
Read More -
'Jim Crow-Era Tactics' Rejected as Texas GOP Racist Voter ID Law Smacked Down
"It's time for Congress to finally act to restore the Voting Rights Act, and put an end to these kinds…
Read More -
Repealing the Jim Crow law that keeps 1.5 million Floridians from voting.
A seismic political battle that could send shockwaves all the way to the White House was launched last week in…
Read More -
Bid to restore felons’ voting rights draws broad support
A bill that seeks to restore voting rights for certain felons is drawing diverse support from groups including the Washoe…
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The System IS Rigged!—The Electoral College and the 2016 Election
Donald Trump was right: the system is rigged! But it is rigged for the Republicans, not the Democrats, for conservatives,…
Read More -
Clinton Campaign Joins Jill Stein’s Recount Of Votes In Wisconsin
Hillary Clinton’s campaign on Saturday announced they would participate in former Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein’s recount of the…
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Jill Stein’s Recount Effort Raises Millions In Just Hours
Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein’s call to raise funds to support vote recounts in three key states was met…
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Indiana officials are trying to block almost 45,000 black citizens from voting
Police raided the largest voter registration drive in the state with the lowest voter turnout in the country.
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A 90-Year-Old Woman Who’s Voted Since 1948 Was Disenfranchised by Wisconsin’s Voter-ID Law
Voting-rights groups are asking a federal court to block the law before the November election.
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Protecting the Right to Vote in the 2016 Elections
The real measure of election integrity is that every eligible American can cast a vote that is counted. But this…
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Court Says Ohio's Voter Purge is Illegal, But Will Rolls Be Restored in Time for Election?
Ohio's policy is said to be the most aggressive in the nation with more than 2 million registered voters removed…
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Virginia Supreme Court slaps down Republicans’ attempt to block ex-felons from voting
The Virginia Supreme Court rejected a petition from Republican leaders on Thursday that sought to hold Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe…
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Norment proposes path to voting rights for nonviolent felons; McAuliffe calls it 'step backward'
Virginia Senate Majority Leader Thomas K. Norment Jr. announced Thursday that he’ll introduce a constitutional amendment to automatically restore voting…
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Virginia Republicans seek to block governor's voting rights restoration
Virginia Republican leaders said they will file a contempt motion on Wednesday against Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe over his efforts…
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VAP/EI Legislation
Let Me Vote/Count My Vote
Latest News
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Trump administration's voter suppression attempts ahead of midterms are not only 'morally wrong,' they're illegal +
Imagine going to the polls on Election Day and discovering that your ballot could be collected and reviewed by the… Read More
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ACLU Blueprints Offer Vision to Cut US Incarceration Rate in Half by Prioritizing 'People Over Prisons' +
ACLU Blueprints Offer Vision to Cut US Incarceration Rate in Half by Prioritizing 'People Over Prisons' Read More
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As Florence Makes Landfall, Poorest Once More Likely to Suffer Most From Storm's Destruction +
"These disasters drag into the light exactly who is already being thrown away," notes Naomi Klein Read More
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How about some good news? Kansas Democratic Representative advances bill for Native Peoples. +
How about some good news? Kansas Democratic Representative advances bill for Native Peoples. Read More
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How One Dying Man Changed The Debate About The Tax Bill +
What mattered was that he showed up — that he put himself in front of the people whose opinions on… Read More
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Democrats Just Won a Major Victory in Virginia +
On a night of Democratic victories, one of the most significant wins came in Virginia, where the party held onto… Read More
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Repealing the Jim Crow law that keeps 1.5 million Floridians from voting. +
A seismic political battle that could send shockwaves all the way to the White House was launched last week in… Read More
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Nuclear Weapons: Who Pays, Who Profits? +
In an interview with Reuters conducted a month after he took office, Donald Trump asserted that the U.S. had “fallen… Read More
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Sessions issues sweeping new criminal charging policy +
Attorney General Jeff Sessions overturned the sweeping criminal charging policy of former attorney general Eric H. Holder Jr. and directed… Read More
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Featured Voting Rights/Election Integrity News
-
Trump administration's voter suppression attempts ahead of midterms are not only 'morally wrong,' they're illegal +
Imagine going to the polls on Election Day and discovering that your ballot could be collected and reviewed by the… Read More
-
Democrats Just Won a Major Victory in Virginia +
On a night of Democratic victories, one of the most significant wins came in Virginia, where the party held onto… Read More
-
Repealing the Jim Crow law that keeps 1.5 million Floridians from voting. +
A seismic political battle that could send shockwaves all the way to the White House was launched last week in… Read More
-
The System IS Rigged!—The Electoral College and the 2016 Election +
Donald Trump was right: the system is rigged! But it is rigged for the Republicans, not the Democrats, for conservatives,… Read More
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Clinton Campaign Joins Jill Stein’s Recount Of Votes In Wisconsin +
Hillary Clinton’s campaign on Saturday announced they would participate in former Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein’s recount of the… Read More
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Virginia Supreme Court slaps down Republicans’ attempt to block ex-felons from voting +
The Virginia Supreme Court rejected a petition from Republican leaders on Thursday that sought to hold Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe… Read More
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Keep Politics Out of Virginia Voting Rights Restoration +
On Tuesday the Virginia Supreme Court heard arguments in a suit challenging Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s (D) April order that restored… Read More
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Use it or lose it: Occasional Ohio voters may be shut out in November +
When Larry Harmon tried to vote on a marijuana initiative in November in his hometown of Kent, Ohio, the 59-year-old… Read More
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Virginia governor signs order restoring voting rights for felons +
Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe signed an order on Friday restoring the voting rights of more than 200,000 convicted felons who… Read More
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