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The Fight of Our Lifetimes

A large and diverse group of protesters holds signs decrying the murder of George Floyd

To our EJUSA family,

Last week, George Floyd became the latest chapter in America’s history of racial terror when a police officer in Minneapolis killed him in broad daylight, in front of multiple cameras, while three other officers watched.

This weekend, the pent-up grief, trauma, and rage that this triggered poured onto streets across the world.

Volumes of ink have been spilled about police violence, protestors, riots, blame, and more. There is no agreement, just an onslaught of opinions. This global debate must not steer us away from the true focus that demands our attention: the trauma and pain inflicted on Black people in America every day.

Mass incarceration…COVID-19’s ravaging of Black and Brown communities …Trayvon Martin… the war on drugs …confederate flags and statues…Ahmaud Arbery…slavery…job discrimination…Philando Castile…police violence…segregation…Eric Garner…housing discrimination…higher rates of maternal mortality…Michael Brown…higher rates of violent victimization…racial epithets…Atatiana Jefferson …lynchings…redlining… Alton Sterling…being followed in stores…being denied health care…being shamed for living…being constantly under a microscope…being reported to the police…being slighted…being feared…just being and existing…

…The list is so very, very long.

To my fellow white people: We have one job: to decry and end racism. To stop the harm. The violence against Black bodies and hearts is relentless, gut-wrenching. Please join me and listen to the despair. It is the pain and anguish of centuries. Let that pain be our guide to break down our defensiveness, to silence our “yeah buts,” to root out the white supremacy we all carry inside of us, and to move us to anti-racist action.

To the Black and Brown members of the EJUSA family: EJUSA stands forcefully against our country’s long legacy of racism and violence. We will fight together until a true reckoning arrives, until justice is no longer a tool for racist oppression but for healing and equity. As our leader, I pledge to hear you, to see you, and to fight with you for the rest of my life. EJUSA and I stand with you.

These days have driven home the urgency of our work. We cannot be satisfied with reforms that seek to fine-tune profoundly broken institutions. We must remake our nation and hold forth a vision of justice where safety, healing, and restoration are available to all. That is our task. No less.

Thank you for standing with EJUSA in the fight of our lifetimes.

Toward justice,

Shari Silberstein

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Statement from Equal Justice USA on the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis Police

Image of George Floyd

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 28, 2020

Contact: Patrick Egan, 718-551-6603, patricke@ejusa.org

In response to the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis Police, Equal Justice USA issued the following statement:

“Six years after Eric Garner cried ‘I can’t breathe’ at the hands of police in New York City, another Black man cried the same in Minneapolis,” said Shari Silberstein, executive director of Equal Justice USA. “Today George Floyd is dead, murdered by officers who are supposed to protect and serve.

“All of us at Equal Justice USA stand with Mr. Floyd’s family and his community as they try to heal their grief and process the indignity and rage unleashed by yet another instance of senseless police violence against a Black person. For two years, we have worked with dedicated community navigators in Minneapolis to heal generations of racist violence at the hands of the police, which has been ingrained into law enforcement institutions far and wide. By killing Mr. Floyd, the police unraveled that work in minutes. But we remain committed to our partners and will not rest until our nation and its police stop killing Black people.”

Equal Justice USA (EJUSA) is a national organization that works to transform the justice system by ending the death penalty, strengthening programs that help crime survivors rebuild their lives, and promoting trauma-informed responses to violence that save lives and heal communities.

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A Tribute to Serena Simmons Connelly

EJUSA Executive Director Shari Silberstein stands with Serena Simmons Connelly

EJUSA mourns the death of one of our long-time partners, Serena Simmons Connelly. To read more about Serena’s incredible life and commitment to justice, you can see her obituary in the Dallas Morning News.

I want to celebrate Serena’s life by sharing some personal memories of the friend I’ve known for almost 20 years.

One of the greatest joys of my role at EJUSA comes when I get to share good news with our supporters who make our work possible. A favorite early memory of Serena came in 2007, when New Jersey became the first state to legislatively abolish the death penalty in over 50 years. EJUSA played a big role in the effort for many years, and I was at the Senate watching the final vote happen. I called Serena breathless and shaking with excitement, right from the Senate gallery. She was as thrilled as I was. The next day she sent flowers to our office with a note saying, “Congratulations to you and all the staff on turning the tide!”

She continued to cheer us on like that through every success and struggle.

Whenever I visited with Serena in Dallas, where she lived, we would share strategies together for hours about how to fight for justice and equity. She was a visionary, and she talked often about restorative justice long before the idea hit the mainstream. When she began supporting our work in 1999, our primary mission was to end the death penalty. As we began to expand our scope over the last decade, Serena immediately saw the possibilities of our transformative vision. She gave us some of our very first seed funding to enable our growth into the organization we are today.

The last time I saw Serena was last year, in October. We spent a lot of time talking about our nation’s history of racism. We shared our journeys of learning about and owning our own privilege so we could fight for racial justice. She knew that this was lifelong work and was proud to see how EJUSA’s racial equity work had grown with her support.

Thinking back on my last visit with Serena reminded me of the very first time we met in person, back in 2004. I was young and very new to running EJUSA, and I was nervous about meeting a supporter for the first time. Serena was so kind that she basically coached me on what to do! But that was just part of who she was. She was beloved by so many people, and that made her a master networker. Throughout the years, she continued to introduce me to fellow advocates, lawmakers, experts, and community partners — always organizing and working to build the movement.

Serena was brilliant and tireless in the pursuit of a better world. She forever changed the way I connect with EJUSA’s partners and showed me that we do this work by loving each other. Once you love each other, you know exactly how to forge ahead together. She will be so deeply missed by her EJUSA family, but her legacy will live on forever.

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We are Healers

Members of EJUSA's staff and Trauma Healing Network are gathered, smiling at the camera

A group of about 20 people gather around a sign that reads "EJUSA 2020 Convening on Trauma"
Members of EJUSA staff and Trauma and Healing Network in Newark, New Jersey

On February 22-23 — well before the COVID-19 pandemic created a national need for healing likely greater than any in modern history — members of the Equal Justice USA Trauma and Healing Network gathered in Newark, NJ, for the group’s second national convening. As leaders in their communities, network members share a steadfast commitment to healing trauma, reducing violence, and changing the way we talk about and approach justice by elevating healing over punishment. They are survivors, family members of murder victims, formerly incarcerated, law enforcement, and more. Will Simpson, one of our senior strategists, reflected on the weekend.

EJUSA Trauma Network member and staff member stand on either side of a poster board that they are using to make a presentation, laughing.
Trauma & Healing Network member Michael McIntosh and EJUSA Senior Director of Programs Louise Marchena make a presentation on how they would build a trauma-informed city.

I joined EJUSA in 2018, several months after the first national convening of the EJUSA Trauma and Healing Network. During my first year, everyone talked about the convening, how amazing the members were, and how powerful the collective work was. So when I had the opportunity to be a part of the planning for the 2020 convening, my excitement peaked. Finally a chance to meet and learn from these amazing people doing healing work around the country!

The day came and I was overwhelmed! The energy in the room was intense and full of passion. Right from the opening introductions you felt the love and sense of family amongst the group. Members shared stories of how EJUSA helped increase funding for a program serving mothers who’d lost their children to gun violence and how we had supported a youth development organization refocus around healing in their community. Through these stories, I could truly see how we are addressing harm through healing. Most importantly, I saw how our work happens through supporting and centering those most impacted by violence. These are the people closest to the solutions.

EJUSA Trauma Healing Network members and staff present on their ideas for a trauma-informed city.

As the weekend progressed, I saw old relationships flourish and new connections begin to blossom. The ideas about how members could support each other began to surface, and they worked with EJUSA staff to form concrete ideas about the sustainability of their work. I was inspired to see members volunteer to work with EJUSA staff after the convening to create a road map forward!

On day two, we continued the great conversations and learning on different needs within our communities. Members recounted the strategies they used to ensure healing happens in spite of how legal, health, and other social systems may perpetuate harms. We captured members on camera as they discussed their work and how the network addresses trauma and promotes healing.

You can see the fruits of that work in the videos below.

The convening ended with a refocusing on wellness. We hosted a restorative hour to provide members with opportunities to decompress and reflect on our discussions over the two days. Prior to the convening, my colleague and co-facilitator, Mona Cadena, found a box of coloring postcards (adults love coloring too!) and thought that it would be a great practice for people to write a reflective message to themselves about our time together and the importance of our collective work. This proved to be a great way for us to close our time together and got us thinking about what’s next.

Because I was floating around the room, I didn’t write a message to myself that day. Looking back, I think I would have written:

Be inspired by those around you who are healing communities. The work we do is healing work. We are healers.

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Safety and dignity in a time of crisis

Reimagining Justice This Month highlights stories about effective responses to violence – responses that disrupt cycles of violence, heal trauma, and address structural racism.

Trauma for Youth is Everywhere…But We Can Heal It in Newark, Youth Today
When EJUSA Trauma and Healing Network member Al-Tariq Best was a teen, a police officer pointed a gun at his head during a traffic stop. He carried that trauma for decades before awakening to it in our Trauma to Trust program, understanding how it affected him and beginning to heal. Read his story and learn how every day he empowers thousands of young people dealing with their own trauma.

Why jails are the key to “flattening the curve” of coronavirus, The Appeal
Given the current global health crisis and its critical intersection with criminal justice, we’re bringing attention to COVID-19’s impact on those involved in the justice system. Due to overcrowding, insufficient health care, and poor sanitation, jails and prisons act as catalysts for the spread of infectious disease like COVID-19. At times like this, the failures and disastrous harm of these systems becomes glaringly obvious. As the virus spreads among incarcerated people, activists around the country are calling for decarceration in order to save lives. Please read more about this issue. Then, join us, Color of Change, and other organizations nationwide to demand that federal and local leaders put measures in place to protect both those who are incarcerated and those working in our carceral system.

Remaking our legal system with more compassion and humanity is necessary and urgent work, The Appeal
The Oregon Justice Resource Center recognizes that no one, and especially young people, should be condemned for their worst day. The center joined partners throughout the state to end life sentences without parole for youth in Oregon. Now, they are ensuring that individuals sentenced as youth have their voices heard.

When students don’t feel safe in the neighborhood: How can schools help?, D.C. Policy Center
Schools can play a powerful role in addressing the trauma of their students. This researcher lays out four strategies intended to help Washington, DC schools to focus on this problem. Each strategy is rooted in building positive relationships and support networks for young people.

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A Historic Victory in Colorado

The Colorado state flag blows in the wind.

A group of people stands outside of a government building with signs that read "End the Colorado Death Penalty"
EJUSA state partners hold a press conference against Colorado’s death penalty.

Yesterday, Gov. Jared Polis put the final signature in place on a multi-year effort to rid Colorado of the death penalty. The Rocky Mountain state is the 22nd to repeal the death penalty and the 10th state to repeal in the past 13 years. This contributes great momentum to the movement to wipe out capital punishment state by state.

“Colorado can be proud today,” said Shari Silberstein, EJUSA’s executive director. “With Gov. Polis’s signature, the state liberated itself from one of the most glaring failures of the legal system and is charting a new path toward justice. Instead of wasting millions of dollars every year, the state can focus on the healing that survivors of violence need while also working toward making families and communities safe by preventing future violence.”

The campaign gained steam in January when the Senate, via a bipartisan vote, passed its repeal bill. Colorado’s House debated deep into the night before passing its own bill in late February.

“On two separate occasions, more than a dozen families of murder victims testified before lawmakers about why they wanted the death penalty gone,” said Sarah Craft, director of the Death Penalty program. “They presented a letter from more than 65 victim’s family member. They talked about their loved ones. They described tragedy. They cried through the pain they still feel. And they said with conviction that an execution wouldn’t make the pain go away.”

EJUSA’s work is rooted in building bridges across ideology, culture, and experience to reimagine and rebuild the justice system that we want to see. Repeal in Colorado was a grassroots effort powered by local groups and activists dedicated to a new justice system. “We are proud that we could work with and support the ACLU of Colorado, Coloradans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, and the Victim and Offender Mitigation Initiative,” said Sarah. “They made this historic day happen.”

Thank you for standing with us as we topple the death penalty in the U.S., one state at a time.

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N.J. awards $20M to address trauma and violence in hospitals

An aerial view of buildings along a main street in Newark, New Jersey

Reimagining Justice This Month | February 2020

Reimagining Justice This Month highlights stories about effective responses to violence – responses that disrupt cycles of violence, heal trauma, and address structural racism.

To combat gun violence, N.J. awards $20M to hospitals for intervention programs
New Jersey isn’t the first state to see how violence intervention can be powerful in the hospital setting, but its initial investment in this vital work suggests a firm commitment. EJUSA was proud to partner with a team of advocacy and community-based organizations to educate state leaders about how addressing trauma quickly and comprehensively can sharply reduce violence. And we’re going to urge those same lawmakers to invest in community-based strategies that have also shown dramatic achievements.

Flight School focuses on children dealing with traumatic situations
A child-parent psychotherapy program in Ohio called the Flight School focuses on joint healing of trauma for families, and especially children, exposed to violence, some type of abuse, or neglect. While the program serves all age ranges, it emphasizes assisting children in navigating trauma so that they have the healing and support needed to grow into healthy adults.

Treating mothers’ trauma as a way to prevent youth violence
Sisters United Resilient and Empowered, or SURE Moms, is an Ann Arbor, MI program that addresses the trauma of mothers so they can develop strong relationships with their children and prevent future violence. “The mother has to do their emotional work first,” said Leah Mills, a social worker and trauma therapist in Washtenaw County, who assists with SURE Moms. “When they become healthy, they can give their children the emotional support the children need.”

Scientists report gains in treating kids suffering chronic trauma
A noninvasive brain therapy that has been used to treat PTSD among veterans is being used to address chronic childhood therapy. Scientists have reported “enormous positive gains” for children who’ve participated, including increased sleep and emotional regulation, and a decrease in dissociative behaviors often linked to un-treated trauma. This is a promising step toward treating young people to help them heal trauma and live healthier lives.

Tree of Life brought out a ‘collective compassion.’ Now a Pittsburgh group uses faith to help others facing trauma.
Pittsburgh is still suffering from last year’s mass shooting. Faith groups are coming together to explore and heal the trauma that is felt by so many. “Our traumas might not be the same,” said Geraldine Massey, a counselor at Center for Victims, who lost two sons to gun violence, but dialogues across communities are a way to learn about and “acknowledge each other’s trauma.”

EJUSA’s mission is to transform the justice system by promoting responses to violence that break cycles of trauma. We work at the intersection of criminal justice, public health, and racial justice to elevate healing over retribution, meet the needs of survivors, advance racial equity, and build community safety.

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Healing the Trauma That Endures

EJUSA Board Member Lisa Good

In January 2020, EJUSA board member Lisa Good joined five other people for a roundtable discussion, moderated by actress Julianne Moore, about the enduring—and often ignored— trauma that survivors face in the aftermath of gun violence.

The discussion came on the heels of National Gun Violence Survivors Week, highlighting the experiences of survivors and what they wish others knew about how trauma sustains. 

Like her fellow roundtable members, Lisa’s story is deeply personal. When she was 17 years old, her cousin Jay was murdered. Lisa received no support after this loss, and instead of being able to heal, she fell into severe depression and feelings of survivor’s guilt that lasted well into her adulthood. 

“The cycle of trauma and how trauma fuels violence… is something that we can’t ignore,” Lisa says. She describes how not receiving acknowledgement and support for her trauma lead her to feel immense depression and survivor’s guilt for years. In the midst of this trauma, she experienced a violent sexual assault, and sought her own revenge for what had been done to her. 

“In that moment, with that layer of trauma, I wanted a gun…and if that gun had been accessible, I would have been looking for that person who violated me,” she recalls. 

After decades of grappling with the loss of one of her closest family members, Lisa founded Urban Grief, a nonprofit based in Albany, New York, that provides trauma-informed support to survivors of violence. For her, founding the organization was not a way to heal herself, but to fill the critical gap in support that exists for survivors in the wake of gun violence. 

“What people don’t understand is that the loss and the trauma is enduring. It evolves, you mature, you grow, you heal, but it’s still enduring,” she says.

Watch the video below to learn more from Lisa and other survivors on the importance of trauma-informed care, and the often overlooked nuances that arise in the wake of violence.

WATCH THE FULL PROGRAM HERE

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Prioritizing the Community | Reimagining Justice This Month

Oakland CA

Reimagining Justice This Month highlights stories about effective responses to violence – responses that disrupt cycles of violence, heal trauma, and address structural racism.

Prioritizing the Community: Funding Alternatives to Reduce Reliance on the Justice System in Oakland
The city of Oakland is becoming a leading model for hospital- and community-based violence intervention programs. These programs work with communities most harmed by violence, providing solutions that rely on resources and support rather than law enforcement and incarceration.

Baltimore takes step toward becoming ‘trauma-responsive city’
The Baltimore City Council hopes to form a “Trauma-Informed Care Task Force,” putting the city farther down the path to becoming a trauma-responsive city. Through this task force, the city seeks to normalize discussions about trauma and assist young people who must grapple with it in their daily lives.

Shelby County Schools counselor writes children’s book hoping to help students cope with gun violence
During the first three quarters of 2019, 133 people died from gun violence in Memphis, Tennessee. After seeing the trauma her students experienced in the wake of such violence, one school counselor wrote a book to help children cope with losing their loved ones.

Maryland should follow D.C.’s lead on youth rehabilitation
Washington, DC, is using different approaches to help system-involved young people. One is called the Young Men Emerging Unit, which “provides trauma-informed treatment and healing, counseling, restorative justice practices and workforce preparation.” The goal is to address the needs of those in the criminal justice system rather than just punishing them.

How Hospitals Are Helping to Reduce Gun Violence
Hospital-based violence interventions are gaining popularity as an alternative to traditional approaches to ending community violence, which typically rely on police and punishment. These incredible programs work with survivors of gun violence to ensure that they have the social and emotional support needed to heal and prevent retaliatory violence.

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The New EJUSA Website!

I’m so proud to kick off 2020 with two big announcements.

First, EJUSA is turning 30 years old this year! And we’re celebrating this milestone with this new website!

The site is a declaration of our bold vision for justice reimagined. With your support, we’re transforming what justice is. We’re rejecting mass incarceration, executions, police violence, and racial injustice. Instead, we’re building the new systems we want — systems that deliver safety, healing, and accountability that restores to everyone affected by harm.
That vision is the foundation of our new website.

Take a special look at our What is Justice? page to learn how — together — we will get there.

If you like what you see, please share the page on social media or email a link to three friends.

Then take a longer look around. Explore our programs, issues, and our team and board.

Anniversaries are opportunities to reflect on history and chart new paths for the future. We can’t rest on past victories when there are 2.2 million people behind bars, more than 2,500 people on death row, and millions of incidents of community violence, sexual violence, racial violence, and violence by the justice system every year.

Stay tuned over the coming months as I share history, stories, and strategies from the past three decades.

As a member of the EJUSA family, this anniversary is yours too. Congratulations!

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