Reimagining Justice This Month: February
Reimagining Justice This Month highlights stories about effective responses to violence — responses that disrupt cycles of violence, heal trauma, and address structural racism.
Remarkable Women: Tonja Myles, NBC Local 33
In this spotlight on one of EJUSA’s Trauma & Healing Network members, Tonja Myles, we can see what is possible when solutions come from the people who are most impacted by violence. As a survivor many times over, Tonja knows that people in crisis need community, not enforcement. That’s why she’s a leading advocate for the 988 crisis line, a national alternative to 911 that goes straight to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
Not Another Child: Mother Turns Grief into Solutions for Gun Violence, Grieving Families, Mississippi Free Press
Oresa Napper-Williams is connected to a growing network of women meeting the needs the current justice system fails to address. Mothers, sisters, grandmothers, and daughters are bringing empathy where law enforcement too often only blames young Black people for the harm they experience. They’re also building legacies of humanity where the legal system ignores and further hurts communities. From harm reduction to grief support, and healing circles to wrap-around services, these women are breaking cycles of trauma and creating equity and safety through collective action.
NYC Council Supports Movement to Expand Victim Compensation Eligibility, Pix11
Movements are powerful when they are led by the people closest to the problems that need solving. Survivors and victims’ family members gathered in New York City to tell their stories. They know intimately that in the wake of violence, people need pathways to healing, including financial support for unexpected hospital bills, mental health counseling, and replacing locks. They also know first-hand just how many barriers exist in the current system, especially for those who need support the most. Their voices are leading the call to expand access to victim compensation and create pathways to healing for all. (Bonus: if you’re in New York, you can add your voice, too, and learn more about the issue from our partners at Common Justice here).
In Case You Missed It: On the EJUSA Blog
- A Step Forward for True Justice — in the Director’s Corner, Jami Hodge shares her thoughts on the groundbreaking nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court.
- Failed By the System — read Sarah Craft’s call for all of us to act to stop the execution of Melissa Lucio, whose experience epitomizes the cycles of violence perpetuated by the criminal legal system.
- Four Podcasts on the Possibility of Justice — check out Jiva Manske’s reflection on how changing the way we listen can start to shift the deep narratives that uphold false solutions to violence.
