My heart is full as I write this message. On July 31, 2021, I will step down as the executive director of EJUSA after more than 20 years at this organization that I love. The events of the last year have intensified the urgency to reverse centuries of racial injustice in our nation. That…
The world lost a giant yesterday. Bill Pelke, founder of Journey of Hope…from Violence to Forgiveness, passed away in his home in Alaska after suffering a heart attack. Bill is the heart behind the anti-death penalty’s powerful mantra “love and compassion for all of humanity.” He came to this vision — and spread the message…
This week, our allies at the Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC) released “Enduring Injustice: The Persistence of Racial Discrimination in the Death Penalty System.” For the ever-growing number of people who pay attention to justice issues, that blunt subtitle does not come as a shock. That doesn’t make this report — written by Ngozi Ndulue,…
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…
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…
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…
Family members of murder victims will gather for a press conference at the Colorado State Capitol Monday morning to call on lawmakers to end Colorado’s death penalty. Below is the letter they will be presenting, signed by more than 55 Coloradans who have lost loved ones to violence. January 27, 2020 To the Members of…
Each December, the team at the Death Penalty Information Center provides an enormous and essential service to justice reform when it releases its annual year-end report. The report tells the comprehensive story—in statistics and graphics, in narrative, and in expert analysis—of the death penalty in the U.S. for the previous 12 months. The reports of…
EJUSA launched the John J. Gibbons Fund in 2016 to honor the life and legacy of Judge John J. Gibbons, former Chief Judge of the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Judge Gibbons was a tireless advocate who used his position to protect and expand civil rights, civil liberties, and human rights in our nation….
It is with a broken heart that I’m writing to share the news that one of our founding board members, Jonathan E. Gradess, passed away last week. I met Jonathan 15 years ago, on the eve of the nation’s first successful death penalty abolition campaign. The courts had just thrown out New York’s death penalty…