We remain shaken by the murder of Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man and father of a 4-year-old son, at the hands of Memphis police in a horrifying display of brutality. The pain we all feel is the too familiar, relentless trauma that policing inflicts. We have been here so many times before. After Minneapolis…
In a year in which political campaigns and media drove public perception of rising crime to record highs, support for the death penalty in 2022 remains near the lowest it’s been in 50 years. Even among conservatives, support for the death penalty fell five percentage points, despite a barrage of media stoking fear in the…
We lost a member of the EJUSA family last week. Bonnita Spikes was a force, a fierce and fearless organizer whose impact on communities across Maryland and beyond is immeasurable. Every time Bonnita told her story, people listened. Her strategic vision, her warmth, and her persistence helped to end the death penalty in Maryland and…
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…
In this moment, I’m thinking of Ahmaud Arbery’s parents. No doubt, they are feeling relief. The men who took Ahmaud away from them and their family and community are being held responsible. Despite an abundance of evidence, like so many, I was nervous about this verdict. Our justice system has signaled countless times throughout history…
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…
Over 500 police and community members have completed in EJUSA’s Trauma to Trust program. Click here to learn more and participate. Summer sunlight poured through tall windows into the community room of a historic Newark building this past June. Long tables formed something like a horseshoe, with chairs lining the outer perimeter. A large projection…
Some people are born into a vocation—whether it’s teaching, making art, or training to be a physician. They know from an early age and pursue their goals with laser focus. For others a career path winds and shifts directions as life intrudes and uncovers opportunities that weren’t previously apparent. Lisa Good belongs in that latter…
Join the EJUSA Evangelical Network at the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary on Tuesday, April 2nd. We will be in discussion with community leaders including leadership from the Seminary’s staff, the sister of Officer Bruce VanderJagt who was murdered in 1997, and Billy Neal Moore, a minister and former death row inmate. The event will…
Thank you to all of you who signed our petition to end the death in New Hampshire. Because of you, our partners at the New Hampshire Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (NHCADP) were able to deliver a huge stack of 56,502 signatures (wow!) to Governor Chris Sununu on May 15, after a press conference with…