Solutions: Federal Policy

In Montana, officials are taking legislative steps to address the disproportionate number of missing and murdered Indigenous women. Among the bills being introduced is “Hanna’s Act,” which would give the Department of Justice the power to assist with missing persons cases. Also included is expanded access, both to national crime databases and to social services, provided by the Office of Indian Services to more than 50 tribal communities.

Twenty high school students enrolled in Territory, an urban design nonprofit, produced a zine and their own quality of life report for West Austin, where many of the students live. The students conducted interviews, surveys, and gathered community input to create the report. It includes sections on public safety, youth empowerment, and mental health.

Part 4 of the "Equity or Bust: Are Ontario's Public Schools a Model for Pennsylvania" Series: Ontario is widely lauded for its education system. But, like Pennsylvania, evidence in Toronto suggests that Ontario has struggled to close achievement gaps between historically underserved minorities and their peers. Many believe universal pre-K will prove to be the decisive factor in bridging that gap.

Little attention is given to black men who are victims of gun violence but survive and need help. An organization in California is mobilizing all gun-violence victims to voice their opinion on criminal justice reform and support for victims.

The community networks of women defenders in Piura are organized structures that, since 2018, have provided accompaniment, training, and inter-institutional coordination to victims of gender-based violence, combining psychological support, legal pathways, and economic empowerment. Since their founding, more women have reported violence, coordination between public institutions such as police and prosecutor's offices have improved, and survivors have transformed into leaders who break cycles of violence in their communities. Read this story in Spanish here: https://solu.news/mvw1

Mujeres Sembrando Vida is a network of women that supports victims of sexual and domestic violence by guiding them through the reporting process, ensuring cases are handled appropriately by authorities, and holding workshops for women about gender equality and their rights. The group has also set up a collective savings account to help women in emergencies.

51 for 51 is an advocacy group fighting for DC statehood by educating people about DC residents’ taxation without representation and training advocates in other states, mostly young people, to lobby their senators to support a statehood bill. Organizers also bird-dogged democratic presidential candidates for a public pledge of support for statehood, which 18 did. The group has also gained new support for ending the filibuster, which is needed to pass a statehood bill in the Senate. Support for statehood is at its highest, with a bill passing the House of Representatives for the first time in June 2020.

Around the United States, news organizations are taking a new approach to the use of mugshots in their crime reporting. While still the norm in many places, newsrooms like the Houston Chronicle have stopped publishing the common “mugshot slideshow,” and some, including Connecticut’s New Haven Independent, have stopped publishing them altogether. The practice, often used to generate page views, depict people at their worst, doing more harm than anything else.

Since 2007, Connecticut has taken major steps in juvenile justice reform – namely, the ages that youth are arrested or charged as adults. By moving 16 and 17 year olds out of the adult system and into the juvenile justice system, the state has seen a 40% decrease in new juvenile court cases, leading to less stigma and large taxpayer savings. With such success, the state now looks to make further reforms in the juvenile justice system.

Members of the military who are survivors of sexual assault have access to special victims’ counsels to help guide and protect them throughout the legal process. The efforts are still young, and with that comes issues of ill-trained or over-worked legal representation – a criticism that has been made known by advocates. Furthermore, while the existence of such assistance is extremely beneficial to military personnel, the same sort of protection and support isn’t available to civilians who are alleging violent crimes against military members.