The prison industrial complex (PIC) is rooted in white supremacy, and, as antiracists, we must fight to dismantle it. White supremacy is evident in every aspect of the PIC, including New York state’s draconian sentencing laws and a parole system that continues to punish and re-sentence people, despite their circumstances, rather than acknowledge how they have transformed while inside. This system has left thousands of elder New Yorkers to languish in New York State prisons, aging in unbelievably harmful environments and dealing with health issues that prisons are simply not equipped to treat.
The People’s Campaign for Parole Justice is working to change this reality by advocating for two bills to pass in the New York state legislature, Elder Parole and Fair and Timely Parole. Elder Parole will give anyone aged 55 and older who has been incarcerated for at least 15 years the opportunity to go before the parole board and demonstrate their readiness for release. Fair and Timely Parole will require that the parole board, when considering whether or not to release someone, takes into account their growth and accomplishments while inside, rather than continuing to incarcerate them solely due to the nature of their conviction. Passing these bills would be transformational for so many elders inside who would finally have an actual chance to be released, and for their communities outside who have long-awaited the return of their loved ones.
To support these bills, SURJ NYC is door knocking in Assemblymember Jeffrey Dinowitz’s district in the northwest Bronx (Kingsbridge/Riverdale/Woodlawn). As chair of the Codes Committee, Assemblymember Dinowitz is strategically positioned to prevent these bills from ever receiving a vote, claiming that his disproportionately white and wealthy constituents don’t support or care about them. In response, Release Aging People in Prison (RAPP) has asked us to call in our neighbors to discuss parole justice and prove him wrong. We’re collecting signed postcards to show that this is an issue Assemblymember Dinowitz’s constituents do care about, so that he will sign on and help pass the bills in the legislative session beginning early next year.
We hope you will join us! We provide training, a script, printed materials to share, and a buddy or two to canvas with. Several of us have already been out over the past month, and multiple people have reported that it was not as scary as they thought it would be :) We’ve found it to be a really rewarding experience connecting with one another and the folks we talk to.
Sign up to door knock this Saturday, November 20, Sunday, December 5, Saturday, December 11, and Sunday, December 19 to get reminders about upcoming sessions and the exact meeting location.
We hope to see you there
SURJ NYC