Two days ago, hundreds of people- including many of you- marched in the rain to demand the city DEFUND & close the jail by July 1st, & DEFEND Black Lives by reinvesting in our communities. Not 2 hours after we left the streets, the City of Atlanta pledged to make an amendment to move the funds out of ACDC and into community-based initiatives, and officially wind down operation of the jail! But we have yet to see a date for the jail’s closure. The action was an incredible disp

The second Design Taskforce meeting is upon us & we need YOU to join us to continue to hold Atlanta accountable to our vision of a shuttered and repurposed jail and a REDEEMED ATLANTA. TUESDAY, SEPT. 10 4pm - 6:30pm The Gathering Spot 384 Northyards Blvd. NW, Atlanta, GA 30313 The meetings are open to the public and participants can submit comment cards or discuss issues with Taskforce members before or after the meeting. Your presence at these meetings ensures a transpare

25 MEMBER TASKFORCE COMPRISED OF 10 #CLOSETHEJAILATL #COMMUNITIESOVERCAGES CAMPAIGN ALLIANCE MEMBERS MEETS ON JULY 16TH In the month following the passage of legislation officially calling for the closure of ACDC and the public call for Taskforce Nominations, the selection committee received nearly 200 applications. After much deliberation, the final tally and official appointments are here! 25 members of our community were chosen to lay the foundation for the process of clos

Creation of Task Force gives voice to the formerly incarcerated and seeks to “right the wrongs” of past harmful criminal justice policies MEDIA ADVISORY 5.21.19 Contacts: xochitl@rjactioncenter.org devin@blackfuturistsgroup.com The Alliance for the Campaign to #ClosetheJailATL has declared a major victory after the Atlanta City Council voted yesterday to approve a resolution that begins the closure of the Atlanta City Detention Center and the repurposing of the facility into

#COMMUNITIESOVERCAGES CAMPAIGN GEARING UP FOR VOTE ON LEGISLATION On Monday, the #CommuntiesOverCages #CloseTheJailATL Campaign, led by Women on the Rise and the Racial Justice Action Center and supported by over 40 organizations comprising the Campaign Alliance, held our Day of Redemption at City Hall. The Day of Redemption was an opportunity for the city of Atlanta to redeem the past harms caused by the city's reliance on the jail and broken windows policing and commit itse

After months of collaborative work, the Mayor’s Office, who has shown enthusiastic support for this initiative, has officially committed to the #CommunitiesOverCages #CloseTheJailATL campaign goal of a legislated Design Team to repurpose the jail. A formal, legislated Design Team will ensure that the people of Atlanta, not corporate interests, determine what happens with the building and the $32.5 million dollars it takes to operate. While Council Members Westmoreland, Dicken

Thanks to the powerful work of Women on the Rise, Racial Justice Action Center, and the nearly 40 organizations in the Campaign Alliance, Mayor Keisha Bottoms today echoed our message in her State of the City Address this morning stating: "In the spirit of One Atlanta, we look forward to converting our City jail from a building designed for mass incarceration to one that will provide access to opportunity for those who need it." This comes just a few weeks after John Legend t

John Legend tweeted support for the #CommunitiesOverCages #CloseTheJailATL Campaign yesterday, specifically thanking Mayor Bottoms for the community-driven process, encouraging her to include formerly-incarcerated people in its redesign, and linking to our recent article on Vice's Broadly We agree formerly-incarcerated people should be at the helm, which is why Women on the Rise, a group of formerly-incarcerated women, is leading this campaign with the Racial Justice Action C

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT: Xochitl Bervera, (404) 861-0756 xochitl@rjactioncenter.org www.closethejailatl.org John Legend tweets his support of the city-wide coalition led by formerly incarcerated women Legislation to create a community driven design process to turn the nearly empty jail into a Center for Wellness and Freedom WHEN & WHERE: Wednesday, February 27th, 2019 at 5:30pm at the Center for Civic Innovation, 115 MLK Drive SW, Suite 304 WHO: The #CommunitiesO