Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

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  • Meet the Judge Who Transformed California's Criminal Justice System

    Using the catalyst approach, Judge Thelton Henderson was able to reform California prisons. He employed courts to change bureaucratic systems, and was moved by the idea that if you “encourage everyone involved to buy into a solution.. long-term change will happen.” Coupled with court orders, Henderson oversaw lawsuits involving overcrowding and inadequate medical services in prisons. A move that led to statewide change.

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  • A Year Later, Fewer Deportations in Cities That Adopted “Welcoming” Policies

    In the state of New Mexico, policy makers, activists, religious leaders, and the community are all working hand in hand to make the state a safe harbor for undocumented immigrants. The state is refusing to cooperate with ICE and aside from California is one of the most friendly to immigrants. A community organizer says, “We wanted to push back against this narrative that ICE just gets to come in our communities and kidnap people from their homes.”

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  • Border Trilogy Part 1: Hole in the Fence

    In the 90s, a teacher at Bowie High School, located on the border city of El Paso, Texas, found out that hundreds of his Mexican-American students were being harassed and questioned by Border Patrol agents. Their fourth amendment rights were being violated and a group of students decided to fight back—they sued Border Patrol and won. The court ruled that Border Patrol violated their civil rights and the decision effectively barred Border Patrol from questioning people on the basis of their appearance.

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  • When Iraqi women face discrimination, her legal clinic can help

    The Shahrazad Center in Baghdad offers workshops and free legal services to women experiencing domestic abuse, violence, threats and gender-based discrimination. Lawyer Rajaa Abd Ali says, “Here we teach women their rights, because education is the most powerful weapon for them.”

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  • Hole in the Fence

    In the 1980s the Mexican economy falls and a surge of undocumented immigrants begin crossing the Rio Grande river into El Paso, TX. Border Patrol agents begin stopping and questioning high school students near the border in Bowie High School. After one of the high school teachers finds out, the students began to organize, eventually suing border patrol for infringing on their constitutional rights. Ultimately, the high school students win a landmark civil rights case. “We couldn’t believe we took on the federal government and won.”

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  • Spokane Hopes Tiny Homes and Cottages Will Spur Infill Density

    The city of Spokane has made it easier for multiple smaller housing units to be built on a plot of land by changing their zoning requirements. The change makes it easier for affordable housing to be built, among other things. It also attracts development within the city limits, rather than sprawling into the suburbs.

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  • How a private company is bringing affordable houses to Indian Country

    A private company called Travois acts as a bridge between tribes and private investors in order to help make affordable housing more accessible in tribal homelands across the West. The company brings investors to tribal land and, in turn, helps to attain tax credits for investments in this land.

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  • Germany: Refugee Integration

    When Germany opened its doors to refugees, the country invested heavily in integration assistance, including free but compulsory language and civics courses. Though political division has formed in Germany over immigration issues, the focus on integrating refugees recognizes, and furthers, the potential of new arrivals to contribute to society.

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  • With Marijuana Now Legal, L.A. Goes Further to Make Amends for the War on Drugs

    After California legalized recreational use of marijuana, Los Angeles took the initiative even further to address the social and systemic inequity caused by the war on drugs of communities of color. The city undertook criminal justice reforms like clinics to help people expunge their records, and economic reforms like prioritizing those with past convictions to receive licenses to own and operate dispensaries. Furthermore, LA is practicing restorative justice by directing the tax revenue created by this sector back into the neighborhoods that were deeply affected in the past.

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  • How Tenants Use Digital Mapping to Track Bad Landlords and Gentrification

    Social justice organizations use digital cartography to tell stories about and bring awareness to unfair gentrification and landlord loopholes. By making massive data sets available and easily digestible to the public, organizations create a way for the public to play watch-dog in the affordable housing market.

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