The Arc of Justice: Examining the Failures of the Criminal Justice System and the Hope of Progressive Reforms

An Introduction to The New Leader Series on Criminal Justice Reform

Policy professionals overuse, misconstrue, and thus devalue the phrase “bipartisan consensus.” It has been so widely used to have become an empty platitude, a meaningless bit of rhetorical filer used to frame distinctively partisan objectives as modest, centrist, and necessary — so common sense as to be unobjectionable.

So, it is remarkable to find an area of grave policy concern that actually does have some measure of bipartisan — or, even better, a multi-partisan — consensus. An agreement on almost all sides that deep-rooted flaws inflict undue harm to the people, that meaningful reform must be forthcoming, and (at least to a degree) some broad contours of what that reform should look like.

But, in the world of criminal justice reform, something approaching bipartisan consensus appears emergent — a possible outcome that we may be able to grasp in the coming future. This potential for reform is not certain — deep issues of race, class, and identity can undermine it, as well as a federal administration severely out of step with modern thought on this issue. And for this reason, because not all those who agree that reform is needed share our progressive values, NLC and its community felt it essential that we state our position on why and how reforms should be pursued.

Over the coming months, The New Leader will feature a running series on this issue. We will examine the issue in the stages of the criminal justice system, from policing and arrests to jail and probation, from sentencing to prison and conditions of confinement, and then concluding with release, recidivism and reentry.

In more than twenty in-depth pieces written by NLC community members, we will examine the fissures of inequity that run through our criminal justice system. From examining the impact of warrior culture on police departments, to how to ensure elected district attorneys are responsive to community needs, how increases in court specialization, funding, and proactive rehabilitation can mitigate the violence of over-criminalizing our population, to the role positive reentry programs and restorative justice can have on breaking the incarceration cycle we will present the case for criminal justice reform as stated by the NLC community.

The case for reform must be clearly stated. And it must be comprehensive. We invite our community to engage with this series as it develops over the Summer of 2018, and to built upon each facet of reform discussed in our series through conscious action. NLC community members represent an extraordinary breadth of experience. In each of these areas, it is critical to remember that criminal justice concerns express a deep intersectionality with other key progressive concerns, and we invite all of our community members to build on these pieces in their experiences.

The first piece in our series will be released tomorrow, taking a historical perspective on our criminal justice system. We hope you take a look and then return to The New Leader weekly to find other pieces in this series.