It's time for governors to exercise their power to seriously consider commuting the sentences of women and girls who need it most.

 

We are calling on governors around the country to reconsider the cases of women and girls who need it most.

Demand your governor take action using their clemency power.

Dear John, 

It’s time to free the thousands of Black women and girls who are behind bars. In partnership with the National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls, we are calling on governors around the country to grant clemency to women and girls who need it most.

The impact of mass incarceration on Black women and girls cannot be overstated -- locking up Black women and girls for decades at a time devastate families and by extension destabilize entire communities while costing taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars. And the women and girls who are most impacted are often survivors of violence themselves. This includes the stories of women like Tondalao Hall, Liyah Birru, and Natalie Pollard.

Tondalao is a Black mother who suffered at the hands of her abusive boyfriend for years. After her abuser pleaded guilty to physically harming her children, Tondalao was prosecuted and later sentenced to 30 years in prison for "failing to protect" her children.1 Tondalao's abuser, Robert Braxton, walked free after two years in prison. Liyah is a Black woman who immigrated from Ethiopia. She was incarcerated for defending herself against her abusive husband and now faces deportation.2 And Natalie is a Black mother who was sentenced for manslaughter for defending herself against a boyfriend who viciously attacked her while pregnant.3 All of these stories demonstrate a painful reality -- Black women are often forced to decide between living under the threat of physical violence or spending the rest of their lives in prison. But with your help, we can urge governors to use their clemency power to begin to right these terrible wrongs and set free the thousands of Black women and girls who are still behind bars.  

John, if you join us in demanding governors exercise their clemency power then we will be one step closer to freeing the thousands of Black women and girls who are in cages.

Sign the petition: Join us in demanding that your governor use their power for good.

Clemency is an effective tool for reducing mass incarceration that so few governors actually use. Both Democratic and Republican governors alike have fallen short of utilizing their clemency powers to benefit our communities. In New York, Gov. Cuomo pardoned 22 immigrants who faced deportation because of previous state convictions, but with almost 200,000 New Yorkers within the criminal justice system, this isn't enough.4 In California, Former Gov. Jerry Brown commuted 283 by the end of his term, which was significant compared to the usual 1-2 people commuted per term by past governors.5 It was only through the work of groups like the California Coalition for Women Prisoners and Survived and Punished CA that we have seen this shift.6 The current Gov. Gavin Newsom could restore dignity to the roughly 10 percent of the prison population that is dying or elderly simply by initiating this clemency process.7 To date, he has only pardoned seven people.8 

And the truth is: the impact of incarcerating a Black woman is oftentimes two-fold. Most women in prison are mothers or the primary caregivers of their children -- deepening poverty and wreaking havoc on the physical, emotional and mental wellbeing of both mother and child.9 In places like NY, 75% of imprisoned women are mothers, and most lived with a minor child before prison.10 As a result of incarceration, children are literally taken away from their mothers. We owe it to these women to call on governors to do their part. 

John, you can urge your governor to end this criminalization by freeing our women and girls.

A prison will never be a place for rehabilitation. Hundreds of thousands of women and girls are currently incarcerated as a result of criminalization for what should be addressed as public health issues stemming from violence, poverty, mental health problems, and drug addiction. And Black women are even more vulnerable. Black women are the fastest-growing segment of the prison population in the United States -- making up 29 percent of the incarcerated population but only around 7 percent of the total population.11 

That's why there is a growing number of supporters who are organizing statewide coalitions demanding their governor to free Black women and girls from cages. We are urging governors to exercise their power to grant clemency and seriously consider commuting the sentences of women and girls who are survivors of violence, often imprisoned for defending themselves, their children, or their loved ones, those who are enduring sentences of more than 10 years, elderly women who can barely walk, and lastly those living with long-term or life-threatening illnesses. The truth is, these women deserve to go free. Join us in making sure the stories and lives of these women are heard.

John, will you call on your governor to exercise their clemency power?

Until justice is real, 

--Clarise, Rashad, Arisha, Scott, Erika, Malachi, Marybeth, Marena, Leonard, Madison, Tamar and the rest of the Color Of Change team

 References:

  1. "OKC Woman In Prison For Child Abuse Is Closer To Receiving Reduced Sentence." News 9 Oklahoma. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/178020?t=9&akid=36871%2E4731121%2EqCd0_8
  2. #FreeLiyah. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/177702?t=11&akid=36871%2E4731121%2EqCd0_8
  3. "Sentence is ‘bitter pill’ for mom claiming self-defense in fatal stabbing of boyfriend, attorney says." Twin Cities. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/177704?t=13&akid=36871%2E4731121%2EqCd0_8
  4. "Why Aren’t Democratic Governors Pardoning More Prisoners?" The New Republic. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/177812?t=15&akid=36871%2E4731121%2EqCd0_8
  5. Ibid.
  6. "Commutations Campaign." Survived and Punished. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/178164?t=17&akid=36871%2E4731121%2EqCd0_8
  7. "Why Aren’t Democratic Governors Pardoning More Prisoners?" The New Republic. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/177812?t=19&akid=36871%2E4731121%2EqCd0_8
  8. "In a rebuke to President Trump, Gov. Newsom pardons refugees facing deportation."https://act.colorofchange.org/go/177813?t=21&akid=36871%2E4731121%2EqCd0_8
  9. ACLU. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/177837?t=23&akid=36871%2E4731121%2EqCd0_8
  10. "The Gender Divide: Tracking Women's State Prison Growth." Prison Policy Initiative. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/177705?t=25&akid=36871%2E4731121%2EqCd0_8
  11. ACLU. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/177837?t=27&akid=36871%2E4731121%2EqCd0_8

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