Team,

On Thursday, I introduced a resolution in Congress that put forth a bold new vision for America’s current criminal INjustice system.

I spoke with Rolling Stone Magazine about my personal experience when my father was incarcerated as I was growing up, and how my legislation is rooted in the experience and pain of those most impacted by our system of mass incarceration. An excerpt from our conversation is below. I hope you’ll take a moment to read it:

Along with your father, what else spurred you to put forth this House resolution?

These things are not developed top down. They’re informed by the people most directly impacted. And so, it’s based on those conversations that I continue to have in communities with the wrongfully convicted, with the children and with incarcerated caregivers, with people currently incarcerated. We also were spending time behind the wall with men and women to better understand you know how they arrive there and how they were being treated there.

The priority is mass incarceration. But we also know that we have to make sure that while people are incarcerated, we are prioritizing their humanity and their dignity and then best supporting them as they re-enter.

I introduced this resolution to dismantle and rebuild our fundamentally broken criminal legal system. We need a paradigm shift - away from the current mindset of relentless punishment and incarceration and towards a system based on restorative justice and decarceration.

Thank you for being a part of this movement to recognize every person’s innate humanity and end the trauma of mass incarceration.

In solidarity,

Ayanna Pressley

PS: Join our movement to end mass incarceration by making a grassroots donation today.