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With a fraction of the global population, the United States incarcerates more people than any other nation. This is not an accident—it is the result of decades of systemic policy choices designed to criminalize poverty, target m generate massive profits for the private prison industry. True public safety does not come from militarized policing or filling jail cells; it comes from fully funded schools, accessible healthcare, and thriving neighborhoods.
People Demanding Action is committed to dismantling the prison-industrial complex and the systemic inequalities embedded within our legal system. We demand an end to the failed War on Drugs and the punitive policies that destroy families and trap millions in cycles of debt and incarceration. It is time to replace a system of retribution with one of restorative justice, rehabilitation, and community investment.
Ban the privatization of all federal, state, and local correctional facilities and immigration detention centers. Justice should never be a profit center for corporate shareholders.
End the predatory cash bail system that keeps legally innocent people locked up before trial simply because they cannot afford to buy their freedom, and eliminate extortionate court fines and fees.
Abolish draconian "three-strikes" laws and mandatory minimum sentences that strip judges of discretion. Allow courts to review and reduce excessive, decades-long sentences.
Decriminalize poverty and addiction by shifting resources away from policing and incarceration and toward comprehensive public health solutions, mental health care, and community-based harm reduction programs.
Automatically expunge the records of individuals who have completed their sentences for non-violent offenses. "Ban the Box" nationwide to eliminate barriers to employment, housing, and education for formerly incarcerated citizens.
