More Than A Magazine, A Movement
“Propaganda against the state.” That’s one of the most frequent charges in politically motivated imprisonments in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Translated, it means “Thinking is forbidden and talking about your thoughts is a crime.”
My mother’s case burst my bubble and woke me up: Her case was not an exception, but a fate shared by hundreds if not thousands.
Coming out as my authentic self while in a violent maximum security prison for men was my only option.
I witnessed the worst misogynistic actions and attitudes of my fellow prisoners, but none of that mattered, because Patricia had to be set free to experience true freedom for the first time in her life.
Period poverty is one of America’s alarming—and often hidden—inequities.
As a member of Congress and as advocates, we share the belief that there is power in leveraging the law to help make healthy, dignified, stigma-free menstruation a reality for all.
Locking people up doesn’t make your community safer. However, helping people when they come home from prison does. We have to call for policy changes that end senseless collateral consequences for those who are system-impacted.
“My wife Nasrin Sotoudeh has been unjustly and cruelly imprisoned since June 2018 for her legal work representing Iranian human rights and women’s rights activists. … I call on the United Nations to conduct an independent investigation into all of Iran’s prisons, and for Qarchak women’s prison to be immediately closed. The dignity, health and safety of women, children and families everywhere demands no less.”
Latin America has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world, which further entrench abortion stigma and have a disproportionate impact on pregnant people from marginalized communities. Public prosecutors, the gatekeepers of the criminal legal system, can simply stop enforcing criminal abortion laws.
On 4/20, feminist conversations shift to the war on drugs and its disproportionate impact on Black and brown communities.
The 2.3 million people locked in the 6,000 correctional facilities around the country are our family members. They are our spouses, our children and our parents. They are human. Their care must be prioritized.
Millions of Americans have lost jobs due to COVID-19. For those with criminal records, it is even harder to get a job. The Clean Slate initiative hopes to pass legislation that will automatically clear criminal records for those who have been crime-free and are seeking new opportunities.
None of these women had a criminal history. They were all raised in abusive homes and victimized by abusive partners. And they all received life sentences.
