SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Thousands of people will be disenfranchised in this
November’s election – and thousands more face daily discrimination due to
their status as former prisoners. But at this Saturday’s Peace and Justice
Community Summit, a rare grouping of elected officials, community leaders
and formerly-incarcerated people will join to fight that discrimination, and
create a real vision for public safety in San Francisco.

The summit is sponsored by Public Defender Jeff Adachi, State Assembly
Member Mark Leno, and All of Us Or None, a grassroots civil rights movement
dedicated to building political power for people in communities devastated
by mass incarceration.

This is the first time that formerly-incarcerated people as a group will
join together in San Francisco to advance an agenda of ending post-release
discrimination and to present a vision of public safety that is based on
supporting the well-being of all members of our communities.

In this November’s election, 60% of the 5,404 people in jail, prison and/or
on parole from the county of San Francisco are not able to vote, according
to the California Department of Corrections. The remaining 40% – those in
county jail facilities - most likely won’t vote because they aren’t aware
they are eligible, according to Dorsey Nunn of All of Us or None:

"I thought that I had lost my right to vote forever because of my felony
conviction – and I have spoken with many others who believed the same,"
said Nunn. "We need to let people know the truth. The only people who are
barred from voting in California are those currently in state prisons or
completing their parole."

Formerly-incarcerated people will also make specific demands of elected
officials and community leaders to stop the discrimination they face in
housing, employment, public assistance, parental rights, and education. "The
difficulties faced by people upon release from prison are a social, not an
individual, problem. This needs to be addressed by elected officials in
order to support healthy community reintegration and prevent recidivism,"
states Public Defender Jeff Adachi, co-sponsor of the Summit.

As State Assembly Member Mark Leno, Chairman of the Assembly’s Committee on
Public Safety, points out, "Discrimination against formerly-incarcerated
people and their exclusion from social services jeopardizes public safety
because of their difficulties surviving, living healthy and staying out of
prison. This is an issue that concerns us all."

The public is urged to attend the San Francisco Peace and Justice Community
Summit: Saturday, October 23, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the City of Refuge
Community Church, 1025 Howard Street in San Francisco. Childcare and a
community lunch will be provided. This Summit is being sponsored by All of
Us or None, Sr. Ex- Offenders Program, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff
Adachi, and State Assembly Member Mark Leno.

peace with justice for all,
Abridging my civil liberties is an ‘act of terrorism’!
There’s a terrorist behind every BUSH!

john vance, editor: jvance@riseup.net
Peoples Bark News Berkeley

Tags: Saswat, Racism, Capitalism, USA