New Report Advocates "Integrative Approach" to Increase Public Safety, Address Socio-Economic Disparities

The Open Society Institute has released a policy report, Moving Toward a More Integrative Approach to Justice Reform, as part of its ongoing "Behind the Cycle" project. Building upon policy research, interviews, and interdisciplinary discussion, the report:

• Advocates for increased interdisciplinary collaboration in research, advocacy, and policymaking to break the cycle of incarceration before it begins.
• Provides an in-depth analysis of the race and poverty dynamics of America's criminal justice system, and the various risk and protective factors for delinquent and criminal conduct.
• Describes conceptual approaches for understanding the cycle of incarceration and its impact on communities.
• Urges a shift in the policymaking paradigm from building more prisons and jails, to investing in "pre-entry" human service interventions to decrease the risk of crime.
• Presents eight recommendations for moving toward a more integrative approach to justice reform.

With recent forecasts suggesting continued rapid expansion of prison populations that drain limited public resources from health, education, transportation, and other state funding priorities, an integrative approach to justice reform offers a promising means of increasing public safety while addressing significant budgetary challenges.

An initial group of twenty research, advocacy, academic, and direct service organizations from the fields of education, family and child welfare, public health, criminal justice, poverty law, juvenile justice, housing, faith communities, human rights, youth development, and racial justice have endorsed the report's recommendations—demonstrating the broad support that exists for interdisciplinary collaboration to address "pre-entry" issues that contribute to the cycle of incarceration, and for moving toward a more integrative approach to justice reform.

These recommendations can, if implemented, seed and energize a new movement to promote more effective approaches to criminal justice issues and abate the disproportionate numbers of the poor and people of color cycling through the system.

Please consider joining this effort in one or more of the following ways:

1. Forward this report to colleagues and listservs.
2. Endorse the report's recommendations. OSI will be adding to the list of endorsements throughout 2008. Contact Nkechi Taifa and Catherine Beane to join the growing list of organizations that have already endorsed the report's recommendations.
3. Participate in the "Behind the Cycle" Working Group. Working together, we hope to define an interdisciplinary research, advocacy, and policymaking agenda that promotes a more integrative approach to justice reform and implements the report's recommendations. A meeting of the Working Group is set for April 2, 2008, in Washington, DC—details will follow soon.

We hope you share our enthusiasm for this initiative and its potential positive impact on people and communities across America. We look forward to your response—and to sharing our plans for the project's next steps. Please contact either Nkechi Taifa (202) 721-5618 ntaifa@osi-dc.org, or Catherine Beane (202) 270-4944 catherine@beaneconsulting.com with any questions.

Summary of Report Recommendations

• Establish an ongoing, interdisciplinary "Behind the Cycle" working group to further refine the ideas set forth in this report.
• Continue interdisciplinary outreach to expand participation in the working group.
• Circulate report and solicit endorsements for the concept of moving toward a more integrative approach to justice reform from organizations across multiple disciplines.
• Identify policy issues for interdisciplinary collaboration, research, and advocacy.
• Promote the utilization of integrative approaches to justice reform issues.
  • Convene a multidisciplinary gathering in December 2008 to promote the integrative approach to justice reform.
  • Disseminate information about integrative approaches to policy advocacy and integrative approaches to policy making.
• Advocate for the appointment of a National Advisor to the President on Integrative Justice Reform.
• Convene a National Blue Ribbon Commission on Poverty and the Cycle of Incarceration.
• Develop funding strategies to support integrative approaches to justice reform.

American Civil Liberties Union
http://www.aclu.org

Brennan Center for Justice
http://www.brennancenter.org

Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race & Justice
http://www.charleshamiltonhouston.org

Center for American Progress
http://www.americanprogress.org

Center for Law & Social Policy
http://www.clasp.org

Child Welfare League of America
http://www.cwla.org

Community Voices
National Center for Primary Care
Morehouse School of Medicine
http://www.communityvoices.org

Economic Policy Institute
http://www.epi.org

Families Rally for Emancipation & Empowerment
http://www.prisonfamiliescommunity.org/node/5

Fortune Society
http://www.fortunesociety.org

Grassroots Leadership
http://www.grassrootsleadership.org

International Community Corrections Association
http://www.iccaweb.org/

Justice Policy Institute
http://www.justicepolicy.org

National Center on Poverty Law
http://www.povertylaw.org

National Council of La Raza
http://www.nclr.org

National Debate Project
http://www.nationaldebateproject.org

National Juvenile Defender Center
http://www.njdc.info

National Juvenile Justice Network
http://www.njjn.org

National Legal Aid & Defender Association
http://www.nlada.org

Open Society Policy Center
http://www.opensocietypolicycenter.org

Penal Reform International
http://www.penalreform.org

Prisons Foundation
http://prisonsfoundation.org

The Rebecca Project for Human Rights
http://www.rebeccaproject.org

The Sentencing Project
http://www.sentencingproject.org

United Methodist Church
General Board of Church and Society
http://archives.umc.org

US Dream Academy
http://www.usdreamacademy.org