Criminal Justice

Palmira, Colombia, is one of the most violent cities in the world. But a prevention program focusing on youth has reduced crime significantly—and earned it an international peace prize. The city’s mayor on what’s working.

The late Lani Guinier thought deeply about the intersection between education and criminal justice. Her leadership at Open Society helped pave the way to colleges across the country offering higher education to the incarcerated.

Mónica Esparza’s case is one of the most notorious cases of extreme gender violence carried out by Mexican authorities. What her story teaches about how to combat the country’s scourge of gender-based violence.

Thanks to the heroic efforts of civil society groups, prisoners in Pakistan did not suffer a mass outbreak of COVID-19. What the near miss underlined, however, is the country’s urgent need for criminal justice reform.

Following 25 years of service, Herb Sturz retired from the Open Society Foundations in July. He leaves behind a legacy of work that lifted up lives, from the townships of South Africa to the classrooms of New York City.

Megan Rapinoe, co-captain of the World Cup–winning U.S. women’s soccer team, told a story about her brother’s struggles with addiction and incarceration. Here’s what we can learn from his story—and why prison breeds violence rather than making communities safer.

As a new report shows, draconian anti-drug policies in Latin America don’t just harm people who use or sell substances; they harm the children and families of the incarcerated, too. Thankfully, there’s a better way.