ENJAN Zoom meeting this coming Wednesday, December 14th

 

We will have a special guest speaker at our next ENJAN Zoom meeting this coming Wednesday, December 14th from 6:30 to 8:00.  Casey Dalporto, Senior Policy Attorney for New York County Defender Services will be speaking with us on behalf of the Treatment Not Jail Coalition, which is gathering support for The Treatment Not Jail Act in New York State (S.2881B / A.8524A).  This proposed legislation aims to "provide off-ramps from the revolving door of jail and prison for those who are brought into the criminal legal system due to underlying mental health and substance use issues."  This legislation achieves this by significantly expanding access to and fine-tuning New York’s proven-effective treatment courts.  Casey will be speaking during the last part of the meeting from 7:30 to 8:00 pm. We have attached some additional information about Treatment Not Jail, including a flyer about a Treatment Not Jail Advocacy Day scheduled for January 31st in Albany.  More details can be found in the email below.  We hope you can join us on Wednesday to learn more about this important work.  Thank you.

The ENJAN Curators

 

 

Documentary on parole justice in New York State entitled "The Interview"

 

 

Please join us on Tuesday, December 13th at 6 pm for a viewing of a powerful short documentary on parole justice in New York State entitled "The Interview," which will be followed by a panel discussion with some of the people in the film and others with similar experiences. 

The event will take place at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship located at 67 South Randolph Avenue in Poughkeepsie. The showing is FREE and open to the public. We encourage everyone to sign up in advance here https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-interview-showing-tickets-474307736207 or you can send an email to me at isispascuala@gmail.com

Food and drink will be potluck. We encourage attendees to bring a cold dish or non-alcoholic refreshments. If you are interested in contributing to the potluck, please email Judy Beekman at judithbeekman@gmail.com to let her know what you plan to bring.

Please tell all your friends and family members. We hope to get a strong turnout. 

 

Awesome Foundation

 

We wanted to make everyone aware of an upcoming event.  Each month, Awesome Poughkeepsie, the City of Poughkeepsie chapter of Awesome Foundation gives out a $1000 grant to a City of Poughkeepsie community project each month.  These projects are selected by and funded by our neighbors!  On December 6th Awesome Poughkeepsie will be hosting an event to celebrate a successful three months of grant-giving in the City of Poughkeepsie and get the public in on choosing our next grantee!  The event will be held from 6:30 to 9:00 pm at Reason + Ruckus, 305 Main Street in Poughkeepsie.  The gathering is open to the public with cash bar and food available for purchase!  Votes will be $5 each!  See the attached flyer for details.

ENJAN is pleased to support any effort that helps to fund community projects that have social impact, particularly projects that may help keep community members from being negatively affected by the criminal justice system.  If you have a project idea or no others who have a project idea, Awesome Poughkeepsie is accepting applications now for the January grant.  Just visit their website:  awesomepoughkeepsie.com or send an email to: poughkeepsie@awesomefoundation.org.

Thank you.

The ENJAN Curators

Screening of the documentary "The Interview"

 Good Afternoon Fighters,

We would like to invite you to a screening of the documentary "The Interview" co-sponsored by RAPP (Releasing Aging People from Prisons), ENJAN (End the New Jim Crow Action Network), the UU of Poughkeepsie (Unitarian Universalist of Poughkeepsie) and the People's Campaign for Parole Justice. You can enjoy this impactful documentary and have some good conversations. This will also be a potluck and will give you a chance to prepare a dish you would like to share!

A little bit about the film: "The Interview" asks viewers to confront their feelings about justice and mercy while revealing the heavy toll our current legal system takes on incarcerated people and their families. You can take a look at the flyer for more information or email isispascuala@gmail.com.

This event will take place Tuesday 12/13 from 6pm-8pm at the Unitarian Universalist of Poughkeepsie (67 S. Randolph Ave. Poughkeepsie, NY 12601). There will be a panel discussion to take place after the showing! This Event is FREE and Open to the Public. Please reserve your spot here https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-interview-showing-tickets-474307736207 or email me at isispascuala@gmail.com to reserve your spot. We are looking forward to seeing you there!

In Love and Gratitude,

-Isis Benitez

WW4BL Virtual Rally

 Topic: WW4BL Virtual Rally: ONLY CARE FEEDS, HOUSES AND LIGHTS UP THE COMMUNITY.  POWER TO THE PEOPLE!
Time: Nov 20, 2022 03:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81918942027?pwd=MGgrdHFxZ3l3Yit3cDFFbDY5Uk9SUT09

Meeting ID: 819 1894 2027
Passcode: 110790

Who Needs Pilgrims?

 

Child Abuse Zoom

What Child Abuse Has To Do With It DCPAA Zoom online presentation with CPCA. Tuesday, November 15 7 - 8 pm Email us at OurDCPAA@gmail.com to get the Zoom link. Don’t Think Child Abuse Impacts You? Think Again. Learn from Rachel Johnson at The Center for the Prevention of Child Abuse (CPCA) on how prevalent abuse is right here in our local community, what it’s doing to families, how much its costing taxpayers, and how you can help stop it. Find out about the Child Advocacy Model and hear real stories of children who have been saved by the CPCA. Email: OurDCPAA@gmail.com to get the Zoom link.   Link to Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/686814585989561?ref=newsfeed

Screen of the documentary "The Interview"

 ENJAN Members,

I would like to invite you to a screen of the documentary "The Interview" co-sponsored by RAPP (Releasing Aging People from Prisons), ENJAN (End the New Jim Crow Action Network), and the People's Campaign for Parole Justice. You can enjoy this impactful documentary and have some good conversations and light snacks.

A little bit about the film: "The Interview" asks viewers to confront their feelings about justice and mercy while revealing the heavy toll our current legal system takes on incarcerated people and their families. You can take a look at the flyer for more information or email me at ajwm43gill@gmail.com

This event will take place THIS Thursday 11/10 from 6pm-8pm at the A.J. Williams- Myers African Roots Center (43 Gill St. Kingston, NY 12401). There will be a panel discussion to take place after the showing! This Event is FREE and Open to the Public. Please reserve your spot here https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/445516741567 or email me at ajwm43gill@gmail.com to reserve your spot. We are looking forward to seeing you there!

*We are working on bringing a screening of this to Poughkeepsie as well so please stay tuned for that!*

In Love and Gratitude,

-Isis Benitez

Town hqll on Crminal Justice Reform

We wanted to make everyone aware that the date and location for the Town Hall with Jillian Hanlon have changed.  This event will now take place at Buelah Baptist Church on Tuesday, November 1st.  The church is located at 92 Catherine Street in Poughkeepsie.  We hope to see you there.  A new flyer is attached.  Please spread the word.  Thank you.

The ENJAN Curators

Town Hall Discussion on Criminal Justice Reform

 

ENJAN Members, 

On Thursday, October 27th, the Northern Dutchess Branch of the NAACP is sponsoring a Town Hall discussion on criminal justice reform with Jillian Hanlon, the Democratic candidate for Dutchess County Sheriff.  The event will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the Family Partnership Center, which is located at 29 North Hamilton Street in Poughkeepsie.  For more information, you can send an email to RSVP@jillianhanlon.com.  We encourage you all to attend to learn more about this candidate and show your support for criminal justice reform.  We also ask that you spread the word about this important pre-election event.  A flyer for the event is attached.  Thank you.

The ENJAN Curators

Sun 9/25 Save the date

 

5th Annual ENJAN Gathering at Vassar College

Greetings Fellow Social Justice Friends!

The ENJAN (End the New Jim Crow Action Network) groups in Kingston and Poughkeepsie will be hosting our 5th Annual ENJAN Gathering at Vassar College's Aula at Ely Hall (please see the attached map for parking assistance) on Saturday, September 17th from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm.  Please note that there is a zoom webinar option as well in case you can't attend in person. To attend the webinar please register here https://bit.ly/3KzG0A1 (the link on the flyer is not clickable, but the QR code is scannable).  

The theme for this year's event is "No Rollbacks on Justice" and we have so many amazing enlightening speakers lined up as well as other social justice organizations looking to promote their information.  If you would like to share information about other organizations you work with, please email Isis Benitez isispascuala@gmail.com or Kevin Carswell at kgcarswell@gmail.com. 

Please note that we are encouraging folks to wear a mask, but not requiring it and delicious food and refreshments will be served. 

We look forward to having you attend in person or online September 17th.

With Honor and Fight,

-The ENJAN Gathering Committee

 

September 6, Pack the City Hall Meeting

Members of the Clean Slate campaign along with members of the Hudson/Catskill Housing Coalition will be discussing Clean Slate at the City of Poughkeepsie Common Council meeting scheduled for September 6th at 6:30 pm.  This is an IN PERSON meeting, so we encourage anyone who is able to attend to show up at the meeting to voice their support for Clean Slate.  A flyer for the "Pack City Hall" event is attached along with a general flyer from the Clean Slate NY campaign and some talking points about Clean Slate.  Thank you for your support.

The ENJAN Curators

Less Is More Act

 

As we approach the one-year anniversary of the Less Is More Act being signed into law on September 17, we have some exciting implementation updates to share. We learned from the Governor's office that all the retroactive earned time credits have been awarded, ahead of the September 1 deadline in the law. As a result, 12,930 people have been discharged early from community supervision since March 1, reducing the community supervision population across the state by nearly 40 percent!    DOCCS is still behind on awarding the credits people have earned since March 1 (these are separate from the retroactive credits). However, they are expected to be caught up on those by September 1. We are monitoring and working to resolve implementation issues, particularly with the hearing process. If you or a loved one is missing retroactive credits, please reach out to Emily from Unchained at emily@weareunchained.org.    We also recently launched a new page on the #LessIsMoreNY campaign website highlighting success stories from people who have benefited from Less Is More. Here's an excerpt from Rashaan's story: "I can now finally continue to do my work in the community with no barriers, visit my family without the fear of a curfew violation, and travel the world.”

Submit Your Own #LessIsMoreNY Story Here

Black August in Action

First aired August 23, 2022 on WPFW 89.3 FM

In this week's episode is a great one! Black Agenda Report, Executive Editor, Margaret Kimberley puts things into proper perspective about the return of "Trump Derangement Syndrome." We have a moving audio mix featuring the voices from “Black August In Action: Local Organizing for Political Prisoners”, a webinar by the Black Alliance for Peace (BAP). We go in deep with National climate and racial justice advocate, policy expert and BAP member, Anthony Karefa Rogers-Wright about greenwashing of the so-called climate provisions of the "Inflation Reduction Act" and Democratic party duplicity against Black and Indigenous communities. The show kicks off with the vision in the voice of brother Mumia Abu Jamal, giving a welcoming back Black Panther Party veteran Charlotte O’Neal. This show includes the song “Freedom Today!” by Jabbir and Derrick of Ex-Offenders United, and Eduardo Galeano’s poem, "The Nobodies" was read by Joseph Green.

Podcasts:

WPFW -  https://archive.wpfwfm.org/mp3/wpfw_220823_090000voiceswdiocoop.mp3

Player FM - https://player.fm/series/wpfw-voices-with-vision-1513300/voices-with-vision-tuesday-august-23-2022

Google Podcast - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcmNoaXZlLndwZndmbS5vcmcveG1sL3ZvaWNlc3dkaW9jb29wLnhtbA/episode/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcmNoaXZlLndwZndmbS5vcmcvbXAzL3dwZndfMjIwODIzXzA5MDAwMHZvaWNlc3dkaW9jb29wLm1wMw

iTunes - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/voices-with-vision-tuesday-august-23-2022/id1155206169?i=1000577108613

ENJOY!

FAIR WARNING: Our show is not for the politically faint of heart 😎

Lecture by Odell on Sept. 15

 

African Roots Center Open House and Community Meal 43 Gill St. August 20, 2-6 pm

Learn about the African Roots Center Find out how you can get involved Check out our collection of books and other materials Sign up to volunteer Share your ideas Become part of the African Roots Community Center Share a meal together

Attica Was Just the Beginning: Sat, Sep 10

As organizations that help the Hudson Valley Community, we would like to invite you to participate in our coalitional event "Attica was just the beginning." This community day is designed to remember the political protest at Attica by educating community members on the history of Attica and the fight for prison abolition.

One important aspect of this event is tabling, where participating organizations are able to talk about and promote the work they do. This is a free event, meaning that the selling of merchandise or vending is not allowed, but you can accept donations. 

The event will take place on Saturday, September 10, 2022 from 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM at the City of Poughkeepsie Waryas Park. If you would like to join please fill out the form in the QR code or linked below:

https://bit.ly/Attica22orgs

In community,

DHV

 

Fighting for the right to choose

 

Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro does not support a woman's right to control her reproductive health Molinaro - who is seeking a seat in the US Congress in an August special election - refuses to say how he would vote on a nationwide abortion ban (see Daily Freeman article) which we all know the Republicans will introduce if they get the majority in Congress in November.  Make sure to mark your calendars to VOTE in the Special Election August 23 for Democrat Pat Ryan for US Congress!  Molinaro must not be able to vote on our collective reproductive health as a US Congressman.

Please march with us tomorrow at The Women's March's WE WON'T GO BACK March Poughkeepsie, New York Corner of Main & Market Streets 10 Market St Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 Saturday, July 2 - 1:00 p.m.

We won't go back - Sat, July 2

DECISION DAY: WE WON'T GO BACK!

WE WON’T GO BACK

We Won’t Go Back
Corner of Main & Market Streets
10 market st
Poughkeepsie, NY 12603

Saturday, July 2, 1:00 PM

We will march down to waryas park! There will be *SOME* signage available and also shirts for sale!

Check out more events here https://map.wewontgoback.com/

------

In Love and Gratitude,

- Isis Benitez
(she/her/hers)

Juneteenth Celebration

We wanted to send out a reminder about two Juneteenth events this weekend:

Poughkeepsie Community Juneteenth Celebration

Saturday, June 18th, noon to 6:00 pm

Mansion Square Park

https://www.scenichudson.org/events/poughkeepsie-community-juneteenth-celebration/

ENJAN will be tabling at this event and we are still looking for volunteers to sit at the ENJAN table to hand out pamphlets and sign people up for our email list.  If you would like to volunteer for any amount of time during the event, please send an email to kgcarswell@gmail.com with the times you may be available to help out.

Celebrating Juneteenth: Imani Perry

Sunday, June 19th at 5:00 pm

The Bardavon 1869 Opera House

https://poklib.org/celebrating-juneteenth-imani-perry/

We hope to have a good turn out for both events.  Thank you.

The ENJAN Curators

Less Is More NY Campaign

 

This is a reminder to join our upcoming #LessIsMoreNY Campaign Update via Zoom, this Tuesday, May 24, from 2:30 - 3:30 pm. Register for the meeting here!                                                                                                                          Since March, many of the transformative provisions of the Less Is More Act went into effect and we are actively working to make sure these provisions are effectively implemented. So far, the Less Is More Act has led to more than 8,000 people being discharged from parole early, more than 1,500 people getting released from jails and prisons across the state, and aided in closing 6 prisons across NY.    Got questions about how the provisions of the law apply to you or a loved one and what else is needed in the implementation process? Join us for Tuesday's call as we will answer these questions and more!   Join us for our #LessIsMoreNY Campaign Update call on Tuesday at 2:30 pm!   During the campaign update call we will: Address your questions about #LessIsMoreNY Share updates about the status of #LessIsMoreNY and the efforts by opponents to repeal the law Discuss next action steps Provide details about how to get involved with the campaign to defend and implement the bill We hope you can join us on Tuesday to hear updates about the implementation of the Less Is More Act. Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions.   Best,   Unchained Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice

More details are available on the campaign website, www.lessismoreny.org   Kenyatta Muzzanni http://www.katalcenter.org/

Mental Health Marathon

Please reach out to Heather Ann Pitcher at 

hapitcher.namimh@gmail.com

for more information.

 

Moms Demand Action this Saturday, May 21st.

 

Increase the Peace

Mansion Square Park

165 Mansion St., Poughkeepsie, NY

Saturday, May 21st, 1pm

Saturday, May 21^st, we need Moms Demand Action Volunteers, some of whom will share their pain and grief of gun violence. Saturday’s event will officially begin at 1:00pm and end at 6:00pm.

Please wear your red shirts.

RSVP

Sweet Freedom Farm

 

Elder Justice Advocacy Day

Parole Justice is Elder Justice Advocacy Day

Date: Tuesday, May 10th 

Location: NYS Capitol, Albany (IN-PERSON); 

We will have buses leaving from Westchester so please RSVP if you will be attending! 
RSVP: bit.ly/ParoleJusticeMay10

Together with Brookdale Center for Healthy Aging, JASA, United Neighborhood Houses, the Osborne Association, and other leading older adult services providers, the People’s Campaign for Parole Justice is kicking off Older Americans Month, with a day of advocacy, rallies and community building in support of dignity, health and freedom for our elders.

Join us as we call on the New York State Legislature to pass Elder Parole (S.15A/A.8855) and Fair & Timely Parole (S.7514/A.4231A) to reunite families and bring our elders home!

Hope to have you join us,

Noel

 

Gun Sense in America

 

The Hudson Valley Local Group of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America are gathering with our community partners for a two-day "Increase the Peace" event to end gun violence. We'll be joined by 845 SNUG, NYAGV, CM2, Rebuilding Our Children and Community, Rise Up Kingston, along with Rob Pemberton, founder of Stop The Violence Movement for Increase the Peace.

Increase the Peace

Mansion Square Park

165 Mansion St., Poughkeepsie, NY

Friday, May 20th, 5pm

Saturday, May 21st, 1pm

We will begin that evening with a march for peace to end gun violence. At dark we will walk around POK neighborhoods with names and pictures of gun violence victims and candles as we begin our silent vigil. 

Continuing on Saturday, May 21^st, we need Moms Demand Action Volunteers, some of whom will share their pain and grief of gun violence. Saturday’s event will officially begin at 1:00pm and end at 5:00pm, officially marking 24hrs of INCREASING THE PEACE. 

 

If you can’t be there Friday and Saturday, please make Saturday’s event your priority.  Please wear your red shirts.

 

RSVP

Juneteenth in Poughkeepsie

 Juneteenth in Poughkeepsie Saturday 6/18 from 12pm-6pm

Please come out to the 2^nd Annual Memorial event for Theordore “Tree” Arrington. The Memorial & Juneteenth event will be held on Saturday 6/18 from 12pm-6pm at Mansion Square Park (165 Mansion St. Poughkeepsie, NY 12601). This is being held by Sharon Arrington & Cleopatra Jordan-J, with Keynote speakers Kashiem Davis & Jason Murray. There will be live performances, music, and free food. If you know of anyone that would like to volunteer or table please email Yvonne Flowers at YFlowers@cityofpoughkeepsie.com.

 

*Please note that masks are required*

Never heard of police foundations?

Never heard of police foundations? That’s the point.

Behind closed doors, police foundations and their corporate sponsors privately fund the ongoing militarization and expansion of policing — targeting Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities.

Color Of Change and LittleSis have compiled the most extensive report to date of the links between police foundations and corporations, identifying over 1,200 corporate donations or executives serving as board members at 23 of the largest police foundations in the country.