We Demand Freedom, Dignity, and Full Citizenship for All
For Ohio to be a place where every single Ohioan can belong and be fully integrated into their community.
Whether we’re Black, white, or brown, we want to live in communities where we feel safe and free. We want to live in neighborhoods where we feel like we belong – no matter our race or legal status.
But for too long now, certain politicians have supported inhumane laws that continue to penalize and criminalize our loved ones, long after they’ve done their time. Even after we’ve paid our debts, we still can’t access safe and secure housing, good jobs, or the same social resources that help others thrive.
As formerly incarcerated and directly impacted Ohioans, we deserve the freedom to thrive. We will no longer remain invisible or silenced.
From Youngstown to Columbus, Cleveland to Dayton, we’re joining together to fight for an Ohio where each and every single one of us can be free.
We’re fighting for an Ohio where we can live with dignity and self-respect.
An Ohio where we feel true belonging and citizenship.
An Ohio for all of us. No exceptions.
Policy Recommendations
End the punitive practice of collateral sanctions on over 949,000 Ohioans with felonies.
Secure money for developing low-income housing and rehab facilities.
Keep everyone safe, regardless of race, by helping people in crisis get the care they need — without the threat of police violence — by fully supporting the new 988 suicide and mental health crisis emergency line, continuing to expand the continuum of care and working with the Ohio Department of Medicaid to tap into federal Medicaid funds to expand non-police care response.
Reduce Ohio’s reliance on incarceration through reforms that move Ohio away from ineffective and racist strategies.
Implement new systems to collect sentencing data across jurisdictions and court systems statewide and use the data to drive fair and equitable sentencing reform that corrects the crisis of mass incarceration of Black and brown Ohioans.
