actions
news
![Fix the Racial Disparities in Oregon’s Prisons](http://web.archive.org./web/20160717105108im_/http://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/blue-icon-key-e1449264868450.png)
July 10, 2016
Fix the Racial Disparities in Oregon’s Prisons
In Oregon in 2014, 1 in 21 of all African American adult males was in prison. The Sentencing Project's Senior Research Analyst Ashley Nellis and Bobbin Singh, Executive Director of the Oregon Justice Resource Center, urge Oregon policymakers to take action to address the racial disparities in the state criminal justice system.
news
![One Robber’s 3 Life Sentences: ’90s Legacy Fills Prisons Today](http://web.archive.org./web/20160717105108im_/http://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/green-icons-fingerprint-e1449264726738.png)
July 04, 2016
One Robber’s 3 Life Sentences: ’90s Legacy Fills Prisons Today
People convicted of non-violent drug offenses make up only about 17 percent of state prison populations across the country, while people incarcerated for violent offenses make up more than 50 percent.
news
![Disenfranchisement News: Virginia GOP files suit to block 200K people from voting](http://web.archive.org./web/20160717105108im_/http://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/blue-icons-lock-e1449264798917.png)
June 16, 2016
Disenfranchisement News: Virginia GOP files suit to block 200K people from voting
Virginia GOP says the governor's executive order to restore voting rights to 200K people is unconstitutional, D.C. makes voting easier in jail, and more in Disenfranchisement News.
news
![Race & Justice News: Racial Disparities in Sex Offender Registration](http://web.archive.org./web/20160717105108im_/http://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/green-icons-scale-e1449264676916.png)
June 13, 2016
Race & Justice News: Racial Disparities in Sex Offender Registration
New study finds that sex offender registration across the country disproportionately affects black men, Department of Education urges university admissions to move "beyond the box," and more in Race and Justice News.
news
![Black Americans Incarcerated Five Times More Than White People](http://web.archive.org./web/20160717105108im_/http://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/yellow-icon-books-e1449264332498.png)
June 18, 2016
Black Americans Incarcerated Five Times More Than White People
Black Americans were incarcerated in state prisons at an average rate of 5.1 times that of white Americans in 2014. In some states that rate was 10 times or more, reports The Guardian.
news
![New Jersey Is a Leader on Criminal Justice Reform. So Why This Racial Disparity?](http://web.archive.org./web/20160717105108im_/http://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/purple-icons-column-e1449264467381.png)
June 26, 2016
New Jersey Is a Leader on Criminal Justice Reform. So Why This Racial Disparity?
New Jersey has led the nation in reducing its state prison population, achieving a 31% reduction since 1999, with no adverse effect on public safety. However, racial disparities in New Jersey prisons are the highest in the nation.
publications
June 21, 2016
Open Letter to President Barack Obama on Clemency
Unless President Obama personally intervenes to break a bureaucratic logjam, his clemency initiative will fall far short of granting the number of commutations for which people in prison are eligible. An open letter to the President from a broad coalition of criminal justice reform advocates, former judges and prosecutors, and legal scholars urges him to act.
publications
June 14, 2016
The Color of Justice: Racial and Ethnic Disparity in State Prisons
African Americans are incarcerated in state prisons across the country at more than five times the rate of whites, and at least ten times the rate in five states. This report documents the rates of incarceration for whites, African Americans, and Hispanics in each state, identifies three contributors to racial and ethnic disparities in imprisonment, and provides recommendations for reform.
news
![State Advocacy Update: Strategies for Grassroots Advocacy and Coalition Building](http://web.archive.org./web/20160717105108im_/http://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/green-icons-column-e1449264737715.png)
June 07, 2016
State Advocacy Update: Strategies for Grassroots Advocacy and Coalition Building
Many advocates will take the summer to revisit their strategies and identify tactics to ramp up efforts for next session.