Areas of Focus
Partnering
Partnering with local grassroots and national organizations we create cutting-edge policy proposals, tools, trainings and other resources that help advance local priorities and shift policies toward non-carceral community safety models. By developing deep relationships with partners on the ground from the very beginning of a case or project, we are able to not only prevail in court with legal arguments based on intimate knowledge of the facts and systems, but also to help determine what policy changes can be made for the long term. These partners include community organizers, directly impacted people, policy advocates, government officials, journalists, researchers, and community groups building non-carceral alternatives.We provide counsel to local advocates and policymakers who seek to enact these policies. And working with our close partners, we undertake and coordinate advocacy at the local, state, and federal levels to make these law and budget changes possible.
The Futures Institute
As an advocacy partner of CRC, The Futures Institutes advances policies to create safe and thriving communities. Using policy research and design, state and federal advocacy, and youth engagement, we strive to transform how lawmakers approach public safety while guaranteeing all youth cradle-to-career opportunity.
The Community Safety initiative advances policies to transform how we manage crises and address the root causes of violence and harm. We seek to create new ideas, policy resources, and legislative proposals, as well as to undertake the creative, coalition-based advocacy necessary to actualize these ideas.
The Youth Thriving initiative focuses on youth safety and opportunity using multidisciplinary, cradle-to-career investments. By knitting together issues that range from housing, child care, and family supports to educational equity, afterschool programming, and apprenticeships, we center policy frameworks and coalitions that dismantle silos and advance child wellbeing holistically.
Erase the Database DC
Erase The Database DC (“EDDC”) is a coalition of community organizations and individuals working to dismantle the DC Gang Database, a discriminatory surveillance tool used by MPD since 2009 to target Black and Latinx people, youth, and public housing residents in the DMV area. This database–which MPD has admitted is inaccurate, ineffective, and highly problematic–criminalizes legal behaviors and designates people as “gang members” with little to no evidence. This results in racist policing with dream-deferring outcomes like an increased risk of being arrested, increased risk of being banned from public housing, and increased pre-trial and conviction enhancements. EDDC seeks to shut down this destructive database and support those who have been harmed by it, working towards a future where community safety is not rooted in criminalization.
Partnering
Partnering with local grassroots and national organizations we create cutting-edge policy proposals, tools, trainings and other resources that help advance local priorities and shift policies toward non-carceral community safety models. By developing deep relationships with partners on the ground from the very beginning of a case or project, we are able to not only prevail in court with legal arguments based on intimate knowledge of the facts and systems, but also to help determine what policy changes can be made for the long term. These partners include community organizers, directly impacted people, policy advocates, government officials, journalists, researchers, and community groups building non-carceral alternatives.We provide counsel to local advocates and policymakers who seek to enact these policies. And working with our close partners, we undertake and coordinate advocacy at the local, state, and federal levels to make these law and budget changes possible.
The Futures Institute
As an advocacy partner of CRC, The Futures Institutes advances policies to create safe and thriving communities. Using policy research and design, state and federal advocacy, and youth engagement, we strive to transform how lawmakers approach public safety while guaranteeing all youth cradle-to-career opportunity.
The Community Safety initiative advances policies to transform how we manage crises and address the root causes of violence and harm. We seek to create new ideas, policy resources, and legislative proposals, as well as to undertake the creative, coalition-based advocacy necessary to actualize these ideas.
The Youth Thriving initiative focuses on youth safety and opportunity using multidisciplinary, cradle-to-career investments. By knitting together issues that range from housing, child care, and family supports to educational equity, afterschool programming, and apprenticeships, we center policy frameworks and coalitions that dismantle silos and advance child wellbeing holistically.
Erase the Database DC
Erase The Database DC (“EDDC”) is a coalition of community organizations and individuals working to dismantle the DC Gang Database, a discriminatory surveillance tool used by MPD since 2009 to target Black and Latinx people, youth, and public housing residents in the DMV area. This database–which MPD has admitted is inaccurate, ineffective, and highly problematic–criminalizes legal behaviors and designates people as “gang members” with little to no evidence. This results in racist policing with dream-deferring outcomes like an increased risk of being arrested, increased risk of being banned from public housing, and increased pre-trial and conviction enhancements. EDDC seeks to shut down this destructive database and support those who have been harmed by it, working towards a future where community safety is not rooted in criminalization.
Projects and Coalitions
We collaborate with aligned organizations and grassroots movements to develop strategies unique to issue areas and communities. These microsites demonstrate the breadth of our efforts to create sustainable change.