Netroots and Criminal Justice Reform

by Matt Kelley · 2009-04-08 05:48:00 UTC
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It has been two weeks since Sen. Jim Webb introduced the Criminal Justice Commission Act, and popular support is solidly on his side. An 18-month top-to-bottom study of the criminal justice system is the right political move right now, and he introduced the bill with a coalition of 19 co-sponsors in the Senate. Not a bad start. Now it's time to organize an online movement for criminal justice reform to support his efforts with a strong, consistent popular voice and a fundraising machine devoted to getting the bill passed and then supporting the commission it creates.

The media is largely on board (who'd expect anything else from those soft on crime lefties?) and twitter has been aflutter with talk of Webb's courage and the potential of this commission to spark real change. Here on change.org, 198 people have sent letters to their representatives in D.C. expressing support for Webb's Criminal Justice Commission.

What's the next step? How can we organize the broad grassroots support for this bill into a true movement to make this commission a reality - and then help it have an impact?

You can start by speaking up in favor of the legislation today. After that, can we encourage the nonprofits we support and work with to build a coalition for criminal justice reform around the proposed commission? Is it time for a criminal justice Move On?

I will be following Webb's legislation in this space and I'm curious about your ideas on building a grassroots coalition behind this bill. Let's work together to strengthen Webb's heroic and historic commission.

For a bit more background on the bill, watch Webb on the floor introducing the legislation here, and read the full bill here. Read recent editorials and columns on the bill from the Economist, Baltimore Sun, Seattle Times, Virginian-Pilot and Vancouver Sun.

Matt Kelley is the Online Communications Manager at the Innocence Project and a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. Follow him on Twitter @mattjkelley.
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