In California, slavery is still legal — as long as you're incarcerated. Incarcerated people are forced to labor for little-to-no-pay under threat of punishment. In November, California voters have the opportunity to change that by voting YES on ACA 8, the End Slavery in California Act.

I mentioned the Foresty & Fire Recruitment Program, which was founded by formerly incarcerated firefighters and which helps formerly incarcerated firefighers obtain careers in firefighting upon release from prison. For more info, check out https://www.forestryfirerp.org/.

For more about ACA 8 and the broader movement to #EndTheException, check out:

https://endtheexception.com/

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/27/californians-slavery-ban-ballot-initiative-00165466

https://laist.com/news/criminal-justice/california-voters-to-weigh-in-on-ending-forced-labor-in-prison

You may have heard recently about #flaggate - the scandals related to Supreme Court Justice Sam Alito flying flags at his homes in support of the Jan. 6th insurrection and Christian nationalism.

More news has also come out about Justice Thomas' corruption, specifically around his receipt of millions of dollars worth of gifts from GOP donors.

All of these developments are more reason to put pressure on Congressional Dems to put pressure on the Supreme Court, especially in light of this fall's presidential election. An ethics bill is not enough.

Did you know you can call your elected officials and share your thoughts on what matters to you? In this episode, I explain how to do that, why it matters, and how to stay informed on what your elected officials are up to.

To be connected to the offices of your federal elected officials, you can dial the congressional switchboard at 202-224-3121.

A couple of options of newsletters to sign up for to stay up to date on what Congress is doing: https://www.govtrack.us/; https://idueprocess.org/

I also mentioned that the Justice Reinvestment Coalition is hosting a training on May 23rd on how to provide public comment at public hearings. 1-4pm at the Cal Endowment in Oakland, CA. For more, check out the Justice Reinvestment Coalition on Instagram @jrcofac