The International Institute for Justice and the Rule of Law Holds Workshop

December 14, 2016

Washington – The International Institute for Justice and the Rule of Law (IIJ), with grant funding from the United States, hosted a global workshop in Valletta, Malta on December 12-13, 2016, on efforts to address prison radicalization. Prison officials from a number of countries and representatives from international organizations and NGOs compared notes on global and regional trends regarding radicalization to violence in prisons. They reviewed and discussed a range of reference tools, which included handbooks as well as good practices and recommendations documents aimed at addressing prison radicalization that have been developed over the past two years by international experts. They also shared specific experiences and insights related to prison radicalization, such as risk assessments, housing of terrorist inmates, and rehabilitation.

Representatives from Algeria, France, Italy, Ireland, Indonesia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Netherlands, Malaysia, Morocco, Nigeria, Niger, Spain, Tunisia, the United Kingdom, and the United States attended. Experts from Penal Reform International, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, the UN Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute, the Global Center on Cooperative Security, and the International Counterterrorism Center – The Hague also participated.

Research into the causes of violent extremism has shown that prisons often play an important role as incubators of radicalization for disenfranchised individuals. Some of the terrorists who played a role in recent terrorist attacks in Paris, Copenhagen, and Brussels may have been radicalized to violence while in prison. Through this global workshop and subsequent regional events, we seek to promote the knowledge and use of numerous recently-developed reference tools that provide examples and guidance on how to mitigate, detect, and address prison radicalization and recruitment. In addition, these workshops will help underscore that sound prison policies and procedures can help minimize opportunities for recruitment within prisons and help prison officials to deal effectively with radicalization within their facilities. Finally, this workshop consolidates information that may have been presented at previous workshops and training sessions focused on the management and rehabilitation of terrorist inmates.

US Senator Corey Booker on Criminal Justice Reform – Fair Chance Business Pledge

Washington, DC – If someone had pulled aside the signers of the Declaration of Independence 240 years ago and told them that, one day, the country they founded would be home to the largest number of imprisoned people in the world, they might have been more than a little disappointed.

US Congressman Corey Booker (official congressional photo)

Yet this is where we find our country today: The United States, founded on the basis of liberty and justice for all, suffers from that distinction. Twenty five percent of all imprisoned people on our planet are imprisoned right here in America. And the fact of the matter is that, at the federal level, the majority of those imprisoned aren’t hardened, violent prisoners. Far too many are nonviolent, low-level drug offenders.

Thanks to policies enacted by Congress, our federal prison population has exploded by nearly 800 percent over the past the 30 years. And to pay for it, we’ve had to increase our prison spending by almost 400 percent. But the fact that these polices were enacted by our government in the first place should serve as a reminder that we have the agency to change them.

Momentum is building across America — in states, in the federal government, in both political parties — to change this misapplication of justice that so grossly misrepresents our priorities as a nation.

A diverse coalition of individuals, groups, and organizations — ranging from Democrats to Republicans to law enforcement officials and clergy — have come together to call for a comprehensive change in the trajectory of our justice system. And under President Obama’s leadership, the collective vision of these groups has found a home and a voice in the White House.

I have been proud to stand by President Obama as he has taken courageous steps in recent years to make our justice system more just.

Today, the White House is announcing that over 300 companies and organizations have signed the Fair Chance Business Pledge, a commitment to eliminate unnecessary hiring barriers facing people with a criminal record. Along with this step and a series of Administrative actions to enhance the fairness and effectiveness of the criminal justice system, he’s shown that the federal government can lead the way to progress.

President Obama has created a legacy of bold action that we must carry on to elevate the cause of criminal justice reform, from Congress to statehouses across the country.

But the conversation can’t stop there, and neither can the work. We must once again declare that we are a nation of independence, rooted in the spirit of interdependence. What happens to any of us, happens to all of us — and we won’t get where we want to go faster by leaving anyone behind.

I look forward to standing shoulder to shoulder with you in this fight to reclaim our criminal justice system in the years to come.

Thank you,
Cory Booker
U.S. Senator

Alejandra Y. Castillo Receives National Urban League’s “Women Of Power” Award

WASHINGTON (Aug. 9, 2016) —  The National Director of the U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), Alejandra Y. Castillo received the National Urban League’s (NUL) “Women of Power Award” during the 2016 “Women of Power & Business Leaders Awards Luncheon,” Aug. 4 at the Baltimore Convention Center. The “Women of Power” award is designed to recognize women leaders who are making an impact in the world of arts, politics, journalism, justice and sports.

“I am incredibly honored to receive this award from the NUL and to be in the presence of so many dynamic and powerful women, past, present and future,” said MBDA National Director Alejandra Y. Castillo. “It’s so important that we continue to celebrate and support one another. This is one way that we can help ensure even more women are in position to lead, grow and contribute to the success of our nation.”

Other 2016 honorees included; White House Senior Advisor Valerie B. Jarrett, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Urban League of Broward County Dr. Germaine Baugh-Smith, Fellow and Vice President of Community Investment for Comcast Corporation and Executive Vice President of the Comcast Foundation Charisse R. Lillie, Esq., and President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Planned Parenthood Action Fund Cecile Richards.

The awards luncheon was part of the 2016 National Urban League Conference: Save our Cities: Education, Jobs and Justiceheld Aug. 3-6 in Baltimore. The annual conference also featured a career and networking fair, entrepreneur summit, young professional’s summit, and information sessions and workshops on topics relating to education, business, the economy, health, and justice.

Past “Women of Power” award winners include MSNBC/NBC Anchor Tamron Hall, Treasurer of the United States Rosie Rios, Professional Boxer Laila Ali, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan E. Rice, Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice, President, Morehouse School of Medicine and hip-hop legend, entrepreneur and philanthropist, MC Lyte.

MBDA National Director Alejandra Y. Castillo receives her “Women of Power” Award from National Urban League President Marc H. Morial and CBS Correspondent Michelle Miller during the 2016 Women of Power & Business Leaders Awards Luncheon In Baltimore.Photo:prnewswire