Utah Prisoner Advocate Network
UPAN | A nonprofit community advocacy group supporting the families of Utah inmates.
Attend a community gathering to discuss "Civilian Review Boards" and how they can be used to increase police accountability.
The Utah Sentencing Commission (USC) has released the 2015 draft of the Adult Sentencing & Release Guidelines based on the requirements of HB348.
The Utah State Legislature’s Prison Relocation Commission will meet August 11th at 2 p.m. to discuss the four finalist sites for a new Utah State Correctional Facility. The PRC may then vote to recommend one of the sites to the Legislature and Governor Herbert's consideration.
FAITH IN REFORM is an engaging, interactive mini-Summit to encourage and grow grassroots criminal justice reform efforts in Utah! This event is anyone and everyone who is working for positive change in their faith community, through their professional work, as part of a community organization or even totally on their own.
#Cut50 National Day of Empathy - Presented by League of Allies and UPAN
Britnee Webb of League of Allies, UPAN and others areorganizing an event focusing on creating empathy & humanizing the experience of prisoners and their families. Guest speakers, open forum, more info to come. Please invite anyone interested. We would love to have former inmates & their families present to speak in the forum. Ideally we want state officials, legislators & policymakers present, because this is who we are humanizing the experience for. We want them to see our inmates as more than numbers.
About #DayOfEmpathy
Day of Empathy is a national day of action to generate empathy on a massive scale for millions of Americans impacted by the criminal justice system.
In order to reform our criminal justice system, we must first humanize and empathize with those who are impacted by it.
The Day of Empathy will highlight the needs and share the perspectives of Americans impacted by the current justice system - from survivors of violent crime, those who are addicted or mentally ill, incarcerated individuals working to transform themselves, people with a criminal record desperately seeking a second chance, and all community members impacted by crime, public safety, and violence.
Without empathy, we cannot achieve meaningful policy changes that keep our communities safe, our families whole, and our economy strong.
There are thousands of people - mothers, daughters, children - who have stories to tell.
The Day of Empathy will shine a light on people impacted by the criminal justice system, uplift their voices, and win over hearts and minds towards the idea that transformation is possible.
HOW WE'LL DO THIS
On March 1st, 2017 organizations across the country will be activated for a single day of action to spotlight their local efforts and unite under a unified banner to highlight the strength of the bipartisan criminal justice reform movement.
"Ambassadors of Empathy" will meet with elected officials in State capitols and Governors' offices across the country. They will share their experiences and how they have been impacted by the criminal justice system. Legislators will gain first-hand experience of the human consequences of a criminal justice system that has gotten too big, too unfair, and too brutal.
The Day of Empathy will feature storytelling, digital media, and virtual realitycontent to humanize formerly incarcerated people, survivors of violent crime, and millions of others. By delivering a set of powerful, emotional experiences to lawmakers and fellow Americans, the Day of Empathy will accelerate the bipartisan drive to create more effective, efficient, and humane criminal justice system.
OUR TEAM
We have teamed up with storytellers, media industry insiders, technology leaders and policy experts with direct access to leaders in the U.S. Congress, the White House, criminal justice activists, major news outlets and technology pioneers.
NOT FOR RENT!, Metamora Films latest documentary film is being released and screened at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah. The feature length documentary film looks at rental housing barriers ex-felons face as they attempt to rebuild their lives in our communities. With over 95% of the American prison population being released at some point in the future, millions of ex-inmates struggle with ‘red tape’ and strict criminal history rental requirements property managers and landlords enforce. In this unique and powerful film, you’ll meet several people who’ve been personally affected by housing restrictions due to felony convictions.
The film screening is scheduled for April 5th, 2017 from 12:30pm to 2:30pm at the Wildcat Theater. The event is FREE and open to the public including Weber State students who will receive community engagement credit for attending the event. Thanks to the generosity of Dr. Monica Williams, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice at Weber State, University, the film release is part of the Engaged Learning Series, which is a university-wide series of events designed to engage students, faculty, staff, and community in discussion, debate, dialogue, learning, and action around an issue of public concern. For 2017, the series aims to raise awareness, improve personal behavior, and increase public engagement around the issue of “privilege.” In addition to the screening of NOT FOR RENT!, there will be guest speakers, a Q&A with the film’s director, Matt Duhamel, and a social hour with free lunch catered by Sodexho.
The Utah Prisoner Advocate Network (UPAN) will be present as a vendor with information on their organization, mission statement and how you can get involved in prisoner advocacy work in Utah and beyond
The Mission of Measures for Justice is to to use data to measure and understand county-level criminal justice system performance in all 3,000+ counties across the US. Their data portal aims to measure how the US criminal justice system is faring in three areas: Fair Process, Public Safety, and Fiscal Responsibility. Collecting this data every two years and updating this data regularly will increase its efficacy and usefulness to people who are directly impacted by the CJ system, organizations working to reform the system, and government agencies. It also has the potential to help solve long standing and newly developed criminal justice challenges. Currently, there is a gap in criminal justice data because of records being kept locally, and not measuring the same issues. Measures for justice will seek to provide context for responsible data interpretation, which will hopefully stem use of inaccurate or incomplete sources in trying to identify problems and solutions related to mass incarceration.
Do you want to engage on important issues during the upcoming 2018 Utah Legislative Session? Check out this special training from the ACLU of Utah. Does your schedule prevent you from coming to the Utah Capitol--but you still want to be an activist? Then the ACLU of Utah's CyberLobbying 101 Workshop is for you.
Day of Empathy is a national day of action to generate empathy on a massive scale for millions of Americans impacted by the criminal justice system.
In order to reform our criminal justice system, we must first humanize and empathize with those who are impacted by it. This includes crime survivors and those who have committed crimes.
The Day of Empathy highlights the need for #JusticeReformNOW and shares the perspectives of Americans impacted by the current justice system - from survivors of violent crime to those who are addicted to opioids or other drugs and those who mentally ill to incarcerated individuals working to transform themselves, people with a criminal record desperately seeking a second chance, and all community members impacted by crime, public safety, and violence.
Without empathy, we cannot achieve meaningful policy changes that keep our communities safe, our families whole, and our economy strong.
There are thousands of people - mothers, daughters, children - who have stories to tell.
The Day of Empathy shines a light on people impacted by the criminal justice system, uplift their voices, and win over hearts and minds towards the idea that transformation is possible.
Utah State legislators are invited to meet with constituents about criminal justice issues. Guest speakers will share their experiences with our system. If you are interested in speaking please email us at [email protected]. Find and invite your legislator to attend by visiting https://le.utah.gov. Free and open to the public.
Screening of the documentary film UNTOUCHABLE, produced by David Fiege. When the most powerful lobbyist in Florida discovers that the nanny has sexually abused his daughter, he harnesses his extraordinary political power to pass the toughest sex offender laws in the nation. UNTOUCHABLE chronicles his crusade, and its impact on the lives of several of the 800,000 people forced to live under the kinds of laws he has championed. The film interweaves intimate portraits of men and women who have been branded sex offenders with the heartbreaking stories of those who have suffered sexual abuse. It is a film that pushes viewers toward an uncomfortable place, requiring them to walk in the shoes of those who have survived sexual abuse, but to still bear witness to the experiences of those we revile. Free and open to the public.
On March 25th, hundreds of activists will meet with elected officials across all 50 states and in Washington, D.C., sharing their experiences and stories, and exemplifying the human consequences of a criminal justice system that has gotten too big, too unfair, and too brutal. Grassroots networks all across the country will be mobilized to spotlight their local efforts and unite under a unified banner to highlight the strength of the criminal justice reform movement. By bringing impacted people and their families together with elected officials and using media and storytelling to share their stories, we can create empathy on a massive scale for millions of Americans behind bars and their loved ones. Free and open to the public. Live stream on Facebook Live will be available.
