Executive Summary It is time for a wealth tax. The medical and economic hardships produced by the coronavirus pandemic are falling most heavily on people who were already most disadvantaged. College-educated Americans are three times more likely to be able to work from home than workers with no education past high school, and those who […]
Expansion of an existing federal rental subsidy program, the Housing Choice Voucher, could stabilize housing for millions of households. This research and analysis is part of our Discourse series. Discourse is a collaboration between The Appeal, The Justice Collaborative Institute, and Data For Progress. Its mission is to provide expert commentary and rigorous, pragmatic research […]
Executive Summary The coronavirus pandemic has created a global food security crisis that threatens to eclipse the disease itself. A recent survey by the Brookings Institution revealed unprecedented numbers of children going hungry in the United States. In late April, close to one in five households with young children did not have enough food for […]
The Fed’s new Municipal Liquidity Facility can be a necessary financial lifeline to states facing a cash crunch — but only if they use it properly and completely. This research and analysis is part of our Discourse series. Discourse is a collaboration between The Appeal, The Justice Collaborative Institute, and Data For Progress. Its mission […]
Executive Summary The First 72+, a nonprofit in New Orleans that works with people reentering society after incarceration, keeps an office directly across from the New Orleans Parish Jail. This makes it easier for people who are released from jail to walk across the street and immediately receive a helping hand. But because of the […]
Executive Summary In November of 2019, a group of us,—mothers and our children—those of us who would later become known as Moms 4 Housing, moved into a house on Magnolia Street in Oakland that had been vacant for two years. Our decision was a practical one—we needed a place to raise our children. Homelessness was […]
Executive Summary The coronavirus pandemic has compounded North America’s overdose crisis. Just in the United States, drug overdoses have already claimed nearly a half million lives since 1999. Now authorities across the country are reporting a surge in overdose deaths as part of the pandemic fallout, with fatality rates rising by 100% in some counties. […]
Executive Summary Despite the failures of those in government to include gig workers in social safety net protections, recent polling conducted by Data for Progress shows that voters support extending to gig workers the same job benefits and protections that employees enjoy by a 44-percentage-point margin (62% support, 18% oppose). Voter support for gig workers […]
Executive Summary The brutal economic fallout of coronavirus has not been felt equally. As is always true in times of economic crisis, it is the lowest-paid, least-protected workers who suffer most. As is especially true now, when the economic downturn is the result of orders to stay at home and close certain businesses, it is […]
An overwhelming majority of Americans support the federal government paying all healthcare costs for the duration of the coronavirus emergency. This research and analysis is part of our Discourse series. Discourse is a collaboration between The Appeal, The Justice Collaborative Institute, and Data For Progress. Its mission is to provide expert commentary and rigorous, pragmatic […]
Americans overwhelmingly support imposing a merger moratorium on large corporations and private equity firms. This research and analysis is part of our Discourse series. Discourse is a collaboration between The Appeal, The Justice Collaborative Institute, and Data For Progress. Its mission is to provide expert commentary and rigorous, pragmatic research especially for public officials, reporters, […]
Executive Summary Earlier this year, California Governor Gavin Newsom gave a speech where he spoke about the extreme level of homelessness in the state, saying, the “California Dream is dimmed by the wrenching reality of families, children, and seniors living unfed on a concrete bed.” The governor’s speech was in the middle of February, when […]
As the coronavirus crisis continues to expand, it is clear that America needs a robust assistance program for the most vulnerable, such as the elderly and physically disabled, to ensure they have what they need to survive. The health, safety, and stability of all communities depend on it. This research and analysis is part of […]
Executive Summary Rural communities have certain traits that make them particularly vulnerable in a pandemic. On the whole, people living in rural regions are poorer, older, and less healthy. One in three rural counties has a poverty rate over 20%. More than half of all births at rural hospitals are covered by Medicaid. Rural communities […]
Executive Summary Forced in this moment to reflect on this new reality—and this new recognition of our shared vulnerability—the vast majority of Americans believe that many of our responses to this crisis have, so far, been woefully inadequate and left too many people behind. Indeed, while the virus poses a threat to us all, we […]
Executive Summary California has quickly become one of the epicenters for the coronavirus pandemic. To date, the state has one of the highest infection rates and over 500 deaths from the coronavirus. The Center for Disease Control currently predicts that the United States will see around 200,000 deaths even if citizens practice “social distancing,” which […]
Executive Summary In recent weeks, the humanitarian disaster that doctors and public health experts predicted has turned into reality: COVID-19 has reached prisons and jails in California and across the country, sparking outbreaks that threaten the lives of incarcerated people, staff, and surrounding communities. California’s elected prosecutors — the district attorney in each county — […]
Executive Summary Public defenders are tasked with the unenviable job of representing some of the most vulnerable people in society when they are accused of crimes with insufficient resources and limited public support. Premal Dharia, founder and director of the Defender Impact Initiative, said, “Public defenders are on the front lines of the devastation wrought by […]
Executive Summary Nearly 3 in 4 Americans have now been ordered to stay home and remain indoors, while many states have ordered non-essential businesses to shutter. These steps may seem drastic, but they are being taken in order to safeguard public health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Government actors who are truly serious about protecting people […]
Executive Summary Voters, as shown through polling by Data for Progress, across all party lines want their government officials to take bold steps to protect people from losing their homes and falling into financial despair, including bi-partisan support for each of the following: 79% would support a ban on rent increases for as long as […]
Executive Summary New polling finds strong bipartisan support for recurring government payments to Americans, rather than a one-time payment. This research and analysis is part of our Discourse series. Discourse is a collaboration between The Appeal, The Justice Collaborative Institute, and Data For Progress. Its mission is to provide expert commentary and rigorous, pragmatic research […]
Executive Summary Voters want the government to take common sense measures that meet the scale of the crisis and preserve the economy so that when the coronavirus is contained, economic life can resume as rapidly as possible. It’s time for lawmakers in Washington, D.C. to listen. This research and analysis is part of our Discourse […]
Executive Summary We asked California voters if they support releasing people from California jails and prisons in response to the coronavirus threat, and found broad bipartisan support: 58 percent of Californians, including a majority of Republicans, support releasing anyone charged with an offense that does not involve a serious physical safety risk to the community. […]
Executive Summary On April 2, the National Juvenile Defender Center likewise issued a statement on the urgent need to halt new detentions and release all youth who can safely return home to their families or caregivers. In a national poll, we found broad bipartisan public support for releasing early some youth held in detention: Sixty […]
Executive Summary Today, tens of thousands of immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers are at risk of contracting the coronavirus because of the current punitive immigration enforcement regime in the United States. Amidst the calls for “self-isolation,” thousands of immigrants are herded into detention facilities, which, for all intents and purposes, are prisons, where we know […]
Executive Summary As the number of cases of COVID-19 in the United States continues to sharply increase, and as city, state, and federal officials take increasingly aggressive moves to contain the virus’s spread, it is critical to understand the significant role our nation’s more than 2,800 county jails may play in spreading the disease, not […]
Executive Summary On any given night in the United States, federal government data shows that over 500,000 people do not have a home, a count that dramatically underestimates the scope of the problem. The core problem has consistently been lack of access to affordable housing, brought on by bad policy and refusal to take common-sense, […]
Executive Summary Public health experts agree that jails and prisons pose special risks to the spread of the coronavirus. These risks extend to the incarcerated, and to the correctional officers, medical professionals, and other people who work inside and visit jails and prisons. Moreover, because these workers and other vendors travel in and out of […]
Executive Summary We find popular support among likely voters for a package of proposals that will mitigate the effects of coronavirus, including free access to testing and vaccines, access to comprehensive care without premiums, copays, deductibles, or other costs, and paid sick and family leave. Overall, voters overwhelmingly support these policies. Free access to testing, […]
Executive summary The U.S. is a world-leader in incarceration, and the unprecedented number of people serving decades-long and life sentences is a major reason for America’s outlier status. In recent years, despite an emerging bipartisan consensus around the need for criminal justice reform, there has been insufficient action to address people serving lengthy sentences who […]
Over the past decade, a growing number of cities, counties and states have recognized the profound injustice of a cash bail system, in which people who can afford bail walk free while those who can’t are detained. But that awareness gives rise to a thorny question: What should replace it? How should judges decide whom […]
In our Explainer series, Justice Collaborative lawyers, journalists, and other legal experts help unpack some of the most complicated issues in the criminal justice system. We break down the problems behind the headlines—like bail, civil asset forfeiture, or the Brady doctrine—so that everyone can understand them. Wherever possible, we try to utilize the stories of […]
In our Explainer series, Justice Collaborative lawyers and other legal experts help unpack some of the most complicated issues in the criminal justice system. We break down the problems behind the headlines—like bail, civil asset forfeiture, or the Brady doctrine—so that everyone can understand them. Wherever possible, we try to utilize the stories of those […]
How a 60-year-old legal doctrine lets law enforcement officers off the hook for violating civil rights.
In September 2018, President Trump stood in front of 44 sheriffs as he began another diatribe against the New York Times and other media outlets that had published stories criticizing his administration. The sheriffs applauded. The meeting was originally scheduled to be between the sheriffs and officials from ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Getting a […]
In May 2016, 26-year-old Caleb Smith was prepping for medical school entry exams, and ordered what he thought was Adderall off the internet to help him study. After the package arrived at his home in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, his girlfriend, 26-year-old Amanda Leach, asked to try some. Smith obliged, and days later, Leach was found dead […]
In our Explainer series, Justice Collaborative lawyers and other legal experts help unpack some of the most complicated issues in the criminal justice system. We break down the problems behind the headlines—like bail, civil asset forfeiture, or the Brady doctrine—so that everyone can understand them. Wherever possible, we try to utilize the stories of those affected by […]
In Georgia, a man stole a can of beer worth $2 from a corner store. The court ordered him to wear an ankle monitor for a year. The company administering it, Sentinel Offender Services, charged him so much money that he eventually owed more than $1,000. Trying to keep up with his payments, he sold […]
In our Explainer series, Justice Collaborative lawyers and other legal experts help unpack some of the most complicated issues in the criminal justice system. We break down the problems behind the headlines—like bail, civil asset forfeiture, or the Brady doctrine—so that everyone can understand them. Wherever possible, we try to utilize the stories of those affected by […]
In our Explainer series, Justice Collaborative lawyers and other legal experts help unpack some of the most complicated issues in the criminal justice system. We break down the problems behind the headlines—like bail, civil asset forfeiture, or the Brady doctrine—so that everyone can understand them. Wherever possible, we try to utilize the stories of those affected by […]