Advocacy

This year, CURB co-sponsored AB 1958 (Kalra), which would have addressed racism in our legal system by improving procedures for establishing a disparity claim under existing law, the California Racial Justice Act (RJA). 

This critical bill died on the Assembly Floor on May 28, when eleven Assemblymembers broke their stated commitment to vote Yes -- all because police unions opposed the bill at the last minute! We must hold these Assemblymembers accountable for turning their back on Black and Brown Californians harmed by racism in legal processes, and for bending to the influence of racist cop unions! Click HERE to see if this was your Assemblymember and take action.

Background on the Racial Justice Act/ Racial Justice Act 4 All: The California Racial Justice Act (RJA), first enacted in Assembly Bill 2542 (Kalra), extends civil rights in the courtroom to empower individuals to challenge racist conduct against them in their criminal court proceedings. With its successor, Assembly Bill 256 (Kalra), signed into law in 2022, everyone can use the RJA to challenge racism in their California state convictions or sentences. The passage of AB 1071 (last year) strengthens the RJA even further. Stay tuned for continued efforts to fully realize the RJA! 

CURB is an anchor coalition for and co-leads the Budget 2 Save Lives (B2SL) super collective, a workspace for budget advocates to collaborate on local and state budget issues in order to advance public health and our collective divest/invest goals. Focusing on budget analysis, a just transition to healthier economies, and the intersection of criminal legal reform and immigration, B2SL’s innovative advocacy training workshops help educate and prepare communities on how to fight for the resources they deserve. B2SL’s Campaign Coordinator is CURB staff member Michaé De La Cuadra. 

CURB is a proud member of the DropLWOP Coalition, whose mission is to end Life Without Parole sentencing in California. The #DropLWOP coalition supports those currently serving LWOP, no matter the conviction, through legislative change, public awareness and education, commutations, pardons, resentencing, and public awareness about the injustice of the LWOP sentence, the death sentence by another name. The coalition helped create Senate Bill 94 (SB 94), which would allow judges to provide judicial review for LWOP sentences for individuals who were sentenced to LWOP or sentenced to death.

CURB is a member of The Re-Imagine LA County Coalition (RELA) and serves on the  Coordinating Committee. In 2020, CURB co-led a public education campaign to re-imagine public safety that helped move over 2.1 million voters to pass Measure J, which permanently changed the County Charter to require a minimum of 10 percent of unrestricted revenue to go toward alternatives to incarceration and investments in Black and marginalized communities. 

RELA is the author of a Care First Budget. The coalition supports participatory budgeting and works diligently on Care First Community Investment (CFCI) and Measure J implementation, driving hundreds of millions of dollars toward public safety priorities like permanent supportive housing, harm reduction strategies and non-carceral form of community-based care.  

CURB is a founding member of the JusticeLA Coalition (JLA) and serves on the Executive Team. JLA was formed in 2017 from the community based advocacy of countless families separated by the largest jail system in the world. In partnership with grassroots organizations, advocates, directly impacted communities, and stakeholders, JLA works to reduce the footprint of incarceration by stopping jail expansion and reclaiming, reimagining and reinvesting dollars away from incarceration and into community-based systems of care. JLA successfully stopped LA County’s $3.5 billion jail expansion plan and helped co-create LA County’s Alternatives to Incarceration Workgroup report. Closing Men’s Central Jail is one of JLA’s key priorities.