Grassroots Criminal Justice Advocates Respond to Passage of Proposition 36
[LOS ANGELES COUNTY] — Fighting Proposition 36 was an uphill battle against a coordinated group of mega-corporations and MAGA special interests. Community members who know too-well the impacts of generations of criminalization fought against massive investments by supporters of Proposition 36 (more than $16 million) that more than doubled those of the grassroots resistance. This imbalance in funding allowed for a misinformation campaign that downplayed the true cost and horrendous impact of Prop 36. Voters deserved to know the truth.
Proposition 36 will strip more than $100 million per year from successful drug treatment, homelessness prevention, victims services, and prevention programs that keep California neighborhoods safe. Proposition 36 will also significantly grow the jail and prison population and make conditions and existing racial disparities in jails and prisons worse while exponentially increasing the risk of deportation for hardworking community members.
Californians United to Oppose Proposition 36 released the following joint statement:
“Yesterday, mega-corporations like Walmart, Home Depot, and right-wing special interests won out over the safety and wellbeing of our communities. The passage of Proposition 36 does not mean that voters believed it would make California safer, but rather that voters were deceived by false promises and misinformation spewed by the multi-million dollar campaign to ensure tough-on-crime policies return to our state.
“Californians deserve solutions to pressing issues of safety in our communities. Unfortunately, we know that Prop 36 is not the answer — and we know what lies ahead: less money for vital reentry programs, fewer services for those facing addiction and homelessness, more taxpayer dollars feeding already bloated correctional budgets, and more of our friends and neighbors sent to jail and prison — and for longer.
“Our campaign and allied efforts across the state proved on the doors and phones that when Californians learned the truth about Prop 36 — that it would hurt community safety rather than help it — they would reject it. While we are disappointed that Proposition 36 passed, we are proud of the people power that was built across the state. Black, Brown, and low- and no-income people are more aware than ever that their safety and livelihoods are at risk. We will continue to build our coalition — system-impacted and formerly incarcerated people, faith leaders, service providers, crime survivors and more — and advocate for real solutions to public safety rather than allowing California to slip further backward.”
La Defensa released the following statement:
Ivette Alé-Ferlito, (They/Them), Co-Founder and Executive Director, La Defensa, shared, “Our communities lived through the destruction that the Three Strikes Law caused. We fought hard to protect vital wins like Prop 47, and pushed back against the conservative attempt to return to an era of harsh punishment despite the lack of any substantive data that this is an appropriate approach. Given the heartbreaking passage of Prop 36 in California, here in LA County, we must continue aggressive investment in social services to offset the negative impacts of this state proposition, and meet the dire needs of our communities. We have laid groundwork to keep resisting—we are playing the long game for mass change, and we will win.”
The fight is not over. Prop 36 was just one of many attempts to criminalize and lock away Black, Latine, immigrant, and low income communities. Voters and community members alike want to live in safe and just neighborhoods, which are not achieved by policies that increase mass incarceration. At both the local and state level, we urgently need greater investments in evidence-backed solutions to heal our communities and continue the decades-long work to divert people into alternative community-based programs and close prisons and jails.
The choices made at the ballot not only determined the outcome of this proposition, but so many other races that will make it possible for advocates across the state to continue to advance positive lasting change that will truly make our communities safe and prevent the backslide into mass incarceration, criminalization of mental health, and the war on drugs.