Louisiana Center for Children's Rights

It's been reported by Prison Policy that "over 48,000 youth in the United States are confined in facilities away from home as a result of juvenile justice or criminal justice involvement." As we take the next several days to reflect, relax, and recharge, we continue to keep our clients and their families in the front of our minds. We know and fundamentally understand that children thrive best when they remain in their communities, not only during this holiday season but every single day of their developing lives.⁠ ⁠ Despite our state legislators repealing #raisetheage earlier this year and looking to remove the constitutional guardrails for children to be transferred to adult court during an upcoming special election in March, we agree that "legislators should continue to update laws to reflect our current understanding of brain development and criminal behavior" not create additional "tough-on-crime" policies that look to further criminalize, surveil, and imprison even younger children regardless of offense, especially in adult jails and prisons.

"In our juvenile life without parole work, I read police reports before going to see a kids in jail for the first time, and I realize that I form an image in my mind, subconsciously, of what the kid is going to be like based on what I read or based on what media there was about the case. And every single time, that image completely incorrect." 🟠🔵🟠🔵🟠 LCCR Legal Director, Hannah Van De Car received the Lucy McGough Juvenile Justice Award from the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (LACDL) for her involvement with juvenile justice issues that affect our justice systems daily at the 37th Annual Justice Albert Tate, Jr. Awards Banquet. Major congrats to Hannah for this recognition and awesome accomplishment!

“I want to be able to tell stories that resonate with my young people and really drive home the importance of the message." - Shon Williams⁠ ⁠ 🔵🟠🔵🟠🔵⁠ ⁠ We're proud to announce that our Reentry Specialist, Shon was recently accepted into the Greater New Orleans Foundation’s Emerging Leaders Program! This program is specifically tailored to BIPOC leaders working in youth development, making it an ideal fit for Shon and his youth reentry work. He's particularly excited about improving both his communication and leadership abilities to better serve his community.

"To support each child fully, LCCR has developed a comprehensive defense model that pairs every child with a dedicated team of... a staff attorney, a youth advocate, a social worker, and an investigator to address their unique needs, both in and outside the courtroom. This approach helps LCCR look beyond the charges and consider the child’s background, environment, and individual circumstances." 🔵🟠🔵🟠 We're excited to announce that we've been featured in December's NOLA Family Magazine for their organizational spotlight! Learn more about our holistic approach to juvenile public defense, statewide policy work, and what the future could hold for LCCR here: https://lnkd.in/gcc5y35H

#GivingTuesday is here, which is an important day to join us in supporting children involved in Louisiana's legal system. Our board will be doubling any gifts made between BEFORE noon today! DOUBLE your impact, which will greatly help our work keeping kids in their homes, schools, and communities by clicking here: https://lnkd.in/eFhMX4uh

"We want people to be healthy happy productive citizens in our community. It's very hard to do that by removing them from the community and then putting them in hyper-violent institutions, I think we need to be focusing on alternatives to the current system.” - Aaron Clark-Rizzio 🟠 🔵 🟠 🔵 Our Legal Director was a panelist during this week's Common Ground Speaker series curated by The Neutral Ground, where crime, incarceration, and justice were the topics. Learn more about the series here:

“Prison can have horrible effects on children’s mental health and can often worsen pre-existing struggles by interrupting a child’s social development and education. Tyrell needed help.” 🔵🟠🔵🟠 Learn more about how Tyrell’s LCCR team helped him manage his mental health, return to school, lead to him attending college full-time with support from his family members here:

"There’s this perception that Black kids that make mistakes are not also our children. We’re not seeing the children in our community and city as ours or as the future. If we did, we’d be more intentional in how we speak about them, interact with them, and teach them.”⁠ ⁠ 🔵🟠🔵🟠⁠ ⁠ One of most recent additions to the LCCR team is our first ever Strategic Storyteller, Cierra Chenier. Within her role, Cierra will be leading LCCR’s efforts to combat the harmful narratives surrounding Black youth and work with LCCR’s policy team, the Youth Justice Advocates, and other community partners and allies to develop campaigns aimed at changing how the public views Black teens in our city. ⁠ ⁠ Despite the likelihood that Black youth in Louisiana are five times more likely to be incarcerated than their white counterparts, they too are like any other kids who want to be safe, loved, and cared for by their community. When they make mistakes, as all teens do, they need to be afforded the opportunity and grace to learn from those mistakes in an age-appropriate ways that don't include incarceration. We look forward to seeing the fruits of Cierra's campaign work take shape in the new year and hope that you'll join us in rejecting narratives that not only sow seeds of fear of our children but also further criminalize them. Learn more about Cierra and the Strategic Storyteller role by clicking here: https://lnkd.in/gX4Dh9tx

We are...⁠ ⁠ 🟠 A nonprofit law office that stands with kids in the legal system no matter what.⁠ ⁠ 🟠 Tackling the systemic issues that criminalize mostly poor, Black youth.⁠ ⁠ 🟠 Working to ensure Louisiana youth thrive in their homes and communities, not in jails or prisons.⁠ ⁠ 🟠 And are currently hiring for a Policy Associate! ⁠ ⁠ Learn more about this position by clicking the #linkinourbio. #nowhiring #jobopportunity

"We cannot break a cycle of harm and trauma by continuously incarcerating our children." - Renard Bridgewater, LCCR Comms Manager⁠ ⁠ 🔵 🟠 🔵 🟠⁠ ⁠ Thanks to Alyssa Curtis for highlighting #YJAM2024, last week's film screening with the Center for Youth Equity, and the alternatives to incarceration that not only deserve further investment but will also increase community wellness for all residents! Watch the full story here: https://t.co/lgpaOJI60P #YOUthareworthit #YouthJusticeActionMonth