Category: Institute for Social Change

Armed with technology, would you help homeless youth?

Our video explores graphic facts of homelessness and the options for concerned citizens to explore.  NPR reports that the number of homeless in the US declined in 2013, however these statistics are often difficult to track from the transient and elusive nature of the populations under study.  Their report indicates that in 2013, around 610,000 …

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The Homelessness Series: Back on My Feet

Anne Mahlum is a runner. Always has been. And in the early mornings of spring 2007, you could often find her running the sidewalks of Philadelphia, before heading to work for the day. On her runs, she would pass apartment buildings, businesses, and even a homeless shelter, which was just a couple blocks away. She …

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Stop the School to Prison Pipeline

Have you ever heard of the school to prison pipeline? It’s likely you haven’t. Because it’s not something that receives a lot of publicity outside of the areas it affects. But it should. Which is why I decided to write this article today. I want to shine some light on something I believe is a …

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What Has Happened to Immigrant Rights?

I’ve written a lot about immigration as well as prison in my time with the SISGI Group. However, it never occurred to me to discuss the two issues together. Which was a huge oversight on my part. Because they often go hand in hand. Immigrants who are here without proper documentation or have visa issues …

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What’s the REAL Status of the Prison System?

Have you noticed any news recently about America’s prison system? Maybe you haven’t, but I have. And what I’ve seen is incredibly contradictory. On one hand you have politicians touting the reforms they’ve made by raising the minimum juvenile age or increasing the number of prison alternatives. But on the other, we see massive overcrowding …

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Prisons: United States vs. European Union

I’ve written a lot of articles over the past few months surrounding the US prison system. The problems I see. How they came about. Changes I think we should make. But I’ve never discussed prison systems outside the United States. And I’ve never actually described what an alternative prison system could look like. But just …

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Voter ID Law: Not Just a Texas Problem

Are you registered to vote? Do you have the identification necessary to do so? Hopefully you answered yes to both of those questions. But odds are pretty good that you don’t have everything you need. Especially if you live in one of the 9 states that now require you to show photo identification at the voting …

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The Unchecked Power of Parole Boards

When people talk about court cases or when they’re depicted on tv, the story ends once the judge reads the jury’s verdict. But that’s not where the story ends for the person convicted. 5-10 years,15-20, 25-life, judges give all kinds ranges in sentence length, but what do they really mean? It means a person will …

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H-2B Visa: The Potential for Forced Labor

When we talk about immigration in this country we almost always focus on undocumented migrants rather than documented ones. Because for some reason, we have this idea that our immigration system has no real issues and we just need to solve the problem of undocumented workers to make it perfect. Unfortunately, that simply isn’t the …

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Redefining Feminism

If you haven’t heard, a controversy has arisen around Laura Bush recently winning the Alice Award for her good work in the Middle East supporting women’s health rights. Any woman is eligible to win, but it has traditionally been given to well-known feminists. Because of this association not everyone was happy she received the award. …

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