Our organization’s commitment to improving and modernizing the United States criminal justice system took us across the Atlantic last week as CPAC joined partners in the public safety field, including the Vera Institute of Justice, on a consequential trip to Berlin, Germany. As part of series of tours and learning sessions alongside our European partners, we were granted unprecedented access to the inner workings of the Ministry of Justice in Berlin, learning about both similarities and differences in our approaches to the law. One common theme became clear from both our partners here at home and abroad: we must do more to honor our commitment to human dignity and protecting liberty.
Alongside experts in history and public safety, we gathered first to learn from the horrors of the holocaust and remember that justice can be weaponized to deprive liberty from innocent men, women, and children in society. After exploring the foundations of this shared commitment to justice, CPAC had the opportunity to meet with representatives of the legal system, including attorneys, judges, and corrections leaders to learn more about innovative approaches to rehabilitation and second chances. Officials in Berlin provided in-depth tours of the city’s prison and jail facilities, offering us a glimpse of programming and conditions aimed not simply at punishment, but providing the incarcerated population with a meaningful second chance upon release.
One clear lesson came from our work abroad: the United States must do more to improve public safety through taking active steps to support those individuals in prison seeking a better life. If we are to live up to our values of liberty and freedom for all, criminal justice leaders in our country must explore new and innovative paths to ensure that people behind bars can earn redemption. Further, we must commit to learning from our past mistakes, just as our partners in Germany have done, to avoid wasting resources and efforts on purely punitive practices that do little to improve wellbeing of the communities we serve. CPAC’s work to bring positive change to the criminal justice system was greatly strengthened by the lessons learned with our new partners in Berlin and the commitment amongst stakeholders here at home to find a better way forward for public safety.
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