Race and Justice News: Celebrating Black August

Black August is a month of reflection, resistance, love, and remembrance rooted in the struggle for Black liberation. Originating inside California prisons in the late 1970s, it emerged as a way to honor political prisoners, like George Jackson, who fought against racial injustice and systemic oppression – particularly within the prison system, often at great personal cost.

Throughout the month, people study, fast, organize, build community, and care for themselves and one another. It’s a time to deepen our understanding of past and present resistance, uplift those, like Eric, who are still incarcerated, and renew our commitment to justice.

May the stories shared below be read in remembrance of the ongoing struggle, in celebration of victories in the face of opposition, and act as a call to encourage us to continue the fight for justice for those behind the walls.

Policy & Legislation

Second Chances and Justice Reform

This year, Maryland and Georgia enacted landmark legislation aimed at revisiting harsh sentences that disproportionately impact Black men and women. In Maryland, the Second Look Act was signed into law, allowing individuals who have been convicted of certain offenses committed between the ages of 18 and 25 to file a motion with the court to reduce their sentence after serving 20 years. This law builds on an earlier reform, which allows those whose crimes occurred under the age of 18 to petition for resentencing after serving 20 years. The new law excludes individuals sentenced to life without parole, those convicted of killing a first responder in the line of duty, and those convicted of crimes of a sexual nature. The enactment of the law is a significant step towards expanding opportunities for people serving lengthy sentences to come home. However, more must be done to give hope of a second chance to all.

In Georgia, lawmakers passed the Georgia Survivor Justice Act, giving both judges and prosecutors the authority to reexamine and reduce harsh sentences imposed on survivors of abuse. Under the law, a person convicted of a crime punishable by life in prison or death must be sentenced to 10-30 years if the judge finds that family violence, dating violence, or child abuse was a significant contributing factor to the offense. The judge has discretion to impose a lighter sentence when the prosecutor and the accused agree to a sentence below the mandatory minimum. Importantly, the law applies retroactively, allowing currently incarcerated survivors to apply for reduced sentences based on the new sentencing guidelines. The Sentencing Project released a report that offers guidance to states on creating trauma-informed sentencing practices.

Virginia Clears Path for Rights Restoration

In Virginia, a proposed constitutional amendment to automatically restore voting rights to people who have completed their prison terms for felony convictions passed in the House and Senate. Currently, Virginia is one of a few states that permanently disenfranchises individuals with felony convictions unless the governor restores their rights, a process which has been criticized for its lack of transparency. The proposed amendment must pass again in the next legislative session before heading to voters for a statewide referendum, potentially in November 2026.

In the Courts

San Francisco Public Defenders Win Racial Justice Act Motion

The San Francisco Public Defenders won the city’s first successful motion under the Racial Justice Act (RJA).

The Racial Justice Act, passed in 2020 in response to the police murder of George Floyd, prohibits bias or discrimination in charging, conviction, and sentencing based on race, ethnicity, or national origin.

The judge granted relief after finding implicit racial bias within a police officer’s comments and actions during the arrest of a young Black man and during trial testimony.

The case involved 22-year-old Adonte Bailey, who was arrested after a report of someone allegedly holding a gun while standing in the street. Despite the officer’s testimony describing Bailey’s actions as “ducking,” “bobbing,” and “darting,” video footage showed Bailey complying calmly with police orders. The officer was also caught on body-worn camera expressing surprise that Bailey did not flee – a statement the defense argued reflected implicit racial bias.

Deputy Public Defender Lilah Wolf challenged the officer’s assumptions under the RJA. The judge agreed that the officer’s perceptions were shaped by implicit bias and reduced several felony convictions to misdemeanors – a remedy for the discrimination provided under the RJA. This decision marks a powerful step forward in holding the justice system accountable for racial disparities and a promising precedent for future challenges to discriminatory policing and prosecution.

Michigan Bills Seek to Undermine Supreme Court Decisions

In April 2025, the Michigan Supreme Court held in People v. Taylor and People v. Czarnecki that mandatory life without parole sentences violate the state constitution’s protection against “cruel or unusual” punishment for anyone under age 21 at the time of the offense. This decision extended the court’s 2022 ruling in People v. Parks that such sentences are unconstitutional for those 18 or under. However, some Michigan legislators have criticized the decision and have introduced three bills (HB4606, HB4507, HB4508) that would severely limit the impact of the court’s ruling. The Sentencing Project published a letter opposing the bills. In June, a House panel voted to advance the legislation.

Movement & Advocacy

Trump Administration Rolls Back Police Oversight

In May, the Trump administration announced it would withdraw from efforts to establish federal oversight of the police departments in Minneapolis and Louisville, Kentucky. These efforts were launched in response to the high-profile police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, and were intended to address deeply rooted problems in local law enforcement, such as discrimination and excessive use of force. Instead, the Justice Department now plans to dismiss ongoing lawsuits against both cities and formally retract its prior findings of constitutional violations. In addition, the Justice Department is ending investigations and rescinding findings of misconduct involving six other police departments: Phoenix (AZ), Memphis (TN), Trenton (NJ), Mount Vernon (NY), Oklahoma City (OK), and the Louisiana State Police (LA).

Framing the decision as part of a broader shift toward returning authority to local governments, the Trump administration has argued that policing reforms should be left to cities and states, not driven by the federal government. However, the move has drawn sharp criticism from civil rights advocates. Civil rights lawyer Ben Crump, who represented the families of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, said, “the DOJ [Department of Justice] is not just rolling back reform, it is attempting to erase truth and contradicting the very principles for which justice stands….these consent decrees and investigations were not symbolic gestures, they were lifelines for communities crying out for change, rooted in years of organizing, suffering, and advocacy.”

Despite the Justice Department’s withdrawal, officials in Minneapolis and Louisville have committed to continuing with the overhaul measures promised in their agreements. The rollback is the latest effort by the Trump administration to reshape the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

Youth Justice

Racial Disparities in Youth Incarceration

The Sentencing Project’s recent analysis finds that youth justice disparities are widening, particularly for Black and Tribal youth. In the most recent year for which data is available, Black youth were almost six times as likely, and Tribal youth were almost four times as likely to be incarcerated as white children. According to The Sentencing Project’s Josh Rovner, this is the largest Black-white and Tribal-white disparity on record.

Studies reveal that children of color are treated more harshly than their white peers in the justice system, often because they are viewed as older and less innocent. Though there are no large differences in the offending patterns of youth by race or ethnicity, there are significant differences in neighborhood police presence, making an arrest more likely. Once arrested, these disparities often accumulate even further, says Rovner, often seen in access to diversion programs, use of detention prior to a hearing, and the offer of probation.

Art, Culture, and Storytelling

San Quentin Film Festival

In Fall 2024, San Quentin Film Festival (SQFF) became the first film festival to be held inside of a prison. The festival was co-founded and co-directed by Rahsaan “New York” Thomas, a writer, journalist, director, producer, and podcaster, who was once incarcerated in San Quentin serving a 55-to-life sentence. SQFF spotlights and celebrates the creativity and perspective of currently and formerly incarcerated filmmakers, providing them with a platform to showcase their talents and engage with industry professionals. Some of the films featured at SQFF include Sing Sing, a film that centers on a group of incarcerated men’s participation in a theatre troupe, Daughters, which focuses on a Daddy-Daughter dance program in a Washington, DC jail, and Songs from the Hole, which documents an incarcerated musician’s struggle for healing and peace. Sing Sing is now streaming on multiple platforms. Daughters and Songs from the Hole are available to watch on Netflix.

The San Quentin Film Festival returns to San Quentin Rehabilitation Center in California in Fall 2025.

And Water Brings Tomorrow

And Water Brings Tomorrow, a film by Ashley Hunt to be released in 2025, is about change and transformation through the lens of closed prisons across the United States. The film examines what these former correctional facilities have become, the community efforts that spurred their closure, and what lies in their wake. The Sentencing Project’s report, Repurposing: New Beginnings for Closed Prisons, explores this theme and examines what prisons in Florida, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas have turned into since their closure.