President Barack Obama's re-election hasn't changed the fact that the nation remains divided along party lines. However, there's one important part of his agenda where there seems to be common ground: fixing the nation's broken criminal justice system.
The recent passage of state initiatives ranging from reform of California's 3-strikes law to marijuana legalization suggests that Americans from all parts of the political spectrum are ready to take a more pragmatic approach to justice issues that once divided the country.
How will the second Obama Administration take advantage of this shift?
This month's “Criminal Justice Matters” show on CUNY-TV (New York), hosted by Steve Handelman, executive editor of The Crime Report, and director of the Center on Media, Crime and Justice at John Jay College, takes a close look at the question. Guests on this month's show are:
Gloria Browne-Marshall, an associate professor of constitutional law at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. A former civil rights attorney, she's founder of the Law and Policy Group. She's also an award-winning playwright.
Glenn Martin, Vice President of Development and Public affairs at the Fortune Society, which works to help ex-offenders reintegrate into their communities. He's director of the Society's David Rothenberg Center for Public Policy, and a member of New York City Council's Task Force to End Gun Violence.
This month's show will be repeated at the following times on CUNY Channel 75: Saturday, Dec 8 – 8:00pm; Sunday, November 9 – 10:00am. To download a copy of the show from YouTube please click HERE.