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Michigan Justice Fund: Supporting Criminal Justice Reform

The Michigan Justice Fund, a partnership comprised of several CMF members to support efforts related to criminal justice reform, released is sharing the progress it has made throughout 2021 to support the economic mobility and success of people with criminal records, reduce reliance on confinement and legal rulings and build a movement for communities to shape justice policies and funding.

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Michigan ranks 10th in the U.S. for the most people incarcerated. The Michigan Justice Fund (MJF) released its first Annual Report, focusing on the progress it has made throughout 2021.

MJF aims to support the economic mobility and success of people with criminal records, reduce reliance on confinement and legal rulings and build a movement for communities to shape justice policies and funding.

It was established in 2020 and is a partnership comprised of several CMF members including Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan (CFSEM), Community Foundation of Greater Flint, DTE Energy Foundation, Ethel & James Flinn Foundation, Ford Foundation, Grand Rapids Community Foundation, Hudson-Webber Foundation, Joyce Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, Ruth Mott Foundation and W.K. Kellogg Foundation. CFSEM serves as the administrative and fiscal home for MJF.

In 2021 MJF:

  • Raised $17.3 million.
  • Supported over 70 organizations through grantmaking initiatives.
  • Selected 10 partner advisors.
  • Launched multi-year grantmaking.

The report highlights how the MJF has been engaged in efforts to support and advance the field including:

  • Created a state advisory committee with the goal of creating a blueprint for action to advance data integration in the criminal legal system in the state of Michigan.
  • Suggested public policy responses with the Michigan Coronavirus Task Force on Racial Disparities.
  • Supported a public-facing website for community advocates that served as a go-to location for COVID-19 resources, calls to action and best-practice and guidance for community members, advocates and policy makers during the height of the pandemic’s onset.
  • Developed cohort-based peer learning opportunities focused on systemic policy improvements that support the justice-impacted population across a number of domains including health, economic security and mobility, and community investment and wellbeing.

The report also highlights the Wayne County Reentry Demonstration Pilot Program (Reentry Project), implemented by MFJ in October 2020. The Reentry Project works to create pathways for formerly incarcerated people to safely and successfully reenter society amidst the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic.

The Reentry Project awarded funding to four organizations to pinpoint and address gaps in care coordination to support and provide access to necessary safety measures like quarantine-appropriate housing, personal protective equipment and personal hygiene and sanitation supplies.

According to the report, the project has successfully identified strategies to improve policy and program delivery.

The report spotlights several organizations throughout the state that were supported by MJF from 2020-2021. These organizations are working to reform Michigan’s criminal legal system through policy and advocacy work that further the fund’s shared objections:

  • Advancing policies and practices to support the economic mobility and overall success of people with criminal records.
  • Reducing the reliance on incarceration and confinement by increasing the use of alternative interventions to address the causes of crime.
  • Building a movement for communities to re-shape justice policies and funding with intentional support for communities of color that have been historically under-resourced and impacted by the legal system.

The grant partners spotlighted in the Annual Report include:

  • Safe & Just Michigan: Implements harm reduction policies and trauma-informed services to reduce the cyclical violence of crime and punishment in Michigan. In partnership with a diverse range of stakeholders, the organization advances strategies that safely reduce the state’s reliance on incarceration and promote the use of alternatives proven to decrease reoffending.
  • Michigan Collaborative to End Mass Incarceration: Connects criminal justice reform advocates with nonprofits, faith-based communities, service organizations, and grassroots efforts to work towards the goal of ending mass incarceration in Michigan.
  • Michigan Center for Youth Justice (MCYJ): Aims to reduce youth involvement in the justice system through legislative advocacy, research, public education and local community work to enact reforms. MCYJ focuses on improving youth justice services at all stages—from the point of first contact with the police to reentry.
  • Nation Outside: Creates and inspires reform in the criminal justice system, led by formerly incarcerated people. Nation Outside works to reduce stigma, create better conditions in correctional facilities, end mass incarceration and expand opportunities for formerly incarcerated people throughout the state.

Want more?

Read the full Annual Report.

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