Reforms Sought to Criminal Justice System and Women’s Prisons – Nearly half a million prisoners are in jail because they lack money to pay their bail, and not because they are a threat to public safety. A bill presented by California Senator Kamala Harris seeks to address this and reform the bail system. Warning that women are the fastest-growing population in U.S. prisons, Harris also proposed reforms regarding the treatment of pregnant women and mothers. Dr. Martin Guevara Urbina, a professor of criminal justice and noted researcher in this area, discusses the issue on Radio Bilingüe’s Línea Abierta with Samuel Orozco.
Denied Asylum in the United States, Haitians Put Down Roots on the Mexican Border – Nearly 4,000 Haitian refugees are trapped in Tijuana on the Mexican border. Unable to gain asylum in the United States due to President Trump’s immigration policy, many have decided to establish themselves in Mexico. Struggling to learn the language, but with high hopes, some are building homes and founding small businesses in one the poorest border communities, now known as Little Haiti. Manuel Ocaño reports from Tijuana. This report is part of the series, Speaking of Race.”
Kern Schools Agree to End Racial Prejudice After a Wave of Expulsions of Students of Color – After almost three years of lawsuits and nearly $1.5 million in costs, the Kern High School District in the southern part of California’s southern Central Valley agreed to pay fines and create training programs on racial discrimination to educate teachers, administrators and security guards. This is part of a settlement reached after a suit claiming disproportionate numbers of Black and Latino students were suspended or expelled from school, causing the district to be known as the expulsion capital of the state. Our reporter, Ruben Tapia, has followed the story and reports from Bakersfield.
