Everyday Injustice

Everyday Injustice Podcast Episode 324: Bipartisan Reform, Housing Barriers, and the Fight for a Fair Future

In Episode 324 of the Everyday Injustice podcast, host David Greenwald sits down with Kandia Milton, government affairs director at Dream.org, for a wide-ranging conversation on criminal justice reform, reentry, and the persistent structural barriers facing people returning from incarceration. Milton brings a rare dual perspective to the discussion, combining more than two decades of policy experience with lived experience of incarceration—an intersection that shapes both his advocacy and Dream.org’s mission to “close prison doors and open doors of opportunity.” The conversation centers on a critical but often overlooked issue: how systemic barriers—particularly in housing—undermine public safety by making successful reentry nearly impossible. Milton explains how federal policy dating back to the 1988 Fair Housing Amendments Act allows landlords to deny housing based solely on prior drug convictions, a restriction that continues to affect millions of people today. He argues that repealing these provisions through the proposed Fair Future Act would not only restore basic rights but also reduce recidivism by removing one of the most significant obstacles to stability after incarceration. Greenwald and Milton also explore the surprising, if fragile, potential for bipartisan cooperation in criminal justice reform. Despite deep political polarization, Milton points to areas of shared concern—housing affordability, public safety, and access to opportunity—as entry points for cross-partisan collaboration. While acknowledging the challenges of advancing reform in a polarized political climate, he notes that support for removing barriers to reentry has emerged across ideological lines, suggesting that pragmatic solutions may still be possible even amid broader dysfunction. Ultimately, Episode 324 underscores a central theme: if society is serious about safety, it must invest in people rather than punishment. From housing access to job opportunities and mental health care, the episode makes a compelling case that reducing recidivism—and strengthening communities—requires a shift away from punitive systems toward policies that enable stability and success. As Milton puts it, the question is not whether people will return to society, but whether they will be given a real chance to succeed when they do.

Everyday Injustice Podcast Episode 323: Eric Morrison-Smith on Systems Change, Youth Justice, and Building Alternatives to Punishment

In Episode 323 of the Everyday Injustice podcast, host David Greenwald sits down with Eric Morrison-Smith, Executive Director of the Alliance for Boys and Men of Color, for a wide-ranging conversation on criminal justice reform, systemic inequality, and the urgent need to rethink how society responds to harm. The discussion traces Morrison-Smith’s personal journey into advocacy, from his early experiences as a college athlete to a political awakening shaped by the deaths of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown and the broader movement for racial justice. Morrison-Smith describes how his initial exposure to structural analysis—particularly through Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow—shifted his understanding from individual responsibility to systemic causation. That shift ultimately led him into organizing, policy work, and leadership in a statewide network advancing anti-racist reforms. His trajectory underscores a central theme of the episode: meaningful change requires not only personal commitment but also a deep engagement with the institutional frameworks that shape outcomes across education, policing, and economic opportunity. A significant portion of the conversation focuses on youth justice, including efforts to end “endless probation” for young people in California. Morrison-Smith explains how prolonged system involvement often worsens long-term outcomes, reinforcing cycles of instability rather than promoting rehabilitation. He highlights firsthand accounts from incarcerated youth and emphasizes the importance of clear pathways out of supervision, noting that hope and a defined endpoint are critical to any meaningful reform effort. The episode also explores broader policy initiatives, including campaigns to reduce reliance on punitive systems, expand community-based responses to crises, and address the root causes of violence—particularly intimate partner violence and economic instability. Morrison-Smith argues for a dual strategy of dismantling harmful institutions while investing in “life-affirming” alternatives, from youth employment programs to community-led safety initiatives. As the political climate shifts toward more punitive rhetoric, the conversation highlights both the challenges and the necessity of continuing reform efforts grounded in equity, accountability, and systemic transformation.

Everyday Injustice Podcast Episode 322: Oklahoma Survivors Act Highlights Tension Between Trauma, Justice, and Prosecutorial Resistance

A groundbreaking Oklahoma law intended to provide relief to survivors of domestic violence serving long prison sentences is revealing just how difficult it remains for the criminal legal system to grapple with trauma, accountability, and mercy. Investigative journalist Pamela Colloff, who reported on the issue for ProPublica and The New York Times Magazine, said the Oklahoma Survivors Act was designed to allow courts to reconsider sentences for people whose crimes were directly connected to abuse they endured. Yet despite the promise of reform, the law’s implementation has exposed deep resistance within the system. The law emerged from a recognition that many people—particularly women—are imprisoned for crimes committed in the context of domestic violence. Some cases involve survivors who killed their abusers, while others involve people coerced into criminal activity or charged in “failure to protect” cases where a partner harmed a child. The statute requires judges to determine whether abuse was a “substantial contributing factor” to the offense and allows courts to reconsider lengthy sentences imposed during the tough-on-crime era of the 1980s and 1990s. Early hopes that the law might provide meaningful relief have largely gone unrealized. Lisa Moss, who served more than three decades for her role in the killing of her abusive husband, remains the only person released under the statute so far. Numerous other petitions have been filed, but many applicants—some elderly and incarcerated for decades—have been denied resentencing after contentious courtroom hearings that often scrutinize the details of their abuse. Colloff’s reporting suggests that prosecutorial resistance has become a central barrier. Prosecutors have argued the law could invite exaggerated claims of abuse and open the door for sentence reductions in violent felony cases. Advocates, however, contend the law is intentionally narrow and requires corroborating evidence. The broader debate highlights a deeper question confronting the criminal legal system: whether courts can meaningfully recognize the role of trauma in shaping criminal behavior while still balancing accountability and justice for victims.

Everyday Injustice Podcast Episode 321: Raising Questions About Plea Deals and Withheld Evidence

A new episode of the Everyday Injustice podcast examines the controversial case of Curtis Davis Jr., a Mississippi man whose conviction is raising troubling questions about prosecutorial conduct, plea bargaining and the withholding of potentially exculpatory evidence. The episode features a conversation with Maurice Clifton, a criminal justice advocate who has been investigating the case and pushing for a closer review of the circumstances that led Davis to accept a plea deal. According to Clifton, Davis accepted the plea while under intense pressure from investigators who warned that he could face far more serious charges if he went to trial. Clifton describes a system in which prosecutors stack charges and threaten lengthy sentences in order to secure guilty pleas, even in cases where the evidence may be weak or incomplete. Once a plea is entered, Clifton explains, it becomes extremely difficult to reopen the case—even if new evidence later emerges. The podcast discussion highlights what Clifton says are serious inconsistencies in the Davis case, including forensic evidence that reportedly fails to connect Davis to the crime scene. According to the interview, DNA and fingerprint evidence did not implicate Davis, and key physical evidence was not disclosed until months after the plea was entered. Clifton argues that these circumstances raise questions about whether Davis fully understood the evidence—or lack thereof—before agreeing to the plea. The episode also situates the case within a broader pattern of alleged prosecutorial misconduct in parts of Mississippi. Clifton points to the record of former district attorney Doug Evans, whose prosecutions—including the widely known Curtis Flowers case—have repeatedly been overturned due to withheld evidence and other violations. Advocates say the Davis case reflects deeper systemic issues in the criminal legal system, where pressure to secure convictions and plea agreements can sometimes overshadow the pursuit of justice.

Everyday Injustice Podcast Episode 320: How Police Unions Built Political Influence

On the latest episode of Everyday Injustice, host David Greenwald sits down with historian Stuart Schrader of Johns Hopkins University to examine the political rise of police unions and their growing influence in American public life. Schrader’s forthcoming book, Blue Power: How Police Organized to Protect and Serve Themselves, traces how police organizations transformed themselves from fraternal associations into formidable political actors capable of shaping legislation, contracts and public narratives about crime and public safety. The conversation situates that evolution within a broader history of the “war on crime” and the bipartisan embrace of tough-on-crime politics. Drawing on his earlier work, Badges Without Borders, Schrader explains how federal crime legislation in 1968 and the creation of the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration poured resources into local police departments. What began as a moment of federal expansion became a catalyst for police leaders and rank-and-file associations to see political advocacy as essential to protecting institutional power. The episode explores how national organizations such as the International Association of Chiefs of Police and later police unions leveraged Washington relationships while simultaneously reshaping local politics. The discussion moves city by city—from Detroit and New York to Baltimore, Milwaukee and San Francisco—to show how police labor organizations refined tactics ranging from contract battles and strike threats to media campaigns and coordinated political pressure. In Baltimore, a failed experiment with an AFSCME-affiliated union and a subsequent strike reshaped the trajectory of police representation. In Milwaukee, a combative relationship between union leaders and a powerful chief helped export organizing strategies nationwide. Across these cases, Schrader identifies a consistent pattern: police organizations blending labor-style mobilization with a distinctive form of political leverage rooted in public fear of crime. In the final segment, Greenwald and Schrader turn to the present moment, including the aftermath of the Black Lives Matter protests and the renewed politics of “law and order.” They analyze how police groups use news cycles, viral incidents and public safety narratives to assert bargaining power, even as other unions have declined. The episode offers a historically grounded framework for understanding contemporary debates about crime, reform and accountability—highlighting how decades of organized political engagement have positioned police institutions at the center of America’s justice discourse.