Unlocking Change

Kym Ray & David Maxted: Agency vs. Slavery in Colorado Prison Labor

A Denver District Court has determined that Colorado's prison labor practices unconstitutional. How did we get here? What's the history of prison labor laws in Colorado and the U.S.? What's the link between the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the day-to-day life of incarcerated people today? In this episode of UNLOCKING CHANGE, Kym Ray of End Slavery Colorado and David Maxted of Maxted Law break it all down, in a conversation with Colorado Radio for Justice (CRJ) host JoyBelle Phelan. Colorado, they say, is a bellwether in national prison labor reform. UNLOCKING CHANGE is a podcast by Colorado Radio for Justice (CRJ). www.radioforjustice.org COLORADO RADIO FOR JUSTICE https://www.radioforjustice.org/  Instagram //   radio4justice    Facebook //    radioforjustice    LinkedIn //   radioforjustice    Bluesky // https://bsky.app/profile/radioforjustice.bsky.social X (formerly Twitter) // https://x.com/home

Senator Cleave Simpson: Leaning in to Nuance

Senator Cleave Simpson is Colorado's Senate Minority Leader. In this episode of UNLOCKING CHANGE, Colorado Radio for Justice (CRJ) hosts Herbert Alexander and Ryan Conarro sit down with Senator Simpson to talk about everything from water rights and climate change in Colorado, to his journey from his boyhood farming in Alamosa to state office, to questions of criminal justice reform and mitigating extreme sentencing in Colorado. It's all a question, says Simpson, of leaning into the nuances.  UNLOCKING CHANGE is a podcast by Colorado Radio for Justice (CRJ). www.radioforjustice.org COLORADO RADIO FOR JUSTICE https://www.radioforjustice.org/  Instagram //   radio4justice    Facebook //    radioforjustice    LinkedIn //   radioforjustice    Bluesky // https://bsky.app/profile/radioforjustice.bsky.social X (formerly Twitter) // https://x.com/home 00:00 Unlocking Change Introduction 01:49 Meet Cleave Simpson 02:48 Running for Senate District 6 Office 04:11 The Role of Senate Minority Leader 05:44 The Infuence of Compassion 07:16 Every Senator Represents Their Constituency 07:43 "Raising the Floor": A Moment of Unalignment with the Party 11:03  Perspectives on Extreme Sentencing 12:14 Root Causes & Crime Rates: Auto Theft, Bank Robberies, & More 17:13 The Aguilera-Mederos Case: CO Governor Reduces a 110-Year Sentence 20:45 Simpson's Experience with Criminal Justice Policy 23:06 Snapshot of this Colorado Legislative Session 25:06 CDOC's Requested Budget Increase  26:07 Workforce and Housing in Rural   Colorado 26:41 Climate Change and Water Issues 27:15 Additional Prospective Bills 27:39 "A Knot to Untie"

Representative Javier Mabrey: We Gotta Fight

As the 2026 Legislative Session of the Colorado General Assembly kicks off, UNLOCKING CHANGE brings a conversation with Javier Mabrey (D), State Representative for House District 1 as well as Chair of the House Judiciary Committee. Colorado Radio for Justice (CRJ) host Herbert Alexander invites Mabrey to share his journey from childhood poverty into legal practice and state politics, and his perspectives and hopes for reforming long sentencing, cash bail, and the larger economic systems that sustain inequality in the U.S. UNLOCKING CHANGE is a podcast by Colorado Radio for Justice (CRJ). www.radioforjustice.org COLORADO RADIO FOR JUSTICE https://www.radioforjustice.org/  Instagram //   radio4justice    Facebook //    radioforjustice    LinkedIn //   radioforjustice    Bluesky // https://bsky.app/profile/radioforjustice.bsky.social X (formerly Twitter) // https://x.com/home 00:00 Unlocking Change Introduction 01:53 Introduction To Javier Mabrey 02:47 The Legal System Works as Well as Intended 03:28 US Prison Population and Criminalizing Poverty  05:01 Pretrial Sentencing 05:49 Personal View of Poverty in Our Systems 06:53 The Path to Reforming The Criminal Legal System 08:56 More Likely to Recidivate 09:35 The Habitual Law and Its Effects 10:29 White Collar Crime Disparity 12:15 Who Belongs in Prison? 13:35 Vote for Community Safety 15:01 How Is Incarceration Discussed in The Government? 16:03 Having Hope for Incarcerated Individuals 17:38 The Ebb and Flow of Progress 18:40 What Does the Upcoming Legislative Session Hold? 22:45 What Does Utopia Look Like (Where will The Billionaires Be?)

Emma Mclean-Riggs, Part 2: Faith in the Collective

It's Part 2 of a two-part conversation with Emma Mclean-Riggs, Senior Staff Attorney from the ACLU of Colorado, who sits down with Colorado Radio for Justice hosts Tiffany McCoy and Trevor Jones. Emma examines the criminalization of poverty and homelessness in Colorado communities; the ACLU's work of not just improving incarcerated people's lives inside facilities, but striving to liberate them; and an exploration of what exactly "civil liberties" themselves are. Emma highlights the value of media led by lived-experience producers, and she articulates her vision for a more just future that relies on each and every one of us. UNLOCKING CHANGE is a podcast by Colorado Radio for Justice (CRJ). www.radioforjustice.org [https://www.radioforjustice.org/] 00:00 Introduction - Camping bans / blanket bans in Boulder 09:14 What motivates Emma? 09:14 Emma's life journey into law 15:08 Colorado incarceration liberatory work 17:11 What are 'civil liberties'?  18:25 ACLU's history, values, intersectionality 20:58 Support ACLU / Get involved 23:21 Vision for future?

Emma Mclean-Riggs, Part 1: Immigration, The Constitution, & Determination

Join Colorado Radio for Justice hosts Tiffany McCoy and Trevor Jones as they dive into a critical conversation with Emma Mclean-Riggs, Senior Staff Attorney from the ACLU of Colorado. Emma discusses the alarming escalations in ICE detention expansions, unlawful deportations by the Trump Administration under the Alien Enemies Act, and the challenges faced by Venezuelan immigrants in Colorado and beyond. Mclean-Riggs shares the ACLU of Colorado's multi-faceted approach to defending civil liberties in today's shifting political climate, from litigation and policy advocacy to community organizing. And she shares what fuels her relentless fight for justice and the constitutional principles at stake: the human beings whose lives and futures are on the line. UNLOCKING CHANGE is a podcast by Colorado Radio for Justice (CRJ). www.radioforjustice.org [https://www.radioforjustice.org/] 00:00 Introduction 01:57 Meet Emma Mclean-Riggs and the ACLU of Colorado 03:12 ICE: A Pressing Concern 06:59 DBU v. Trump, ACLU of Colorado's Lawsuit 25:25 What Motivates & Sustains Emma in Her Work 27:15 Why Call Prisons "Cages"? 32:31 Children & Trauma from Family Separation