SJC Exchange Library

The reduction of racial and ethnic disparities (RED) has been a critical component of the Safety and Justice Challenge (SJC) since the initiative was launched. We recognize the difficulty of this work, but we have been encouraged by the progress that many implementation sites have made in using a racial equity lens to address disparities, including by conducting decision point analyses, establishing racial and ethnic disparity workgroups, participating in implicit bias and structural racism trainings, and engaging community stakeholders.

As we embark on the fourth year of the Challenge, the Foundation is placing a renewed focus on reducing racial and ethnic disparities and increasing community engagement, with the goal of capturing and building on the knowledge emerging from sites engaged in this work. Recently, initiative partners who provide technical assistance and support to Network sites held a planning meeting in response to this renewed focus on addressing disparities and engaging communities. Following that meeting, the partners developed a collaborative working group to create the guiding document, “Reducing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Safety and Justice Challenge Implementation Sites.” This document summarizes best practices, describes the process for identifying targets and benchmarks, and provides templates to help sites document the work they are doing to address racial and ethnic disparities. It underscores the importance of developing a structure for collaboration and engagement with local stakeholders, including community members, to lead and support the work. And it calls for the use of quantitative and qualitative data to understand current system practices and develop strategies, the establishment of mechanisms for regular review of the data, and the creation of effective communications plans to inform the public on the drivers of incarceration and inequities for people of color.    

The Foundation recognizes that addressing racial and ethnic disparities on the local level can be challenging. This guide is meant to be flexible and useful regardless of the starting point for your jurisdiction. Further support and information will be available to you at the Safety and Justice Challenge Network Conference next week, in the form of plenary discussions, workshops, and roundtable discussions on this topic.