LEADING ILLINOIS CIVIL RIGHTS ORGANIZATIONS CALL ON CHAIRMAN DURBIN TO INCLUDE THE EQUAL ACT IN THE NDAA
Bipartisan Legislation Would End Racially Unjust Cocaine Sentencing Disparity
Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation, Chicago Jobs Council, Faith Coalition for the Common Good, Gamaliel of Illinois and Iowa, Heartland Alliance, Illinois Justice Project, Illinois Prison Project, Justice Action Network, Restore Justice, Stand for Children Illinois, The Network Advocating Against Domestic Violence, The People’s Lobby, and United Congregations of Metro East Sign Onto Letter Urging Senator Durbin to Pass EQUAL Act
(ILLINOIS)– Today, leading Illinois civil rights and criminal justice organizations sent a letter to Chairman Durbin (D-IL) urging him to keep the EQUAL Act in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which is now being negotiated. As Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a lead sponsor of the EQUAL Act, the Senator is uniquely positioned to advocate for this legislation. The House of Representatives has already included the EQUAL Act in its version of the NDAA. Now, a broad coalition of state groups is urging Senator Durbin to keep the EQUAL Act in the final version of the NDAA. Along with support from criminal justice and civil rights groups, the EQUAL Act is also strongly supported by public safety and law enforcement voices, including the Major Cities Chiefs Association and the National District Attorneys Association.
Signers of the letter include Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation, Chicago Jobs Council, Faith Coalition for the Common Good, Gamaliel of Illinois and Iowa, Heartland Alliance, Illinois Justice Project, Illinois Prison Project, Justice Action Network, Restore Justice, Stand for Children Illinois, The Network Advocating Against Domestic Violence, The People’s Lobby, and United Congregations of Metro East Sign.
Inimai Chettiar, Federal Director of Justice Action Network, the country’s largest organization dedicated to bipartisan criminal justice reform, made the following statement regarding the letter:
“Leaders from across Illinois’s most diverse communities are speaking out in one voice to tell Chairman Durbin that there is overwhelming support for the EQUAL Act, and that we encourage him to keep it in the NDAA. As Chairman of the Judiciary, Senator Durbin has the power to help pass the EQUAL Act and eliminate one of the worst vestiges of the War on Drugs. Throughout his career, Senator Durbin has been an advocate and leader on criminal justice and civil rights reform efforts and we hope he continues this legacy by working to pass the EQUAL Act in any possible vehicle.”
The EQUAL Act is a critical criminal justice reform measure that would finally and fully eliminate the racially unjust federal sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine offenses. One of the worst vestiges of the failed War on Drugs, this disparity has devastated Black and poor communities in Illinois and across the country, and decreased trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve.
Last year, the EQUAL Act passed the House of Representatives by a resounding 361-66 vote, demonstrating broad, bipartisan support from members of the Freedom Caucus to the Progressive Caucus. Led in the Senate by Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Rob Portman (R-OH) and Chairman Dick Durbin (D-IL), the EQUAL Act is co-sponsored by Majority Leader Schumer and Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Rand Paul (R-KY), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Susan Collins (R-ME), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Chis Coons (D-DE), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Richard Burr (R-NC), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Roy Blunt (R-MO), and Ed Markey (D-MA). Additionally, the EQUAL Act has support from law enforcement groups, civil rights organizations, religious groups, and those whom the unjust sentencing disparity has directly impacted.