Working at the intersection of race and poverty, CRRJ at LAJC challenges the practices and exposes the enmeshed penalties within Virginia’s criminal legal system that create or exacerbate poverty in the lives of low-income people and people of color. We are grateful for EJA’s support in funding a two-year fellowship in advancing our work on behalf of Virginians made vulnerable by disinvestment and the criminalization of poverty.

EJA’s commitment to CRRJ intervening in the criminalization of poverty in Virginia is deeply appreciated and we look forward to our partnership together.

The Civil Rights & Racial Justice Program at LAJC prioritizes the needs of community members directly impacted by the criminal legal system. We continue to explore the ways we can serve as a medium that communities can use to reach decision makers, focusing on pretrial justice, criminal fines and fees, prison conditions, expungement, and mental health. We are excited for the EJA Fellow, who will learn a different sort of lawyering that truly serves the people.