In response to the latest news of carjackings, Gina Womack, the Executive Director of Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Children (FFLIC), has issued the following statement:
“We extend our deepest sympathies to those who were impacted by this month’s carjackings.
To meaningfully improve public safety we must strategically address the root causes of crime, including poverty, structural racism, and children’s unmet needs. Until we as a community reimagine what true safety, justice, and rehabilitation look like, we ‘re left with a punitive system that ends up doing more harm than good. Youth need community resources, support, and opportunities to learn from missteps to develop into healthy adults. Placing a child in prison causes additional trauma and data proves that system involvement contributes to a cycle of crime.’
We look forward to the city council meeting this month to further discuss alternatives to placing young people in the incarceration system–a practice that only serves to punish, not rehabilitate, our youth and communities.”
The special New Orleans City Council meeting will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Monday January 24th. Click here for more info.