La Defensa

ATTENTION | SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT La Defensa is currently HIRING and we’re looking for a Measure J Coalition Coordinator! Come join our team of bad-ass femme forward individuals that’s paving the way for radical change in LA County.... This position is a full-time, exempt (salary ), remote position based in LA County w/ full benefits (we’re talking healthcare and PTO here). Want more information on the role? Head to our link in bio to view the full job description and for instructions on how to apply. Still have questions? Be sure to email us at [email protected] We can’t wait to meet you! Special Note: Application is scheduled to close on Sunday, April 11th @ 11:59 PM PST. This recruitment is expected to have a quick turnaround and interviews may begin as early as the week of April 19th. For your safety and ours, all interviews will be conducted virtually. #ladefensa #justicela #reimaginela #measurej #hiring #jobopening #jobvacancy #nowhiring #applytoday

Our dynamic Project Coordinator and lead Organizer Gabriela Vazquez gave meaningful public comment at the @CountyOfLA Public Safety Cluster Meeting amplifying the demand to #CloseMCJ ! Gabi’s bold comment and heartfelt testimony are a reminder: we MUST #CloseMCJ not tomorrow, not next year, but NOW! #CareFirst #CareNotCops #CareFirstJailsNever #CloseMCJ #FullyFundMeasureJ #ReimagineLA @reimagine_la #JusticeLA

As we remember the life of George Floyd, who was stolen from us by officer Derek Chauvin on May 25th, 2020, almost one year ago today, we are grateful for a sign of accountability for law enforcement officers who steal lives. We are observing the guilty verdict as a sign of accountability, but not true justice. In the words of our Executive Director, Eunisses Hernandez, Don’t get it confused, accountability is not justice. Justice is our Black community members not getting k...illed by cops. It means not getting criminalized or incarcerated for just living. We need [this] type of accountability here in LA County for the lives the Sheriff’s Department has robbed our communities of: #AndresGuardado #KennethRossJr #JohnHorton Too many lives stolen. #DerekChauvinTrial #GeorgeFloyd #RestInPOWER #Accountability

Peep the fierce public comments from La Defensa Co-Founder and Director and Eunisses Hernandez at the @CountyOfLA Public Safety Cluster Meeting! Eunisses’ wisdom and insights hold folks accountable in the most incisive of ways as we fight for justice! Thank you Eunisses! #CareFirst #CareNotCops #CareFirstJailsNever #CloseMCJ #FullyFundMeasureJ #ReimagineLA @reimagine_la #JusticeLA

Listen to the razor-sharp public comments from La Defensa Co-Founder and Dignity and Power NOW Senior Policy Lead Ivette Ale at the @CountyOfLA Public Safety Cluster Meeting! Ivette’s insights and directives are a roadmap for authentic public safety and justice in our County! We must move now to #CloseMCJ ! #CareFirst #CareNotCops #CareFirstJailsNever #CloseMCJ #FullyFundMeasureJ #ReimagineLA @reimagine_la #JusticeLA

#DaunteWright should be at home with his loved ones. This isn’t an accident. This is racism and state sanctioned violence. We must defund the police and invest in communities! We send our deepest condolences to the Wright family and Daunte Jr. #AbolitionNow SWIPE to see ways to support Daunte’s loved ones. Confirmed ways to support #DaunteWright’s family, via @HolisticHeaux ... Share and give what you can Cash App: $hubby98 cash.app/$hubby98 Venmo: @/ thuy-jones PayPal: @/ holisticheaux

Let’s recall our #MeasureJ origin story! As many of us know, this past November, Black-led organizations such as Black Lives Matter LA and the Reimagine LA Coalition, anchored by La Defensa, helped move over 2.1 million voters to pass Measure J, which permanently changed the County Charter to require a minimum of 10 percent of the County’s unrestricted revenue go toward alternatives to incarceration and direct community investment into Black communities and low-income and/or... POC communities. More recently, community members participated in a five-week subcommittee process to develop sets of recommendations, including an approved recommendation to close Men’s Central Jail from the Health, Behavioral Health, and Diversion subcommittee. BUT, earlier this month, the LA County Chief Executive Officer (CEO) released a memo to the County Board of Supervisors that included a $100 million set-aside proposal for Measure J funding for the 2021-22 county budget. We know that the CEO’s math doesn’t add up! We demand more than $100MM in #MeasureJ funding, including the allocation of #MeasureJ dollars to fund community-based services instead of sinking more dollars into the operations of #MensCentralJail and the lawsuits that come as a result of Sheriff brutality. We will keep fighting until we win! []: @fraudfix #CloseMCJ #FullyFundMeasureJ #LaDefensa #ReimagineLA #BlackLivesMatter #JusticeLA #CareNotCages #JusticeNotJails #DefendBlackLives

So many community organizers moved the crowd and reminded us why we must #CloseMCJ at our action last week! Mark-Anthony Clayton-Johnson, Founder and Executive Director of Frontline Wellness Network ( @FrontlineWellnessNetwork ) and a leader in both the Reimagine LA ( @Reimagine_LA ) and Justice LA ( @JusticeLANow ) Coalitions as well as the Black Lives Matter Global Network, ( @BlkLivesMatter ) dropped knowledge on us! He shared:... Our county wastes $46 million a year arresting Black houseless people alone, often for public health related charges. At the same time, the rising costs of lawsuits against the Sheriff's department due to brutality, corruption, and violation of people’s rights cost our County $84 million last year. So, we want to be very clear that when we say, Close Men’s Central Jail, we mean reallocating the community’s money from those harmful systems into Measure J and into care, housing, and dignity for Black people. Mic DROP! We are grateful for your leadership and power, Mark-Anthony, and grateful to be in Coalition with you! []: @fraudfix #CloseMCJ #FullyFundMeasureJ #LaDefensa #FrontlineWellnessNetwork #ReimagineLA #BlackLivesMatter #JusticeLA #CareNotCages #JusticeNotJails #DefendBlackLives

La Defensa’s roots and mission are grounded in demands for judicial accountability. We know that transparency in the judiciary and uplifting judges that center values of abolition, diversion and racial and social justice are essential to the transformations to the criminal legal system that our communities are fighting for. @CourtwatchLA has long been a leader in judicial accountability. We are grateful for their partnership. We cannot stand for the abusive and punitive appr...oach of LA Superior Court Judge Patrick E. Connolly. His questioning of a jury and abusing defence lawyers by calling into question their ability to social distance and cursing at them is dangerous and harmful. We’re thankful for @CourtwatchLA ‘s advocacy and we stand alongside them. We must hold judges accountable and reduce the size and scope of the judiciary! #Repost @courtwatchla Compton Judge Patrick Connolly has been admonished by the Commission on Judicial Performance for the third time.

A huge crowd gathered at the @Reimagine_LA , @BLMLosAngeles and @JusticeLANow #CloseMCJ , #FullyFundMeasureJ action last week! We are so grateful for the power and strength of our people, leading the charge to bring dollars back to our communities, and to bring our people home! Peep the gorgeous #CareNotCages floral installation art in the final photo, created by the visionary @Whit_Hazen . []: @fraudfix (Photos one and three) []: Daily Mail (Photo two) ... #CloseMCJ #FullyFundMeasureJ #LaDefensa #ReimagineLA #BlackLivesMatter #JusticeLA #CareNotCages #JusticeNotJails #DefendBlackLives

Check out photos from our powerful action to #CloseMCJ and #FullyFundMeasureJ this past Monday, March 20th, 2021! The Reimagine LA Coalition ( @Reimagine_LA ), anchored by La Defensa, Black Lives Matter LA ( @BlmLosAngeles ), Justice LA (@JusticeLANow ) , and community members gathered for a press conference outside the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors building demanding the closure of #MCJ and the full funding of #MeasureJ. Community members created an installation ...of floral signs spelling out the words #CareNotCages and decorated jail beds with COVID-19 piñatas as protest against the harms of deadly MCJ. The action was a community mobilization against the harms that incarceration and law enforcement violence have on our people. At the action, moved by the spirit of a multitude of speakers, community members gathered together and marched toward Men’s Central Jail for a dusk candlelight vigil, honoring the voices of our loved ones impacted by the harms of Men’s Central Jail and state violence and staying grounded in connectedness and spiritual energy as we move forward in this fight. We collectively called for the immediate closure of MCJ and the release of our incarcerated loved ones, and an end to violence against Black and Brown community members. Our community’s passionate action showed that we cannot wait another day to close MCJ or to fully fund Measure J. Thank you to visionary artist and photographer #MikeDennis / #FraudFix for the impactful photography! []: @fraudfix #CloseMCJ #FullyFundMeasureJ #LaDefensa #ReimagineLA #JusticeLA #BlackLivesMatter #CareNotCages #JusticeNotJails #DefendBlackLives

Read this powerful coverage from the @latimes about community's longstanding demand to #CloseMensCentralJail ! From the article: "It’s time to get the wrecking ball ready for Los Angeles County’s dungeon, also known as Men’s Central Jail. It’s a decrepit and dangerous place that generally leaves people in even worse shape on their way out than they were on their way in. County officials, prodded by thoughtful input from and relentless activism by health and justice advocates..., have already acknowledged that the 58-year-old building needs to come down and be replaced not with a new jail or a mental hospital, but with a decentralized network of care and services aimed at prevention, treatment and safe reintegration into communities." The Times Editorial Board continues: "As long as the jail remains we will find a way to fill it. It’s time for the supervisors to prioritize closing the jail and accelerating the care-first infrastructure, and to instruct county staff to allocate funding accordingly. And to get the wrecking ball ready, and start the countdown." We are glad that the LA Times is acknowledging the work of community leaders and #CareFirst activists and organizers who have long been on the forefront of the #CareNotCages fight. Let's start the countdown to #CloseMCJ NOW! #LaDefensa #CloseMCJ #CareNotCages #JusticeNotJails #CloseMensCentralJail

Check out this powerful reminder from @translatinacoalition. We’re grateful for the powerful leadership of our Advisory Board Member @labamby , and the critical work of the Translatin@ Coalition. #Repost @translatinacoalition Reminder vaccine rollouts are becoming more available. Don’t let your immigration status be a barrier to get protected.... Recuerden qué hay más y más personas que califican para la vacuna. No deje que su estatus migratorio sea una barrera para protegerse. Repost from @listoscalifornia Q: My tía is concerned about getting the COVID-19 vaccine because of her immigration status. Should she be worried? A: Let your family and friends know: the vaccine is FREE & available for everyone, regardless of immigration or citizenship status. x @juliosalgado83 for @listoscalifornia #EndThePandemic #VaccinateALL58 #ImmigrantsAreWelcomeHere

Join us today at the LA County Measure J Advisory Body Meeting! #Repost @reimagine_la Advocacy alert! The Measure J Re-Imagine LA Advisory Committee will be holding a Special Meeting today at 4:00pm and we want to see you there (virtually)!... The committee will be meeting to discuss the process for ranking and approving the funding recommendations we have developed. As we navigate this historic opportunity to provide care and healing to historically marginalized communities in Los Angeles, know that your voice matters. Join us by phone or at the link below www.reimagine.la/take-action #reimaginela