No New Jails NYC
No New Jails NYC formed in September 2018, shortly after the Mayor launched the formal approval process for his jail expansion plan to build and renovate 4 new borough-based jails. A direct continuation of the grassroots efforts to close Rikers immediately, No New Jails NYC also draws on the success of previous of jail construction fights in NYC.
Now this jail proposal has expanded to include No New Jails NYC is organizing to build a strong community resistance to the Mayor’s plan and demand that the City close the jails at Rikers without building any new jails. From May to November 2019, the Mayor’s jail expansion plan will be put before a string of public bodies and officials, each with increasing power, determine wither the Mayor’s massive new jails will be built in neighborhood locations in Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx.
At the same time, No New Jails NYC is building power in communities throughout New York City and with its imprisoned members. Overwhelmingly, New Yorkers agree that all efforts should be dedicated now to closing all jails on Rikers Island, that there is no need to build any more jails, and that the billions of dollars budgeted for new jails should be redirected instead to community-based resources that will support permanent decarceration.
Close Rikers Now, We Keep Us Safe: A NEW YORKER’S GUIDE TO BUILDING COMMUNITY CARE AND SAFETY BY CLOSING RIKERS WITH NO NEW JAILS.
