On November 21, 2023, Maryland Matters published an article discussing perspective on Attorney General Anthony Brown and Public Defender Natasha Dartique's Maryland Equitable Justice Collaborative. The collaborative intends to destabilize the weapon of mass incarceration and its harsh impacts on communities of color.
Below is an attachment below from Maryland Matters sharing Judge Williams' bravery and vulnerability in expressing his relationship with the collaborative and his judicial career as well as the moral imperative and responsibility shared by all that contribute to the systemic and structural issues existent in disproportionate and excessive incarceration.
His statement is a stark reminder that we are all part of the problem and must all be part of the solution in addressing the racial inequities embedded in the crisis of mass incarceration. For the last several decades we have sat idly by as our jails and prison populations have swelled, sentences have become more excessive and now we have a graying, older consortium of men and women aging behind prison walls.
In the article, he shares all actors who play a role in the perpetuation of mass incarceration and its destruction on community health. Through biases, false narratives, and the complications in the judicial system, this society subjects prejudice and discrimination that contributes to the racial disparities and equities in the legal system. In all, he acknowledges that it is up to all of us to "reverse the tide" and support decarceration across Maryland and the rest of the country.
Learn more:
Opinion: On mass incarceration, “we are all part of the problem”
