The Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission launched, July 2020, in three major US cities.
click to watch Shaun King’s announcement
District Attornies- Rachael Rollins from Boston, Larry Krasner from Philadelphia, and Chesa Boudin from San Francisco- have teamed up to launch the Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission to review injustices within the legal system such as police violence and misconduct. These commissions are being led by the Grassroots Law Project under Lee Merritt & Shaun King’s leadership. In the fall, the Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission will announce how impacted community members can submit their cases for review.
District Attorney Rachael Rollins says the commission will be designed with input from the community in order to address past grievenances and to change the legal system. Ultimately the plan is to “reimagine what the interaction between law enforcement and certain communities can be” she says. According to King, “It’s OK to reform or tinker with the system, but sometimes we have to say we need to build a new system… Part of why we’re doing this now is to say we need to build a new system that considers all people in Boston, all people in Philadelphia, all people in San Francisco“ (2020). During a call with CNN, King shared he and Merritt are working with district attorneys in ten additional cities and plan to expand the program across the county; for now, it’s important they get the model right in the three pilot cities.
The truth of the matter is, the criminal justice system– as we know it– is working exactly as it was designed to work. It disporportionately targets and disenfranchises Black folk; it’s time that this changed!
But is this the change we need? Should we be supporting this initiative? Folks are sceptical about this initiative and it seems like they’re most concerned about King’s involvement. According to the Daily Beast and other sources, Shaun King has a reputation for raising money and not delivering it. Individuals are encouraged to “think twice before clicking on the prominently displayed donate button” thats on the Truth, Justice, and Reconcilition Commission’s website. In 2015 King’s former colleagues claimed he was mismanaging projects and lacked transparency. Similar allegations are being made in regards to the North Star, an online news media platform launched in 2019. Again, former colleagues are saying King promised a lot and made a lot of money but, did not deliver. King contests he has never mismanaged funds although he may have bitten more than he can chew. He admits his advisors “insisted that we should not do written articles, podcasts, and video at the same time”.
So let me ask: is this level of scrutiny warranted? Would you donate to the TJRC? Do you follow and/or support Shaun King and his intiatives? Are you wary of Sean King? What do you think is really happening with all the money being raised?
Leave your thoughts in the comment section! I’d love to know what you think.
Discussion Worthy 