Release Date: April 24, 2024

#FreeBlackMamas Ensuring Safety for Black Mamas and Caregivers: A Call to Action

In the pursuit of justice and equity, every individual deserves the fundamental right to safety. Regrettably, many Black Mamas and caregivers find themselves trapped within the harsh grip of incarceration, victims of a system that neglects its responsibility to provide essential pillars of support. This failure resonates through the absence of adequate housing, job prospects, vital drug treatment, mental health resources, and comprehensive healthcare.

Rather than addressing the underlying causes of these challenges, our elected leaders opt to stoke fear, baselessly asserting that bail reform threatens safety. This narrative misguides and diverts attention from the urgent need to address systemic deficiencies that bind our communities. 

Nationwide, troubling trends loom large, endangering hard-won progress in reducing pretrial detention populations, dismantling racial and economic disparities within the criminal justice system, and advocating for a more equitable bail approach that does not unfairly burden impoverished Black individuals.

In the face of these challenges, we stand united, understanding precisely what safeguards our communities. It is not fear-mongering but a collective dedication to practical solutions. Should our elected officials persist in their misaligned priorities, we, as guardians of liberation, will take action into our own hands. 

This Mother’s Day, we’ll be freeing as many Black Mamas and caregivers as possible so that they can come home to their families and communities. With the support of eighteen Black-led organizations, we’re bailing out our people in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Texas. 

We will tirelessly provide bail assistance to Black Mamas and caregivers, offering not only freedom but also a network of support services, community, and boundless love.

Safety is not a privilege but a right; we will fight to ensure it for all.

For media inquiries or further information, please contact:

Yabsera Faris, Director of Communications, info@nationalbailout.org

About National Bail Out: National Bail Out is a Black-led and Black-centered collective of abolitionist organizers, lawyers, and activists building a community-based movement to support Black Mamas and caregivers, end systems of pretrial detention, and ultimately end mass incarceration. We are people who have been impacted by cages — either by being in them ourselves or witnessing our families and loved ones be encaged. We are queer, trans, young, elder, and immigrants.