HARRISBURG, Pa. — Alliance for Safety and Justice, the nation's largest public safety reform group, hosted a block party in Harrisburg on Saturday, Sept. 10 to connect Pennsylvanians who have past arrests and convictions with helpful resources.
The gathering was held at Breaking the Chainz from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
"I’m very proud that the community came out and showed their support and also showed that they are interested in getting the resources that will help them move forward, because if you don’t get involved, how can you ever win the race if you’re not in it?" said Dr. Kevin Dolphin, Pennsylvania chapter coordinator of TimeDone.
The event marked the launch of TimeDone Pennsylvania, a statewide campaign to advocate for common sense public safety policies that help break cycles of crime, victimization and post-incarceration poverty. This was the campaign's first event in the Commonwealth.
“More than three million Pennsylvanians with a past record struggle to find stable housing and employment,” Jay Jordan, CEO of Alliance for Safety and Justice and national director of TimeDone, said in a press release. “Ensuring that Pennsylvanians who have paid their debt to society are able to access the resources they need for economic stability is imperative to the success and safety of our communities.”
The organization, which currently has over 75,000 members nationwide, handed out information about housing, employment, legal services and other resources that reduce barriers to success.
"We’re here to help get these laws changed so that people can have better housing situations, be able to create fair employment situations, and a lot of different other things," Dr. Dolphin said.
Nearly three million Pennsylvanians with past records experience hardships when trying to build stability for themselves and their families. They are also iced out of their communities and struggle to find stable employment and housing.
TimeDone Pennsylvania strives to address these barriers by calling on state leaders to expand eligibility for record sealing, fix the state's costly and complex record sealing process and make record sealing automatic for certain low-level misdemeanors.
“No one deserves to be forever blocked from so many avenues to success and stability because of their past,” Shaena Fazal, chief of state advocacy for the Alliance for Safety and Justice, said in a press release. “We appreciate that the General Assembly is currently considering legislation expanding its Clean Slate law, and we look forward to being an advocate for those changes.”
