A Living Death: Sentenced to Die Behind Bars for What? | American Civil Liberties Union

If you read that people who committed low level non-violent crimes were sentenced to life without parole in Iran or China you would immediately attribute it to Islamic or Communist dictatorship.  But it happens here all the time and scarcely a voice is raised.  Are we too embarrassed? Ignorant? to face the fact that 25% of the world's prisoners are here in America?   Do you think we have 25% of the world's criminals?  That other countries have higher crime rates because they are too lenient?   Actually it's the reverse we have a high crime rate and a high imprisonment rate.  One has to ask if the high imprisonment rate actually worsens our crime problem.  The answer is surely Yes.  It is not just the ACLU, but also the conservative group Right on Crime  that recognizes that our criminal justice policies are self-destructive.  
It is time to speak up.  Thank goodness the ACLU is doing that with its home for the holidays campaign. - GWC
A Living Death: Sentenced to Die Behind Bars for What? | American Civil Liberties Union:

SEND THESE PEOPLE HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

Because of our overly extreme sentencing laws, thousands of people will never spend another holiday season with their families. Instead, these people will be behind bars until they die for relatively minor drug and property crimes. This is an injustice, but it’s not an injustice that’s set in stone. President Obama has the power to reduce these cruel and wasteful sentences, but the Obama Administration has used this commutation power less than any administration in recent history.

It’s time for President Obama to reverse his record. This holiday season, ask the President to send people serving life without parole for nonviolent offenses #homefortheholidays.

#HomeForTheHolidays »

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