Justice League NYC (JLNYC) is a prominent U.S. advocacy coalition, dedicated to addressing issues of racial and social justice, police reform, and the critical race theory-influenced concept of equity. The organization has played a significant role in advocating for policy changes, organizing protests, and promoting causes related to criminal justice reform. It is a project of the Gathering for Justice, a far-to-radical-left criminal justice advocacy group that was created in 2005 by the late activist singer and actor Harry Belafonte. ¹

Background

Justice League NYC is a left-of-center coalition of criminal justice reform and social justice advocacy groups that push for policies at the city, state, and national levels. JLNYC was established in response to perceived patterns of police brutality and racial discrimination in the United States. It has a sister organization based in California, and advocates for changes internationally as well. ²

The organization was founded by a group of activists and community leaders who sought to address these issues through protests, advocacy, and community organizing. The organization launched its first project in September 2014. ³

The Justice League NYC is a project of the Gathering for Justice, a far-to-radical-left criminal justice advocacy group that was created in 2005 by the late activist, singer, and actor Harry Belafonte. ⁴

Mission and Goals

The primary mission of Justice League NYC is to combat racial injustice, police brutality, and systemic inequality. It allies itself with a vision of “Kingian” (as in Martin Luther King Jr.) nonviolence and aims to influence communities both young and elderly. ⁵

Justice League NYC has been a vocal advocate for changes to police procedures, calling for greater transparency, accountability, and community policing. The organization is committed to ending so-called mass incarceration and addressing racial and other disparities within the criminal justice system. ⁶

Justice League NYC actively promotes voting rights and encourages civic engagement, particularly among marginalized communities. The organization also works to improve educational opportunities for underserved communities, focusing on equitable access to quality education. ⁷

Notable Initiatives

Growing Up Locked Down

One of Justice League NYC’s first projects was Growing Up Locked Down, a three-day conference held at The New School in September 2014. Its theme was “juvenile justice,” and a recorded 600-800 people attended the event. It was described as “an immersive, engaging program that included panels, live art presentations, nonviolence trainings, concerts, a film premiere and more.” ^{8 9}

March2Justice

One of the most significant initiatives undertaken by Justice League NYC is the “March2Justice.” In 2015, members of the organization, along with supporters, embarked on a 250-mile march from New York City to Washington, D.C. over the course of nine days. The purpose of the march was to raise awareness about police brutality, criminal justice policy, and voting rights. ¹⁰

Take a Knee Campaign

JLNYC and its parent organization Gathering for Justice supported NFL player Colin Kaepernick’s decision to kneel rather than stand during the National Anthem in protest of police brutality and racial injustice. The organizations reached out to Kaepernick and formed a series of workshops called Know Your Rights, targeted to young people. The partnership used the platform Kaepernick had gained to advocate for the end of so-called mass incarceration. ¹¹

Raise the Age

From 2015 to 2017 spearheaded the Raise the Age movement along with a few other criminal justice reform groups to raise the age of criminal responsibility from 16 to 18. It took direct actions and advocated within state government. Eventually, JLNYC and its partner organization successfully passed Raised the Age in April 2017. ¹²

By October 2019, the law went into full effect, and the state of New York no longer automatically prosecutes 16-and 17-year-olds as adults. It introduced a new category of Adolescent Offender into the city judicial vocabulary, and individuals of these ages accused of committing a felony-level crime are ordered to have cases heard in the Youth Part of Criminal Court. Furthermore, 16- and 17-year-olds are now placed in specialized juvenile detention facilities and can under no circumstances be housed in adult facilities or jails, regardless of the crime. New York State created a Raise the Age implementation task force. The legislation also guaranteed that some individuals may now be eligible to have their crimes officially sealed if they had committed them over ten years prior. ¹³

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7. “Justice League NYC.” The Gathering for Justice. Accessed September 24, 2023. https://www.gatheringforjustice.org/justiceleaguenyc.
8. “Justice League NYC.” The Gathering for Justice. Accessed September 24, 2023. https://www.gatheringforjustice.org/justiceleaguenyc.
9. “Campaigns.” The Gathering for Justice. Accessed September 24, 2023. https://www.gatheringforjustice.org/campaigns2.
10. “Justice League NYC.” The Gathering for Justice. Accessed September 24, 2023. https://www.gatheringforjustice.org/justiceleaguenyc.
11. “Campaigns.” The Gathering for Justice. Accessed September 24, 2023. https://www.gatheringforjustice.org/campaigns2.
12. “Campaigns.” The Gathering for Justice. Accessed September 24, 2023. https://www.gatheringforjustice.org/campaigns2.
13. “Raise the Age.” NY Courts. Accessed September 24, 2023. https://ww2.nycourts.gov/ip/oji/raisetheage.shtml.