Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) is renewing requires President Biden to grant clemency to 1000’s of Individuals serving time in federal establishments following his bombshell pardon of Hunter Biden.
“Today, I’m thinking of the hundreds of thousands of people who pose no threat to society and whose lives are deteriorating due to America’s mass incarceration crisis and unjust criminal legal system,” Pressley stated in an announcement on Monday.
“President Biden used his pardon authority last night in response to what he saw as an injustice of the legal system,” she continued. “In the remaining days of his presidency, I have called on President Biden to use his clemency power to change the lives of families across this nation—families who are disproportionately Black and brown, with loved ones behind the wall, suffering from injustices of the legal system.”
Pressley has lengthy been an advocate for legal justice reform and has beforehand referred to as on Biden to grant clemency to these serving time for non-violent offenses.
Final month, she joined Reps. James Clyburn (S.C.) and Mary Homosexual Scanlon (Pa.) in sending a letter to Biden urging him to take motion earlier than the top of his time period.
She additionally launched the FIX Clemency Act in 2021, which might rework the clemency system and deal with the rising mass incarceration disaster.
“This issue is deeply personal to me. As the daughter of a formerly incarcerated parent who has gone on to make great contributions to society, I know firsthand how life-changing the President’s action would be and how much hope it would give to millions who call America home,” Pressley stated on Monday.
“Today, with 49 days remaining in his presidency, President Biden has an opportunity to cement his legacy as one of the most compassionate and impactful Presidents of our time. For the families harmed by mass incarceration, he must act.”