Join us for a Ballot Props Teach-In with Taina Vargas-Edmond, the Founder and Executive Director of Initiate Justice. We’ll have a conversation about Proposition 17 to Free the Vote, which Taina’s organization is spearheading, we’ll discuss other key ballot initiatives like Prop 20 and Measure J, and we’ll have a chance to hear the story of Initiate Justice and learn more about their vital work.

Initiate Justice’s mission is to end mass incarceration by activating the power of the people it directly impacts. We organize our members, both inside and outside of prisons, to advocate for their freedom and change criminal justice policy in California. We have more than 30,000 incarcerated members, 135 inside organizers, and hundreds more outside members and organizers throughout California.

Prior to creating Initiate Justice, Taina worked in the organizing and policy advocacy field as the Statewide Advocacy Coordinator with Essie Justice Group, State Campaigner with the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, and as a Field Representative for the California State Assembly. She is directly impacted by mass incarceration, with her husband having served seven years in CA state prison.