HRC at Columbia

 Praises former mayor Dinkins, who introduced her.  Calls him a good sounding board for her as a new Senator in early 2000s  This is a time when our collective efforts to devise solutions to the problems that afflict us is more important than ever.  Yet again, another young black life is cut short, streets of an American city are marred by violence, bonds of trust and respect frayed.  What we have seen in Baltimore should tear at our soul—Ferguson, Staten Island, Baltimore— patterns are undeniable.  Tells stories of Walter Scott, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Freddie Gray. “Not only as a mother and a grandmother, but a citizen, a human being, my heart breaks…we have to come to terms with some hard truths about race and justice in America.”  There is something profoundly wrong when young black men are more likely to be stopped, charged, sentenced for longer than white counterparts.  A third of all black men face the prospect of prison—black men are missing from communities because of incarceration or premature death, nearly 1 in 3 in Baltimore cannot find work.  These recent tragedies should galvanize us to come together as a nation to restore that balance to our criminal justice.  Baltimore rioters are “compounding the tragedy…setting back the cause of justice.”  Links respect for the law with respect by the law—that is what we have to work towards.  We must restore trust across our society—in politics, in the press, in markets.  It truly is about how we treat each other and what we value, making it possible for every American to each God-given potential.  The inequities that persist in our justice system undermine our shared vision of what our country can be.  Talks up work at Children’s Defense Fund, teenagers and preteens incarcerated at adult jails, work as director of Legal Aid Society at University of Arkansas Law.  “I know these are not new challenges by any means…today they demand fresh thinking and bold action from all of us.”  Praises Rand Paul, Mike Lee for bipartisan work.  Two areas in particular o We need smart strategies to fight crime that help restore trust, says police departments across the country are already deploying effective and creative strategies.  Hits military program: “Weapons of war have no place on our streets”  Obama’s task force on police a great place to start  Every police department in the country should have body cameras—it will help protect good people on both sides of the lens  We should match funds for body cameras everywhere—go beyond Obama program  We should measure success by working with communities, not just more arrests  We have to be honest about “the inequality that stalks our streets”  Better education chances for young people, more support to families.  [pulls out USA Today front page and reads from it] o Only 6 miles separate two Baltimore neighborhoods, but there is a 20 year difference in the average life expectancy.  Life expectancy for women, black men and women too low.  We need to start understanding how important it is to start caring for every child as if that child were our own.  The conversation needs to be much broader o We need to change how we approach punishment and prison  Cites 25% of prison population statistic.  Numbers today are much higher than before despite historic lows of crime  Significant percentage of low-level offenders and pre-trial detention.  Keeping them behind bars does little to lower crime  1 in every 28 children in our country has a parent in prison

 Without the mass incarceration we currently practices, millions of fewer people would be in poverty.  Of 600,000 prisoners re-entering society each year, 60% face long term unemployment.  Compares annual expenditures per prisoner to salaries, tuition.  I don’t have all the answers, that’s why I’m here.  I’ve been encouraged to see changes I supported as a Senator re: reducing sentencing disparities for crack and powder cocaine.  Reform of arbitrary mandatory minimums overdue.  We need better probation and diversion programs.  Please let us put mental health back on the top of our national agenda  Our prisons and our jails are now our mental health institutions.  I was surprised in IA and NH to be asked so many questions about mental health.  There is a quiet epidemic of substance abuse sweeping small towns and suburbs.  I’m well aware that despite emerging bipartisan consensus, we have a difficult path ahead.  Our goal must be inclusive and lasting prosperity [essentially the name of a CAP economic report].  Hits CEO bonuses again