I will never forget the first time I visited a client in jail. The heavy, metal door slammed behind me, and I heard the key turn in the lock. The cement floor underneath me had a sticky film on it that made a ripping sound, like tape being pulled off a box, every time I moved my foot. The only connection to the outside world was a small window placed too high to see. There was a small, square table bolted to the floor and two metal chairs, one on either side. That was the first time I understood viscerally -- just for a fleeting moment -- what incarceration might feel like. And I promised myself all those years ago as a young, public defender that I would never, ever forget that feeling. And I never have. It inspired me to fight for each and every one of my clients' freedom as if it was my own.
Nikada neću zaboraviti kada sam prvi put posetila klijenta u zatvoru. Teška, metalna vrata su se zalupila za mnom i čula sam kako se ključ okreće u bravi. Cementni pod ispod mene je imao neki lepljivi sloj koji je pravio zvuk cepanja, kao kad se selotejp odlepljuje sa kutije, svaki put kada sam pomerala stopala. Jedina veza sa spoljašnjim svetom bio je mali prozor, previsoko da bi se video. Tu je bio mali, četvrtasti sto, zašrafljen za pod i dve metalne stolice, po jedna sa svake strane. To je bilo prvi put da sam emotivno razumela - samo u tom kratkom trenutku - kakav je osećaj biti zatvoren. I obećala sam sebi pre toliko godina kao mladi javni branilac, da nikada neću zaboraviti taj osećaj. I nisam. On me je inspirisao da se za slobodu svakog mog klijenta borim kao da je u pitanju moja.
Freedom. A concept so fundamental to the American psyche that it is enshrined in our constitution. And yet, America is addicted to imprisonment. From slavery through mass incarceration, it always has been. Look, we all know the shocking numbers. The United States incarcerates more people per capita than almost any nation on the planet. But what you may not know is that on any given night in America, almost half a million people go to sleep in those concrete jail cells who have not been convicted of anything. These mothers and fathers and sons and daughters are there for one reason and one reason only: they cannot afford to pay the price of their freedom. And that price is called bail.
Sloboda. Taj koncept je toliko urezan u američku psihu, da je utkan u naš Ustav. A ipak, Amerika je navučena na zatvaranje. Od ropstva do masovnog zatvaranja, uvek je bila. Vidite, svi znamo šokantne brojeve. Sjedinjene Države zatvaraju više ljudi po glavi stanovnika nego skoro bilo koja nacija na planeti. Ali možda ne znate da svake noći u Americi u tim betonskim ćelijama spava skoro pola miliona ljudi koji nisu osuđeni nizašta. Te majke i očevi i sinovi i ćerke su tamo samo iz jednog razloga: ne mogu da priušte da plate cenu svoje slobode. A ta cena zove se kaucija.
Now, bail was actually created as a form of conditional release. The theory was simple: set bail at an amount that somebody could afford to pay -- they would pay it -- it would give them an incentive to come back to court; it would give them some skin in the game. Bail was never intended to be used as punishment. Bail was never intended to hold people in jail cells. And bail was never, ever intended to create a two-tier system of justice: one for the rich and one for everybody else. But that is precisely what it has done.
Kaucija je stvorena kao oblik uslovnog puštanja na slobodu. Teorija je bila jednostavna: odrediti kauciju na sumu koju neko može da priušti, oni bi je platili, imali bi motiv da se vrate na sud, tako bi imali malo udela u svemu tome. Nikada nije bila namera da kaucija služi kao kazna niti da drži ljude u zatvorima. I nikada, nikada nije bila namera da kaucija stvori dvostruki pravni sistem: jedan za bogate i drugi za sve ostale. Ali upravo to se desilo.
Seventy-five percent of people in American local jails are there because they cannot pay bail. People like Ramel. On a chilly October afternoon, Ramel was riding his bicycle in his South Bronx neighborhood on his way to a market to pick up a quart of milk. He was stopped by the police. And when he demanded to know why he was being stopped, an argument ensued, and the next thing he knew, he was on the ground in handcuffs, being charged with "riding your bicycle on the sidewalk and resisting arrest." He was taken to court, where a judge set 500 dollars bail. But Ramel -- he didn't have 500 dollars. So this 32-year-old father was sent to "The Boat" -- a floating jail barge that sits on the East River between a sewage plant and a fish market. That's right, you heard me. In New York City, in 2018, we have a floating prison barge that sits out there and houses primarily black and brown men who cannot pay their bail.
Sedamdesetpet procenata ljudi je u američkim lokalnim zatvorima samo zato što ne mogu da plate kauciju. Ljudi kao što je Ramel. Jednog hladnog oktobarskog popodneva, Ramel je vozio bicikl u svom kraju u Južnom Bronksu na putu do prodavnice da kupi mleko. Zaustavila ga je policija. I kada je zahtevao da mu kažu zašto su ga zaustavili, usledila je rasprava i potom se našao na zemlji sa lisicama na rukama, pod optužbom da je "vozio bicikl na trotoaru i opirao se hapšenju". Odveden je na sud gde je sudija odredio kauciju od 500 dolara. Ali Ramel nije imao 500 dolara. Tako je ovaj 32-godišnji otac poslat na "Brod" - plutajuću baržu-zatvor koja se nalazi na Ist Riveru između kanalizacionog postrojenja i riblje pijace. Tako je, dobro ste čuli. U Njujorku u 2018. imamo plutajuću baržu-zatvor koja se nalazi tamo i u njoj se smeštaju uglavnom crni i tamnoputi muškarci koji ne mogu da plate kauciju.
Let's talk for a moment about what it means to be in jail even for a few days. Well, it can mean losing your job, losing your home, jeopardizing your immigration status. It may even mean losing custody of your children. A third of sexual victimization by jail staff happens in the first three days in jail, and almost half of all jail deaths, including suicides, happen in that first week. What's more, if you're held in jail on bail, you're four times more likely to get a jail sentence than if you had been free, and that jail sentence will be three times longer. And if you are black or Latino and cash bail has been set, you are two times more likely to remain stuck in that jail cell than if you were white.
Hajde da za trenutak govorimo o tome šta znači biti u zatvoru, čak i samo nekoliko dana. Može da znači da ćete izgubiti posao, da ćete izgubiti dom, da će vam imigrantski status biti ugrožen. Može čak da znači da ćete izgubiti starateljstvo nad svojom decom. Trećina seksualnih napada koju izvrši zatvorsko osoblje desi se u roku od prva tri dana u zatvoru, a skoro polovina svih smrti u zatvoru, uključujući samoubistva, desi se tokom te prve nedelje. Štaviše, ako ste u zatvoru na kauciji, šanse da dobijete zatvorsku kaznu su četiri puta veće nego da ste slobodni, a ta kazna će biti tri puta duža. A ako ste crnac ili latinoamerikanac i određena vam je kaucija, verovatnoća da ćete ostati u zatvoru je dva puta veća nego da ste belac.
Jail in America is a terrifying, dehumanizing and violent experience. Now imagine for just one moment that it's you stuck in that jail cell, and you don't have the 500 dollars to get out. And someone comes along and offers you a way out. "Just plead guilty," they say. "You can go home back to your job. Just plead guilty. You can kiss your kids goodnight tonight." So you do what anybody would do in that situation. You plead guilty whether you did it or not. But now you have a criminal record that's going to follow you for the rest of your life.
Zatvor u Americi je užasno, dehumanizujuće i nasilno iskustvo. Sad na tren zamislite da ste vi u toj zatvorskoj ćeliji i da nemate 500 dolara da izađete. I pojavi se neko ko vam ponudi izlaz. "Samo priznaj krivicu", kaže. "Možeš da se vratiš kući, svom poslu. Samo priznaj. Možeš večeras da poljubiš decu za laku noć." I uradite ono što bi bilo ko u toj situaciji uradio. Priznate krivicu, bez obzira da li ste to uradili. Ali sada imate krivični dosije koji će vas pratiti tokom celog života.
Jailing people because they don't have enough money to pay bail is one of the most unfair, immoral things we do as a society. But it is also expensive and counterproductive. American taxpayers -- they spend 14 billion dollars annually holding people in jail cells who haven't been convicted of anything. That's 40 million dollars a day. What's perhaps more confounding is it doesn't make us any safer. Research is clear that holding somebody in jail makes you significantly more likely to commit a crime when you get out than if you had been free all along.
Zatvaranje ljudi jer nemaju para da plate kauciju je jedna od najmanje fer i najnemoralnijih stvari koje kao društvo radimo. Takođe je skupo i kontraproduktivno. Američki poreski obveznici troše 14 milijardi dolara godišnje na držanje ljudi u zatvorima, ljudi koji nisu osuđeni nizašta. To je 40 miliona dolara dnevno. Ono što još više zbunjuje, je da nas to ne čini bezbednijim. Istraživanja jasno kažu da držanje nekog u zatvoru povećava šansu da on počini zločin kada iz zatvora izađe, nego da je bio slobodan sve vreme.
Freedom makes all the difference. Low-income communities and communities of color have known that for generations. Together, they have pooled their resources to buy their loved ones freedom for as long as bondage and jail cells existed. But the reach of the criminal legal system has grown too enormous, and the numbers are just too large. Ninety-nine percent of jail growth in America has been the result -- over the last 20 years -- of pre-trial incarceration.
Sloboda je od velikog značaja. Siromašne i obojene zajednice to znaju već generacijama. Zajedno, one su udružile resurse da otkupe slobodu svojih voljenih od kada zatvori postoje. Ali doseg pravnog sistema je ogroman i brojevi su preveliki. Devedesetdevet odsto porasta zatvora u Americi je rezultat - tokom poslednjih 20 godina - zatvaranja pre suđenja.
I have been a public defender for over half my life, and I have stood by and watched thousands of clients as they were dragged into those jail cells because they didn't have enough money to pay bail. I have watched as questions of justice were subsumed by questions of money, calling into question the legitimacy of the entire American legal system. I am here to say something simple -- something obvious, but something urgent. Freedom makes all the difference, and freedom should be free.
Ja sam javni branilac više od polovine svog života i stajala sam i gledala hiljade klijenata koje su odvlačili u te zatvorske ćelije jer nisu imali dovoljno novca da plate kauciju. Gledala sam dok su pitanja pravde gažena pitanjima novca, dovodeći u pitanje legitimnost celog američkog pravnog sistema. Ovde sam da kažem nešto jednostavno - nešto očigledno, ali nešto hitno. Sloboda igra veliku ulogu, i ona bi trebalo da bude besplatna.
(Applause)
(Aplauz)
But how are we going to make that happen? Well, that's the question I was wrestling with over a decade ago when I was sitting at a kitchen table with my husband, David, who is also a public defender. We were eating our Chinese takeout and venting about the injustice of it all when David looked up and said, "Why don't we just start a bail fund, and just start bailing our clients out of jail?" And in that unexpected moment, the idea for the Bronx Freedom Fund was born.
Ali kako ćemo to da omogućimo? Pa, s tim pitanjem sam se borila pre više od decenije, kada sam sedela za kuhinjskim stolom sa svojim mužem, Dejvidom, koji je takođe javni branilac. Jeli smo dostavljenu kinesku hranu i jadali se o nepravdi svega kad je Dejvid rekao: "Zašto ne bismo osnovali fond za kauciju i počeli da izvlačimo svoje klijente iz zatvora?" I u tom neočekivanom trenutku, rođena je ideja za Fond slobode Bronksa.
Look, we didn't know what to expect. There were plenty of people that told us we were crazy and we were going to lose all of the money. People wouldn't come back because they didn't have any stake in it. But what if clients did come back? We knew that bail money comes back at the end of a criminal case, so it could come back into the fund, and we could use it over and over again for more and more bail. That was our big bet, and that bet paid off.
Vidite, nismo znali šta da očekujemo. Mnog ljudi su nam rekli da smo ludi i da ćemo izgubiti sav novac. Ljudi se neće vratiti jer nemaju interesa. Ali šta ako se klijenti vrate? Znali smo da se novac za kauciju vraća na kraju kriminalnog slučaja, pa bi mogao da se vrati u fond i mogli bismo da ga koristimo iznova i iznova za još kaucija. Na to smo se kladili i ta se opklada isplatila.
Over the past 10 years, we have been paying bails for low-income residents of New York City, and what we have learned has exploded our ideas of why people come back to court and how the criminal legal system itself is operated. Turns out money isn't what makes people come back to court. We know this because when the Bronx Freedom Fund pays bail, 96 percent of clients return for every court appearance, laying waste to the myth that it's money that mattered. It's powerful evidence that we don't need cash or ankle bracelets or unnecessary systems of surveillance and supervision. We simply need court reminders -- simple court reminders about when to come back to court.
Tokom poslednjih 10 godina, plaćamo kaucije za siromašne stanovnike Njujorka, i ono što smo naučili, promenilo je naše ideje o tome zašto se ljudi vraćaju na sud i kako sam pravni sistem funkcioniše. Ispostavlja se da se ljudi ne vraćaju na sud zbog novca. Ovo znamo, jer kad Fond slobode Bronksa plati kauciju, 96 odsto klijenata se vraća na svaki sudski poziv, i tako opovrgava mit da je novac jedini važan. To je moćan dokaz da nam nisu potrebni keš ili narukvice za članak ili nepotrebni sistemi prismotre i nadgledanja. Samo su nam potrebni podsetnici za sud - jednostavni podsetnici - kada se vratiti na sud.
Next, we learned that if you're held in jail on a misdemeanor, 90 percent of people will plead guilty. But when the fund pays bail, over half the cases are dismissed. And in the entire history of the Bronx Freedom Fund, fewer than two percent of our clients have ever received a jail sentence of any kind.
Sledeće što smo saznali je da, ako ste u zatvoru za prekršaj, 90 odsto ljudi će priznati krivicu. Ali ako fond plati kauciju, preko polovine tih slučajeva biva odbačeno. I u celoj istoriji Fonda slobode Bronksa, manje od dva odsto naših klijenata je ikada dobilo zatvorsku kaznu bilo koje vrste.
(Applause)
(Aplauz)
Ramel, a week later -- he was still on the boat, locked in that jail cell. He was on the cusp of losing everything, and he was about to plead guilty, and the Bronx Freedom Fund intervened and paid his bail. Now, reunited with his daughter, he was able to fight his case from outside. Look, it took some time -- two years, to be exact -- but at the end of that, his case was dismissed in its entirety. For Ramel --
Remel, nedelju dana kasnije - još uvek je bio na brodu, zaključan u toj zatvorskoj ćeliji. Bio je na ivici da sve izgubi i zamalo da je priznao krivicu, kada je Fond slobode Bronksa intervenisao i platio kauciju. Sada, ponovo sa svojom ćerkom, mogao je da se bori sa slobode. Vidite, bilo je potrebno neko vreme - da budem tačna, dve godine - ali na kraju svega, njegov slučaj je u potpunosti odbačen. Za Ramela -
(Applause)
(Aplauz)
For Ramel, the Bronx Freedom Fund was a lifeline, but for countless other Americans locked in jail cells, there is no freedom fund coming. It's time to do something about that. It's time to do something big. It's time to do something bold. It's time to do something, maybe, audacious?
Za Ramela, Fond slobode Bronksa je bio slamka spasa ali za brojne druge Amerikance zaključane u ćelijama ne postoji fond slobode. Vreme je da se uradi nešto po tom pitanju. Vreme je da se uradi nešto veliko. Vreme je da se uradi nešto smelo. Vreme je da se uradi nešto, možda, odvažno?
(Laughter)
(Smeh)
We want to take our proven, revolving bail-fund model that we built in the Bronx and spread it across America, attacking the front end of the legal system before incarceration begins.
Želimo da naš dokazani model obrtnog fonda za kauciju, koji smo razvili u Bronksu, proširimo širom Amerike, napadajući prvu liniju pravnog sistema, pre nego što zatvaranje počne.
(Applause)
(Aplauz)
(Cheers)
(Ovacije)
(Applause)
(Aplauz)
Here's the plan.
Evo plana.
(Applause)
(Aplauz)
We're going to bail out as many people as we can as quickly as we can. Over the next five years, partnering with public defenders and local community organizations, we're going to set up 40 sites in high-need jurisdictions. The goal is to bail out 160,000 people. Our strategy leverages the fact that bail money comes back at the end of a case. Data from the Bronx shows that a dollar can be used two or three times a year, creating a massive force multiplier. So a dollar donated today can be used to pay bail for up to 15 people over the next five years. Our strategy also relies on the experience and the wisdom and the leadership of those who have experienced this injustice firsthand.
Platićemo kauciju za što više ljudi možemo što brže možemo. Tokom narednih pet godina, u partnerstvu sa javnim braniocima i lokalnim organizacijama, osnovaćemo 40 mesta u oblastima sa velikim potrebama. Cilj je da platimo kauciju za 160.000 ljudi. Naša strategija koristi činjenicu da se novac za kauciju vraća na kraju slučaja. Podaci iz Bronksa pokazuju da se jedan dolar može iskoristiti tri puta tokom godine, stvarajući tako masivno pojačanje sile. Dolar koji je doniran danas može da se iskoristi da izbavi do 15 ljudi u narednih 5 godina. Naša strategija se takođe oslanja na iskustvo i mudrost i liderstvo onih koji su iskusili ovu nepravdu iz prve ruke.
(Applause)
(Aplauz)
Each bail project site will be staffed by a team of bail disrupters. These are passionate, dedicated advocates from local communities, many of whom were formerly incarcerated themselves, who will pay bails and support clients while their cases are going through the legal system, providing them with whatever resources and support they may need. Our first two sites are up and running. One in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and one in St. Louis, Missouri. And Ramel? He's training right now to be a bail disrupter in Queens County, New York.
Na svakom mestu za kaucije radiće tim revolucionara kaucija. To su strastveni, posvećeni zagovarači iz lokalnih zajednica, od kojih su mnogi ranije bili zatvoreni, koji će plaćati kaucije i podržavati klijente dok njihovi slučajevi prolaze kroz pravni sistem, i davaće im svu podršku i resurse koji su im potrebni. Prva dva mesta su proradila. Jedno u Tulsi, u Oklahomi, drugo u Snt Luisu, u Mizuriju. A Ramel? On je trenutno na obuci da bude revolucionar za kaucije u Kvinsu, Njujork.
(Applause)
(Aplauz)
Our next three sites are ready to launch in Dallas, Detroit and Louisville, Kentucky. The Bail Project will attack the money bail system on an unprecedented scale. We will also listen, collect and elevate and honor the stories of our clients so that we can change hearts and minds, and we will collect critical, national data that we need so we can chart a better path forward so that we do not recreate this system of oppression in just another form. The Bail Project, by bailing out 160,000 people over the next five years, will become one of the largest non-governmental decarcerations of Americans in history.
Naša naredna tri mesta su spremna za otvaranje u Dalasu, Detroitu i Luivilu, Kentaki. Projekat Kaucija će napasti novčani sistem kaucije u do sada neviđenoj razmeri. Takođe ćemo slušati, skupljati, promovisati i poštovati priče svojih klijenata kako bismo promenili srca i umove i skupljaćemo važne, nacionalne podatke koji su nam potrebni da bismo napravili bolji plan za dalje da ne bismo rekreirali sistem opresije u nekom drugom obliku. Projekat Kaucija, oslobađenjem 160.000 ljudi u narednih pet godina, postaće jedna od najvećih nevladinih akcija puštanja iz zatvora Amerikanaca u istoriji.
So look --
Dakle, vidite -
(Applause)
(Aplauz)
the criminal legal system, as it exists -- it needs to be dismantled. But here's the thing I know from decades in the system: real, systemic change takes time, and it takes a variety of strategies. So it's going to take all of us. It's going to take the civil rights litigators, the community organizers, the academics, the media, the philanthropists, the students, the singers, the poets, and, of course, the voices and efforts of those who are impacted by this system. But here's what I also know: together, I believe we can end mass incarceration.
kriminalni pravni sistem, kakav jeste - mora da se menja. Ali evo šta znam posle decenija u sistemu: prava, sistemska promena zahteva vreme i raznovrsne strategije. I potrebni smo svi mi. Potrebni su advokati za građanska prava, vođe zajednica, akademici, mediji, filantropi, studenti, muzičari, pesnici i naravno, glasovi i napori onih na koje je ovaj sistem uticao. Ali evo šta još znam: zajedno, verujem da možemo zaustaviti masovno zatvaranje.
But one last thing: those people, sitting in America, in those jail cells, in every corner of the country, who are held in jail on bail bondage, right now -- they need a lifeline today. That's where The Bail Project comes in. We have a proven model, a plan of action, and a growing network of bail disrupters who are audacious enough to dream big and fight hard, one bail at a time, for as long it takes, until true freedom and equal justice are a reality in America.
Ali još nešto: ti ljudi, koji u Americi sede u zatvorima, u svakom kutku zemlje, koji su u zatvorima zbog kaucije, sada - njima je potrebna slamka spasa danas. Tu nastupa Projekat Kaucija. Imamo dokazani model, plan akcije, rastuću mrežu revolucionara koji su dovoljno odvažni da sanjaju velike snove i bore se snažno, jednu po jednu kauciju, koliko god je potrebno, dok istinska sloboda i jednaka pravda ne postanu stvarnost u Americi.
Thank you.
Hvala vam.
(Applause)
(Aplauz)