OUR MISSION, VISION, AND CORE VALUES
OUR MISSION
Barred Business is an organization led by justice- impacted people working to heal, activate, resource, and build power and self determination amongst justice-impacted people, their loved ones, and their communities.
OUR VISION
We envision a world where justice-impacted people can live, earn, build collective power, advance electorally, and grow economically without discrimination. To ensure our vision comes to fruition, we change policies, transform social institutions, and advance electoral strategies to build, seize, and retain power.
OUR CORE VALUES
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WE BELIEVE justice impacted people are beautiful, resilient, wise, and deserve wellness and safety!
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WE BELIEVE no one should be harassed by police or locked in a cage simply because they are poor, immigrant, or suffer from unmet mental health or substance misuse needs.
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WE BELIEVE our communities are made safer and more well when we invest in communities instead of police and prisons. We work to build systems of care and to dismantle systems of punishment for justice impacted people and communities.
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WE BELIEVE that there are enough resources in this country to care for and provide opportunity to all of our people, and to end glaring racial and economic disparities that have plagued our communities for centuries.
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WE BELIEVE communities most impacted by our criminal legal system and by violence and crime are the experts on what is needed for safety and wellness. The ideas, experiences and perspectives of justice impacted people must be a part of how sustainable solutions are created and resources are allocated.
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WE BELIEVE Black and Brown people, women, trans, non binary, and gender non- conforming people, in particular bear the brunt of many of the negative economic and social impacts of policing and prisons. We have been locked up, unsupported, unsheltered, and have come home fees, fines, hardship, and our families ripped apart. We fight to survive navigating systems and structures that have little regard for our mental health and wellbeing.
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WE BELIEVE that when justice impacted people are helped, healed, and made whole, other members of our communities are also restored.
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WE BELIEVE that empathy is a another chance, and that despite grave hardships, justice impacted people have a right to opportunity and redemption.