From Rikers to Reform: A Gen Z-er’s Justice Movement

At 18, I was arrested and incarcerated on Rikers Island for a crime I did not commit. I spent 16 months in one of America’s most notorious jails—exposed to violence, trauma, and isolation—only to ultimately be found not guilty. The system that took almost a year and a half of my life was the same system that was supposed to protect me. Instead, it inflicted deep wounds that I carry to this day. My story represents the need for fixes to the system. It’s also what led me to my career in criminal justice reform. I am lucky that I am able to use my experience to ensure others that will come after me don’t endure the same fate.

Unfortunately, my story is not unique. It reflects the narratives of countless young people who have been failed by our broken justice and safety system. Despite such a horrific experience, I am optimistic – particularly when I see firsthand that it’s Americans my age who continue to push for critical changes.

Polls show criminal justice reform to be one of the few unifying issues for younger Americans as politics fracture and allegiances around many issues change. 90% of my generation view public safety as important. Critically, across party lines, we also view smart criminal justice reforms as a public safety solution.

We are a generation defined by racial and ethnic diversity, constant disruptions, severe inequalities, and a desire to build a fairer society spurred in no small part by a deep skepticism and distrust of institutions. My peers live with the mistakes of previous generations and are surrounded by failed status quos.

If candidates are serious about engaging the elusive “youth vote,” being serious about reform and championing an issue that data bears out that we care about is a solid idea.

That’s why this week, I am organizing events across nearly two-dozen colleges and universities for REFORM Alliance’s Gen Z Week of Action to speak directly to students around the country – and help channel their nascent activism by plugging them into a movement that will benefit from their energy and purpose. 

I hope to focus their drive on probation and parole reform. That’s because our broken supervision system is actually one of the main drivers of mass incarceration. When I was at Rikers, I saw dozens of my peers qualify for release – only to return weeks or even days later. In most cases, it was not because they’d re-offended violently or because they were a risk to public safety. It was often something as minor as missing a check-in call due to a dead phone battery or crossing a county line without permission that ripped them out of their homes and away from a second chance. 

Fixing our federal supervised release system, which serves as the post-release supervision system for nearly all individuals sentenced to federal prison, is especially urgent. Unlike so many other portions of the criminal justice and supervision system that have benefited from bipartisan advocacy over the last decade, federal supervision has not been touched since the 1980s – before I was born. This system was originally designed to provide tailored support for “those and only those who need it” but has ballooned beyond recognition, now trapping 110,000 people on federal supervised release and costing taxpayers nearly $500 million annually.

The federal supervised release system also serves as a punitive bureaucracy that pushes people back into incarceration for minor, often technical (or non-criminal), violations like crossing county lines without permission. Take substance use, for example. Rather than offering treatment, our system mandates automatic reincarceration for minor drug-related offenses like missing a drug test, which reinforces cycles of trauma and does little to combat addiction. This approach is neither humane nor effective. It wastes taxpayer dollars, destroys lives, and fails at its core purpose of promoting rehabilitation.

The Safer Supervision Act – currently awaiting reintroduction in Congress – is an important starting point. It would ensure federal supervision conditions actually match people’s individual needs instead of using standards that set them up to fail. The bill would reward people who make progress, clearly outlining how they can end their supervision early when they’ve demonstrated real growth. It also restores judges’ ability to choose treatment instead of reincarceration for minor mistakes, helping people recover rather than pushing them back into a cycle of incarceration.

This is our generation’s moment to hold leaders accountable. With 40 million Gen Z voters ready to make their voices heard, we have the power to demand a justice system that actually works—one built on fairness, rehabilitation, and safety rather than punishment and fear.

I spent 16 months behind bars due to systemic failures. But today, I stand ready, alongside thousands of Gen Z changemakers, to rewrite the story of justice in America. Join us. Tell candidates, legislators, and leaders that the Safer Supervision Act—and criminal justice reform—must be a priority, not an afterthought. Our generation’s votes depend on it. With purpose and luck, it will resonate in the halls of Congress.  Our generation’s votes depend on it. With purpose and luck, it will resonate in the halls of Congress.