All Resources
Fact Sheet
A strong safety net means a stronger Alabama for all
We all know that people get down on their luck sometimes. They lose a job, have a sick child or need time to recover from an injury. And most Alabamians – understanding that “there, but for the grace of God, go I” – want to do what they can to help people going through a [...]
Blog
Arise 2020: Why Alabama should fund public transportation
Public transportation is vital infrastructure for a state looking toward the future. It allows people who lack other transportation options – including seniors, people with disabilities, and people who can’t afford a car – to get to work, go to the doctor and meet other basic needs. Reliable public transportation strengthens communities and makes a [...]
Blog
Arise 2020: Break down barriers to voting rights in Alabama
Voting is an essential tool for people to speak out about the future they want. By breaking down barriers to voting, we promote greater civic engagement. And we make it easier for folks to make their voices heard about issues that matter in their communities. Alabama’s sad history of racist voting restrictions means our state [...]
Fact Sheet
The new poll tax: Court debt and voting rights in Alabama
Everyone should be able to have a voice in governmental decisions that affect their daily lives. Voting is the most straightforward way Alabamians have to shape those decisions. But our state has a long, sad legacy of voter suppression tactics. As a result, Alabama today has more disenfranchised citizens than California, a state with eight [...]
In the News
In Alabama: The work to halt falling rates of uninsured children
Children's health care is "one of the few bragging points that we have in our health care system," Arise's Jim Carnes tells Equal Voice News. But Alabama has seen a "downward turn" in its uninsured rate for children since 2016. Carnes discusses how Medicaid expansion would help families get and keep the health coverage they [...]
Blog
Arise 2020: Stop criminal justice debt from putting thousands of lives on hold
Criminal justice debt shouldn’t prevent a person from building a stable, secure life. But Alabama imposes millions of dollars in fines every year without considering a person’s ability to pay them. The state also conditions many rights and privileges, often including voting rights restoration, on whether a person has repaid fines. Further, despite a prohibition [...]
Fact Sheet
Criminal justice debt: A modern-day debtors’ prison
By Carol Gundlach and Dev Wakeley, policy analysts It is unconstitutional to jail a person in the United States just because he or she owes money. But Alabama has no process for courts to determine if a defendant can afford to pay fees and fines. And despite a prohibition on “debtors’ prisons,” thousands of Alabamians [...]
Blog
Arise 2020: End the injustices in Alabama’s death penalty system
All Alabamians deserve equal justice under the law. But bias and inequality persist in Alabama’s capital punishment system, despite recent reforms. Even though the state finally outlawed judicial override in 2017, the ban did not apply retroactively. That means dozens of people who were sentenced to death despite a jury’s sentencing recommendation of life without [...]
Fact Sheet
Injustices remain in Alabama’s death penalty practices
Alabama took an important step toward death penalty reform in 2017, but numerous problems remain. That year, the state finally outlawed judicial override in capital cases. That change means judges no longer can impose the death penalty when a jury recommends life without parole. But the ban was not retroactive, and 35 people who were [...]
In the News
Alabama’s Medicaid limbo
"Medicaid expansion has moved forward now in 36 states, and those states’ Medicaid programs are doing very well with it. No state is trying to pull out," Arise's Jim Carnes tells Business Alabama. "Everybody has shown improvements. New research is coming in all the time about health improvements resulting from Medicaid expansion and the positive [...]