The Reauthorization of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act

08-13-2007

On August 9, the Act 4 Juvenile Justice, a campaign of the National Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention Coalition, held a National Field Call In day in which participants focused on the reauthorization of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA).

Advocates and Juvenile Justice practitioners from around the country called in to hear an update on the reauthorization efforts, to ask questions about what they and their members could do to assist in these efforts, and to express their views.

If people were unable to call in, you can still participate in reauthorizing the JJDPA! It is critical that national, state, and local groups reach out to members of Congress in order to educate their representatives on the importance of reauthorizing the JJDPA this year.

The first step that you can take is to log into www.act4jj.org where you can find additional information and materials to support your efforts to reauthorize the JJDPA.

What can national organizations do?

• Educate your members and affiliates about the JJDPA—a fact book and explanatory pages are housed on the Act-4-JJ Web site, see: www.act4jj.org.
• Join the Act-4-JJ e-mail list by signing up at: info@act4jj.org to receive regular updates and news from the campaign.
• Help to educate hill staffers and members of Congress, by:
• attending hill briefings, hearings and events;
• sending letters to members of Congress on your organization’s letterhead to urge their support of the Act-4-JJ campaign’s positions;
• asking your members/constituents to send Act-4-JJ postcards to members of Congress to draw attention to key areas of concern (you can download a sample postcard at www.act4jj.org
• Enlarge the circle of support for a strong and progressive reauthorization of the JJDPA, by:
• Signing or getting others to sign the “Statement of Principles for Reauthorization of the JJDPA” for delivery to Congress (you can download the Statement of Principles from the website)
• Attending monthly meetings of the National Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Coalition (NJJDPC) to receive in-person updates, analysis and resources for field activities.
• Urge your members/constituents to use the Act-4-JJ “Take Action Kit” (This kit is available at http://www.act4jj.org/media/documents//document_12.doc)

What can individuals and state and local groups do?

• Access the Take Action Toolkit at http://www.act4jj.org/media/documents//document_12.doc)
• Share the Action Packet with your friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues- encourage them to take action too!
• Start a postcard campaign in your neighborhood.
• Send an action alert to your friends, family and colleagues, urging them to get involved
• Write a letter to the editor of your local paper.
• Call, write, or visit your legislator: Use the enclosed talking points and sample letter to educate your legislator about the importance of reauthorizing this vital piece of legislation this year.
• Join the Act-4-JJ e-mail list by signing up at: info@act4jj.org to receive regular updates and news from the campaign.