Photo by Glenn Backes. A protest sign from the March 5th day of action in Sacramento.

Dear California Students: The Governor and State Legislature thank you for your support for one of the largest prison systems in the world.

In recent years, the Governor Brown and the Legislature found it necessary to kick poor kids off of health insurance, deny in-home care for the elderly, close state parks, and hike tuition to the point where young people who worked hard for good grades and an opportunity to enrich themselves, their families and their communities, can't go to school. While the Democrats and Republicans colluded on these cuts to health, education, green space, and food for the hungry, their commitment to mass incarceration of poor people from Black and Brown communities remained undiminished. The lock up budget has not been cut.

And until communities demand that lawmakers push back against special interests that are wedded to mass incarceration, your education remains behind bars.

Your grandparent's healthcare remains behind bars.

Your local park, your state park remains behind bars.

Your kid's healthcare remains behind bars.

Environmental protection remains behind bars.

Safe streets remain behind bars.

And our increased tuition costs, our increased co-pays for doctor visits, increased bridge tolls, increased bus fares, and the Governor's proposed sales tax increase are really just a way to fund the continued lock up our brothers and sisters, our neighbors and family members.

This has got to end, but it won't end till we fight back, or at send a message as loud and clear as the one sent by thousands of college students did in Sacramento on March 5th.

Let your lawmaker know how you feel, tell them to support sentencing reforms to reduce the number of people behind bars. Tell them to unlock the state budget.

This link will tell you your Senator and your Assemblymember' s name and phone number, call them now -- send them a message:

Let people out! Cut prisons and jail funding, and restore health, education and welfare.

Sincerely,

Glenn Backes