Giving the Power Back

Texas Advocates for Justice members at the end of the organizing and leadership training in Houston (Courtesy of Grassroots Leadership)

Houston-based Texas Advocates for Justice will launch its Austin chapter next week when the group begins its weeks-long training session at an area church in East Riverside-Oltorf.

Starting July 12, the year-old nonprofit working to end mass incarceration and dismantle barriers to re-entry will train about 35 people – those formerly incarcerated, or on parole or probation, and family members affected by incarceration – in leadership and community organizing. The program, which will run Tuesday evenings through Aug. 27, will serve as the foundation for the Austin branch of TAJ, a project of Grassroots Lead­ership, a national criminal justice nonprofit formed in North Carolina and now based in Austin. It also aims to "give power to people who had power taken away," said TAJ organizer Jorge Renaud.

"Especially in Texas, there are not many avenues for organizing training while you're in prison," said Renaud, who had spent over 25 years incarcerated. After he was paroled in 2008, Renaud enrolled at UT-Austin, where he earned his master's degree in social work. "The only way to get equitable and meaningful criminal justice policy is to very much involve those affected by that policy."

The Austin training session will cover topics ranging from mental health and substance abuse to gender issues and employment discrimination. TAJ will bring in criminal justice experts, local organizers, advocates, and people affected by mass incarceration or deportation to help train program participants, who will be selected through an application process (TAJ can work with probation or parole officers to secure permission to attend). Members from TAJ's Houston division will also attend the summer program to act as mentors to trainees, Renaud said.

Mignon Zezqueaux, a TAJ-Houston organizer-in-training, said the group's community organizing and leadership training is invaluable in educating the attendees on the intricacies of the prison industrial complex and how to better advocate for your loved ones behind bars. More than that, TAJ helps build a community among people who share similar and all-too-familiar experiences, she said. "Your connection is the best thing you could have because we're all in this fight together," said Zezqueaux, whose 23-year-old son is currently serving time in the Ruben M. Tor­res Unit in Hondo. Zezqueaux, who focuses on mental health, said her son suffers from depression and anxiety, but has not been properly cared for or monitored by prison staff.

The first year for TAJ in Houston has gone well, Renaud said, but like any fledgling nonprofit, it's experiencing some growing pains. But, in the meantime, the Houston group is hard at work organizing its first large-scale direct action campaign, which it plans to roll out in the next few months. "They're excited about moving forward," he said.

TAJ hopes to raise $12,000 in donations for the Austin training session and subsequent programs before July 15. Donations will go toward travel allowances for mentors and attendees, honorariums for facilitators, stipends for trainees, and to cover food expenses. If TAJ is unable to raise the entire $12,000, Renaud said it will jeopardize the group's ability to conduct future trainings and to staff the project in Austin long-term. The nonprofit has raised $1318 as of press time. "In order to have this be successful," Renaud said, "we need the community to come together to help us."

To apply or donate to TAJ, call 512/766-4415 or see www.grassrootsleadership.org.