+
upworthy
More

In America, a 16-year-old spent 3 years in jail without a trial for a crime he didn't commit.

Have you heard of Kalief Browder? If you haven't, you really need to.

True
Open Society Foundations

Imagine being put in jail for three years without a trial for a crime you didn't commit. At the age of 16.

You're a 16-year-old kid, a sophomore in high school, coming home from a party.

You're a 16-year-old kid. Some officers stop you and accuse you of stealing a backpack from a stranger. They arrest you with no evidence. They have no backpack, no fingerprints, and you have an alibi. They take you to Rikers Island.


You're a 16-year-old kid. You can't afford $10,000 in bail and neither can your family. You sit in Rikers Island prison. Waiting for a trial date. During your entire sophomore year of high school.

You're a 16-year-old kid. You are in a high security prison. You are abused by guards and inmates alike. Without a trial date. For almost three years.

You don't have to imagine it. Many kids have gone through this.

On May 14, 2010, 16-year-old Kalief Browder was picked up, and he was held, without trial, for 33 months in one of the most dangerous prisons in America without evidence.

GIF via ABC 7 News interview with Kalief Browder.

He was then released without charges — after five-six suicide attempts, after spending over 800 days in solitary confinement, and after The New Yorker exposed brutal beatings at the hands of the prison guards and prisoners.

For Kalief, leaving prison didn't make things better.

On June 6, 2015, after struggling from trauma and mental health issues stemming from three years locked up in a hole for a crime he didn't commit, Kalief died by suicide. He hung himself out his home's second-story window using the cord from an air conditioner. Make no mistake, the system broke him. And he's not the only victim.

There are over 400 others just like Kalief currently trapped on Rikers Island without justice.


According to a powerful (and disturbing) New York Times story, something that should be illegal in America has become the norm:

So how the hell do we prevent this from happening in the future?

In Kalief's case, there was no evidence of him stealing a backpack. There was no risk that he would harm anyone. He shouldn't have had to live in a 7-by-12 cell without a trial for three years simply because he couldn't afford bail. He was 16 years old when New York upended his life. A kid.

The Pretrial Justice Institute is fighting to prevent more stories like Kalief's. The first step, which has been successful in Washington, D.C., is to overhaul bail.


Most of the people in jail haven't had a trial yet and many are too poor to afford bail.

Jail, which is used for sentences under a year and for people awaiting trial, is actually mostly used for people who haven't had their day in court yet. This is different from prison, which is where people go for extended periods of time after they've been sentenced. It's unfair to the accused and an expensive waste of taxpayer money.

Being poor, statistically, puts you at much greater risk of going away for a long time.

Being in jail for a crime you haven't yet been convicted of can take a toll on your life.

At Rikers Island, some people can wait years for a trial. They get so desperate they plead guilty just to get out sooner.

But! There's a better way to handle this. Replace bail with something called "pretrial risk assessment."

It works like this:

People are evaluated on their risk factors. Those who are deemed a threat stay behind bars. Those who aren't likely to commit a crime while awaiting their court date are sent home with supervision.

Using supervision rather than jail is much less expensive for taxpayers and much more humane.

Here's how much it costs per day:

Risk Assessment is already working in Washington, D.C.

In 2011, only 20% of defendants were held in jail. 88% never missed a single court date. Only 12% had another arrest while awaiting trial. And only 1% of those released committed a violent crime while waiting for trial.

Imagine a world where people of all income levels were treated fairly in the court of law.

You don't have to imagine actually. You can learn more by watching John Oliver's segment on bail. And, more importantly, check out how you can help by visiting the folks who made this infographic:

They have a petition for the end of cash bail that you could sign that will be heading to Governor Cuomo's office.

Let's make sure we never see a 16-year-old kid have to say these words again:

GIF via ABC 7 News interview with Kalief Browder

You can watch an in-depth interview with Kalief prior to his death here, and you can learn more about Kalief's life and death from the reporter who covered his story. And you can also read The New Yorker's powerful obituary for Kalief.


True

Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

Keep ReadingShow less
Education

3,700-year-old Babylonian stone tablet gets translated, changes history

They were doing trigonometry 1500 years before the Greeks.

via UNSW

Dr. Daniel Mansfield and his team at the University of New South Wales in Australia have just made an incredible discovery. While studying a 3,700-year-old tablet from the ancient civilization of Babylon, they found evidence that the Babylonians were doing something astounding: trigonometry!

Most historians have credited the Greeks with creating the study of triangles' sides and angles, but this tablet presents indisputable evidence that the Babylonians were using the technique 1,500 years before the Greeks ever were.

Keep ReadingShow less
Family

Mom’s blistering rant on how men are responsible for all unwanted pregnancies is on the nose

“ALL unwanted pregnancies are caused by the irresponsible ejaculations of men. Period. Don't believe me? Let me walk you through it."

Mom has something to say... strongly say.

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as Mormons, are a conservative group who aren't known for being vocal about sex.

But best selling author, blogger, and mother of six, Gabrielle Blair, has kicked that stereotype to the curb with a pointed thread on reducing unwanted pregnancies. And her sights are set directly at men.

Keep ReadingShow less
Family

Dad takes 7-week paternity leave after his second child is born and is stunned by the results

"These past seven weeks really opened up my eyes on how the household has actually ran, and 110% of that is because of my wife."

@ustheremingtons/TikTok

There's a lot to be gleaned from this.

Participating in paternity leave offers fathers so much more than an opportunity to bond with their new kids. It also allows them to help around the house and take on domestic responsibilities that many new mothers have to face alone…while also tending to a newborn.

All in all, it enables couples to handle the daunting new chapter as a team, making it less stressful on both parties. Or at least equally stressful on both parties. Democracy!

TikTok creator and dad Caleb Remington, from the popular account @ustheremingtons, confesses that for baby number one, he wasn’t able to take a “single day of paternity leave.”

This time around, for baby number two, Remington had the privilege of taking seven weeks off (to be clear—his employer offered four weeks, and he used an additional three weeks of PTO).

The time off changed Remington’s entire outlook on parenting, and his insights are something all parents could probably use.

Keep ReadingShow less
Science

She tattooed half her face and you'd never know it. Her skills are just that good.

This incredible medical tattoo technology is giving renewed hope to burn victims.

All images via the CBS/YouTube

Basma Hameed runs a tattoo shop, of sorts...


Meet Samira Omar.

The 17-year-old was the victim of a horrific bullying incident.

Keep ReadingShow less
Images via Alan Taylor/Flickr, used with permission.

Updating the kitchen.


Remember those beloved Richard Scarry books?

Books from when you were a kid?

Keep ReadingShow less
Education

Voice recordings of people who were enslaved offer incredible first-person accounts of U.S. history

"The results of these digitally enhanced recordings are arresting, almost unbelievable. The idea of hearing the voices of actual slaves from the plantations of the Old South is as powerful—as startling, really—as if you could hear Abraham Lincoln or Robert E. Lee speak." - Ted Koppel

Library of Congress

When we think about the era of American slavery, many of us tend to think of it as the far distant past. While slavery doesn't exist as a formal institution today, there are people living who knew formerly enslaved black Americans first-hand. In the wide arc of history, the legal enslavement of people on U.S. soil is a recent occurrence—so recent, in fact, that we have voice recordings of interviews with people who lived it.

Keep ReadingShow less