iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 14/10/2026

🩷 Visit ILARJ.org/pledge to pledge your vote in the upcoming November election in honor of one of the 1,446 incarcerated women in Illinois who cannot cast their own vote. You do not have to live in Illinois to participate. You vote. She counts. Take the pledge. 🩷 @prisonculture.bsky.social

0145 14

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 10/07/2026

Every vote matters, and incarcerated women deserve that recognition. We're stepping up to demand the passage of the RACE Act and bring back their vote for good. Take the pledge at ilarj.org/pledge.

012 2

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 05/06/2026

DM us for more information on how your loved one can benefit from this opportunity! Activating your power over your own health and agency is a crucial element of successful reentry and reintegration into our community when leaving a carceral setting.

010 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 02/06/2026

Our paid, professional Courtwatching Associates observe the tough decisionmaking on whether someone is suitable for diversion. Accountability to the hidden biases throughout the system is a vital tool of co-governance. These programs that work must be used as often as possible where they work.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 19/05/2026

Don’t miss this chance. A couple minutes of your time can make the difference for the rights of tens of thousands of others.

Text: WHY FILE WITNESS SLIPS? Witness slips are the simplest but clearest way to show support for a bill to your legislators. Each one takes only a couple of minutes, but shows legislators that people care. HOW DO I FILE? You can go to ILARJ.org/witness-slips for a guide on how to submit witness slips. You can find more information and the link to file proponent witness slips for the RACE Act on ILARJ.org/RACE-Act

Image: An image of the Chicago skyline is in the background.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 19/05/2026

The RACE Act would end disenfranchisement for over 30,000 Illinoisians, giving them their voice back in our community. (3/4)

Text: WHAT IS A SUBJECT MATTER HEARING? A subject matter hearing is a non-voting session of a committee that aims to reach out to the public for their viewpoint on legislation. This means that the public has a chance to provide their stories, their perspectives, and use their voices to speak for the RACE Act and show that the public opposes felony disenfranchisement in the state of Illinois.

Image: An image of the Chicago skyline is in the background.

100 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 19/05/2026

The Reintegration RACE Act is in a subject matter hearing TODAY, and needs the public to show their support. (2/4)

Text: WHY SUPPORT THE RACE ACT NOW? Voting is the center of our democracy and defending our communities from injustice. The Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act on 04/29. This is the first big chance for the public to tell our state legislators to fight against the threat to our democracy that taking away people’s right to vote presents.

Image: An image of the Chicago skyline is in the background.

100 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 19/05/2026

TODAY: FILE A PROPONENT WITNESS SLIP FOR THE RACE ACT. Find more information and the direct link to file a witness slip at ilarj.org/RACE-Act (1/4)

Text: WITNESS SLIPS NEEDED TODAY.Take 2 minutes to make a big difference.

The RACE Act (H.B. 5414) would restore the right to vote for over 30,000 people. It is in a subject matter hearing today, and it needs proponent witness slips to show support. Visit ILARJ.org/RACE-Act to learn more and sign witness slips for the RACE Act by 2pm, 05/19.

Image: The logos for the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice, Raibow PUSH Coalition, She Votes Illinois, the Chicago Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights, and the Sentencing Project. An image of the Chicago skyline is in the background.

100 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 07/05/2026

Bring your mom or loved ones to Walls Turned Sideways this Saturday! We're so excited to have Benny leading everyone in this moment of learning and creating. Together, we will learn how housing justice can involve community in ways that makes everyone safer and healthier.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 24/04/2026

ILARJ works to create opportunities for formerly incarcerated community members and to prevent incarceration. This commitment is personal: the majority of ILARJ employees and leadership are formerly incarcerated or have direct experience with the criminal legal system. #secondchancemonth

Text: Second Chances Work: The best reentry is no entry. We must be part of a caring, involved community that provides second chances long before the criminal legal system does. We at the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice work to make that transformation possible. Image: A rainbow and blue linocut and screened background sit behind an unedited image of a Black woman with an earring in the shape of Africa smiling towards the viewer.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 20/04/2026

ILARJ runs the largest paid, professional Courtwatching program that is led-and-operated by system-impacted persons in the United States. We work tirelessly to ensure that the opportunities that Second Chance Month celebrates are recognized and respected by our judicial system.

Text: Sometimes a second chance just needs a community watching for it to happen. April is Second Chance Month: a time to celebrate the benefits to community well-being that reentry of persons impacted by the criminal legal system brings.Courtwatching provides the necessary transparency and accountability to ensure that judicial bias cannot ignore the power of second chances. Funding provided in part or in whole by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority. Presented by the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice Courtwatching program.

Image: A blue-tinted linograph-covered image of a courtroom. In the front are two Black women sitting with ordinary coloration embracing each other around the shoulders.

010 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 11/04/2026

The Success Plan program is available through @edovo.bsky.social in all Illinois Department of Corrections facilities. Contact your loved ones to let them know about this opportunity to take control over their health and future.

Text: The Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice has launched the Success Plan Program. Your loved ones can take control over their own health. If your loved one is incarcerated in an Illinois state prison, they can access our Success Plan Program through Edovo. They can also locate one of our Liberatory Health Ambassadors to support them through this program. Funding provided in part or in whole by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.

Image:
An art-deco image of Chicago skyscrapers facing into the night sky. Spotlights point towards the text, which have gradient extrusions moving out of the frame.

010 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 03/04/2026

We will continue to learn and grow as community advocates, whether it be to bolster our Courtwatching program or to support the success of individuals across the bars. #BeyondTheBars2026

Text: Many thanks to Beyond the Bars from the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice.
Image: A compilation of various speakers next to ILARJ’s Executive Director, Avalon Betts-Gaston, and Director of Curriculum of Training, Joel Davis.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 31/03/2026

Even for attorneys and our professional Courtwatchers, the system has so many technicalities and quirks that it is difficult to keep up with. These difficulties and open questions mean that people spend more time in cages—over someone else’s error.

Text: Lesson #4 The system is incredibly complicated. Following the many rules and procedures of our criminal legal system is tough. But these problems too often lead to people spending more time in the system. These needless delays and uncertainties are incredibly stressful for families and loved ones, who are often completely lost in trying to understand what’s happening.

Image: A chaotic array of half-tone paper clips and a half-tone calculator are present. Scribbled notes that read, “he’s been in court 6 times for the same motion??” and “did her attorney do the math correctly? follow up” are across the page.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 31/03/2026

Community actions make a noticeable difference in judges’ behavior. Community engagement helps hold judges to the standards they are supposed to follow.

Text: Lesson number 3, Community involvement makes a difference. Community members coming to support their system-impacted friends and family members dramatically changes the mood inside of the courtroom. Judges become alert and prejudiced statements disappear. The ordinary kinds of drama and rule-bending that occurs rarely happens when community is present.

Image: A blue half-tone eye and a blue half-tone smiling mouth can be seen. Scribbled notes that read, “judge finally began to pay attention here” and “heart, 22 people showed up!” are on the page.

100 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 31/03/2026

Accountability throughout every proceeding is fundamental to the work of courtwatching. The system has prejudice and challenges ingrained in every step, and we work to shed light on what that looks like for the community.

Text: Lesson number 2. Numbers capture a lot more than we think. Courtwatching is an act of accountability. Bias appears when no one is looking — and our judicial system is mired in discretion that is invisible to the public. While we know that bias can happen at the end of a case, a lot of damage is done well before a judge or jury convicts someone — and long after.

Image: A blue half-tone hand holding a stopwatch and a dark blue half-tone pen scribbling are on the page. Scribbled notes that read, “27 Black, 15 white, 7 AAPI” and “36 months, 42 months, minus 7 months” can be seen.

100 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 31/03/2026

As hard as we work to capture the intricacies of the system, numbers cannot replace the written accounts we capture in the margins.

Text: Lesson number 1, Numbers can’t capture everything. As hard as we work to gather relevant data to activate community power to engage in co-governance, the most important stories are in our notes. Judges asleep at the bench, shouting matches in open court, people repeatedly not being brought to court from jail — every day has more stories than numbers alone can tell.

Image: A scribble from the previous page reaches this one. A blue half-tone cut-out mouth and a blue linocut gavel occupy the page in front of the paper background. A scribbled note that reads “??? tell team about this” is present.

100 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 31/03/2026

1,614 days. That number represents the combined work of our Courtwatching Team in gathering data from within the walls of Cook County’s courts. One year and over 10,000 recorded observations later, we’re reflecting on some of the lessons that have stricken us the most. (🧵)

100 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 27/03/2026

Message us, or find us in-person! We are attending #BeyondTheBars2026 at the Center for Justice at Columbia University! We are glad to connect and share more about our exciting programs.

Text: Attending Beyond the Bars? Connect with us! We are the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice, and you can message us here or find us in-person. Funding provided in part or in whole by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.

Image: An aerial view of New York City with clouds in the background. A photo of the ILARJ team is in view.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 17/03/2026

To sign onto the witness slips, go to bit.ly/hb5287slip and follow this guide for directions. Feel free to look closer at this legislation and please review the ILGA’s Terms of Agreeement.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 17/03/2026

The IL Legislature is currently holding its Spring legislative session. During sessions, bills are brought up a committee vote (some times multiple times) and for a floor vote. However, a bill rarely gets to a floor vote if it never gets voted out of committee.

110 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 12/03/2026

Accountability means transforming beyond harm to prevent it from happening again. Breonna Taylor's death was entirely preventable. Yet six years later, systems haven't changed. Kentucky, our neighbor, learned more from Breonna than most of us. But no state has truly transformed after her death.

010 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 06/03/2026

If you are over 18 years old, a U.S. citizen, an Illinois resident of at least 30 days, and are not currently incarcerated, you have the right to vote. Participation in our democracy is vital for community co-governance.

001 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 14/02/2026

Love knows no cage. This Valentine's Day, we're thinking of the special moments our community members have missed behind the walls. If IDOC policy allowed it, we'd be sending "Be Mine" candy hearts to all of the 1200+ incarcerated partners who make our work possible.

100 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 05/02/2026

So many Black babies have been taken from our communities. Fourteen years later, we remember Trayvon Martin and how systemic racism enabled his killing.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 05/02/2026

Countless people are held back by our carceral system from becoming community leaders—we’re challenging this. Every month, we will induct Liberatory Health Fellows across Illinois’s prison system, training and activating our fellows’ leadership potential. The potential for leadership knows no cage.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 29/01/2026

ILARJ runs the largest paid, professional, and impacted-operated Courtwatching program in the United States. Every day, our Courtwatching Associates gather meticulous data on pen-and-paper within the walls of Cook County’s criminal courts, enhancing transparency and judicial accountability.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 19/01/2026

Community-based care and accountability are at the heart of ILARJ’s mission. Dr. King’s Beloved Community inspires us every day.

010 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 14/01/2026

ILARJ continues to activate community power so that every person has equal access to opportunity and true economic stability.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 01/01/2026

New Years should be a fresh start. Today we’re thinking about everyone in our Beloved Community who are marking today in difficult circumstances. Our collective strength is bound in compassion and mutual love, and we will continue to activate that strength every day.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 25/12/2025

We wish Happy Holidays to everyone as we rest and reflect on all that this year has brought for us.

011 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 19/12/2025

Success is a process of transformation. Our Success Plan brings people together to tackle the social determinants of health and activate their power in a community context. We proudly serve hundreds of currently incarcerated persons throughout the state of Illinois and bring them success.

Text: Success depends on the ability to activate the power and the radical imagination of community. Our Success Plan is necessary to realize that vision. Joel Davis, Director of Programming at the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice. Funding provided in part or in whole by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.

Image: A picture of Joel Davis. A distorted image of Chicago is in the background.

020 2

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 16/12/2025

Our Success Plan Program is live on edovo for persons in the care and custody of the Illinois Department of Corrections. Please let your family members know about this transformative opportunity that activates the power of the person from within the walls to reclaim their health and well-being.

Text: Success at your Fingertips. Edovo x Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice. Funded in part or in whole by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority. Live now.

Image: A person holding a tablet with the words “Success Plan program”. Behind the tablet is a bland image of Chicago. On the tablet is an overlay of the same image, but with crisp colors and a bright light.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 27/11/2025

We cannot understate the gratitude we feel for everything that has been made possible through these past 6 years. Struggle after struggle, community has continued to band together and deploy radical imagination to make serious change together.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 21/11/2025

If we are going to be serious about public safety, then we must invest in improving the social determinants of health as the most effective prevention mechanism.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 18/11/2025

Today, we at the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice are thankful for the opportunities we have been able to create. Over these past few years, we've brought together over a thousand coalition members to deploy radical imagination and change our systems of care and accountability. (🧵)

Text: Introducing New Team Members with the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice. Charlis Harris, Courtwatcher and Hailey Garza, Executive Vital. Funding provided in whole or in part by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.

Image: Portraits of Charlis and Hailey, placed in front of an edited aerial photograph of Chicago Millenium Park.

100 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 13/11/2025

Sadie Hawkins Day is about smashing gender norms and breaking through to those you love. Millions of people — and thousands of our members — are separated from their loved ones and community due to mass incarceration. Visit our website to see how we are speaking out. #sadiehawkins #incarceration

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 07/11/2025

Many thanks to MK Pritzker and IDOC Director Latoya Hughes for meeting the call to do the right thing and help our community members stay connected.

Community Notice from the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice. The Illinois Department of Corrections is providing 775 free (non-international) phone call minutes each month to call loved ones. This is about 25 minutes a day. This program will run until June 2026, unless funded further. ILARJ thanks IDOC Director Latoya Hughes and First Lady of Illinois MK Pritzker for making this pilot program possible. In the background is a transparent image of the Chicago skyline.

041 4

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 30/10/2025

ILARJ was represented during the FCC's Open Meeting this week. The booing and hissing of the FCC's decision from our section of the audience was widely reported on by media outlets. Nobody should ever be separated from their loved ones.

The Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice Condemns the FCC’s Rulemaking Decision to Burden Families and Incarcerated Loved Ones. On October 28, 2025, the Federal Communications Commission changed their much-delayed 2024 rule, voting to increase the cost of phone calls in carceral facilities. Illinois rates will not change due to a separate state law. The FCC’s change applies in other states and in federal facilities, and is nearly double the cost of their 2024 rule. No person should be forced away from their family, much less because of an inability to pay.

020 2

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 24/10/2025

Children with incarcerated parents are especially vulnerable, and need as much support as possible. ILARJ is creating healthier lives for all members of our Beloved Community, including fighting to prevent incarceration and to ensure people in prison can connect and grow with their children.

The Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice recognizes See us, support us month. Above an image of a sad child in black and white is the following: An arrest of a parent harms a child's health for the rest of their life. Underneath in the black ground reads "If we could have been there, we would."

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 23/10/2025

ILARJ is proud to have been at this event with Chicago Foundation for Women and Cicero Independiente. We shared our experience as an organization that serves as the network facilitator dedicated to dreaming and remaking justice into systems of care and accountability that serve everyone’s needs.

The Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice gives many thanks to the Chicago Foundation for Women's Western Suburbs Giving Circle for their kickoff event last week. Included in this image is a picture of Avalon Betts-Gaston speaking at the event and a group photo of the many participants. In the background is a blue shifted image of Chicago with a wavy sky.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 16/10/2025

ILARJ runs the largest, paid, directly-impacted led courtwatching program in the US. Our Courtwatchers are seven trained professionals making observations in Cook County criminal courts on pen and paper. We are proud to serve our community and people. Thank you for making this work possible.

The Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice surpasses 1000 Days of Courtwatching in Cook County criminal courts. Included is the phrase, Accountability arrives one scribble at a time. In the background of the image is a dotted image of a person scribbling in a notebook, with a gavel in the foreground edited with dots as well.

Funding provided in whole or in part by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.

010 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 15/10/2025

ILARJ honors the Black Panther Party’s legacy and commitment to community health and safety every day. We firmly believe that only through community care and accountability coupled with agency over our social determinants of health can we truly be free.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 10/10/2025

We remind all members of our community to protect themselves and their families as much as possible. Persons who are arrested at protests are usually persons who have considered these risks and more. It is almost always better to protect yourself so you may continue to speak out freely.

Prepare Yourself Before Marching. Presented by the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice. 1. Do I know my rights? This is super important. There is more information in our pinned post and in the link in our bio. 2. Who will pay the rent/mortgage if I am arrested and unable to work? 3. Have I spoken with a lawyer I can call if I am arrested? 4. Am I or a loved one not a citizen at risk of deportation? 5. Are my children safe? An arrest of a parent permanently impacts a child’s health. 6. Will an arrest lead to a probation or parole violation? 7. Do I have any medical needs that would be difficult to meet while in jail? 8. If I miss work, will I be fired? 9. Who will take care of my pets? 10. Am I at risk of triggering a three-strikes law triggering a life sentence? We must all be careful to not put people who are vulnerable (including ourselves) in danger when protecting our community. In the background is a glitched image of Chicago’s skyline.

010 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 03/10/2025

Care and accountability that improves our social determinants of health must be the goal — not punishment. #abolition

In front of blue smoke and a black wall, the following is written in various, edgy fonts: Abolitions means moving to systems of care and accountability that don’t abandon us in lawless cages.” Presented by the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice.

010 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 30/09/2025

National Recovery Month is a time to recognize the challenges that people struggling with their social determinants of health, like substance use disorder, face. Incarceration often comes to the detriment of health — healing and transformation must be the end goal for all persons.

Celebrating National Recovery Month. An arrest almost always disrupts access to insurance and services like Medicaid. People coming out then cannot access treatment, right as they are most likely to experience an overdose. Changes to our systems, like the federal Reentry Act (H.R. 2586), would close this gap. The following statement from ILARJ is added: Community has to be stronger than anything that can drag even one person down. Behind the text are blue waves, and two people hugging.

110 1

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 26/09/2025

Assata lived a life fighting for Black communities and demanding true justice for all of us. Despite her exile, her presence has transformed many of our community members into leading positive lives fueled by radical imagination.

An image of Assata Shakur, in memoriam, July 16, 1947 through September 25, 2025. The Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice states: Assata’s memory and legacy will continue to guide our pursuit to transform the systems that forced her to choose between exile and wrongful conviction.

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 26/09/2025

000 0

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 19/09/2025

Seventy years ago today, the trial for the persons who killed Emmet Till began. During the trial, the all-white, all-male jury were influenced by racially-driven narratives. This case, and a race-focused acquittal, exposed to the nation how the courtroom consistently serves as a tool of oppression.

201 2

Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice @ilarj.org · 16/09/2025

National Voter Registration Day is a celebration of civic engagement that drives our democracy forward. But, when we leave people behind, this celebration is undercut. Everyone should be able to vote. Experience with the criminal legal system should never impact our basic rights as citizens.

000 0