Kamala Harris’ history on criminal justice: a brief recap

Here’s where Vice President Kamala Harris has stood on some important criminal justice and immigration issues, from her time as a prosecutor to her 2020 presidential campaign. President Joe Biden, other top Democrats and thousands of delegates have endorsed Harris — a former prosecutor, U.S. senator and 2020 presidential candidate — after Biden ended his re-election bid.

✍️: Jamiles Lartey & Lakeidra Chavis; 🎥: Chris Vazquez / The Marshall Project

#kamalaharris #kamalaharrishistory #kamalaharrispolicies #nomination #presidentialcampaign #kamalaharrisprosecutor #prosecutor #border #harrisvstrump #kamalaharrisnews #droppingout #kamalaharriselection #joebidenelection

Transcript:
CHRIS VAZQUEZ 1: Why are people calling Kamala Harris a cop?

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 2: Here in 2017—

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 1: We time traveled?

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 2: Yes. Harris is wrapping up her time as California’s top prosecutor — which some people call “top cop.”

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 1: A progressive prosecutor?

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 2: It’s complicated. When she was the San Francisco district attorney, she promised to not seek the death penalty. Then as California’s attorney general, her office argued in favor of it. And critics say she’s helped fuel mass incarceration.

[Scene change indicating the passage of time]

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 1: Where does Harris stand now on criminal justice?

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 2: Here in 2019, she’s running for president to the left of Biden. She wants to end solitary confinement and federal mandatory minimum sentences, decriminalize border crossings, and create a system to release more federal prisoners.

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 1: What about policing?

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 2: She wants a national standard for police use of force, and more oversight over police shootings. Wanna watch “The New Mutants”?

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 1: The release date got pushed back.

[Scene change indicating the passage of time]

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 1: Where does Harris stand now on criminal justice?

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 2: The Biden-Harris administration has promoted some reforms, like these gun safety laws, but justice reform advocates say they could do a lot more.

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 1: Like what?

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 2: For one thing, Biden campaigned on ending the federal death penalty and undoing Trump’s immigration policies. That hasn’t happened.

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 1: Isn’t Harris the “border czar”?

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 2: No, she doesn’t oversee the border. But Biden tasked her with addressing the root causes of migration and she got pushback for telling migrants…

KAMALA HARRIS: “Do not come.”

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 2: She's tried moving past that, though.

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 1: Last question: The coconut tree meme—

CHRIS VAZQUEZ 2: I don’t get it, either.

[majdi]

this is definitely just a summary-- her official stances are stated here but her actual actions need naming. especially treatment of trans inmates, etc

She also smoked weed while she jailed other people for having weed

[nateb]

She's incarcerated many an innocent person in CA. She's far from an advocate for those in prison.

[gmclucy]

Don't forget the way transgender inmates were treated during her time in California, her office arguing that any discomfort from not being able to get gender-affirming care could be solved with therapy

[haylesouth]

Didn't she hold black men in prison over their sentences so they did more labor? I could be wrong but I though I heard that

[imnotaweebiswear]

Actually the trans inmate story was more about the letter of the law in California and she later said that she did not agree with the ruling to deny care. That care also wasn’t banned, but it was stated that under Cali law at the time, you could not get that covered under gov insurance (i.e. as an inmate) and would need to pay out of pocket or through private insurance. Again, the care was not banned or deemed impossible, there just wasn’t a legal way to cover it at that time. That has since changed in part thanks to Harris.

[Kryptiq]

You ever hear that saying actions speak louder than words...

[Socrates]

Wait wait... "decrminalize border crossings" Does that mean what I think it means?

[Der_Dolmetscher]

She locked people up for possession of certain substances, than bragged about having used the same substances. I‘d vote for a cactus over a hypocrite.

[Fede_uyz]

So basically she promises good shit, and does the opposite while in office.

Got it.

[treehouse]

She would be making a mistake calling herself that. Black voters should remember how she kept black men in jail after they completed their sentences.

[americanheroe]

She was the border czar she was put in charge of immigration and look how that went and she put away hundreds of black people away for weed offences then laughed when she was asked if she used weed implying she did

[jordyb]

Kamala has harmed the black family so much 😢

[benlevi]

“Do not come 😡 “

“I’m gonna come 🤩”

[welme]

mention about the bad stuff. Not biased at all

[oogabooga]

Bro her official stances don’t mean anything when her official actions are the opposite

[MarkMcCullough-ys]

I remember when she claimed the root cause of illegal aliens invading America was climate change.

[noahsanders]

But she was literally named the border czar and there are multiple mainstream news outlets calling her as such

[missmaeve]

I, a trans woman, met her at the signing of the Respect for Marriage Equality act in December 2022. We didn't talk for long but she was incredibly kind and supportive. I think it's important to recognize that policymakers/prosecutors actions are reflections of the attitudes of the people they represent. When combined with the criminal "justice" system, those attitudes have profound impacts of people's lives, but this presidency is also a chance for the candidates to undo or double down on past actions. Harris and her campaign seems to be dedicated to undoing the actions and helping people now. We can never undo the past, but we can always do better tomorrow.

[GSBarlev]

This is dishonest. I don't believe *for a second* that you don't grok the "coconut tree" meme.🥥