Because Justice is LOVE.

Please join me in supporting tangible change in California's East Bay.

Community Works is a direct service and advocacy organization that works to cut the number of people coming into contact with justice systems and improve outcomes for those who do. By donating to Community Works, you're directly contributing to their mission to remedy the harms of our justice system through efforts and programs including:

Advocacy and System Change

As an organization, we are committed to translating the insights gained from our direct service work into actions that foster positive change. By recognizing the expertise of those within our community, we empower individuals to contribute their voices to collective efforts to create a future where justice prioritizes healing over harm.

• Legislative Support
• 2022 Impact Report Data

Transformation Programs

These initiatives allow individuals to address the underlying causes of their behavior, make amends, and embark on a path toward positive change. We work collaboratively with incarcerated individuals and the survivors affected by their actions.

• Resolve to Stop the Violence Project is a restorative justice program for San Francisco County jail-incarcerated men. It promotes personal accountability, transformation, and healing through a 40-hour-per-week education and mentoring schedule based on the Manalive curriculum. By empowering these men to take responsibility for their actions and become agents of change, RSVP contributes to dismantling the mass incarceration cycle.
• Our Survivor Empowerment Program offers critical resources, support circles, education, family assistance, and other services to survivors of domestic violence. We empower survivors to reclaim their lives and find their inner strength through safety skill training, resource connection, and therapeutic and peer support.
• One Family is a program for families with currently or formerly incarcerated parents in San Francisco County. We offer one-on-one therapy, counseling, and in-depth parenting classes to help parents be effective even while separated from their children. Our welcoming playroom facilitates contact visits to maintain bonds. We encourage virtual parent-teacher conferences, unique virtual visits, and family transition circles. Through One Family, children of incarcerated parents can stay connected and receive support to thrive.

Youth Power Programs

These efforts focus on children and transition-age youth in the Bay Area. Through these programs, we empower and equip our young people with the tools needed to harness their inner strength. By enabling them to speak their truth, we continue dismantling mass incarceration's cyclical impacts and advocate for systemic change.”

• Project WHAT! - Creating a community that encourages children with incarcerated parents to use their voice, pride, and power. PW (Project We're Here and Talk ing!) Youth Advocates are trained as facilitators who provide impactful training workshops to community members. Advocates use their skills to advocate for themselves and their peers at the local and State level, bringing about positive change and dismantling the cycle of mass incarceration.
• Restorative Justice Diversion (RJD) brings together all individuals impacted by a crime to create a reconciliation plan. The youth responsible repairs the harm caused and sets a timeline for completion. We monitor progress, and upon completion, the District Attorney agrees not to press charges, successfully diverting the youth from formal involvement in the justice system.

Restorative Reentry

Programs supporting TAY (Transitional aged youth 18-24 years old) and older adults transitioning from incarceration

We offer transition programs in San Francisco and Alameda counties to support TAY and older adults coming home after incarceration. Our case managers co-create a customized plan for short-term goals around housing, work, education, family, and therapeutic support. We use a combination of restorative justice, therapy, art, and family systems to help them transition from incarceration to home and work toward personal empowerment and healing.

• The San Francisco Transitional Age Reentry program supports young adults leaving San Francisco jails. We use a youth development perspective and tailor our gender-responsive services. The Women Rising program includes Rising Voices, an arts-based theater component. We also partner with No Violence Alliance (NoVA), providing intensive wraparound services for people with multiple arrests in San Francisco.
• The Alameda County Restorative Reentry program supports TAY and adults returning from jail or prison with restorative justice groups, case management, and system navigation. Building Beats healing circles use music to address concepts related to healing, such as historical trauma and the male role belief system.
• Community Works launched the Restorative Reentry Fund, a guaranteed income pilot for formerly incarcerated individuals in the Bay Area, providing $500 per month for at least 12 months without work requirements or spending restrictions. The Remy Fund for Racial and Environmental Justice and COVID-19: A Just East Bay Response Fund funds the program. Participants have access to a peer advocate for financial planning support.

By donating to Community Works, you help support survivor-centered programs for legal system-impacted East Bay communities.

** There is absolutely no donation that is too small and your generosity will go a long way for the folks who Community Works serves. I sincerely appreciate your support and continued commitment to health equity and survivor-led social justice.

Always with big love and warmth,

Erin