What is the No Child Is Born Bad campaign?

No Child Is Born Bad is a truth-telling campaign that aims to activate the American public and both state and federal lawmakers to push harder for legal system reform, specifically extreme sentencing of youth, by reckoning with the damage caused by the racist superpredator theory of the mid-1990s and highlighting ongoing efforts to rectify the harm it wrought. The campaign will have a number of complementary elements rolled out over weeks, including various pieces of visual media, a legal report, and traditional media pieces, and will culminate in a day of healing for the CFSY community honoring members of our Incarcerated Children’s Advocacy Network and others whose lives were impacted directly by the superpredator myth. Be sure to check back each week for new content on this page!

Take Action

What can I do to help?

  1. Join us in our advocacy efforts to enact policies at the state and federal level to repair the harm caused by the superpredator theory. Sign up here.
  2. Stand in solidarity with those harmed by the superpredator theory and were sentenced to life without parole, but are now free, by partnering on our Community Prosperity Initiative. 
  3. Join us in our truth-telling campaign by sharing the content on this webpage on social media using the hashtag #NoChildIsBornBad and by sharing a photo of yourself holding a picture with the words “No Child Is Born Bad.” 
  4. Purchase a CFSY Bright Black Candle. The scent design combines grapefruit, freshly-cut grass, and thyme to invoke the beauty of fair chances and to spark action within our movement.
  5. Donate to CFSY to ensure children are held accountable in age-appropriate ways and never condemned to die in prison.

Learn more about the history of the superpredator myth and its impact:

Superpredator: The Media Myth That Demonized a Generation of Black Youth

The Making of “Superpredators”

Op-Ed: Black and brown children are not ‘superpredators’ and should not spend life in prison

Jarrett Harper

Jarrett Harper is an Officer in the Children’s Rights Division of Human Rights Watch, a Social Impact Coordinator with Friends At Work, and an Ambassador for Represent Justice. He is a passionate criminal justice reform advocate working for positive change in the foster care system, ending extreme sentencing for children, and creating better rehabilitation resources for citizens returning to society. As a foster youth, Jarrett was sentenced to life without parole in prison. After serving 20 years, Jarrett’s sentence was commuted and he was released in 2019.

Angel Alejandro

Angel serves as Grants Officer at the CFSY. He was incarcerated at the age of 18 for a crime he committed when he was 15, and he was not released from prison until 39 years of age. He spent his time incarcerated educating himself and came home with several certifications and two degrees, including one in Business Entrepreneurship.

Catherine Jones

Catherine serves as Co-Director of Outreach & Partnership Development at the CFSY. Incarcerated at the age of 13 for murder, she was not released until the age of 30. In collaboration with Fresh Start Ministries, she designed and taught a curriculum for abused women focused on emotional healing and building self-confidence. Her experiences with the penal system as a child sparked a passion inside of her to be a voice for those she left behind and for the ones who will come after her.

Terrance Lewis

Terrance is the founder and President of The Liberation Foundation (TLF), a nonprofit dedicated to advocating for wrongfully convicted people and those serving disproportionate sentences. Sentenced to prison for life without possibility of parole at just 17 years old, Terrance maintained his innocence for 21 years in prison prior to his exoneration and release in 2019. Terrance took advantage of the limited opportunities made available to him in prison, due to his status as a “lifer,” and sought out multiple opportunities to learn and grow. He is proud to lead a dedicated team of volunteers from across Pennsylvania at TLF.

Eric Alexander

Eric serves as Senior Advocate at the CFSY and is a founding member of the Incarcerated Children’s Advocacy Network. At 17 years of age, Eric was arrested and subsequently charged with aggravated robbery and first-degree murder. He was granted parole in 2004 after serving 10 years, and upon release he began to volunteer in Alternative Schools for students with behavioral issues. He joined AmeriCorps Community Health Corps and assisted in establishing full-service medical clinics inside of local high schools that provided health care to poor and underserved students and families before joining the CFSY.

James Carpenter

James serves as an advocate seeking to elevate the voices of those who remain incarcerated and is currently part of a Construction apprenticeship program in the DC area. As a 17-year-old orphan growing up in DC, James was incarcerated and given a sentence of 57 years to life in prison. After serving 24 years, James was finally brought up for a resentencing hearing in 2020 and granted his freedom after relentless advocacy from his sister Crystal, who successfully lobbied to pass the Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act in DC.

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Campaign Partners

Bright Black Candles supporting the CFSY

The CFSY commissioned a limited edition Bright Black candle as a reminder that all people–especially children–deserve fairness, redemption, serenity, and freedom. The scent design combines grapefruit, freshly-cut grass, and thyme to invoke the beauty of fair chances and to spark much needed action within our movement.

Each candle has a 70-80 hour burn time, and is handcrafted by Bright Black artisans using high-quality clean burning coconut and soy waxes, custom-blended fragrances, wooden wicks, and stunning, reusable black matte glass vessels. 40% of net online sales will be donated to the CFSY.

Bright Black uses scent as a platform for storytelling about the complexity, beauty, and brilliance of Blackness. Follow Bright Black on Twitter @brtblkcandle and Instagram @brightblackcandle and click here to purchase.

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Campaign for the Fair Sentencing of Youth (EIN 27-3761788) is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization

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