Michael Javen Fortner and Marie Gottschalk: How Should We Reform Criminal Justice?

The Murphy Institute is known for its public programming, bringing thinkers, leaders and policymakers together to discuss the issues vital to making change in our city and our world. 

In the Fall issue of Dissent, Michael Javen Fortner and Marie Gottschalk outlined opposing visions of how we created mass incarceration, and how we should think about ending it. In December, the two scholars spoke at the Murphy Institute, where they continued the debate. Check out some of the conversation below.

The idea that we need to reform this country’s criminal justice system is finally gaining bipartisan support in Washington, thanks in part to social movements like Black Lives Matter. But even if we agree that something must be done, we sharply disagree—even on the left—about what reform should look like. At what point must we examine the structural causes of crime? Can we reduce the number of prisoners without first addressing poverty?