Welcome to The Prison Post, this week we welcome Taina Vargas -Edmond. She is the Co-founder and Executive Director of Initiate Justice. She founded Initiate Justice in September of 2016 with the intention of activating the political power of people directly impacted by mass incarceration. Prior to creating Initiate Justice, she worked in the organizing and policy advocacy field as the Statewide Advocacy Coordinator with Essie Justice Group, as a State Campaigner with the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, and a Field Representative for the California State Assembly. She is directly impacted by mass incarceration having a loved one serve over seven years in a CA state prison. Their mission is to end mass incarceration by activating the power of the people it directly impacts. They organize their members, both inside and outside of prisons, to advocate for their freedom and change criminal justice policy in California. They have more than 28,475 incarcerated members, 135 inside organizers, and hundreds more outside members and organizers throughout California. Initiate Justice is 100% led by people directly impacted by incarceration. Contact them at info@initiatejustice.org