Crime has taken center stage — in attack ads, debates and media coverage — this election season. Through all the noise and soundbites, something incredible is happening: crime survivors, like me, in the communities most harmed by violence are mobilizing to make our voices heard and challenging politics as usual on this divisive issue.
From California to Florida, and Detroit to Houston, victims of violent crime are turning their pain into purpose, banning together as a growing movement of grassroots activists committed to public safety reform. Together, we have built a national issue-advocacy and voter engagement program that will turn out 100,000 survivors of violent crime to vote like our healing depends on it.
Through door-to-door canvassing, community events and voter registration, we are paying it forward for all crime victims by building grassroots momentum for change in dozens of states.
For too long, crime victims have been used as props during public safety debates without our voices, our needs and our priorities being heard. Violent crime most harm communities of color and other groups who are marginalized and economically disadvantaged, including our immigrant and LGBTQ+ neighbors. Yet, our interests have largely been ignored. It is no coincidence that our communities also face the most significant barriers to electoral participation. Without a seat at the table for survivors, politicians of all stripes have returned over and over to the outdated punitive approaches that have failed to make us safer.
Many mistakenly believe that crime victims want harsh punishments and long sentences for offenders, but for the most part, the opposite is true. Across the country, crime survivors overwhelmingly prefer rehabilitation, shorter prison sentences and proactive safety investments over “tough-on-crime” policies that are ineffective at lowering crime rates.
The perception of rising crime and “lawlessness” was already playing a role in this year’s election — before a huge onslaught of attack ads hit the airways and blanked social media. It is dangerous rhetoric. I know firsthand the consequences Americans can suffer when we center punishment over rehabilitation and healing.
I was a victim of gun violence. My shooter was also a victim of gun violence at the time of my shooting. Neither of us received trauma recovery services to heal.
Thirteen years ago, I walked out of a convenience store and into an armed robbery. Two bullets derailed the course of my life, stealing plans for a professional basketball career and nearly ending my life. The young man who shot me, a stranger, had been a shooting victim himself four years before. Met with no support to heal and move forward after his own life-altering experience of victimization, he fell into a cycle of violence that is far too common.
It took years for me to heal emotionally and physically. Throughout my recovery, I was struck by how little support survivors receive. According to a national study by the Alliance for Safety and Justice, 4 out of 5 victims who reported crime to the justice system reported their crime was never solved, and 96% of victims of violent crime did not receive victim compensation to keep them afloat. This is why I dedicate my life to empowering fellow crime survivors to transform our justice and public safety systems.
Our work to engage voters builds on important wins in statehouses across the country. Led by survivors, lawmakers in Michigan and Pennsylvania recently fixed their broken victim compensation programs, improving support and expanding access for vulnerable crime victims. In 2021, Texas survivors led efforts to improve the state’s probation system. Arizona lawmakers laid the groundwork for Trauma Recovery Centers after learning from survivors how such centers help crime victims heal and get back on their feet — with evidence of their power from Illinois, Florida, Ohio, Iowa and Georgia, to name a few.
The pain of crime survivors has been put on display in political ads for decades, but we will no longer allow others to speak for us.
When survivors speak, we lead the way to commonsense safety policy — the antidote to the ineffective “tough on crime” measures of the past. This November, 100,000 of us will speak in unison.
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Aswad Thomas is the Vice President of Alliance for Safety and Justice, and a gun violence survivor.
