The Sacramento Kings hosted a series of basketball games Thursday at Folsom State Prison in Folsom, California and participated in conversations with incarcerated individuals and members of different activist organizations in what is known as the Play for Justice initiative.

The REPRESENT JUSTICE Campaign organized the Play for Justice initiative to advance the narratives of hope and redemption and break down stigmas associated with individuals—disproportionately people of color and the poor— who are impacted by the criminal justice system.

An unforgettable day for the squad at Folsom State Prison.

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— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) December 13, 2019

The Milwaukee Bucks will host a similar event sometime in December.

“Sports franchises have a unique opportunity to bring about positive change, which is why in the past year, the Kings and the Bucks brought together leaders from across two cities to share best practices and find new solutions to social injustices," Vivek Ranadivé, chairman, CEO and governor of the Sacramento Kings, said in a statement.

The games are part of the campaign’s efforts to engage audiences and spark collective action to demand a fair legal system, reclaim dignity for system-impacted communities and put an end to extreme sentencing.

According to a release by the NBA, "in addition to the Play for Justice events in Sacramento and Milwaukee, the campaign has worked with NBA and WNBA teams and players to organize events, including film screenings and community conversations, as part of the broader effort."

Participating teams are expected to be announced in late December and early January 2020, according to a report by Sports Illustrated.

“With the support of the players involved in Play for Justice, we are taking our message of humanizing system-impacted people far and wide," Adnan Khan, a REPRESENT JUSTICE Campaign surrogate, said in a statement.

Other partners for the event include Alliance for Safety and Justice, Campaign for Fair Sentencing of Youth and Color of Change.

Play-for-Justice-Initiative

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