This OTYCD entry originally appeared in January 2018.
Donate to these bail funds across America and help poor people gain release from jail to await trial at home.
Being poor is not a crime, but all too often, it seems that way. The justice system can, and too often does, impose bail requirements on arrestees who have no hope of raising the money. They languish in jail, risking their jobs, homes, and families, and taking a space that’s better set aside for a more dangerous individual.
Bail funds help the poor by lending or giving them the money they need to gain their release. A few months back, OTYCD wrote about the Massachusetts Bail Fund, which was swamped with bail requests and almost had to close as a result:
https://onethingyoucando.com/2017/12/03/support-the-massachusetts-bail-fund/
Fortunately, enough donors stepped up to resolve the crisis and place the fund on firmer footing.
On November 28, 2017, Clint Smith III, an author and Harvard Ph.d candidate, tweeted a thread of links to bail funds across the country.
We have collected the information that he tweeted and have reproduced it here. Full credit goes to Smith, who you should follow (@ClintSmithIII).
Giving to bail funds helps poor people from sliding even further into poverty. Your donation allows adults in dire straits to continue to go to work and tend to their families while they wait for their cases to proceed through the justice system.
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The Bronx Freedom Fund
https://secure.thebronxfreedomfund.org/page/contribute/donate
http://www.thebronxfreedomfund.org
@BronxFreedom
The Brooklyn Community Bail Fund
https://brooklynbailfund.org/donate/
@BKBailFund
The Chicago Community Bond Fund
@ChiBondFund
Just City Memphis (located in Tennessee)
@JustCity901
Louisville Community Bail Fund (located in Kentucky; this is a YouCaring page)
https://www.youcaring.com/louisvillecommunitybailfund-852974
The Massachusetts Bail Fund
https://www.massbailfund.org/donate.html
@MassBailFund
The Minnesota Freedom Fund
https://minnesotafreedomfund.org/donate-to-mff/
https://minnesotafreedomfund.org
Northwest Community Bail Fund (located in Seattle)
https://www.nwcombailfund.org/get_involved
@NWComBailFund
The Philadelphia Community Bail Fund
http://www.phillybailout.com/product/donate/
The Richmond Community Bail Fund (located in Virginia)
https://secure.squarespace.com/commerce/donate?donatePageId=5934e1e120099e9f00aed4f9
@RVABailFund
You can also support bail funds that specifically help immigrants and migrants.
The Immigrant Bail Fund (which serves individuals in Connecticut)
https://www.immigrantbailfund.org/take-action/
https://www.immigrantbailfund.org
@migrantbailfund
Immigrant Family Defense Fund (which serves individuals in California)
https://immigrantfamilies.org/getinvolved/
@immfamilies
Here also is a December 30, 2017 blog post from Prison Culture (@prisonculture) which lists still more bail funds (scroll down for others not listed above):
One Thing You Can Do 