Most people alive today can credit some amount of family support for their success. No one is entirely ‘self-made,’ rather we all have been touched and shaped from infancy to adulthood by those around us. Family has a unique responsibility to help foster young people’s success, both in diverting youth from the juvenile justice system and in helping those who find themselves in juvenile justice facilities and reentering the community.  For youth vulnerable to the juvenile justice system, particularly those in over-policed and under-resourced communities, family support is vital to their wellbeing. Under CPJ’s framework, familial relationships are not just […]

This article is part of our series looking at the Invisible Social Safety Net — all of those houses of worship and faith-based organizations that provide essential social services to their communities, sometimes with the help of government funding and sometimes without that assistance. In order to unleash the power of the social safety net to support our most vulnerable neighbors, CPJ advocates for state, local, and federal governments who need to understand how to partner with and support these “invisible” links who serve not because they have to by law, but because faithfulness to their tradition calls them to […]

This article part of our series looking at the Invisible Social Safety Net — all of those houses of worship and faith-based organizations that provide essential social services to their communities, sometimes with the help of government funding and sometimes without that assistance. In order to unleash the power of the social safety net to support our most vulnerable neighbors, CPJ advocates for state, local, and federal governments who need to understand how to partner with and support these “invisible” links who serve not because they have to by law, but because faithfulness to their tradition calls them to serve. […]

This article part of our series looking at the Invisible Social Safety Net — all of those houses of worship and faith-based organizations that provide essential social services to their communities, sometimes with the help of government funding and sometimes without that assistance. In order to unleash the power of the social safety net to support our most vulnerable neighbors, CPJ advocates for state, local, and federal governments who need to understand how to partner with and support these “invisible” links who serve not because they have to by law, but because faithfulness to their tradition calls them to serve. […]

As we approach the last few weeks of the election season, the country is on edge.  Forbes recently surveyed over 2,000 Americans from Sept. 4-6, 2024 and found that over 60% of respondents reported feeling, “slightly, moderately or significantly negatively impacted by the upcoming election.” 46% of respondents in the same survey reported feelings of anxiety. Clearly the election is having an impact on Americans, and many are opting out of political conversations altogether.  As the election season intensifies, church leaders are also wrestling on the best practices to address the election without endorsing particular candidates or worldviews. Some church […]

Abortion, immigration, inflation, the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, economic opportunity, racism . . . the two main presidential candidates, their parties, and their party platforms have focused on these pressing issues. However, they have neglected two other vital matters of American public life: the centrality of religion to many Americans and their organizations and the need to reinvigorate the faith-based initiative. Yes, the US is becoming more secular, and the number of “nones” is expanding—people involved with spirituality but detached from organized religion. Yet religion still hold critical importance in American society, as diverse indicators like these […]