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Mogul Shawn “Jay Z” Carter has one thing on his agenda for Father’s Day: to tackle issues surrounding the criminal justice system and the bail industry, reports TIME.

Carter recently penned a poignant essay for the publication in which he delved into how the criminal justice system has had an impact on individuals living in inner city neighborhoods like Brooklyn—where he was born and raised—and expressed his dedication to use his platform as an avenue to change the flawed system.

“If you’re from neighborhoods like the Brooklyn one I grew up in, if you’re unable to afford a private attorney, then you can be disappeared into our jail system simply because you can’t afford bail,” wrote Carter. “Millions of people are separated from their families for months at a time — not because they are convicted of committing a crime, but because they are accused of committing a crime.”

In the TIME piece, Carter shared that working on the Time: The Kalief Browder Story really opened his eyes to the corrupt realities of the bail bond industry; sharing how it’s unfair that Blacks and Latinos are over-policed and then forced to scrape up funds so that they can be free before their trial. Carter writes that this circumstance is “devastating to families.”

He also highlighted Ava Duvernay, Glenn Martin and Ruthie Gilmore’s contributions to pushing the conversation surrounding the flawed justice system forward.

Inspired by the efforts that organizations like Color of Change and Southerners on New Ground made to bail out 100 mothers for Mother’s Day, Carter says he will support those organizations to do the same for father’s facing financial barriers to freedom on Father’s Day.

“I’m supporting those same organizations to bail out fathers who can’t afford the due process our democracy promises,” he writes. “As a father with a growing family, it’s the least I can do, but philanthropy is not a long fix, we have to get rid of these inhumane practices altogether. We can’t fix our broken criminal justice system until we take on the exploitative bail industry.”

According to the piece, one in nine Black children have a parent that is behind bars and $9 billion dollars has been spent on incarcerating individuals who haven’t been convicted.

SOURCE: TIME

SEE ALSO:

Jay Z To Produce Docuseries About Race In America

Jay Z Partnering To Make Trayvon Martin Film & Docu-Series

Jay Z Tackles The Bail Bond Industry In Father’s Day Essay  was originally published on newsone.com