Youth Justice Coalition (YJC) is a Los Angeles-based non-profit organization focused on juvenile justice, prison and police abolition,[1] and criminal legal reforms. YJC is a non-profit organization devoted to challenging race, gender and class inequality in California’s juvenile and criminal justice systems.
YJC has been a part of movement to challenge the impact of gang injunctions on young people in minority communities.[2] YJC was successful in blocking an injunction in the Imperial Courts Housing Projects in the early 2000s.[2]
In 2015, YJC was part of a coalition that opposed the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors 2 billion dollar jail expansion project.[3] Kim McGill from YJC argued for mental health programs in the community instead of jail for the mentally ill.[3]
In 2014, YJC published a report on police-involved homicides.[4] YJC petitioned Kamala Harris to appoint special prosecutors for police-involved homicides.[4] In 2015, YJC organized a "Die In" protest at the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors building. About 400 protestors carried cardboard coffins to represent the killings by police officers.[5]
YJC has protested Los Angeles Unified School District search policies, including LAUSD’s Random Metal Detector Search Policy, arguing that these policies erode trust between students and school staff.[6] YJC is a part of the "Students Not Suspects" campaign, aligning with the American Civil Liberties Union, Black Lives Matter, Public Counsel and others.[7]