The #MeToo movement against sexual violence and the criminal justice reform movement against mass incarceration remain unfortunately isolated. In fact, the mainstream anti-violence movement relies on the punitive criminal legal system for justice. As a solution, transformative justice models can align the #MeToo movement with criminal justice reform using holistic approaches to violence and inequality. In Los Angeles, I will apply my Urban Studies lens to transformative justice processes at the community organization Critical Resistance and UCLA’s Feminist Anti-Carceral Studies Program. After volunteering, researching, and interviewing with both entities over 10 weeks, I will write an accessible, long-form article as a step toward my career path combining writing and criminal justice reform.

Advisor: Mary-Kim Arnold (English)