Janos Marton will address the issue of mass incarceration in the U.S. and why we should care as citizens of the U.S. and as global citizens. He will share JustLeadershipUSA’s innovative model for advocacy, which has shifted the criminal justice field, and the lessons of the #CLOSErikers campaign, which in one year’s time moved the political establishment to adopt the closure of the notorious Rikers Island jail complex as City policy. He will also cover other efforts to dramatically reduce America’s jail and prison population, including efforts succeeding despite the current political climate.

JustLeadershipUSA’s motto that those closest to the problem are closest to the solution is in line with Dr. King’s believe that those most directly impacted by policies should lead the movement.

Speaker Bio:

Janos Marton is an attorney, activist, born and raised New Yorker, and most importantly, member of the Dartmouth Class of 2004. When Janos attended Dartmouth he served two years as student body president, coordinated Students for John Kerry, wrote for the now-defunct Free Press, and interned at the Rockefeller Center.  After graduation Janos worked on political campaigns and ran operations for Hands on Disaster Response in Biloxi, Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina. Janos returned to New York City to attend Fordham Law School, graduating Magna Cum Laude. During law school he practiced criminal defense, worked on Obama presidential campaign, and began a program for youths incarcerated at Rikers Island.

As an attorney, Janos practiced at a large international law firm, small civil rights firm, and New York City agency focused on police accountability. Most notably, he served as special counsel on the Moreland Commission to Investigate Public Corruption, which exposed widespread wrongdoing in New York’s campaign finance and lobbying systems.

Janos is currently the Director of Policy and Campaigns at JustLeadershipUSA, an organization committed to cutting the correctional population in half by 2030, by empowering communities most harmed by mass incarceration. In that capacity he has managed the nationally renowned campaign to #CLOSErikers, and is launching groundbreaking organizing efforts for those inside and coming from prison.