News and Commentary

This page displays timely announcements, news reports, and articles written by MOSES members previously published in our newsletters, yearbook, or venues. The main display shows all items with the most recent first. You can select particular topics, working groups, or types of information to see the articles of one type, with the most recent first. Also see the Publications & Resources page for links to whole newsletters and yearbooks as well as other resources for research.

Good News In Brief

by Pamela Oliver | Mar 12, 2026 | Life After Prison

Eric is serving a 30-year sentence for second-degree murder of an innocent bystander. While in prison, he read an article about the health hazards of drinking soda and decided to give up soda. It was the first time he had made a decision to deprive himself of something – and to stick to the decision. This helped him realize that a major source of his life’s problems was a lack of self-discipline. His success in quitting soda convinced him that change was possible. He made other behavioral,...

Upcoming Meetings

by Pamela Oliver | Mar 12, 2026 | JPTF Justice & Police TF, JSRI Justice System Reform Initiatives, MOSES activities, MOSES leadership, WISDOM, WISDOM Conditions of Confinement, WISDOM immigration, WISDOM Old Law, WISDOM Post Release, WISDOM Treatment and Diversions

General Membership (Hybrid) Sunday, Mar. 8, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Sunday, Apr. 12, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Sunday, May 17, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Sunday, June 14, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Leadership Board (Hybrid) Saturday, Mar. 28, 1:00-2:30 p.m. Saturday, May 30, 1:00-2:30 p.m. Saturday, Jul. 25, 1:00-2:30 p.m. MOSES Task Forces (via Zoom) Justice System Reform Initiative (JSRI) Mar. 12, Apr. 9, May 14, June 11, 6:00-7:30 p.m. Racial Justice for All Children (RJAC) Mar. 17, Apr. 21, May 19, June 16, 4:30-6:00 p.m....

The Voice of the Comforter: a Film by Rafael Ragland

by Pamela Oliver | Mar 12, 2026 | Life After Prison, Reviews

The Voice of the Comforter: a Film by Rafael Ragland By Pam Gates On Jan. 12, the Madison Justice Team screened The Voice of the Comforter at the UW South Madison Partnership space. The film’s director and producer, Rafael Ragland, was there, as well as several of the people who acted in the film. Rafael was as teary-eyed as much of his audience when the film concluded; he explained that he’d lived through most of what this moving film portrayed. The Voice of the Comforter illustrates the...

Organizer’s Corner

by Pamela Oliver | Mar 12, 2026 | Organizer

Organizer’s Corner: James Morgan Interview by Margaret Irwin The new year got off to a promising start, with a meeting between MOSES leaders and a new University of Wisconsin-Madison student group: Students Against Mass Incarceration. After learning about the carceral and criminal legal system in a class, these students reached out to MOSES via our website. At the subsequent meeting, James reports, everyone was engaged in an exchange of ideas about what the students are currently doing,...

Juvenile Life Without Parole Legislation Left on the Table Again

by Pamela Oliver | Mar 12, 2026 | Advocacy, Juvenile Justice, Prisons, WISDOM Old Law

Juvenile Life Without Parole Legislation Left on the Table Again By Sherry Reames I've been following the work of WayJ (Wisconsin Alliance for Youth Justice) with admiration since the fall of 2021. I've been impressed with the systematic way they laid the groundwork for a Wisconsin law banning life without parole sentences for juvenile offenders, and by their continuing determination to get such a bill through the Legislature. I've been looking forward to the day when I could share...

HUD Reveals Its Intentions for Homeless Services, and We Need to Be Prepared

by Pamela Oliver | Mar 12, 2026 | Advocacy, Calls to Action, Housing, RJAC Racial Justice for All Children

HUD Reveals Its Intentions for Homeless Services, and We Need to Be Prepared By John Lemke In November of last year, HUD released a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to homeless services agencies across the country. It included drastic and detrimental changes to how HUD wants to use federal money to address the problem of homelessness. The changes were immediately challenged by lawsuits from 20 states and did not fare well. However, per the recent funding bills just passed on Feb. 3, HUD is...

Building Unity for Nonviolent Action!

by MOSES Publications | Mar 12, 2026 | Calls to Action, Community Issues, Immigration

Building Unity for Nonviolent Action! By Ken Warren On Jan. 24, I was one of several MOSES members who spontaneously showed up at James Reeb Unitarian Universalist Congregation for their monthly People, Peace, and Planet potluck. This particular one had been publicized as a kind of a kick-off for Building Unity for Nonviolent Action (BU4NVA). Speakers included John Nichols, Ajak Johnson, Everett Mitchell, and Rebe Silvey. During the week preceding the event, organizers started to...

2026 Wisconsin Supreme Court Election

by MOSES Publications | Mar 12, 2026 | Community Issues

2026 Wisconsin Supreme Court Election By Ken Warren On April 7, Wisconsin voters will go to the polls to select a Supreme Court justice to replace Justice Rebecca Bradley, who is not running for re-election. The election is considered to be nonpartisan; however, the candidates are recognized and recognize themselves as either liberal or conservative. Currently, the Court has a four-to-three liberal majority, and Rebecca Bradley is a conservative justice. For that reason, regardless of...

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