For over 150 years, Rikers Island has robbed generations of Black, Brown, and poor New Yorkers of their freedom and their human rights. The Rikers Island jails, and their extension, “The Boat,” have no place in a city committed to equity and justice.
Rikers is killing our neighbors, destabilizing our communities, and wasting billions. We need a Mayor who will give our communities the resources and opportunities we deserve, instead of filling up Rikers.
Decarcerate. Defend. Divest & Redistribute.
Closing Rikers is not an easy task, and previous efforts to do so have failed. Meanwhile, more lives have been lost or forever damaged. We can no longer talk about closing Rikers – we have to do it. We have a pathway to do so by 2027 or sooner, and the next Mayor must both address the immediate crisis and follow through on plans to erase this stain on our city once and for all.
To join the many organizations demanding the closure of Rikers Island, just use the button below.
To read our updated policy brief here on what needs to be done with less than four years to go before the closure of Rikers, read more here.
To read more on our complete vision for the plan to close Rikers, take a look here.
With survivors of Rikers and impacted families leading the way, the Campaign to Close Rikers seeks to:
Decarcerate. We must reduce the number of people incarcerated in New York City as much as possible, as fast as possible. We can do that by ending the criminalization of poverty, addiction, disability and mental health needs; protecting the presumption of innocence for everyone; and investing in resources that create true safety. By implementing the plan to close Rikers adopted in 2019, NYC will reduce the number of people in jail to its lowest level in 100 years.
Defend the rights of incarcerated people. While anyone is still incarcerated, conditions matter. None of New York City’s fourteen existing jails meet basic standards for human habitation, in how they are built or how they are operated. We must transform both the physical conditions of confinement for anyone who remains detained, and bring about a complete overhaul of the Department of Correction.
Divest & Redistribute. Closing the Rikers Island jails as well as the Boat, and shrinking citywide jail capacity by 75% in alignment with the plan to close Rikers adopted in 2019, creates a pathway to divert at least $1.8 billion annually from the Department of Correction. Elected leaders must move swiftly to redirect DOC’s inflated budget to resources that meet people’s needs - like housing, healthcare, education, and employment - and by doing so, create true safety.