By Ashlee Banks
Special to the AFRO
As President Joe Biden’s time in office comes to a close, two prominent members of Congress, Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.-07) and Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.-05), are intensifying their calls for him to wield his clemency authority.
(Credit: AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
On Jan. 14, 2025, the Congresswomen held a press conference on Capitol Hill with advocates and leaders in the criminal justice reform movement to urge the president to continue his efforts to address mass incarceration before the end of his term.
Congresswoman Pressley, a vocal advocate for justice reform and a more equitable criminal legal system, has long called on Biden to use his clemency powers to rectify the wrongs of an unjust system. She recently applauded the president for his clemency actions, including his December 2024 decision to commute the death sentences of 37 individuals on federal death row, transitioning them to life imprisonment. In the same month, Biden also granted pardons to 39 individuals and commuted nearly 1,500 sentences, a move Pressley hailed as a vital step toward addressing mass incarceration and its disproportionate impact on marginalized communities.
“President Biden has rightfully used his clemency power to change and save lives, and he must continue doing so before leaving office next week,” Pressley said at the press conference.
“With less than a week remaining in his presidency, we’re calling on him to keep going to address mass incarceration and set families on a path to healing. We need people reunited with their families, not locked in cages. We must move with the urgency this moment demands,” she added.
Rep. Scanlon, a fellow advocate for clemency reform, expressed her solidarity with Pressley’s calls for urgent action. She emphasized that President Biden’s clemency power is a vital tool for addressing long-standing injustices, particularly the over-incarceration of people of color.
“We cannot afford to delay justice any longer,” Scanlon said during the press conference. “The president has the power to right these wrongs and ensure that thousands of individuals are given the second chances they deserve. We urge him to act now.”
The press conference also featured remarks from leading advocates in the criminal justice reform movement, who highlighted the human cost of mass incarceration.
DaMareo Cooper, co-executive director of Popular Democracy, underscored the urgency of the moment, calling the final days of the Biden administration “our last opportunity to save the lives of thousands” before a potential shift in policy under an incoming administration.
“President Biden, as your administration draws to a close, so does your window of time to grant clemency to thousands of petitioners,” Cooper said during the press conference. “This is our final chance to right historic wrongs and leave office as a president who led with conscience and compassion.”
Patrice Willoughby, chief of policy and legislative affairs at the NAACP, also voiced her support for the outgoing president to use his remaining time in office to address the injustices faced by individuals trapped in the criminal justice system.
“The NAACP calls on President Biden to pick up the pen and pardon thousands of individuals trapped in prison on technicalities,” Willoughby said during the press conference.
Fari Ghamina Tumpe, an advocate from SPACEs in Action, spoke to the broader social consequences of incarceration, particularly for families.
“There are 8,500 families awaiting clemency that are greatly suffering without the presence of their caregivers and loved ones,” Tumpe said during the press conference. “America was built on the promises of opportunities and second chances. If Hunter Biden gets a full and unconditional pardon, then President Biden, you should free them all. It’s time to right these historical wrongs.”
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