A BETTER WAY FOUNDATION ABWF

A Better Way Foundation (ABWF) is a Connecticut-based organization dedicated to shifting current drug policy from a paradigm that prioritizes incarceration to one that prioritizes public health, treatment and public safety.

ABWF engages in research, education, advocacy and organizing in order to enable progressive drug policy reform and criminal justice agendas. ABWF develops and trains future activists of the drug policy, criminal justice reform and public safety communities by using organizing principles with a focus on resident and community empowerment.

ABWF’s local and national work is governed by the following ethics, beliefs and principles:

We do not do for others what they can do for themselves.
People directly affected by the issue are the best representatives.
Organizing thrives when new knowledge is built and existing knowledge is analyzed and criticized.
Targeted direct action and occupying political spaces are forms of communication.
Employing existing networks are just as valuable as establishing new networks.
Measuring success through leadership development and victories around an issue.

Despite its reputation as a progressive state, Connecticut not only has one of the highest incarceration rates of all Northeastern states, the state justice system also leads the nation in racial disparities. ABWF’s work was borne of the need to resist reactionary public policies that have resulted in the incarceration of tens of thousands of Connecticut citizens for drug offenses and nonviolent crimes.

www.abwf-ct.org