August 2022

Get Prepared: How to Vote Guide

Our 2022 How to Vote Guide is now available! Our nonpartisan step-by-step guide helps Georgians create and execute a voting plan. The updated 2022 guide includes instructions for checking eligibility and registration status, registering and re-registering to vote, and voting early, absentee, or in person. In English and Spanish, online and in printable PDF, the guide helps Georgians participate in one of our most fundamental rights.

Developing the guide was a collective effort. We are grateful for pro bono support from Matt Miehl (Morris, Manning & Martin), Deona Kalala (Alston & Bird), and former Georgia Appleseed Board chair Beth Tanis. Nelson Mullins provided the Spanish translation and Wingard Graphics ensured it was mobile-friendly in order to maximize accessibility.

Attorney Trainings on School Discipline

Left to fight: Caren Cloud, Legal & Policy Director of Georgia Appleseed, Bryan Stevenson, Founder of Equal Justice Initiative, and Morgan Bridgman, Policy Counsel of Georgia Appleseed.

When schools do not have effective and fair discipline policies, children often end up in the juvenile court system for typical, age-appropriate behaviors, like challenging authority. In fact, Georgia schools suspended or expelled almost 15,000 children last year for the highly subjective offense of “incivility.” Suspended kids are much more likely to end up in the criminal justice system. Georgia Appleseed helps schools to develop better discipline tactics that keep kids in class and out of juvenile court.

In June, Georgia Appleseed staff Caren Cloud and Morgan Bridgman, along with Michael Tafelski of Southern Poverty Law Center, traveled to Montgomery, Alabama to train public defenders at the Gault Defender Center Southeastern Conference. They trained the attorneys on the impacts of harsh school disciplinary practices, and how those practices directly contribute to the incarceration of children. The conference ended with a keynote speech by esteemed social justice activist and founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, Bryan Stevenson.

Healthy Housing

In June the Atlanta Journal Constitution published a powerful series of articles on dangerous dwellings and their impact on families and communities. AJC reporters analyzed years of crime and eviction data, interviews with tenants, and information provided by housing stakeholders like Georgia Appleseed. Since 2018, Georgia Appleseed has advocated for improved housing conditions in low-income communities as part of our Healthy Housing for Children and Families Initiative.

Our Initiative creates new legal rights for millions of low-income Georgians and has protected thousands from evictions. Georgia Appleseed’s Georgia Healthy Housing Coalition has successfully advocated for new legal protections at the state and local level, including the historic 2019 anti-retaliation law that protects tenants who file complaints with their local housing code enforcement from retaliatory evictions. On the local level, our support of the Clayton County Homeless Intervention Project (HIP) created an eviction diversion program that has supported thousands of families.

Our impact goes beyond the state of Georgia. This February, Executive Director Michael Waller testified before a United States Senate committee about the aggressive eviction practices, predatory business practices, and sub-standard housing conditions found in many of the Georgia apartment complexes owned by institutional investors.

Summer Internships

Two second-year law students joined our team this summer as interns, jumping right into our programs.

Andrea Beard, a native of Detroit, is pursuing her J.D. at John Marshall Law School and a native of Detroit, Michigan. Andrea supported Georgia Appleseed’s FAIR project (Fairness, Advocacy and Individualized Representation for children in foster care), in part by reaching out to DFCS case managers to obtain school tribunal outcomes. Andrea hopes to continue a career in public service by practicing human rights law.

Marcelo Silva is a Gwinnett County native who is pursuing his J.D. at University of Georgia School of Law. This summer he assisted the programs team with research into foster care practices and housing- related issues. The programs team relied heavily on him for his editorial skills. Marcelo is continuing his public interest career this fall when he joins the staff of GAIN (Georgia Asylum and Immigration Network) for a semester-long externship.

Resources and Events

Resources

988 – Mental Health Hotline

As of July 16, 2022, the first nationwide three-digit mental health crisis hotline is live. By dialing 988, an individual in crisis will be connected to trained mental health counselors.

211

Call 211 or search the website to find food, help with housing bills, access childcare, and more.

GeorgiaLegalAid.org / AyudaLegalGeorgia.org

Check out this resource list for information on health, unemployment, emergency food help, and more. AyudaLegalGeorgia.org provides the same information in Spanish.

Georgia Department of Education

Find updates on coronavirus and schools and a link to the Georgia Department of Community Health’s Daily COVID-19 status report.

Voices for Georgia’s Children

News and resources around COVID-19, including financial resources, food assistance, and guidance on talking to children about the pandemic.

Children's Healthcare of Atlanta

CHOA's resource page provides news, FAQs and resource

Upcoming Events

Stay tuned! We are planning our next Justice Conversations event for early December.

Connect and Support

Georgia Appleseed fights to dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline, promote behavioral health supports in schools, and advocate for healthy housing. With nurturing schools, the behavioral supports they need, and a stable, healthy home, all of Georgia's children will thrive.

Join us by making a donation and/or becoming a pro bono partner.

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Connecting with you helps us build our community of advocates and amplify our mission to advance justice for children across Georgia. Follow our social media sites to stay up to date with resources, celebrations and announcements. View our video library on YouTube, be one of the first to follow our new Instagram account, and join us on LinkedIn, FaceBook and Twitter.