Kwame Kilpatrick to lead Memphis nonprofit: What to know about Taking Action for Good

The Taking Action for Good Foundation hired former Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick as its executive director.

The Memphis-headquartered organization focuses on reducing lengthy sentences for people in prison for non-violent crimes. TAG uses social media and storytelling to bring stories of prisoners to light in hopes of getting sentences reduced or commuted.

By creating a community approach that emphasizes preventing incarceration and keeping at-risk youth and young adults out of the criminal justice system, the foundation also hopes to grow the scope of its program.

Here is all you need to know about the Taking Action for Good Foundation.

Who started Taking Action for Good in Memphis?

Alice Marie Johnson is the founder and chief executive officer of TAG. She was convicted in 1996 of attempted drug possession and was sentenced to mandatory life plus 25 years. While in prison, she created plays, taught classes, volunteered with hospice, mentored other women, coordinated the Special Olympics for prisoners, and became an ordained minister.

She encouraged everyone around her to take action for good including prison staff and inmates. There was a positive cultural shift in the prison that allowed her to become a leader for many women in the prison.

On June 6, 2018, former President Donald Trump commuted her sentence after over 20 years in prison. This was done at the encouragement of Kim Kardashian. Johnson created the Taking Action for Good Foundation as a movement with the belief that everyone has the ability to TAG and challenge others to do the same.

What does TAG Memphis do?

The TAG Foundation focuses on criminal justice reform and storytelling.

Johnson started TAG with the mission to "use storytelling to put human faces to America's failed criminal justice system and to promote justice and mercy by reducing the number of men and women who are needlessly incarcerated."

The organization strives to educate the public about significant changes to the criminal justice system and to return honorable individuals who have been imprisoned back to their homes through clemency and compassionate releases. Through the use of social media, TAG humanizes the issues and draws attention to laws that result in unfair sentencing.

The stories of those whose sentences were excessive for their nonviolent offenses are told in TAG. Johnson and her team are trying to get sentences shortened and prisoners freed from prison considerably earlier than planned.

In 2021, the nonprofit raised more than $665,000, up from nearly $229,000 the year before, according to its tax filings. TAG had roughly $482,000 in expenses, largely from salaries.

Who works at Taking Action for Good?

Brittany Barnett is the president at TAG. She is an attorney and criminal justice reform advocate. She co-founded the Buried Alive Project, which works to litigate the release of deserving incarcerated people.

Jennifer Turner works as the vice president of TAG. She is an attorney and human rights researcher for the American Civil Liberties Union. Her work mostly focuses on criminal justice, women's rights and children's rights.

Shawn Holley serves as the secretary of the TAG Foundation. She is a partner at Kinsella Weitzman Iser, Kump, & Aldisert LLP. She previously worked as a Los Angeles County Public Defender.

Who is Kwame Kilpatrick?

Kwame Kilpatrick was recently added to the team as the executive director of the Taking Action for Good Foundation.

Kilpatrick previously represented the ninth district in the Michigan House of Representatives as a Democrat from 1997 to 2002. He then served as the 72nd mayor of Detroit from 2002 to 2008. Kilpatrick was also the youngest mayor of Detroit at 31. During his two terms, he had numerous scandals that ultimately resulted in his resignation at the end of his second term.

In September 2008, Kilpatrick resigned from his position and was later convicted of crimes of fraud, extortion, tax crimes and racketeering − all taking place during his two terms. He was sentenced to 28 years in federal prison.

In January 2021, Kilpatrick's sentence was commuted in the final days of Trump's term. He spent over six years in prison before he was released.

He said he was looking forward to working with the Memphis nonprofit.

"It’s the perfect opportunity to engage community, government and influencers about the importance of being involved in the work to improve the lives and opportunities of justice affected people," Kilpatrick told Deadline Detroit. 

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Kwame Kilpatrick in Memphis What to know the nonprofit who hired him.