05 Nov

Hundreds attend Charleston Area Justice Ministry assembly to discuss community problems

Posted by in Affordable Housing, CAJM, Criminal Justice Reform, Public Education Improvement, Public Transportation

November 5, 2019. CountOnNews2.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD)- Hundreds of community members attend the Charleston Area Justice Ministry’s 2019 Community Problems assembly to discuss issues in the Charleston area.

CAJM is a faith-based organization comprised of many different Christian, Jewish, and Unitarian members. Their mission is to “come together to make the Charleston area a more just place to live, work, and do business.”

Tonight’s assembly addressed four different areas in the community that CAJM feels need attention: Education, Policing, Housing and Transportation.

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30 May

Group calls for racial bias audit of North Charleston Police Department

Posted by in CAJM, Criminal Justice Reform

May 30, 2019. The Post and Courier.

A citizen’s commission has formally recommended that North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey and North Charleston City Council initiate a third-party racial bias audit of the city’s police department.

A separate City of Charleston police racial bias audit is underway. It is projected to be released in the fall.

The recommendation was suggested by the Charleston Area Justice Ministry and the North Charleston Citizens Advisory Commission on Community-Police Relations. The group met Tuesday night to vote on the motion, and it passed unanimously. It recommends that action be taken no later than Oct. 1, 2019.

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28 May

Charleston Area Justice Ministry continues push for audit of N. Charleston police department

Posted by in CAJM, Criminal Justice Reform, Minority Rights

May 28, 2019. WCSC.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) – The Charleston Area Justice Ministry (CAJM) is calling for an audit of the North Charleston Police Department in a citizen’s advisory commission meeting on Tuesday.

The North Charleston Citizen’s Advisory Commission on Community-Police Relations will meet at 6:30 p.m. at North Charleston City Hall.

The Charleston Area Justice Ministry says they called for an audit of both the Charleston and North Charleston Police Departments a few years ago.

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26 May

CARTA’s network of bus shelters, now with solar-powered lighting, is growing fast

Posted by in CAJM, Public Transportation

May 26, 2019. The Post and Courier.

One of the worst things about using the Charleston area’s bus system — waiting at a bus stop with no shelter, exposed to the elements — is getting a lot better.

The Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority is in the midst of a bus-shelter-construction boom, with the near-term goal of having shelters at 20 percent of CARTA’s bus stops. That would be 171 stops with shelters, 44 of which are expected to be installed this year.

In addition, the new perforated steel shelters and the existing shelters are lighted, using solar panels on the shelter roofs. Daniel Brock, a spokesman for the authority, said the solar systems already installed have been working well.

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15 May

CARTA will eliminate transfer fees, expand senior fares in response to CAJM plan

Posted by in CAJM, Public Transportation

May 15, 2019. Charleston City Paper.

A week after a social justice group called for improvements in the area’s public transit system, the Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority announced fares that are friendlier to low-income and older riders.

The system will expand its $1-a-ride senior fares to all operating hours. Currently, the discount is only available between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., a restriction that advocates say prevents older, low-income users from riding during peak hours.

Transfer fees, which cost 50 cents each, will be eliminated. In addition, $15 unlimited weekly passes and $25 weekly unlimited express passes will be introduced.

CARTA’s board of directors voted to revise its policies at a meeting on Wednesday, according to a press release. The changes will come up for approval on July 15.

The changes come after the Charleston Area Justice Ministry, an advocacy group made up of 30 interfaith congregations, held its annual Nehemiah Action rally at Mount Moriah Baptist Church in North Charleston on May 6.

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