People often end up in poverty because of one small mistake. Our cash bail system and fines/fees system unfairly penalizes those who don’t have access to help. My giving to two organizations (The Bail Project and Fines and Fees Justice Center) helps people caught in the system and saves them from further descending into poverty and incarceration.

I became aware of this issue while working in a clinic at the homeless shelter. A trained diesel mechanic was homeless because of a misdemeanor offense many years ago. He couldn’t pay the fine and subsequently his driver’s license was suspended. This caused him to lose his job (you have to have a license to be a diesel mechanic). He then was evicted. All over a $500 fine. We helped him pay his fine and he got his job back and is no longer homeless. This opened my eyes to the problem, and I’ve been advocating about these issues ever since.