Did you know the U.S. incarcerates Black people at a nearly five times higher rate than white people?  This is part two in our Breaking the Bias series for Black History Month, where we are highlighting people and organizations who are creating alternatives to incarceration. Today we’re speaking to Brian Stanley, Court Advocate for Avenues for Justice, an organization that’s been around for more than 40 years and that has successfully kept thousands of African American and Hispanic youth and young adults in New York City out of the criminal justice system.

In New York City, it costs about $450,000 to incarcerate a young person for a year, but to put them through Avenues For Justice’s program, it costs about $6,000. Brian Stanley has some fascinating insights about this. In addition to serving as a court advocate, he  also works with youth as  a writing tutor, basketball coach, and art teacher with a focus on hip hop. Here is what he has to say about lowering incarceration rates, and new paths forward.