Our advocacy challenges systemic harm and advances community-driven solutions through policy, coalition-building, civic engagement, public education, and narrative change.
Sentencing & Bail
Cash bail and sentencing practices can separate families and disrupt employment long before someone is convicted of a crime. These burdens often fall hardest on girls, women, gender-expansive people, and caregivers.
Extreme Heat
People incarcerated in Texas prisons are exposed to dangerous heat that has caused preventable illness and death. Read the latest on our litigation against the Texas Department of Criminal Justice over inhumane, extreme heat conditions:
Healthcare
Girls, women, and gender-expansive people have healthcare needs that are often overlooked in correctional settings, including reproductive healthcare, pregnancy care, menopause, mental healthcare, disability accommodations, and gender-affirming care. We advocate for healthcare that recognizes these needs and responds with dignity and compassion.
Solitary Confinement
Girls, women, and gender-expansive people are frequently placed in isolation after entering prison with histories of trauma, abuse, mental illness, or disability. Solitary confinement often deepens those harms rather than improving safety, leaving people more vulnerable during incarceration and after release.
Discipline
Incarcerated women in Texas prisons are disciplined significantly more often than men, often for minor, nonviolent behavior linked to trauma, mental health needs, or unmet needs. We advocate for healing-centered, gender informed responses.
Education
Access to education has expanded in recent years, but girls, women, and gender-expansive people continue to have fewer high-quality educational opportunities than men in many Texas correctional facilities. We advocate for quality education that prepares our community for life beyond incarceration and creates livable wages.
Parole & Probation
Nearly 89% of women on community supervision are caregivers, yet supervision conditions often fail to account for work schedules, childcare responsibilities, transportation barriers, and family obligations. We advocate for parole and probation policies that recognize these realities and support successful reentry.
Lioness is a coordinating team member of the Parole Advocacy Coalition of Texas (PACT).
Voting & Civic Participation
People directly impacted by the criminal legal system are often excluded from public conversations about the policies that shape their lives. We work to expand civic participation because those closest to these issues should have a meaningful voice in the decisions that affect their communities.
Youth Justice
Girls are a small percentage of youth in custody but often have extensive histories of trauma, abuse, exploitation, and unmet behavioral health needs. We support community solutions that prioritize healing over punishment.