Lydia Watts

Social activist and public interest attorney - intimate partner and sexual violence, women in the military, poverty and racial inequities

[Lydia Watts @lydiawatts]

@SenBillFerg In this last day of session, PASS the Values Act (HB 1222). I’m a Maryland voter, and my zip code is 21201.

[Lydia Watts @lydiawatts]

Clemency has the power to change so many families' lives! .@POTUS, I urge you to lead with mercy and justice and use your clemency powers now! #clemencynow #clemencyjusticemercy @FAMMFoundation

[Lydia Watts @lydiawatts]

I 'm judging the 2024 Stevie Awards for Women in Business. Learn more at https://t.co/I5W1tJbQgB and follow @TheStevieAwards

[Jess Douglas @JessssDouglas]

I don’t know if we should tell him this, but if he says “childless cat ladies” one more time, we’re summoned to haunt him and make his life miserable. It’s like saying “Bloody Mary” or “Beetlejuice,” but with more estrogen. And cats.

[Shawn Westfall @shawnwestfall]

@ambernoelle I'm sorry, but any woman who looked and dressed like she placed second to Apollonia to play Prince's "Purple Rain" love interest is Gen X, QED

[Lydia Watts @lydiawatts]

Right now, I do not trust the Supreme Court to make decisions.

In order to restore my trust, justices must be held accountable. Join me in demanding that Congress enact term limits for Supreme Court justices.
https://t.co/yMlWaa1Q7w

[Lydia Watts @lydiawatts]

Search results for women's names should never include non-consensual sexual deepfakes or the website and apps that help people create them. Tell Google to stop promoting platforms that supercharge harassment of women and girls online. https://t.co/se3pidDzE6

[Lydia Watts @lydiawatts]

@ubalt_ccjr @HeatherWarnken @ubaltlaw So well deserved!! Congrats!!!

[Maryland Youth Justice Coalition @mdyouthjustice]

Hey @GovWesMoore!

We rallied outside of your house with @jufj @RacialJsticeNow @ACLU_MD @AlgebraProject @MarylandOPD + more of our partners last night, calling on you to VETO HB814!

Our kids need real, evidence-based solutions. They need #CareNotCages!

https://t.co/PzrcKpDRks

[DocJoRich @docjorich]

Every year the US State Department sends a contingent of law enforcement officials from a different country to meet with me to discuss CVI this year it was Brazil, Rio De Janeiro and the conversation was amazing even through an interpreter. Honored.

[Heather Warnken @HeatherWarnken]

Asking residents whether the criminal legal system is “tough enough” reinforces the idea that more punitive responses are the most effective way to deliver public safety (they’re not). These Qs aren’t supported by the research. Let’s evolve to ask whether our systems are working.

[Lydia Watts @lydiawatts]

This cause is close to my heart - please sign: https://t.co/RKQETqEORI

[Heather Warnken @HeatherWarnken]

Today @DrAlexPiquero and I lay out why we must follow facts & best practice, not anecdote. This law will not improve public safety. It will worsen MD's shameful racial disparities and harm Black children. We can and must do better, and it's not too late.

https://t.co/AuwqCX20pb

[UBalt Law Center for Criminal Justice Reform @ubalt_ccjr]

“the bill reflects a disturbing nationwide trend of reactionary public safety policymaking. People are certainly entitled to their own opinions…But no one is entitled to their own facts re: crime trends— no matter how often these alternatives are broadcast on tv or social media”

[Heather Warnken @HeatherWarnken]

"It is said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Maryland is among states poised to roll back or repeal bipartisan criminal justice reforms...even when the evidence is clear that they should not."

A must-read:

[UBalt Law Center for Criminal Justice Reform @ubalt_ccjr]

"Tethering the process to the criminal justice system is incredibly alienating. @HeatherWarnken described the proposal to allow the board to consider alternative forms of documentation [besides police reports] as a “transformational reform.”
This bill is a gamechanger. #mdga2024

[Heather Warnken @HeatherWarnken]

“We urge our elected leaders to listen to community feedback and pursue proven solutions that don’t punish kids for system failures. Our children are sacred…We adults can do better by talking less and listening more— to them and to experts who know best what they need” #mdga2024

[Lydia Watts @lydiawatts]

Nex Benedict, a 16-yr-old Choctaw Indigenous gender-fluid teen in OK, was brutally assaulted in a bathroom by their classmates & school officials didn't even call an ambulance. Nex died the next day. #JusticeForNex

Sign to demand an investigation NOW! ⬇️ https://t.co/qkgAS0Bq1l

[Daniel W. Webster @DanielWWebster1]

Important research on bans on renting to individuals with criminal histories. This discriminatory policy only increases evictions with no impact on crime. Better idea: promote successful re-entry with fewer barriers and more supports.

[Lydia Watts @lydiawatts]

The Human& https://t.co/dnin0T57jW