Introducing LCCR’s new look! We’ve got a fresh logo, an updated website, and a clearer mission and vision to guide us through the end of 2020 and beyond.

Our original look dates back to our founding in 2013. LCCR was born out of a merger between two organizations working to reduce the harm that the justice system inflicts largely on poor and Black kids. The Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana was renowned for its ability to make big, systemic change, while Juvenile Regional Services fought for individual children as New Orleans’ first juvenile public defender.

LCCR’s task was to combine the two approaches as few organizations had before. But that wouldn’t happen overnight. Like the adolescents we work with, LCCR was still forming its own identity and finding its place in the world. Our original mission and vision were created to help guide us in that process.

In the last seven years, we’ve grown up a lot and accomplished a lot. We’ve defended thousands of children in Orleans Parish Juvenile Court and supported them in their homes, schools, and communities. We’ve made big policy changes locally and statewide, like helping pass the PAY ordinance and the Raise the Age Act. We’ve also expanded to represent the vast majority of Louisianans who were sentenced as children to die in prison and who deserve a second chance.

Last year, we paused to reflect on how our work had grown and where it needed to go next. We built a shared vision of a Louisiana where every child – no matter their race or class – is free to be a kid and supported in becoming a healthy adult. And we clarified LCCR’s role in making this vision a reality in a new mission statement: LCCR fights to keep children out of the justice system so that they can thrive in their homes and communities.

We then partnered with YEP Design Works and Decubing to build a website that better tells the story of who we are, what we do, and why it matters. The young designers dreamt up a new logo and this new site. We hope you’ll spend some time getting to know us, learning about the issues that our kids face, and reading about their triumphs. You’ll find that LCCR’s look might have changed, but our promise remains the same: We stand with kids in the justice system, no matter what.