Amaal Sharif

In her hometown, Amaal Sharif co-founded Decarcerate Utah as a way to fight alongside community members to carry out various campaigns across the state from “Defund SLCPD” to “Stop Ice Contracts” and so many more. Amaal took this same fighting spirit with her to Houston as she helped create Jailhouse Justice which works to honor the lives of those who had died in Harris County Jail while also continuing to struggle for those who are still in state custody.  Through her work with family members of those who died in the jail to help make vigils, demonstrations and political education, Amaal crossed paths with TJP in 2023 and has been able to continue to do that work as a community organizer. She has been able to work with family members on their loved one’s individual cases in navigating this system and connecting them with resources. She coordinates logistics and training for the convening night before with families across the state to convene in Austin to testify at the quarterly meetings of the Texas Commission on Jail Standards and so by the time they leave Austin they feel confident that no matter what they have a community of resilient families fighting alongside them.