International Citizens United for the Rehabilitation of Errants (CURE) is a grassroots organization dedicated to the reduction of crime through the reform of the criminal justice system (especially prison reform).
Prisons should be used only for people who absolutely must be incarcerated. And those who are incarcerated should have all of the resources they need to turn their lives around. A person is sent to prison AS PUNISHMENT AND NOT FOR PUNISHMENT. The only punishment is the loss of freedom.
We encourage members to become VOCAL especially when you are struggling with a criminal justice system.
Certainly, it is often easier to feel very helpless and isolated. Also, it may be difficult to understand the system and you are treated disrespectfully when you talk about it. Finally, you may be overwhelmed by other responsibilities while you have a loved one who is incarcerated.
We understand those feelings. At the same time, if the criminal justice system is to improve, we need many people to speak up about the problems. Lots of voices can result in change.
Please click on V.O.C.A.L. for a few things you can do. These are just suggestions. They may not work everywhere. If these won't work where you live, perhaps they will inspire you to think of something that will work. No one can do all of these things. Anything you can do is likely to help.
Finally, CURE is a membership organization. We work hard to provide our members with the information and tools necessary to help them understand the criminal justice system and to advocate for changes. Click to Join today.
Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants (CURE) is a grassroots criminal justice reform organization founded in Texas in 1972 by Charlie Sullivan, a Jesuit priest, and his wife Pauline, a religious sister. Their faith and commitment to social justice, sparked by Charlie's brief experience in a San Antonio jail during a nonviolent civil disobedience action, led them to establish this vital advocacy organization.
Charlie Sullivan's seven days in jail convinced him that systemic reform was essential. He and Pauline believed that prisons should be used only for those who absolutely must be incarcerated, and that people inside deserve all necessary resources to turn their lives around, heal, and be reconciled with their communities. This foundational belief—viewing every person in prison as a child of God with potential to change—remains at the heart of CURE's mission today.
In 1985, CURE incorporated as CURE National with a national office established in Washington, DC to coordinate federal-level advocacy and policy work. Under the same founding vision, International CURE grew into a global network with active chapters and affiliates in countries including Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Senegal, Burundi, Zambia, Malawi, and Rwanda. International CURE holds consultative status with the United Nations to participate in human rights and criminal justice discussions at the global level.
CURE remains a membership-based, secular organization led by formerly incarcerated individuals, family members, and allies. Funded primarily through membership dues and contributions, CURE does not provide direct services. Instead, it equips members with information and advocacy tools to advance a more humane, fair, and effective justice system worldwide.
International CURE operates as a federation of country chapters and affiliates that extend the founding mission to local and regional levels. Each chapter is volunteer-led and works to advance humane prison conditions, alternatives to incarceration, and fair sentencing within its own country. See the Chapters page for current contacts.
CURE National's website (curenational.org) is the public hub for U.S.-based advocacy and policy work, focused on federal-level prison reform, death penalty opposition, and coordination of U.S. state and issue chapters.
Both organizations operate under the shared vision of Charlie and Pauline Sullivan: that justice without mercy is not justice at all.