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Jarrett Harper      

Criminal Justice & Foster Care Reform Advocate; Ambassador of Just Mercy Campaign; Storyteller for Project Witness

Jarrett Harper is a criminal justice and foster care reform advocate dedicated to ending life sentences for children, enhancing rehabilitation resources for those re-entering society, and disrupting the foster care-to-prison pipeline.

Harper, a survivor of the California foster care system, endured 20 years of incarceration. At 16, Harper was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole plus ten years after defending himself and his younger brother from an abuser. Despite the seemingly insurmountable odds of release, he cultivated forgiveness and hope, significantly impacting the lives of other inmates through the development of self-improvement programs.

After two decades, his efforts culminated in the commutation of his sentence by Governor Jerry Brown. Harper was released from prison on June 18, 2019, by Governor Gavin Newsom. Following his release, he engaged as an ambassador for Represent Justice’s "Just Mercy" campaign and founded Better Days, a youth advocacy organization. Harper has also been involved with Project Witness, sharing his story to advocate for crucial reforms in the criminal justice system. Additionally, he regularly volunteers with Vista Del Mar Child and Family Services, mentoring foster youth entangled in the criminal legal system. Harper's impactful journey and advocacy have led him to speak for notable organizations such as Verizon, Google, YouTube, USC, and Princeton, and have been highlighted in media outlets like Washington Post Live and The Orange County Register.

Speech Topics

Finding Forgiveness and Hope

Jarrett shares his story from foster care to mass incarceration to criminal justice reform advocate as an example of how people who commit serious crimes are not only deserving of our compassion, but also a second chance to share the tremendous, life-affirming gifts they bring to the world. While society gave up on Jarrett, he never gave up on himself, and he used his gifts to help others in prison, never believing it would change his own circumstances. In his transformational remarks, Jarrett gives audiences a new way to look at the criminal justice system, most significantly the foster-care-to-prison pipeline, as well as an alternative lens to see their own lives. Even when the person we most need to forgive is ourselves, Jarrett echoes Just Mercy author Bryan Stephenson and powerfully reminds us that each of us is more than the worst thing we've ever done. Jarrett's power of persuasion is tied to the way in which he encourages us to take absolute responsibility for our actions and our mindset, while at the same time walking righteously into our new beginning.

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