House Democrats have hired a former gang member as senior adviser for diversity and inclusion, the New York Post reports.
Dyjuan Tatro, a criminal justice advocate, was chosen by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee for the role.
Tatro rose to attention after an appearance in a PBS docuseries called College Behind Bars in 2019. The documentary centres around a group of inmates who study for degrees through New York state’s Bard Prison Initiative.
Tatro, who was convicted in 2011, was able to get a bachelor’s degree while serving his six-year sentence for racketeering conspiracy.
When he was convicted, he had already been serving a sentence for shooting a couple of rival gang members in 2006.
Tatro pleaded guilty to the shootings, as well as to a "razor slashing" in a separate incident in 2002, and to dealing drugs.
He said that he had made as much as $12,000 a month as a drug dealer, conspiring to traffic over 50 grams of crack cocaine.
In 2017, Tatro was released from prison and has advocated for better educational opportunities for convicts using the program through which he earned his degree.
Some Republican politicians have argued that the decision is an example of Democrats not being tough enough on crime.
“It’s certainly on-brand for criminal-coddling Democrats, but the rest of America will find it disturbing that a murderous gang member is holding a prominent position with the DCCC,” said New York state Republican Party Chairman Nick Langworthy, per the Post.
“Second chances are one thing, but I would have to question Congressman Maloney’s judgment to put someone with such a violent past at the top of their organization.”
A spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee responded to the criticism, explaining: “Dyjuan is a formerly incarcerated person who has worked hard to change the trajectory of his life through education and service to his community.
“He has served his time for the crimes he committed and is now a national leader in the bipartisan movement to reform our criminal justice system and bring meaningful improvements to the education system in American prisons.
“Such critical work breaks cycles of recidivism by making sure more people leave prison with the skills to hold down a job and contribute to their communities.”
After he was hired for the role, Tatro said in a statement, per The Post:
“This past election cycle has emphasized how electoral politics affects the daily lives of each and every American as well as the centrality of the African American vote to winning elections. I am honored to be joining the DCCC to work on a number of issues at the nexus of politics, diversity, and equity & inclusion.
“I want to thank Chairman Sean Patrick Maloney for his commitment to assembling talented & diverse DCCC teams.”
