Bio
Rebecca McCray is the former Managing Editor for the ACLU's Communications Department, where she oversaw the website's News & Commentary section alongside other editorial projects.
Her reporting and writing has been published by New York Magazine, Rolling Stone, The Appeal, Gothamist, The Village Voice, The Daily Beast, Slate, New York Focus, and other outlets. Previously, she worked as a freelance journalist and associate editor for the Women’s Media Center’s “Women Under Siege,” a vertical documenting sexualized violence in conflict zones; was a news and social justice staff writer for Participant Media's TakePart.com; and a reporter for the legal newswire Law360. Her reporting has covered an array of issue areas, including immigration, labor, politics, and more, but the vast majority is focused on the criminal justice system. Previously, she was a paralegal in the ACLU’s Criminal Law Reform Project. She is a graduate of the University of Iowa and a Fulbright grantee.
Featured work
![](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/09/pussy_riot_protest-400x266.jpg)
Aug 24, 2012
After the Pussy Riot: What This Unjust Sentence Can Teach Americans
![](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/09/blog_criminallawreform_8-400x266.jpg)
Aug 10, 2012
In the Race for Sensible Drug Policy, U.S. Snoozes on the Sidelines
![](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/09/drug_reform-400x266.jpg)
Jul 17, 2012
Gil Kerlikowske: Please Put Our Money Where Your Mouth Is
![A pair of hands in handcuffs](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/09/blog_criminallawreform-400x266.jpg)
May 23, 2012
Treating Addiction as a Disease, not a Crime
![](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/09/blog_warondrugs-400x266.jpg)
May 15, 2012
Without a Card to Play, Texas Grandma Sentenced to Life Without Parole for First-Time Drug Offense
![A pair of hands in handcuffs](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/09/blog_criminallawreform-400x266.jpg)
May 3, 2012
Tasers No Longer a Non-Lethal Alternative for Law Enforcement
![](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/09/blog_marijuana-400x230.jpg)
Apr 26, 2012
Hundreds of Economists: Marijuana Prohibition Costs Billions, Legalization Would Earn Billions
Jan 27, 2012
Breaking the Addiction to Incarceration: Weekly Highlights
![](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2019/09/blog_criminallawreform_20-400x266.jpg)
Jan 13, 2012
Breaking the Addiction to Incarceration: Weekly Highlights