Welcome to REFORM in Focus, our thought leadership series that spotlights innovators reimagining probation, parole, and public safety. Each edition features experts who are driving meaningful change to our supervision system.

 

Just a few years ago, Rondo Bonilla was incarcerated at Rikers Island. Today he is REFORM’s Gen Z Organizer, raising awareness and galvanizing his generation to fight for change. We caught up with him about his life, his work, and REFORM’s recent Gen Z Day of Action, which activated students across 20+ college campuses this week.

Rondo, you’ve been with REFORM for two years now, and you’ve done a lot to get your generation interested in criminal justice reform. How did this all happen?  

It was a journey. I was 18 when I first got locked up. I was at Rikers, and because of the environment in there, my mentality became “eat or get eaten.” My first week there, I got jumped for my food – by grown men. I had to adapt. It was very clear to me that the guys I was in Rikers with grew up like me. They’d seen violence and abuse, and they’d become angry as a result. I was angry. But that’s our system, in a lot of ways: people that are already traumatized before they get to prison end up even more traumatized when they get out. 

I was headed down this road, but then I got a blessing. I was moved to a less violent section of the jail and joined a program called ThreeSixty founded by LaLa Anthony. ThreeSixty prepares men like me to reenter society with a fresh start. I had mentorship, opportunities to tell my story, and maybe most importantly, a vision for what my life could look like after jail – it was a great feeling. That’s also how I met Jessica Jackson, now REFORM’s CEO. She visited and asked me: What did I want to do when I got out? What were my hopes for the future? 

I wasn’t sure, but I knew I wanted to make a difference. When I got out, I got hired at REFORM, and the rest is history. I’ve met young people all around the country who want to make things better.  

How did your Gen Z work get off the ground? 

It started off with a Gen Z dinner at Michael Rubin’s home, co-hosted by Kim Kardashian, back in January 2023.  We got together with some of the most influential Gen Zers in the country, people like Charli and Dixie D’Amelio, CJ Stroud, Bryce Young, Phoebe Gates, Sophia Kianni, and other members of what would become our Future Shapers Advisory Board. I got to share my story. From there we formed the Future Shapers Advisory Council. 

Why is Gen Z especially important for this work?

I believe – no, I know – that Gen Z has the power of accountability. We have more access and tools to communicate than any generation before us. I’ve seen how we hold people accountable when they’re out of line, when something wrong is being done. We create trends. We’ve got command. We use social media to gain traction and get attention.  

Plus, we know that this issue unites my generation. REFORM actually did some polling that found 90% of Gen Z voters think public safety is an important issue. They also see probation and parole reform as key to making us safer and want to see candidates take more leadership on this issue. Gen Zers understand that the current system isn’t helping anybody. It’s not keeping us safe and it’s not helping people get rehabilitated. 

You mentioned public safety. What does public safety mean to you?

To me, it’s about all people – any age, any race, any background – can come outside their house and walk the streets and feel safe. People sometimes act like public safety only matters to certain people, people who look or live a certain way. It matters to everybody. People want to be able to take a train, take a bus, walk to the store, come outside their living area, be on their neighborhood block.  

And at REFORM we help people who really don’t feel safe – people on supervision. We fight for policies so these people don’t have to feel the stigma of invisible chains. Say you did 15 years inside and you’ve got 10 years of probation. You don’t feel secure, because you’re walking through your community worrying about being late to a meeting, getting a technical violation, having to pay restitution – and one slip up could send you right back to prison.

We’ve got to think differently about public safety as a concept. Think about how we’re spending time, energy, and resources on incarceration instead of rehabilitation. Most people in the system will go home someday. But go home to what? 

Tell us about the Gen Z Day of Action. 

In April 2024, REFORM did its first ever Gen Z Day of Action. The idea was that REFORM would have a presence on campuses across the country – raising awareness of our issue and getting more young people involved in our mission. It was awesome. We were on 12 campuses, and we saw a lot of enthusiasm. That’s how we know we could make this year’s Day of Action, which just wrapped this week, an even bigger success.  

Tell us about this year’s Day of Action. 

It was a whole week of events across more than 20 campuses. The movement is growing! 

I kicked off the week at Virginia State University. I’d been there before for a panel discussion, and it was dope to be there again. A lot of students wanted to learn more. Virginia’s a state where we have passed two major probation reform bills, so it’s good to get these young people more aware of not only the challenges of the system, but the awesome power of being able to change it for the better. Our campus ambassador there, Yousif Omer, went with me to a criminal justice class and we got to speak to the students a bit about REFORM. 

The next day I was at Community College of Philadelphia, or CCP. CCP has something called the I Am More program for students who have been directly impacted by the system. 140 students, and they’ve all been incarcerated. I got to meet some of these students – some have ankle monitors, some are in halfway houses. They go to school for free. It was wild to see these people going through hard times in life but still putting in the work, and not letting anything get in the way. 

Rondo speaks to students during the Gen Z Day of Action

Tell us a bit about our campus ambassadors. 

They’re amazing young people.

Yousif is my guy. Met him at the panel discussion. He wants to use his education to help fix the system. He’s so dedicated. I also want to shout out Kaylin Guzman, our ambassador at the University of Miami Law School. She did a tabling event at the school and connected with a lot of fellow students. She just published an op-ed in Her Campus about her experience. If you want to feel inspired, give that a read.

Rondo visits Community College of Philadelphia (CCP), one of more than 20 schools activated for the Gen Z Day of Action

 

Kaylin and Yousif are just two of the ambassadors. There are more. One thing about getting to be REFORM’s Gen Z Organizer is that I get to meet amazing people like this all the time.

What inspires you about the young people you’ve met? 

The leadership. The way they’re taking responsibility. They’re so passionate. So many students came up to me this week, wondering about how to find their voice and their lane. 

And when they see our ambassadors, it’s like, these are their fellow students. So naturally they want to know more. Being able to tie our organization to their school – to link these things in their mind – is a beautiful thing. 

It sounds like the Gen Z work will only grow from here. What can we look forward to? 

We’re going to do more events, for sure. We’re planning reentry simulations, like the one we did at the University of Indianapolis. I’ll be traveling to REFORM legislative states to educate Gen Z folks and Gen Z orgs. For next year’s Day of Action, we’re going to hit 50 schools. And of course, we’re building up our REFORM membership, so that more people can advocate change.

You’re a busy man, Rondo. What keeps you motivated? 

Honestly, coming to work and seeing my coworkers. People have different walks of life and experiences that they offer, but they’re showing up and being that voice. I’m from the Bronx. I grew up a certain way. People saw me the way I was, and they see me now. It gives people hope. I see how it’s motivating to my peers – people who have been through similar things and now want to get their life together.