Revolving Doors Agency mourns campaigner and member Jahmaine Davis
We are deeply saddened at the loss of our much loved and respected member, Jahmaine Davis. As well as his invaluable contributions at Revolving Doors, he had a profound impact on other lived experience members and our staff as a colleague and friend.
Since joining Revolving Doors, Jahmaine worked tirelessly to reform the criminal justice system. He was particularly concerned with the clinical and outdated language used within the system and campaigned for a more humane approach. This was reflected in his work with the Probation Institute where he contributed to their guidance around using more appropriate language: “Language needs to be kept as neutral and respectful as possible, otherwise it can make people feel not worthy and lead to reoffending”. He also campaigned through his StopTheBloodShed campaign to raise awareness of the need to tackle the root causes that can lead to knife violence.
Recently, Jahmaine was featured in our podcast series, The Knot, which looked at the relationships between poverty, trauma and multiple disadvantage. He gave a powerful testimony about his experience in the care system, the criminal justice system and the pressures of living in poverty. His contribution has given us all valuable insight as to how we can better respond to these complex issues.
Jahmaine was also an integral representative on the NHS’s Inclusive Workforce Programme. He helped highlight the importance of lived experience involvement and advocated for better practice around how the NHS involves people with lived experience.
Jahmaine always spoke passionately about reclaiming his identity from the institutions, including the criminal justice system, that left him feeling nameless and stigmatised. He achieved this through his musical talent, writing and recording several music videos which you can view here. They touch on the challenges he overcame and his determination to not be held back by negative stereotypes. We are grateful that his passion, drive and talent will forever be captured through his music.
Pavan Dhaliwal, CEO of RDA: “Jahmaine was a tireless advocate for reform of the criminal justice system. He endured great challenges in his life but despite this, Jahmine worked to reform both himself and the system, never wavering in his determination to change policies and practice. He leaves behind an admirable legacy of campaigning, which we are determined to continue in his honour. His death is a loss to us all, and our thoughts are with his friends and family.”
If you need support, please reach out to Revolving Doors or one of the following services:
Survivors of Bereavement By Suicide
CALM – Campaign Against Living Miserably
CALM does a lot of work helping those who are feeling low themselves and has information about support for those grieving from suicide.
