Tim Kaine in Reuters

On Crime: Kaine's Project Exile disproportionately impacted blacks

On Crime: Kaine's Project Exile disproportionately impacted blacks

The now-defunct Project Exile that Kaine backed was championed by Republicans and Democrats alike and by both gun lobby groups & gun-control advocates. But the program was also criticized at the time as a racially biased initiative that condemned young black men to lengthy prison terms. Officials during Kaine's mayoral tenure believe the community, ravaged by the crack-cocaine epidemic, had to take dramatic steps. As Richmond's first white mayor in more than a decade, Kaine was widely credited for helping to bridge racial divisions in the city, but Project Exile drew fire that the program unfairly targeted African-Americans.