The New York City Council is slated to vote on an $8 billion plan to close Rikers Island by 2026 and build four new jails across New York City, in what many are calling a national model for prison reform. For decades, human rights activists have protested the violence, abuse and mismanagement inside Rikers Island and have called for its closure. Yet many activists now oppose the plan to replace Rikers with four new jails, arguing that it would be better to invest the plan’s billions of dollars into communities and criminal justice reforms aimed at reducing the number of people incarcerated, such as bail vouchers. The group No New Jails NYC is staging a protest at 10 o’clock this morning outside City Hall to demand city councilmembers reject the land use proposal that will clear the way for the new jails’ construction.