PIC and Abolition
Category: Resources

Y'all know about the Prison Industrial Complex? From Wiki: "The term 'prison–industrial complex', derived from the 'military–industrial complex' of the 1950s, describes the attribution of the rapid expansion of the US inmate population to the political influence of private prison companies and businesses that supply goods and services to government prison agencies for profit." PRISONS IN THE UNITED STATES ARE BIG BUSINESSES. THAT is why the US has about 5% of the world's population but 25% of the world's incarcerated. From CriticalResistance: "The prison industrial complex (PIC) is a term we use to describe the overlapping interests of government and industry that use surveillance, policing, and imprisonment as solutions to economic, social and political problems. Through its reach and impact, the PIC helps and maintains the authority of people who get their power through racial, economic and other privileges. There are many ways this power is collected and maintained through the PIC, including creating mass media images that keep alive stereotypes of people of color, poor people, queer people, immigrants, youth, and other oppressed communities as criminal, delinquent, or deviant. This power is also maintained by earning huge profits for private companies that deal with prisons and police forces; helping earn political gains for “tough on crime” politicians; increasing the influence of prison guard and police unions; and eliminating social and political dissent by oppressed communities that make demands for self-determination and reorganization of power in the US." i'm going to link a few collective's and orgs that focus on police and prison abolition below. . https://criticalresistance.org/ • "seeks to build an international movement to end the PIC" https://statesofincarceration.org/ • "We explore the roots of mass incarceration in our own communities—to open national dialogue on what should happen next." . https://www.abocomix.com/ • "collective of creators and activists who work to amplify the voices of LGBTQ prisoners through art" • (i've talked to the founder and bought from them. wonderful people) https://www.blackandpink.org/ • "dedicated to dismantling the criminal punishment system and the harms caused to LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV/AIDS who are affected by the system through advocacy, support, and organizing" ADDITIONAL READING: "Are Prisons Obsolete?" by Angela Davis (PDF) • https://www.feministes-radicales.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Angela-Davis-Are_Prisons_Obsolete.pdf ABOLISH POLICE. ABOLISH PRISONS.