Abolitionism Flashcards
1st Core Idea of Abolitionism:
State-Based Punishment vs. Community-Centred Solutions
Move away from state-imposed punishments (prisons, police,courts) and focus on community-based approaches to justice and social welfare.
2nd Core Idea of Abolitionism:
Outrage and Sympathy
Evoke both outrage and sympathy particularly for enslaved (prisoners, historically) and victims of systemic injustices (forced labor,human trafficking). to shift public consciousness about harm and justice.
3rd Core Idea of Abolitionism:
Human Trafficking Awareness
Modern focus of abolitionism includes raising awareness for human trafficking victims, it critiques the sties handling of victims, particularly in context of criminalizing victims rather than addressing the structures enabling trafficking .
4th Core Idea of Abolitionism:
Legal Exploitative Labor
Work to end forms of legal labor exploitation, such as forced labor. sweat shop conditions and modern day slavery (prisons). it’s argued that labor laws enable systemic abuse rather than protecting workers rights.
5th Core Idea of Abolitionism:
Least coercion, Maximum Care
Advocate for minimizing coercive actions, such as arrests or imprisonment, and promoting the greatest possible amount of care and social services for individuals. The aim is to support community heath and well-being.
Origins of Modern Prisons 1:
Rise of Industrial Capitalism
Modern prisons are tied to Industrial capitalism. a disciplined workforce was needed to meet the demands of factory labor, leading to prisons as a form of controlling workers.
Origins of Modern Prisons 2:
Urbanizing And Social Control
Growing urban populations and the emergence of poverty created the need for new form of social control. Prisons were seen as a solution to manage poor, criminalized populations.
Origins of Modern Prisons 3rd:
Enlightenment Ideas about Reform and Rehabilitation.
Enlightenment-era reforms that emphasized reason, morality, and rehabilitation contributed to the idea that prisons could reform individuals. And reintegrate them into society .
Origins of Modern Prisons 4th:
Prisons and Schools as Similar Institutions
Some scholars note the similarities between prisons and school-both systems are designed to install discipline, conformity, and obedience, often using surveillance and regulation of the body to reach these goals.
Historicizing Prisons 1:
Indigenous as Ongoing Colonial Process
the prisons system, particularly in settler colonial states like Canada and the U.S, is not a legacy of colonialism but an ongoing colonial process. it continues to control and oppress indigenous populations, particularly after residential schools receded.
Historicizing Prisons 2:
prison as a New Form of Indigenous Control
With a decline of overt colonial policies, prisons emerged as a new tool to control indigenous populations, who were disapproperatly incarcerated. the logic of reform (civilizing) is embedded in the foundation of the prison system.
Historicizing Prisons 3:
Forced Labor and Discipline
Prisons historically utilized forced labor as a method of discipline. indigenous people were subjected to prison labor as a form of economic exploitation and physical punishment, continuing colonial patterns of control.
The Case for Abolitionism 1:
Obama Administration’s Rethinking of the System
There was significant discourse on rethinking the criminal justice system, including reform efforts around prison populations, mass incarceration, and racial bias. Abolitionists these reforms do not go far enough and may only serve to reenforce the system.
The Case for Abolitionism 2:
Stand Your ground Laws and Racial Bias
Reevaluating laws like “stand your ground”, which they argue perpetuate racial biases in the justice system, disproportionately affecting marginlized communities, especially black Americans.
The Case for Abolitionism 3:
Reform vs. Abolition
It is argues that prison reforms -such as increasing funding or improving conditions- only serve to enrich the prison system. instead, they argue that for broader social reforms to prevent people, especially the marginalized and poor from being put into the system in the first place.
