Read on Twitter
In 2020, many new people developed a new (or deeper) awareness of the horror of prisons+policing.
You know some of them.
Share this invitation to act from @prisonculture—in the form of 9 commitments for 2021—with them. I plan to take up at least 1 myself https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ByMHRNbsntdyziubfPJq7vDzxiBFEqroxzCUgKsxp9E/edit
You know some of them.
Share this invitation to act from @prisonculture—in the form of 9 commitments for 2021—with them. I plan to take up at least 1 myself https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ByMHRNbsntdyziubfPJq7vDzxiBFEqroxzCUgKsxp9E/edit
What I've found, personally, is that when I just start doing stuff, one thing has led to another.
So if you're interested in participating in work to free people + keep them free, starting is more important than looking for the perfect thing.
So if you're interested in participating in work to free people + keep them free, starting is more important than looking for the perfect thing.
Also, the perfect thing doesn't exist.
But you won't be able to figure out what feels more or less right for you unless + until you start doing stuff.
But you won't be able to figure out what feels more or less right for you unless + until you start doing stuff.
I have spoken to several people recently who feel paralyzed by cross-talk criticizing various organizing efforts. They feel afraid to jump into the "wrong" thing.
Two thoughts about that. 1-For other people who are organizing—and this is a self-reflection 1st & foremost—I think
Two thoughts about that. 1-For other people who are organizing—and this is a self-reflection 1st & foremost—I think
that's cause to consider what we're saying and in what forum. Disagreement, critique, etc., are all important, but there are productive and unproductive forms.
2-For people who are witnessing that conversation but feel outside of it, speaking from my own experience...
2-For people who are witnessing that conversation but feel outside of it, speaking from my own experience...
I've personally grown & learned a lot from participating in organizing work, even when I found that I ultimately wasn't politically aligned with it, and when I got to that realization, I shifted my involvement. I think everyone who does organizing work has that experience.
It's important to have relationships with people who you trust who can help hold you down, and to be in community with others—especially if like me you're a white US citizen doing organizing work pertaining to the carceral state within the US.
But the most important thing is to start. You will never get to clarity or ethical positions without starting + sticking with some work in community with others. Or if you do, it will be because you're ignoring or pretending away important aspects of the real world.
Anyway, here are some ideas about how to start. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ByMHRNbsntdyziubfPJq7vDzxiBFEqroxzCUgKsxp9E/edit
