Abolition: Theory, Practice & Movement

This seminar will explore the theory and practice-the praxis-of the current movement to abolish police, prisons, and the carceral state more broadly. We will learn about abolition as a set of on-the-ground strategies and practices that groups are engaging in today in efforts to promote community safety. We will engage with theories of abolition that include abolition democracy, Black feminist thought, and racial capitalism. We will consider critiques of these practices and theories as well. Throughout the semester, we will pay special attention to the role of the lawyer in working within or alongside abolitionist social movements. This course should appeal to students interested in learning about criminal system reform, law and social change, and/or movement lawyering, whether or not they are familiar with abolition. In preparation for each session, we will read works by scholars and thinkers about the history, reform, and abolition of the carceral state, including police, prisons, criminal courts, and related systems like immigration detention and family policing. Assigned materials will also include podcasts, videos, and zines that examine the ongoing work of groups pushing for change on the ground. Occasional in-class speakers will augment our study through real-life accounts of abolitionist organizing and movement lawyering today. Students will have the option of completing either a research-based paper in satisfaction of the UCWR or, in the alternative, a series of three shorter reflection papers. Grades will be based 50% on class participation, including short reading reflections, in-class discussions, and one week spent as a discussion leader; and 50% on the written paper(s).