Colin Kaepernick calls for abolishing the police and prison institutions as part of a new series of essays.
What We Know:
- According to the website, the series, called “Abolition for the People: The Movement for a Future Without Policing & Prisons”, is an alliance between Kaepernick Publishing and the Medium publication Level that develops on a rich culture of Black organizing and freedom-fighting.
- The essays will concentrate on various topics, including police and policing prisons, carceral, and police abolition rather than reform. The former NFL quarterback described what each classification means and what it will consist of in the series.
Thread/
ABOLITION FOR THE PEOPLE: The Movement For a Future Without Policing & Prisons
The collection of 30 essays will be posted below over the course of the next 4 weeks. #AbolitionForThePeople https://t.co/jccRsxqLhT
— Colin Kaepernick (@Kaepernick7) October 6, 2020
- Kaepernick stated in the debut essay:
“Over the next four weeks, we will publish 30 essays from political prisoners, grassroots organizers, movement leaders, scholars, and family members of those affected by anti-Black state violence and terrorism.’’
- Kaepernick explained that he wants to substitute institutions like police and prisons with “transformative and vital processes that are not rooted in disciplinary practices”.
“By abolishing policing and prisons, not only can we eliminate white supremacist establishments, but we can create space for budgets to be reinvested directly into communities to address mental health needs, homelessness and houselessness, access to education, and job creation as well as community-based methods of accountability.”
- He also claimed prison reforms such as new jail construction to discuss crowding, dehumanizing living situations, and technological monitoring wouldn’t “eliminate the harm of the carceral state”.
- Kaepernick also stated the call for the abolishment of police is due to Breonna Taylor’s case where recently the grand jury decided not to indict any police officers in her tragic death.
Kaepernick expressed enthusiasm at the possibility of dismantling policing and prisons while making way for investments in other vehicles for people’s well-being. He also tore the NFL’s social justice initiatives as “publicity”.
