MASS LIBERATION SCHOOL: WEEK 1 What is the Prison Industrial Complex?

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Facilitator: Kempis “Ghani” Songster, Amistad Law Project and Youth Art Self-Empowerment Project (YASP)

“Prisons do not disappear social problems, they disappear human beings. Homelessness, unemployment, drug addiction, mental illness, and illiteracy are only a few of the problems that disappear from public view when the human beings contending with them are relegated to cages.” - Angela Davis

Yesterday, we began our 9 week series: the Mass Liberation School! Through this series, we aim to build a deeper understanding within our communities around the Prison Industrial Complex (PIC), transformative justice, community accountability, and other abolitionist frameworks. 

The series is limited to 30 participants, but we know that many of you want to learn more about these concepts. Every Wednesday throughout this series, we will be offering an overview of what we’re learning “in class”. 

Last night’s class featured a deep dive into the history and impacts of the Prison Industrial Complex (PIC). Beyond the cops, courts, prisons, and jails, what other institutions are part of the PIC? What is our relationship to those institutions? How have they shaped and impacted our lives? These are some of the questions we will unpack together. For those wanting to explore these questions here are some helpful resources for you to engage with:

Political EducationMass Liberation Task Force