Poor and marginalized people are the most targeted by legislation around things like homelessness and theft. On the African continent alone, at least 42 countries have laws, often dating back to colonial rule, on ‘petty offences’ such as loitering or being a ‘vagabond’.1 In England and Wales, a recent survey found that a quarter of the prison population were homeless before entering state custody and over two-thirds were unemployed.2
Poverty, inequality and exposure to violence are among the major contributing factors to criminal and harmful behaviour. So why not focus resources on meeting people’s needs for safety and decent food, housing, education and healthcare? Abolition is about building a society where prisons and the police are obsolete because we have developed new ways to stop harm and violence happening in the first place.
