It can be hard to fathom how we get from the world we are in now to an abolitionist future. But abolition is not simply an abstract vision: it is about what we build in the here and now to make that future possible. It is an ongoing and everyday practice, a political philosophy and a way of life.
One of the reasons we continue to rely on prisons and the police is that, when faced with violence or a crisis situation, it can be hard to know where to turn instead – our default response is often to fall back on the criminal justice system. For this reason, abolitionist work is not just about building alternative strategies for reducing and responding to harm – it is also about shifting the broader mindset that presumes we must rely on violent authorities and threats of punishment to deal with social problems.
