Welcome to Litsy!

Tired, by Langston Hughes

It has been a hard week in the US, for those of us who believe the Death Penalty should be abolished. 5 state executions in 7 days.
I am sad, I am tired.

If you have not read the tagged by Angela Davis or The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander I really encourage you to even if you do not live in the states.

Calamity Cat is all about prison abolition.

Learning, growing.

A dense but tiny read. I am not sure what I was expecting but there is a lot of history of prisons and their creation. I have been flirting with prison abolition the last few years and this was very informative even if I knew some of the information before hand (I took many criminal psychology classes in college which took on things like the penopticon)
It was interesting and unexpected to read about Dickens being anti prison.

Davis packs a lot into just 115 pages. An overview of the history of the prison system in the U.S, evidence and discussion of the way incarcerated people are routinely abused, the resources and rights that have been systematically taken away from them, and the way private companies have taken over and use them as free labor. She notes old punishments that we wouldn't think of doing today (e.g., a "gossip's bridle"). Someone had to fight..⬇️

As John Krieg says in this eye opening piece: “The motto, “To protect and serve,” is disingenuous at best and untrue at worst when the people they always strive to protect and serve the most are themselves.”

http://www.athinsliceofanxiety.com/2021/03/americas-superior-society-police.html...

Yeah!! I finally read this little book thanks to #bookspinbingo! @TheAromaofBooks this was my December #Doublespin. This is just 4 interviews with her, it's really kind of a companion to her book Are Prisons Obsolete. I would recommend reading that or her book women race and class first.

🤩🤩🤩🤩

This review will continue in comments! Litsy just doesn't give me enough room to voice my opinions! Wow every American should read this book. It starts with a detailed history of how police departments started; methods borrowed by the British, how it operated in the colonies, how it developed into slave catching and revolt stifling, and slowly shifted into what we know it to be today. It documents history repeating itself.

Though individually they receive just a meager portion of capitalism's benefits, the police represent both the interests and the power of the ruling class. Like managers, police control those who do the work and they actively maintain the conditions that allow for profitable exploitation. The police thus occupy a dual position as workers and overseers.

Angela Davis is quickly becoming one of my favorite writers, she's clear, concise, and engaging. She convincingly lays her argument out, I do wish there was more exploration of alternatives here however.