PinnedComing to Terms with Abolition as a SurvivorLife is honestly so much more complex than we like to make it sound. For some reason, either/or ideology dominates even the most brilliant minds, and the fact is, we often live in both/and worlds. This is especially true in activism. Cw: homicide, sexual violence, domestic and intimate partner violence…Criminal Justice18 min read
Apr 30Death Behind the WallsI am writing this as part of research on behalf of a grassroots organization I am a core member of: Restorative Justice Coalition. This research originally came to light in 2018, when our former outreach coordinator, the now dearly departed Syd Eastman, proposed an idea that we should investigate deaths…Abolition9 min read
Mar 18Restorative Justice NetworkFor the purpose of this writing, I will use the term restorative justice. If you need to replace it with transformative justice, community accountability, or call it banana pudding, you can do so. At the end of the day, it’s about doing the work. I have a vision that feels…Restorative Justice8 min read
Jan 22Active Abolition: Birthday PartyThe purpose of this series is to write out possible situations, communications or events that deviate from the norms in our society and are more centered on abolition. The intent of these short stories is not to perfectly convey abolition, nor to write perfect stories. Abolition and perfection do not…Abolition13 min read
Oct 27, 2021Gender Has Been Complicated for MeCw: discussion of sex/gender, cisheterosexism, etc. I should first note that this is not a scholarly piece. I’m not a scholar and I really don’t like most queer scholars I read because, well, I won’t go into it. What I’m describing is solely my experience and I write for my…Gender13 min read
Sep 4, 2021Enough Inclusion, Liberation is the GoalMy politics have been molded by my experiences. I’m a cisgender, effeminate white gay man in the U.S. South. I grew up poor. I grew up in a home with domestic violence and with addiction. I grew up in fear. I was wholly ignorant to many of the privileges I…Gay10 min read
Aug 28, 2021How Racism and Xenophobia Turned America DryCONTENT WARNING: Discussion of racial, immigrant and gendered violence, slurs and epithets, outdated language, addiction, violence When you think of Prohibition, the most common stories told today revolve around women and suffrage. Women who were subjected to the brutality of the working-class man, who stopped by a rowdy saloon before…Prohibition7 min read
Aug 27, 2021I Crashed My Car & All I Can Think about is Restorative JusticeI was 17 years old the first time I had a car crash. I had only been driving about a year and a half and I had a 1996 Mazda Protege that had been my stepmothers, then my older brothers, and finally mine! At 17, having a car brings you…Abolition10 min read
Apr 12, 2021From Fasci Siciliani to Little Italies: Assimilation Was Never the Goal“For years the old Italians have been dying all over America. For years the old Italians in faded felt hats have been sunning themselves and dying . . . The old anarchists reading UUmanita Nuova The ones who loved Sacco & Vanzetti They are almost all gone now . …Sicilian4 min read
Apr 3, 2021The Majestic of Ybor City: The Cuban RevolutionA City within a City that has all the glory of liberation, abolition, and connection. Tampa, Florida recently gained prominence in the media for our Superbowl win (and lack of care in COVID protections) but we have so much more to offer than Superbowl championships. We have revolution and liberation…Mutual Aid6 min read
