Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #AbolitionNOW
Most recents (21)
According to reporting by AP, 17-year-old Pieper Lewis was charged with first-degree murder after she stabbed and killed her 37-year-old accused rapist, Zachary Brooks. Lewis was 15 years old at the time of the June 2020 killing.
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Lewis was able to plea to involuntary manslaughter and willful injury last year, and despite the fact that those charges were each punishable by up to 10 years in prison, she won’t be serving any jail time so long as she doesn’t violate the terms of her probation.
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Last week, she was sentenced to five years of closely supervised probation and ordered to pay $150,000 restitution to the family of her rapist.
Now, a GoFundMe account created to raise money for Lewis is skyrocketing. She has currently raised over $500,000.
Now, a GoFundMe account created to raise money for Lewis is skyrocketing. She has currently raised over $500,000.
On this day six years ago, 40-year-old #TerenceCrutcher was murdered in broad daylight by white Tulsa, OK police officer Betty Shelby. Following the murder, Shelby repeatedly described Crutcher as "zombie-like,"...
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a common rhetorical strategy to monsterize Black men as not-fully-human and therefore devalue their lives. Eight months after she killed Crutcher, Shelby was found "not guilty" of first-degree manslaughter.
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Shelby went on to become a "gun instructor" for the NRA while Crutcher's family is left to mourn their loss. #AbolitionToday #AbolitionTomorrow #AbolitionNow
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Citation: nbcnews.com/news/us-news/o…
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Citation: nbcnews.com/news/us-news/o…
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Amidst COVID-19 related staffing shortages, police departments around the country have begun to relax some of their hiring standards to boost recruitment.
According to reporting by CNN, "after Chicago Police announced two weeks ago that the department would...
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According to reporting by CNN, "after Chicago Police announced two weeks ago that the department would...
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waive a college credit requirement for some recruits, 400 candidates applied that same day and the department has had continued spikes of applicants since then."
Higher standards, lower standards, or different standards—nothing will change the fact that...
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Higher standards, lower standards, or different standards—nothing will change the fact that...
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policing at its core is irreparably violent and anti-Black. Changes to recruitment protocol and practice will not alter this truth.
In fact, conversations over "standards" often serve as a diversion and pivot from the powerful work
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In fact, conversations over "standards" often serve as a diversion and pivot from the powerful work
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Our statement on the appalling case of #ChildQ. We extend our full sympathy and solidarity to Child Q and her family at what must be a traumatising, exhausting and distressing time.
We especially thank Child Q for her courage in coming forward with her story, which must have been unimaginably difficult. We condemn in the strongest possible terms not just the individual actions of police officers involved, but the institutional frameworks built to hide them..
…the teachers who stood by in silence, and the carceral logic that facilitates a culture of violence, of surveillance, and of shattering dehumanization.
Earlier today, a jury acquitted Brett Hankison of all three counts of felony wanton endangerment in the March 2020 raid that killed Breonna Taylor.
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According to reporting in CNN, "prosecutors called 26 witnesses over five days as they argued that Hankison shot blindly into a window from outside the apartment...
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His gunfire went through Taylor's apartment and endangered a man, a pregnant woman, and her 5-year-old son who lived next door."
We wish we could say we're surprised by this verdict, but we're not. That's why we call for #AbolitionNow. The current system can't be reformed.
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We wish we could say we're surprised by this verdict, but we're not. That's why we call for #AbolitionNow. The current system can't be reformed.
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Today is my brother's 20th birthday; he's spending it behind bars. He's been incarcerated for over a month - exiled from loved ones, support systems, medication - after violating his strict probation & is waiting for his next hearing. The system has got to go. #AbolitionNow [1/6]
Accountability shouldn't mean that a 20-year old (or anyone for that matter) should be thrown away and disappeared from society. My brother needs and deserves ongoing support and treatment, neither of which he is receiving while incarcerated. This is not ok. [2/6]
To make matters worse, it's EXPENSIVE to speak w/ loved ones who are incarcerated. Just 2 text msgs & one 15-min phone call a day would cost me almost $200/month. And that would be just for me... What if my brother also wants to talk to my parents & 2 other brothers? [3/6]
We are now hearing a recording from incarcerated torture survivor, Stanley Howard, who was tortured by Jon Burge and has been incarcerated for over 37years.
Stanley was a part of the Death Row Ten and was exonerated but yet remains behind bars.
#FreeStanley #FreeThemAll
Stanley was a part of the Death Row Ten and was exonerated but yet remains behind bars.
#FreeStanley #FreeThemAll
Let’s get this right, those protesting #PHXPD for being the deadliest police force in the US are being charged as gang members, but PHXPD uses Nazi emblems, and brags about retaliating against protesters with impunity WHILE using the MAGA slogan... but it’s not political? GTFOH!!
Of the 7 criteria that indicate street gang membership, PHXPD qualifies 4/7. That's half of the criteria.
If Neo-Nazi groups are street gangs, prison gangs, and organized crime syndicates, and PHXPD officers are issuing Neo-Nazi coins, then police and white supremacy are two--
If Neo-Nazi groups are street gangs, prison gangs, and organized crime syndicates, and PHXPD officers are issuing Neo-Nazi coins, then police and white supremacy are two--
sides of the same antiBlack (challenge) coin.
how can MCAO try peaceful protesters as a street gang, while NEO NAZIS spread paraphernalia amongst their ranks?
THIS TERRORIZES those who the PHXPD claim to protect and serve! This is an egregious assault to OUR people!
how can MCAO try peaceful protesters as a street gang, while NEO NAZIS spread paraphernalia amongst their ranks?
THIS TERRORIZES those who the PHXPD claim to protect and serve! This is an egregious assault to OUR people!
Support USPS x Incarcerated Youth!
We are asking for donations of sheets of stamps so that we can give stamps to young people incarcerated across Illinois so they can write letters!
We are asking for donations of sheets of stamps so that we can give stamps to young people incarcerated across Illinois so they can write letters!
While incarcerated young people use USPS frequently, they have to use their own money to mail letters. And with COVID restricting in-person visits, communication with friends and family is more essential than ever.
Stamp donations can be mailed to our offices:
Liberation Library
c/o In These Times
2040 N Milwaukee Ave
Chicago IL 60625
Liberation Library
c/o In These Times
2040 N Milwaukee Ave
Chicago IL 60625
#OnThisDay at 08:15 in 1945, an atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. Today we remember the lives lost and vow to double down on our campaign for a nuclear free world.
Join the Peace Wave using the hashtag #Hiroshima75 and tell the world never again.
cnduk.org/peacewave/
Join the Peace Wave using the hashtag #Hiroshima75 and tell the world never again.
cnduk.org/peacewave/
Emma Collinson remembers #Hiroshima75
NEW: #8ToAbolition - We talk to @theAfroLegalise, @rachelkuo, @EliToYou, @SultanReina and @micahherskind about the new abolitionist platform that they created along with their comrades in response to the police preservationist platform #8CantWait. …nnialsarekillingcapitalism.libsyn.com/8toabolition-f…
We talk to these creators about developing an abolitionist response to a reformist platform. How abolitionists understand the trajectories of "reform" vs "non-reformist reform," & how #8ToAbolition might be useful for organizers in their specific cities …nnialsarekillingcapitalism.libsyn.com/8toabolition-f…
#8ToAbolition's @theAfroLegalise also shares how years of struggle within the @Mvmnt4BlkLives on abolition, helped bring about this moment where people are looking to abolitionist solutions to the deep rooted issue of state violence against Black people …nnialsarekillingcapitalism.libsyn.com/8toabolition-f…
curious to see how anti-trafficking organizations who say #BlackLivesMatter are going to handle the demands by Black folks for abolition [that Black sex workers have been asking for through organizing around the decriminalization of sex work for years]. #DecrimNow
Black sex workers and survivors have been saying that increased policing harms us and our communities, and anti-trafficking organizations, including the ones who *say they care* about Black lives, ignored us. but there's no way around it—the people want #AbolitionNow! #DecrimNow
We've given the data + talking points over and over again and there's not really a way around it at this point. Either you're with Black folks' demands for #abolition + the decriminalization of the ways we survive, or you're not. Policing/jails inflict sexual and gender violence-
Welcome to the S&P 30 Days Challenge #TowardAbolition! Take 2 actions every day until July 4 in solidarity with communities everywhere resisting fascism, state violence, gender-based violence and racial capitalism! Use #TowardAbolition to let us know you're participating.
DAY 1 Action 1 #TowardAbolition
Support @supporthosechi #FreeLeLe campaign! In honor of #PRIDE and #IWD2020, let’s get #AlishaWalker free. "LeLe" is a Black sex worker who was criminalized for self-defense against sexual violence.
Toolkit w/ directions: bit.ly/AlishaAdvocate
Support @supporthosechi #FreeLeLe campaign! In honor of #PRIDE and #IWD2020, let’s get #AlishaWalker free. "LeLe" is a Black sex worker who was criminalized for self-defense against sexual violence.
Toolkit w/ directions: bit.ly/AlishaAdvocate
Like many, Alisha Walker is being punished, criminalized for surviving. There are countless others just like her.
Use: bit.ly/AlishaAdvocate for numbers, sample tweets, scripts & call/email/fax/bombard @GovPritzker to demand he #FreeLeLe #FreeThemAll!
#TowardAbolition
Use: bit.ly/AlishaAdvocate for numbers, sample tweets, scripts & call/email/fax/bombard @GovPritzker to demand he #FreeLeLe #FreeThemAll!
#TowardAbolition
This is a picture of my grandfather from his time in the army.
Days like #MemorialDay are fraught for me as an abolitionist from a police and military family. #DemilitarizeNow #AbolitionNow
Days like #MemorialDay are fraught for me as an abolitionist from a police and military family. #DemilitarizeNow #AbolitionNow
It's hard to honor the sacrifices (I do believe military service is a sacrifice, just not in the ways that are touted/glorified) of poor, working Black ppl in my family/community, while being clear they have suffered for those sacrifices, as have many around them. #MemorialDay
The "sacrifice" of the service people in my life has been of their mental/physical/emotional health. The result has been generations of trauma for themselves and their loved ones. #MemorialDay #DemilitarizeNow #AbolitionNow
Thread: What are some positive, abolitionist reforms that have passed rapidly under #COVID19 that seemed impossible only weeks ago? Canceling standardized testing? Free housing? Childcare?
Extra points if you can provide an article/source!
Go:
Extra points if you can provide an article/source!
Go:
Here's some of what we've collected so far:
(Limited) rent relief providing by the city of Chicago #COVID19 #HousingNow #AbolitionNow blockclubchicago.org/2020/03/27/200…
(Limited) rent relief providing by the city of Chicago #COVID19 #HousingNow #AbolitionNow blockclubchicago.org/2020/03/27/200…
Grocery store workers in Minnesota declared emergency workers, granted free childcare #COVID19 #ChildcareNow #AbolitionNow usnews.com/news/best-stat…
This is exactly what abolitionists mean when we say breaking our reliance on police/prisons is a public health and environmental issue. When 40% of local/federal budgets go to police/military, those are the only resources available in moments of crisis #Covid19 #AbolitionNow
This is how we get martial law instead of testing, lockdown instead of healthcare. Free access to housing, education, basic income, healthcare--all things we are currently scrambling to provide--are what protect against catastrophe, not police and prisons #Covid19 #AbolitionNow
Case in point, our mayor's solution to the #Covid19 crisis is to punish those with symptoms who are not obeying quarantine with a fine, "...even though it’s not known precisely how they will be identified." #AbolitionNow #StopLightfoot chicago.suntimes.com/2020/3/19/2118…
We need to be watching this and decrying it at every turn.
This is the vision of the world abolitionists have warned us about: slashing supports that grow and heal our communities, replacing them with policing and prisons.
#AbolitionNow #AbolishPrisons
msn.com/en-us/money/ma…
This is the vision of the world abolitionists have warned us about: slashing supports that grow and heal our communities, replacing them with policing and prisons.
#AbolitionNow #AbolishPrisons
msn.com/en-us/money/ma…
This is expensive for our families and neighborhoods, but beneficial for the elites who are hoarding resources in such a way that leads to problems like houselessness.
#AbolitionNow #AbolishPrisons
#AbolitionNow #AbolishPrisons
And the initial attack on the poor--like the initial attack on the Muslim, the undocumented, and so on--will always result in the heightened policing, incarceration, and militarization of all our communities if we don't nip it in the bud.
#AbolitionNow #AbolishPrisons
#AbolitionNow #AbolishPrisons
A little labor/class history as CPD arrests members of the #ChicagoTeachersUnion for demanding better working conditions for themselves, and better learning conditions for their poor/working class students:
#CTUSEIUStrike #FairContractNow #AbolitionNow inthesetimes.com/working/entry/…
#CTUSEIUStrike #FairContractNow #AbolitionNow inthesetimes.com/working/entry/…
As the #LoriLightfoot transition begins, namely with "flooding the zone" where a recent murder was committed by CPD with hundreds more cops, I want us to be vigilant against our own anti-Blackness as we call out the bullshit. #StopLightfoot
Folks like Lightfoot and Eddie Johnson are hellbent on privatizing, displacing, and militarizing our communities, and their harmful actions need to be vocally rejected at every turn--by every community and organization possible. #StopLightfoot
That being said, it's easy for the memes, taunts, and hashtags to slip into old racist and homophobic tropes, especially when being put forward by non-Black and non-queer ppl. #StopLightfoot
The notion that "ignorance" is what fuels state-sanctioned violence is a dangerous misnomer. It encourages oppressed communities to "work with" law enforcement, rather than understanding law enforcement as the root of the violence itself. #AbolitionNow out.com/news/2019/5/08…
This narrative upholds the notion that individuals are the source of transphobic, racist, and sexist violence, ignoring the systems--like police and prisons--that empower and encourage individuals to commit that violence. #AbolitionNow
A close trans friend of mine used to lead trans competency trainings for police departments. She stopped doing it when she realized police were using the trainings to better target trans ppl, not protect them. #AbolitionNow
Ald. Moore's campaign used @sarahdashji's photo for their campaign materials WITHOUT permission. This is particularly heinous because the image is from a rally for police accountability--an area on which the alderman has an awful record! #NoMoreJoeMoore!
While Moore was an early supporter of the reparations ordinance for survivors of police torture, he has increased measures for policing and criminalization in his own ward, like the recent "smart policing" effort her heralded #NoMoreJoeMoore
He's also consistently backed the mayor's efforts to increase policing while gutting public ed. and social services. A real supporter of grassroots struggles would have voted against the new cop academy, which Moore never has #NoCopAcademy #NoMoreJoeMoore
