Thread by @survivepunish

Welcome new followers! #SurvivedandPunished is a prison abolition organization. We believe that prisons, detention centers, all forms of law enforcement, and punitive prosecution are rooted in systems of violence, including racial, anti-trans/queer, sexual & domestic violence. 1/

Our work focuses on criminalized survivors and the integrated relationship between systems of punishment + the pervasiveness of gender violence. We aim to #FreeAllSurvivors via mass defense projects, which would require the abolition of prisons and other systems of punishment. 2/

Our collective est. 2016 when freedom campaigns for 2 BIPOC criminalized survivors, @freemarissanow and @standwithnanhui joined hands, along w/ the Chicago Alliance to #FreeMarissaAlexander (now @LoveProtectOrg) and @c_c_w_p to come up w/ a national strategy to #FreeThemAll. 3/

Here @abierria of @freemarissanow + @hyejinhere of @standwithnanhui, who would later become S&P co-founders, discuss their respective campaigns in convo w/ Mimi Kim & Emi Kane of @incitenews, a feminist abolitionist org who we're deeply indebted to: thefeministwire.com/2015/06/free-m… 4/

Check out this brochure from Communities Against Rape and Abuse "Making Connections: The Anti-Violence Movement Actively Resisting The Prison Industrial Complex" -- feminist abolitionists paved the way for #SurvivedandPunished

incite-national.org/wp-content/upl… 5/

DV + criminalization are severe risks to survivors' lives, esp Black women. For many survivors, the criminal ­legal system punishes survivors, separates children from their caregivers & worsens the impacts of DV.

#Abolition is a prerequisite to end gender-based violence. 6/

We use strategies — such as mutual aid, legis. advocacy, direct action, workshops, research, etc — that highlight indiv stories to clarify the specific harms of criminalization, catalyze collective learning, build relationships, and expand the call for everyone’s freedom. 7/

We now have 3 affilliates, S&P CA, @survivepunishNY & @LoveProtectOrg. These regional groups organize autonomously, but stay connected. In addition to the local groups, S&P has national leadership that helps set political direction and coordinate national strategy. 8/

#SurvivedandPunished is in solidarity w/ everyone taking action in the streets+offline to defend and protect Black lives and echo calls to #DefundMPD + #DefundPolice. We demand this knowing the larger goal is to #AbolishPolice #AbolishPrisons #AbolishICE + #AbolishCapitalism. 9/

We need everyone in this movement! To help mobilize our followers to take concrete actions, we're launching a 30 Day Challenge #TowardAbolition on Twitter. Follow the hashtag for 2 action steps to take every day until Jul 4 to help bring all of us closer #TowardAbolition. FIN.