I eyond the rison Industrial o piex September25 - 27, 1998 Universityof California,Berkeley © Rupert Garcia, 1992/98 Welcometo CriticalResistaree: the PrismIndustrial X.We thank you for being a part of this impressive group of individuals and organizations who work in many arenas against prison expansion, not only within the U.S., but in other coun­ tries as weli. As members of the Critical Resistance Organizing_Committee, we have con­ vened this conference and strategy session in honor of generations of anti-prison activists current and former prisoners, advocates, scholars and cultural workers. This conference and campaign are a testament to our political ancestors, and to their undaunted commit­ ment to social justice. 1 When the Critical Resistance Organizing Committee first came together over a year ago, our goal - which we thought of as ambitious - was to organize a large conference of 500 people, bringing together those who had devoted many years of their lives to anti-prison activism with those who had never previously considered the deep connection of prison issues to their work in other progressive arenas. In the course of our work, we discovered how much we had underestimated the interest in such a conference and campaign. We are now expecting more than twice as many participants. We welcome all of you to Critical Resistance and especially invite you to participate in the exciting process of launching a large-scale campaign to combat the prison industrial complex. Rather than attempt to address all prison-related issues, we decided to focus our efforts on the symbiotic connection between the corporate economy and the punishment industry. Prisons have become an enormous source of corporate profit while they simultaneously devour social resources needed for education, housing, healthcare and welfare. This is why we have chosen the "prison industrial complex" as our main organizing framework. People of color constitute the majority of prisoners in state and federal prisons and in local jails. Women constitute the fastest growing sector of the imprisoned population. Youth face in­ creasing repression in juvenile facilities, adult prisons and in schools that often resemble prisons. In order to move beyond the prison industrial complex, we will have to discover ways to effectively challenge the racism, sexism, hetereosexism and class-bias that fuel the expansion of prisons. We have proposed seven task forces to structure the campaign: Health and Human Rights; Law and Policy; Prison as Industry; Education; Research and Activism; Media Representations and Popular Culture; and Abolitionist Alternatives. Critical Resistance:Beyond the PrisonIndustrial Complex SPECIALTHANKS We invite you to join us in developingplans for this ongoingcampaign. The Critical Resis­ tance Organizing Committee welcomes everyone willingto help develop a radical critiqueof ... to the hundredsof womenand men FUNDERS insidewho sent words of the punishment industry. We ask that you think deeply about the contradictionsinherent in criticalResistance is indebtedto our supporters.The challenge,inspiration, most programs for prison "reform," which often have the unfortunate result of further encouragement,and guidance to followinglist of contributorsis far fromcomplete. There theCritical Resistance Organizing Committee strengthening the overall system. How do we expose the cruelty inflictedon prisoners' aremany more people and organizations whose tireless bodies and psyches and urge the dramatic reductionof the prison population? How can we workand generous contibutions made this strategy ... to the NationalRoundtable participants and all others whocontributed to thedevelopment of CriticalResistance imagine an abolitionism for the prison industrial complex in the way that 19th century activ­ sessionpossible: ists imagined the abolition of the slave economy? ... to the businessesand organizations that made this possible: AliceWalker AllianceGraphics; The Beat Within; Color Lines We hope the conference will help to develop local, regional, national and international AsianAmerican Studies Association Comite98; FoodNot Bombs networks. We therefore call upon each of you to treat this as a working conference. The BlessingWay Foundation Heller,Ehrman, White and McAuliffe BlueMountain Center lnkworks;KPFA; M & K Travel;Marcus Books panels, roundtables, cultural events, and skills-building workshops are designed to encour­ Mills College,Dept. of EthnicStudies, Women's Studies Program age broad participation and collective strategizing. Each panel and workshop is linked to at BoehmFoundation andthe BlackWomen's Collective least two task forces that we hope will structure the ongoing campaign. We encourage DensfordFund of the RiversideChurch ModernTimes Bookstore; Ms: FoundationStaff FundingExchange NewYork University, Dept. of AfricanaStudies participants in all sessions to help develop campaign strategies in relation to the particular OLIN;Pacific News Service GaiaFund themes their panels and workshops are considering. People'sInstitute for Survivaland Beyond GlobalFund for Women PrisonLegal News; Underground Railroad LegalServices for PrisonersWith Children Universityof California,Berkeley, Dept. of EthnicStudies Thank you for attending Critical Resistance and thank you for joining the ongoing campaign Universityof Colorado,Boulder, Dept. of EthnicStudies LEFFoundation Universityof Colorado,Boulder Student Union, Native American 3 to defeat the prison industrial complex. MartaDrury Student'sAssociation Ms. Foundation Universityof Michigan,Ann Arbor 2 Critical Resistance Organizing Committee: ResourcefulWomen ....for thespecial support of: SisterFund PeggyBennett; David Billings; Camo Bartman, FireWorx Bo(rita d. brown) RobertBorton; Amy Buchanan; Jeff Chang EllenBarry HariDillon, Vanguard Foundation Universityof California,Humanities Research Institute KatherineCleary; Ed Cohen; Rose Cotrell JenniferBeach LindaCrockett; Niki Davis;Terry Day; Gina Dent RoseBraz Universityof California,Office of the President ManthiaDiawara; Glenda Doyle; Joy Enomoto JulieBrowne LindaEvans; Vanessa Filley; Charlie Freiberg CynthiaChandler UnitarianUniversalist, Veatch Program UnitedChurch of Christ GeorgeGalvis; Seeta Gangadharan; Rupert Garcia KamariClarke DavidTheo Goldberg; Avery Gordon AngelaDavis GabrielHernandez; Mia Houtermans;Kahlil Jacobs-Fantauzzi LeslieDiBenedetto Skopek JoyJames; Deborah La Belle;Tiese Manigo GitaDrury ThornNdaize Mewe; Giuliana Milanese RayneGalbraith DaniellePacifico-Hogan; Patricia O'Brien; Kevin Radley RuthieGilmore JoseReyes-Olivas; Rosemary Saari; Karen Shain NaneenKarraker LawrenceShorters; Christian Simonetti; Janel Stead TerryKupers GloriaSteinem; Nia Sykes; Nadya Tan RachelLederman SuzanneTaviansky; Sammy Toinetta; Mark Toney; JoyceMiller MartinTravers; Francisco Trujillo; Robyn Twomy; DorseyNunn Ling-chiWang; CeeCee Weekes; Jean Weisinger DylanRodriguez GregWinter; Bob Wing; Karen Woo Eli Rosenblatt JaneSegal CassandraShaylor AndreaSmith NancyStoller JuliaSudbury RobinTempleton SuranThrift LindaCrockett, Project Director Critical Resistance: Beyond the Prison Industrial Complex Beyond the Prison Industrial Complex Friday, September 25, 1998 •••••••••••••••••• 111• 111111111111111111•• 111• 111111111• 111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111• 111• 111111111•• • ~=-D•1=1a1 ~::f#lil:JH Ill • • • 1-2:45pm • PauleyBallroom : : Voicesfor Freedom: 111 PANELS: • Formerand CurrentPrisoners Speak Out : Threeor moreparticipants will maketen to fifteen : Leadershipin the movement to go beyondthe prison industrial complex must include those with inside experience of the • minutepresentations. In the courseof thediscussion 111 system.Current and former prisoners will soundthe conference keynote. Presenters: Ramona Africa, MOVE, Family & Friends: : to FreeMumia • Chrystos,poet and activist • DavidGaither, The Beat Within, Pacific News Service • MichaelKeck, writer, • the moderatorwill inviteaudience participation to share • actor,performer • AgnesMercurio, Medea Project • Messagefrom Mumia Abu Jamal, journalist and activist • Frank"Big : informationand suggest campaign strategies. : Black"Smith, Attica Brother, prison activist • PiriThomas, poet • Messagesfrom women prisoners, read by former prisoners • 111 DonnaWillmott and Ida McCray Robinson Moderator: Dorsey Nunn, Legal Services for Prisonerwith Children : Ill SKILLS BUILDINGWORKSHOPS: • Usinghands-on methods, workshop facilitators will • talllli1 IQCl.."liiiatl=•I : presentpractical strategies for developingorganizations : 3-5:15pm • LocationTBA : 111 THE BEATWITHIN @ BUI DOI • andcampaigns. Examples include: student groups; 111 : MAKINGPEACE, MAKING CHANGE Ill mediacampaigns; books to prisoners;using interna­ 111 Threeshort films about young people, criminal justice, racism, and resistance. Bui Doi looks at the life of a Vietnameseyouth 111 tionalhuman rights documents. : whobecomes involved in gangactivity. The Beat Within and Making Peace, Making Change provide examples of grassroots : 111 youthorganizing. Discussants: Victoria Banourek, Youth Struggling for Survival• MindaHikey, League of FilipinoStudents 111 111 ROUNDTABLES: : • DavidInocencio, The Beat Within • AhmadWilder, The Beat Within Ill • Ill Designedto encourageall participantsto shareideas 111111111111111111111• 111• 111• 111111111111•• 111•••• 111••• 111••••• 111111•••••• 111• 111• 111111•• 1!!1111•• 111• 1111111!!1• 111• andinformation on a particiulartopic, these sessions i::f#Jil#lll@I • 3 - 4:30 PM will faciliatatenetworking