abolition
Ending Family Policing
The so-called child welfare system is a core plank of the U.S. carceral state. How can we actually make our communities stronger and safer?
family separation
11 posts in ‘family separation’
interventions
The Art of Mothering Through Bars
For incarcerated mothers, sending handmade art to their children can help nurture vital connections—but often even this is hindered by prison officials.
first person
The Reality of Love Behind Bars
Neither of us imagined that love and prison were compatible until we met. Now the state is weaponizing our marriage.
first person
“One Minute Remaining”
As an incarcerated mother, I have fought to remain in my children’s lives. I’ve done everything I could—and it still wasn’t enough.
A closer look
The Myth of Pro-Family America
Trump’s allies incite moral panic about shrinking white families, even as the state dismantles families of color—a paradox rooted in slavery and eugenics.
first person
CPS Stole My Children
When I was falsely accused of abuse, North Carolina took away my sons. The charges were dropped but I still may never see them again.
A closer look
My Father’s Cell
When my father was twenty-one—my age—he had already been in prison for two years.
first person
Hope You Get This
My earliest memories of life were being loved by my father. I couldn’t imagine then all the ways Black men’s lives are endangered.
abolition
Put Children First
Abolishing the child welfare system would create more avenues for protecting children, instead of devoting all of society’s energy to propping up a coercive system of surveillance and punishment.
In Their Words
Remembering Tewkunzi
“All of us who’ve been inside have healing to do. There are so many survivors in prison. And then surviving prison requires its own kind of healing.”
Institutions
End Carceral Social Work
To stay true to their professed values, social workers must wholly disavow and remove themselves from systems of harm.