Beyond Prisons

Beyond Prisons episodes:

• 04.09.2024

  Snuffing Out Revolution: Control Units & Resistance

  Welcome to episode two of  “Over the Wall: The Abolitionist Hour with Critical Resistance.” For listeners new to Beyond Prisons or our collaboration with Critical Resistance, this is a new, regular series that premiered in September of 2023. Hosted by...

  
• 03.29.2024

  Snuffing Out Revolution: Control Units & Resistance

  Welcome to episode two of  “Over the Wall: The Abolitionist Hour with Critical Resistance.” For listeners new to Beyond Prisons, this is a new, regular series on Beyond Prisons that premiered in September of 2023. Hosted by members of Critical...

  
• 11.28.2023

  Certain Days

  Josh Davidson and Leslie James Pickering from the Certain Days collective join the show to talk about 2024’s Certain Days: Freedom for Political Prisoners calendar and the work of their collective. We previously spoke with Josh and other folks from...

  
• 09.18.2023

  Beyond Abortion: Reproductive Justice & Abolitionist Struggle

  This is the first episode of  our new series titled “Over the Wall: The Abolitionist Hour with Critical Resistance.” This will be a regular series on Beyond Prisons, hosted by members of Critical Resistance’s The Abolitionist Editorial Collective, in which...

  
• 07.25.2023

  Penitence for the privileged

  CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains discussions of sexual violence. Kim and Brian discuss Mark E. Kann’s “Penitence for the Privileged: Manhood, Race, and Penitentiaries in Early America.” This essay is a chapter in the book Prison Masculinities, edited by Don...

  
• 06.19.2023

  Prison Librarians

  For this episode, Kim sat down with Jeanie Austin, a Bay Area librarian and academic who focuses on library services for incarcerated people, and Sarah ball, a New York City public librarian working inside jails and prisons providing access to...

  
• 04.22.2023

  Six Years of Beyond Prisons (Epilogue)

  In this follow-up to our six-year anniversary episode, Kim shares some of what she has been going through in recent years. We recommend you listen to that previous episode before listening to this one. You can support Kim on Cash...

  
• 04.22.2023

  Six Years of Beyond Prisons

  April marks 6 years of Beyond Prisons! Thank you so much to everyone who has listened to the show and supported us over the years. In this episode, Kim and Brian reflect on their work and their lives over the...

  
• 10.12.2022

  CI Toolkit: Perspectives On Interventions feat. Mimi Kim & Shira Hassan

  This is the third episode in our Creative Interventions series, where we explore this fantastic and practical toolkit for stopping interpersonal violence and speak with some of the people whose organizing efforts directly informed it. We speak with Mimi Kim...

  
• 09.30.2022

  Close California Prisons feat. Brian Kaneda & Woods Ervin

  Brian Kaneda and Woods Ervin join the show to tell us about the Close California Prisons Campaign. This campaign is led by the statewide coalition known as Californians United For A Responsible Budget (CURB), pressuring Governor Gavin Newsom and the...

  
• 09.27.2022

  CI Toolkit: What Does Interpersonal Violence Look Like? feat. Mimi Kim & Shira Hassan

  This is the second episode in our Creative Interventions series, where we explore this fantastic and practical toolkit for stopping interpersonal violence and speak with some of the people whose organizing efforts directly informed it. We speak with Mimi...

  
• 09.20.2022

  How We Work Matters: Reflections From A Burned Out Organizer

  The following talk was delivered by Dr. Kim Wilson at the DecARcerate Arkansas 2022 conference in Little Rock. The conference was an opportunity for abolitionist and other organizers to come together to listen as speakers from around the state and...

  
• 04.13.2022

  What Is The Creative Interventions Toolkit? feat. Mimi Kim & Rachel Herzing

  This is the first episode of our Creative Interventions series.  In this series, we will explore the Creative Interventions Toolkit, which provides tools, resources, and a model for community interventions in interpersonal violence. We’ll go section-by-section and talk to some...

  
• 03.29.2022

  Panel: Why Physical Mail In Prison Matters

  This is the audio version of a panel discussion hosted on March 24 that explores the importance of physical mail in prison and how the prison industrial complex works to undermine imprisoned people's ability to meaningfully communicate with their loved...

  
• 03.16.2022

  Delaware's Draconian Mail Policy feat. Monica Cosby

  In this episode, Kim sits down with Monica Cosby to talk about the draconian policy in the Delaware Department of Corrections to end all physical mail sent to prisoners.  Join us to take action on Friday, March 18, 2022, and...

  
• 02.19.2022

  How We Stay Free feat. Christopher R. Rogers & YahNé Ndgo

  Christopher R. Rogers and YahNé Ndgo join us for a wide ranging conversation grounded in the book “How We Stay Free: Notes On A Black Uprising.” This anthology, which was published by Common Notions and edited by our guest Christopher...

  
• 01.15.2022

  Community Is The Antidote To Policing feat. Geo Maher

  This is a companion episode to our interview with Geo Maher. If you haven’t listened to that yet, you may want to put this on hold and check that conversation out first. Kim Wilson and Geo Maher dive deep...

  
• 01.15.2022

  A World Without Police feat. Geo Maher

  Geo Maher joins us to discuss his new book, "A World Without Police: How Strong Communities Make Cops Obsolete."  We touch on a number of subjects, including the context in which the book was written, cops and labor unions, and...

  
• 11.12.2021

  Holding Change feat. adrienne maree brown

  In this episode, adrienne maree brown discusses her recent book: Holding Change: The Way of Emergent Strategy Facilitation and Mediation. We talk about the structure of the book, Black feminist wisdom, breathwork as a facilitation practice, the importance of setting...

  
• 08.17.2021

  The Abolitionist Newspaper feat. Woods Ervin & Rory Elliott

  Rory Elliott and Woods Ervin from Critical Resistance’s newspaper, The Abolitionist, join the show for a wide-ranging conversation on abolitionist media. According to their website, The Abolitionist, sometimes lovingly referred to as The Abbey, “launched in the spring of 2005...

  
• 06.11.2021

  Beyond Solitary #2: Kwame Shakur on Revolution and Reactionary Reformism

  In the second episode of our series, Beyond Solitary, Kwame Shakur joins the show to talk about the need to develop inside-out revolutionary strategy, and the work already being done with that goal in mind by organizations like I.D.O.C. Watch,...

  
• 04.08.2021

  Beyond Solitary: 25 Years In The Indiana Prison Movement feat. Shaka Shakur

  Beyond Solitary series | Episode 1 In the first episode of our new series, "Beyond Solitary," Shaka Shakur talks about the history of the prison movement in Indiana, and how the movement has evolved and responded to consistent repression from...

  
• 04.08.2021

  TRAILER: Introducing Beyond Solitary

  Beyond Prisons Editor Ellis Maxwell introduces a new series called "Beyond Solitary," exploring solitary confinement as a site of struggle and featuring interviews with currently and formerly incarcerated people and their loved ones. In recent years, due to tireless work...

  
• 02.04.2021

  Interrupting Criminalization feat. Andrea Ritchie

  Andrea Ritchie joins the show to talk about her research with the group Interrupting Criminalization, specifically their new report looking back on the “Defund the Police” demand in 2020. Interrupting Criminalization describes itself as an initiative that aims to...

  
• 01.15.2021

  COVID-19 Dispatch: Soledad Family Roundtable

  Four women with loved ones incarcerated at the Correctional Training Facility in Soledad, CA join the Beyond Prisons podcast to talk about how prison officials are failing to respond to the pandemic.  Their names are Mary, Dawn, Crystal, and Alice....

  
• 12.30.2020

  COVID-19 Dispatch: The Crisis At Soledad

  Brian Sonenstein interviews a woman we’re calling “Alice” to protect her and her family from retaliation from California prison officials.  Alice was on Beyond Prisons in April 2020 to discuss the situation facing people enduring the pandemic while incarcerated at...

  
• 12.23.2020

  Study And Struggle feat. Garrett Felber

  Garrett Felber joins the Beyond Prisons podcast to discuss Study and Struggle, which he helped launch in 2020 as “a bilingual political education program on abolition and immigrant justice which supports and collaborates with grassroots organizations in Mississippi.” (NOTE: This...

  
• 10.29.2020

  In Defense Of Looting Feat. Vicky Osterweil

  Vicky Osterweil joins the Beyond Prisons podcast to discuss her new book, “In Defense Of Looting: A Riotous History Of Uncivil Action.” Our wide-ranging conversation includes Vicky’s analysis of the claim that “real” and legitimate protests are nonviolent by nature,...

  
• 09.28.2020

  Challenging E-Carceration Feat. James Kilgore

  In this episode, Kim and Brian sit down with James Kilgore, a formerly incarcerated activist, researcher, and author based in Urbana, Illinois. Our conversation addressed a number of issues relating to e-carceration. We pushed back against the idea that electronic...

  
• 09.08.2020

  Prison By Any Other Name Feat. Maya Schenwar and Victoria Law

  Beyond Prisons welcomes back Maya Schenwar and Victoria Law to discuss their new book, Prison By Any Other Name: The Harmful Consequences Of Popular Reforms.  The book provides a comprehensive and thought-provoking critical analysis of popular reforms to policing...

  
• 08.13.2020

  An Abolitionist Focus Is A Feminine Focus Feat. Dr. Venezia Michalsen

  Kim Wilson is joined by Dr. Venezia Michalsen for a conversation about her research on women’s experiences with the criminal punishment system on the Beyond Prisons podcast.  Their conversation, which was recorded in February, touches on how women are impacted...

  
• 08.04.2020

  Dylan Rodríguez, Part II: Police Accountability Is Casualty Management

  This is the second part of our two-part conversation with Dr. Dylan Rodríguez. If you haven’t already, listen to part one.  In this episode, Dylan shares a few thoughts about high profile reformers like Van Jones and the dangers...

  
• 07.30.2020

  Dylan Rodríguez, Part I: Abolition Is Our Obligation

  Professor, author, and abolitionist scholar Dr. Dylan Rodríguez joins Kim Wilson and Brian Sonenstein on an episode of the Beyond Prisons podcast.  This is the first part of a two part conversation. In Part 1, Dr. Rodríguez explains his belief...

  
• 07.08.2020

  David Stein

  Kim Wilson and Brian Sonenstein are joined by historian and abolitionist David Stein for an episode of the Beyond Prisons podcast. David penned an excellent article in 2017 with Dan Berger and Mariame Kaba entitled, “What Abolitionists Do." He...

  
• 06.23.2020

  Dr. Erin Corbett

  Beyond Prisons host Kim Wilson has a conversation with Dr. Erin Corbett, founder and CEO of Second Chance Educational Alliance, Inc. It's a community-based prison education program in CT. SCEA aims to provide formerly incarcerated men and women with...

  
• 06.09.2020

  How Do We Get Through This? feat. Kay Whitlock & Donna Murch

  Donna Murch and Kay Whitlock join Beyond Prisons to think through the question “how do we get through this?” Donna posed this question on social media in April as the COVID-19 pandemic peaked and motivated this conversation. We begin by...

  
• 06.03.2020

  Reflecting On The Protests

  Kim and Brian sit down for an extended conversation on the current Black Lives Matter protests, policing and police reform, media literacy, and more. Credits Created and hosted by Kim Wilson and Brian Sonenstein Edited by Ellis Maxwell Website &...

  
• 06.02.2020

  Anthony Williams

  Beyond Prisons hosts Brian Sonenstein and Kim Wilson sit down with Anthony Williams to talk about co-founding the hashtag "#MasculinitySoFragile," leveraging social capital online, how their political consciousness evolved over time, and overcoming isolation through reading. We recorded this episode...

  
• 04.24.2020

  COVID-19 Hoax Against Mumia Abu-Jamal Supporters feat. Johanna Fernández

  Author, educator, and activist Johanna Fernández joins the Beyond Prisons podcast to discuss a recent incident in which a Pennsylvania corrections officer perpetrated a hoax on supporters of Mumia Abu-Jamal by claiming he had been hospitalized for COVID-19. The...

  
• 04.21.2020

  COVID-19 Dispatch From California Prison

  Brian Sonenstein interviews a woman who we’re calling “Alice” to protect her and her husband from retaliation by California prison officials. Alice organizes with other family members as part of a group known as Unite Against CDCR. Her husband is...

  
• 04.17.2020

  COVID-19 Dispatch From Pennsylvania Prison

  In this special Beyond Prisons dispatch, Haverford College student and activist Ellis Maxwell shares a conversation they had with their friend Charles Boyd, who is incarcerated at SCI-Phoenix in Pennsylvania. Maxwell is the co-head of Rethink Incarceration, a group...

  
• 04.07.2020

  Released From Rikers Island, NYU Student Speaks Out About COVID-19

  Writer, artist, and NYU student Jose Díaz shares his experience of being arrested and imprisoned on a technical violation during the COVID-19 crisis.  Jose describes the conditions and lack of medical care inside New York City jails where he was...

  
• 03.24.2020

  Supporting Prisoners During COVID19

  Beyond Prisons hosts Kim Wilson and Brian Sonenstein walk through our guide on how to support incarcerated people and their loved ones during the Coronavirus Crisis. You can check it out along with some demands we put together, mutual aid...

  
• 03.09.2020

  Amani Sawari

  Beyond Prisons podcast host Kim Wilson sits down with Amani Sawari of the Right2Vote campaign to talk about her work on a nationwide effort that grew out of the 2018 prison strike demand to extend voting rights for all...

  
• 02.21.2020

  Michelle Jones

  Beyond Prisons Co-host Kim Wilson interviews Michelle Jones about her work as an artist, activist, and historian. Michelle shares the projects that she’s currently working on and she reflects on what it’s like to be a third-year graduate student working...

  
• 01.10.2020

  Certain Days Collective

  On this episode of the Beyond Prisons Podcast, hosts Brian Sonenstein and Kim Wilson catch up with  Certain Days Collective members Daniel McGowan, Josh Davidson, and Sara Falconer. The group publishes the Certain Days: Freedom For Political Prisoners calendar, now...

  
• 12.19.2019

  Sunlight Is A Human Right

  Abolitionist and journalist Jared Ware joins the Beyond Prisons podcast for a conversation on deteriorating abusive conditions within South Carolina prisons. Jared gives us an update on recent organizing efforts by prisoners in South Carolina and their comrades on the...

  
• 12.02.2019

  Instead Of Calling The Cops

  In a followup to the last episode, "Stop Hugging Cops," Beyond Prisons hosts Brian Sonenstein and Kim Wilson share some resources and discuss alternatives to calling the police. We talk about the chain reaction that is created by bringing...

  
• 10.23.2019

  Stop Hugging Cops

  In this episode of the Beyond Prisons podcast, hosts Kim Wilson and Brian Sonenstein discuss a video published by Critical Resistance that features Professor Dylan Rodriguez talking about policing and police practice. We encourage you to spend a few minutes...

  
• 08.24.2019

  Gladiator Fights Feat. IWOC's Brooke Terpstra

  Beyond Prisons is back from summer break with a special double episode with Brooke Terpstra, Oaklander forever, movement veteran, and worker who organized with the Incarcerated Workers Organizer Committee (IWOC). Brooke is an organizer with the Oakland chapter of IWOC...