Disrupting The Frontline of Fascism: Prisons and Policing with Rachel Herzing
Episode Description
What does the expansion of policing, imprisonment, and surveillance reveal about the rise of fascism? Host Ejeris Dixon sits down with long-time organizer, activist, and author Rachel Herzing to unpack the interlocking systems of state violence known as the prison industrial complex. Herzing, director of the Yarrow Institute and co-author of How to Abolish Prisons, connects the dots between rising fascist power, the racism and violence of the prison and policing system, the erosion of public dissent, and the work of preventing a police state.
About Rachel
Rachel Herzing is an organizer, activist, and educator. Herzing’s work has spanned grassroots movements against imprisonment and policing, community and movement education, and philanthropy. Herzing is the co-author of How to Abolish Prisons: Lessons from the Movement against Imprisonment with Justin Piché, is the director of the Yarrow Institute for Organizing and Analysis, and is on the Board of Directors of Political Research Associates.
About Ejeris
Ejeris is a political strategist passionate about strengthening liberation movements and building community safety. Ejeris serves as the Fascism Barometer's "movement meteorologist," exploring the impact of fascist movements on communities of color, queer and trans communities, and all marginalized people. Having worked for the past twenty-five years at the intersections of racial justice, LGBTQ liberation, anti-violence, transformative justice, and economic justice movements, Ejeris focuses on creating political and strategic experiments to strengthen social justice movements through the organization Ejerie Labs.
Resources
Reading
What is the Prison Industrial Complex? What is Abolition? from Critical Resistance
Learn about the Military Industrial Complex
GA Abortion Ban Forces Family to Keep Woman Declared Brain Dead on Life Support
Community Movement Builders, “What is a Cop City? (this is from Episode 2)
“The Punishment System and Fascism Go Hand in Hand” Rachel Herzing, Amelia Kirby, Jack Norton
“The Terrain of Struggle,” Rachel Herzing
How to Abolish Prisons: Lessons from the Movement Against Imprisonment with Rachel Herzing and Justin Piché
Check out the Movement Resource Library from Community Resource Hub and learn more about organizing against imprisonment and policing, and how to build alternatives
“Where Congress’s Cuts Threaten Access to PBS and NPR,” Elena Shao and Benjamin Mullin, New York Times
“By Refusing To Show Faces or Badges, ICE Opens Door to Vigilante Impersonators,” Daniel Moritz-Rabson, Truthout
“Surge in U.S. Concern About Immigration Has Abated,” Lydia Saad, Gallup
“Jeffrey Epstein,” Wikipedia
Watching
Take Action
Join Critical Resistance and support their work to abolish the prison industrial complex
Attend One Million Rising: Strategic Non-Cooperation to Fight Authoritarianism
Protect Immigrant Communities! Join the Here to Stay Network with United We Dream
Attend It’s Giving Feminist Mutual Aid by the Women’s March. Learn about Mutual Aid and How Communities Can Support Through Changing Political Conditions
Defend immigrant communities from ICE raids: Attend Trainings and Actions through the Defend and Recruit Project of SIEMBRA NC
Write to your congressperson about the Block the Bombs Act!
Attend the Katrina 20 Movement Assembly and Join the Katrina 20 Week of Action
Donate to The Fascism Barometer and support us in continuing to create episodes and resources for you!
Donate to Mohsan Mahdawi’s immigrant legal defense fund! Support the Vermont Immigrant Legal Defense Fund
Organize in Solidarity: a 5-week training series on organizing our communities to resist ICE
Check out theAll of US Directory, a sortable database that seeks to make it possible for newly activated people to easily connect with organizing and mutual aid efforts.
Check out the resource hub!