Nurture, Pleasure and Read and Resist!: Abolition Feminist Methodology for a Collective Recovery?

Felicity Adams,Fabienne Emmerich

doi:10.1007/s10691-021-09463-5

Abstract

COVID-19 has magnified intersecting inequalities that are central to the functioning of capitalism. At the height of the crisis, the value of an economy based on the exchange of goods and services faded away to expose the importance of care across the public and private spheres. Undervalued and underpaid labour suddenly became critical to the survival of many. Drawing on Abolition Feminism, we argue for the need to seize this revaluation of labour to centre nurture and pleasure within our post-pandemic recovery. We apply an Abolition Feminist framework that conceptualises the prison as part of a network of violence that deflects attention from the root causes of harm. We reflect on the development of our Abolition Feminist web platform, Read and Resist!, a space where theory meets reflection on praxis. We consider how activist strategies within Abolition Feminism may support us in reimagining our relationships with law and justice post-COVID-19.

Highlights

Like everyone else we were hit by this pandemic first not wanting to believe, being stuck at home with our ‘loved ones’ in a situation that we had never contemplated—with parents, with a small child, with a visitor who was otherwise homeless In the immediacy we had to adjust to the lack of space, the new confined environment and
We understand that central to this vision must be a vision of society that is free of coercive institutions such as the prison
The government’s reflex response is to fund violent institutions such as prisons and the police that perpetuate a myriad of systemic inequalities and structural violence (Adams and Emmerich 2021)

Summary

Introduction

Like everyone else we were hit by this pandemic first not wanting to believe, being stuck at home with our ‘loved ones’ in a situation that we had never contemplated—with parents, with a small child, with a visitor who was otherwise homeless In the immediacy we had to adjust to the lack of space, the new confined environment and. Forum bringing together a host of community, activist and academic voices on all things Transformative Justice.6 Before we move onto our reflections on Read & Resist!, we briefly situate this piece conceptually in Abolition Feminism.

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Conclusion