abolish jails

The prison therefore functions ideologically as an abstract site into which undesirables are deposited, relieving us of the responsibility of thinking about the real issues afflicting those communities from which prisoners are drawn in such disproportionate numbers. This is the ideological work that the prison performs; it relieves us of the responsibility of seriously engaging with the problems of our society, especially those produced by racism, and, increasingly, global capitalism. - Angela Y. Davis

some great news about the prison industrial complex in california.
A law designed to thin California's bloated criminal lockups by shortening some sentences has prompted the release of thousands of nonviolent county jail inmates in recent days.
including about 90 inmates here in Contra Costa county. basically, certain nonviolent offenders get out a little earlier on good behaviour.

In the past, jail inmates who behaved themselves served as little as two-thirds of their sentence. Under the new law, some drug offenders, thieves and other nonviolent convicts can serve as little as half their sentence, receiving a day of credit for every day locked up.

the capitalist recession is tough on those of us who are not rich. it's tough being unemployed or underemployed, and most economists agree that even if there is a recovery, it is going to be a jobless one. and it seems like the federal goverment is more interested in keeping inflation low rather than improving employment.
but the recession also means less consumption, which is great for the planet and less money for the government to spend on police and prisons; less money for the war on drugs.
who knows, maybe if things stay the way they are, we will see less and less pigs on the streets and less people locked up in cages. if noting else, i'm sure all the people who got out of jail just now are doing better than they were a few days ago.

the bay area has a bunch of rad prison abolition and prison reform groups, such as east bay prisoner support, prisoners literature project, critical resistance, and prison activist resource center. they all do great work, and if you ever find yourself with some free time you may want to see if they could use more volunteers.

abolish prisons. free all political prisoners.