This two-part workshop will introduce participants to dialectical and historical materialism, using this analytical framework to explore the role of prisons and policing in a capitalist system. We’ll take inspiration from the writings of incarcerated organizers to think about abolition and the role each of us can play in liberation and social justice movements, wherever we’re at in our political journeys.

Between sessions, participants will read from several incarcerated revolutionaries (including Assata Shakur, Walid Daqqa, and George Jackson) who use the analytical tools we introduced in Session 1. In Session 2, we’ll discuss how incarcerated organizers have used dialectical and historical materialism to understand the conditions of their own imprisonment and the role of prisons in society. We’ll also look at how these frameworks have shaped the strategies and tactics of the fight against criminalization, and how they can shape our struggles today.

Together, we will practice applying dialectical and historical materialism to contemporary movements and to our lives, reflecting on how this framework can influence the ways we practice abolition and build a path toward collective liberation.