“I Do Abolitionist Sh** Every Day”: How Black Youth Organizers Practice Abolition in Schools

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Thursday 3:35 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: Exploring Abolition, Resistance, and Critical Political Consciousness With Young People (Table 4)

Abstract

The abolition of police, schools, or any other institution can be deemed too abstract and complicated as a concept and practice which renders subsequent projects unrealistic and unachievable in the larger scale of social change and reform. This paper highlights the abolitionist practices of Black youth organizers in schools and reframes (school) abolition as a legitime and righteous political approach to achieving remedy, repair, and renewal in education and schooling. For Black youth organizers, abolition is a necessary step in educational justice. This paper highlights their work and stories.

Author

• Michael A. Davis, University of Wisconsin - Madison