Reflections on the Fifteenth International Conference on Penal Abolition: On Possibilities and Pitfalls

• In Event: Penal Abolition – Building Ideas and Practices

Abstract

Based on my involvement in the organization of the Fifteenth International Conference on Penal Abolition (ICOPA 15) held in June 2014 at the University of Ottawa on unceded and unsurrendered Algonquin Territory, this brief presentation reflects on the possibilities and pitfalls of abolitionist initiatives involving stakeholders in carceral institutions, activist communities and academia. In particular, I consider how the power relations at work in organizing the conference both facilitated and undermined this attempt to cultivate an international space for abolitionist thought and action. The presentation concludes with some lessons learned that could help inform future penal abolitionist initiatives involving criminologists.

Author

• Justin Piche, University of Ottawa