Decriminalization from a Penal Abolition Perspective

• In Event: Mainstreaming Marijuana: Differential Perspectives on Decriminalization and Penal Abolition

Abstract

While the carceral state and its punitive institutions have always engaged the discussion of “reform,” the reasons for this engagement have varied by epoch. The current “reform” conversation of “decriminalization” is demanded for three reasons. The first is marked by a major challenge to the “tough on crime” paradigm, which because of the no-longer sustainable financial costs is called to change in form, but not in spirit, to that of “smart on crime.” The second is marked by a new conviction that a certain kind of “offender” (the “non-violent,” non-serious,” etc.) should not form a staple of our punitive institutions, but should rather be responded to with “alternative” sanctions. The third is marked by an increase in awareness of the human costs “the war on crime” has brought (racism and the slew of human rights abuses). In this paper I examine the issue of “decriminalization” from the perspective of Penal Abolition to argue that all of the above efforts represent a commitment to leave the essence of our punitive institutions unchanged, for to challenge them with full intent would amount to questioning their very ability to perform any of their supposed capacities to substantively prevent, address or resolve “crime” problems.

Authors

• Michael J. Coyle, California State University, Chico

• Elizabeth Gomez-Logan, California State University, Chico