INSTRUCTIONS

Assignment #1: The Meaning of Abolition (Personal Reflection):

Week 1 of this class focused on the current abolition movement, in three parts. In “This is America” we talked about the historical and contemporary context in which the abolition movement has gained ground. In “Keywords” we talked through a series of central concepts in abolitionist scholarship and organizing. And finally, on Friday, we will listen to all or part of “Abolition on Stolen Land,” a historic conversation between Professor Ruth Wilson Gilmore and Professor Nick Estes on the intersection of African American and Native American experience, struggle, scholarship, and organizing.

Your assignment is to write a personal reflection that draws on each of these three classes. This will mean using a quote from at least one assigned reading for Monday, at least one assigned reading for Wednesday, and from one of the speakers on Friday. (See quote format below.)

We encourage you to write in a way that feels comfortable to you. You can, but do not have to, use “I” statements and non-academic language. Please use this assignment to reflect honestly on the material presented in Week 1 – what do you think? How does it make you feel? What do you wonder about? Has it made you see anything differently? – while also showing how the course material informs your reflections. There are no right answers in this reflection. You are not required to feel any particular way about the material presented. The only thing we ask is that you engage the material openly, honestly, and creatively, and that you use the assigned material to do so.

Specs:

2-3 pages; 12-point font; double spaced; 1-inch margins

Quote Format:

Quotes do not need formal citation. They just need author name. So, like this:

“Abolition is about abolishing the conditions under which prison became the solution to problems rather than abolishing the buildings we call prisons” (Ruth Wilson Gilmore).

But remember that these quotes need to come from assigned readings (not lecture) and the Friday webinar.

Grading Rubric:

Points basis; graded out of 100

Points taken off for not using (at least) three quotes from M, W, F (one each).

Points taken off for too little effort or too little thought put in.

I have attached the readings from Monday and Wednesday classes and the notes from the Friday’s Abolition on Stolen Land webinar. You need to use at least one reading from each weeks material. I have emphasized which reading is from which week.