Building abolitionist futures, constructing more just worlds
COMMUNITY STORIES
By Miryam Nacimento
For more than five decades, the U.S. prison system has undergone relentless expansion, fueled by a web of punitive policies and legal frameworks that have systematically criminalized and incarcerated marginalized communities. Black, Latine, and other minority groups have been disproportionately targeted, bearing the brunt of a carceral system designed to punish rather than rehabilitate. The increase in incarceration rates has made the U.S. the country with the largest prison population, with nearly two million people currently incarcerated. Rather than ensuring public safety, the prison system operates as a prison-industrial complex—a multibillion-dollar enterprise sustained by private corporations, government contracts, and powerful lobbying groups. It prioritizes profit over justice, perpetuating existing racial and economic disparities. As a result, individuals are forcibly removed from their communities and confined to carceral spaces, where they become trapped in cycles of poverty, political disenfranchisement, and racialized state violence.
In response to the punitive focus of the U.S. prison system, abolition is a radical framework and movement dedicated to dismantling the criminal legal system and building community-based alternatives centered on care, equity, and collective well-being. Rooted in the historical struggle against slavery, contemporary abolitionist initiatives oppose mass incarceration, advocating instead for transformative justice, and investment in social goods like education, housing, and healthcare. In this community story, we explore two abolitionist initiatives in Syracuse that are working to imagine new ways of organizing society—ones that move beyond punishment and exile toward rehabilitation through creative writing, art, organizing, and advocacy.
Project Mend
Project Mend is a writing and publishing initiative that provides a space for individuals that have been directly or indirectly impacted by mass incarceration to foster connection, cultivate solidarity, and create a sense of belonging through storytelling. It is made possible through collaboration with the Center for Community Alternatives and through an HNY Post-Incarceration Humanities Partnership, which is generously supported by the Mellon Foundation. By publishing Mend, a national journal that features poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and artwork, the project fosters a critical dialogue on the lived realities of those impacted by the criminal legal system, both inside and beyond prison walls. As Patrick W. Berry, director of Project Mend, emphasizes, “While there is a growing focus on education in prison, the resources available to individuals after their release remain shockingly limited.” Many formerly incarcerated people face uncertainty about where they will live, how they will support themselves, and how to navigate essential needs like housing and employment. However, beyond meeting basic needs, Patrick emphasizes the importance of fostering a sense of community—an opportunity to collectively reimagine what it means to live together in society.
This is precisely what Project Mend seeks to cultivate through writing: a community of care that values the lived experiences and knowledge of those impacted by the criminal legal system, providing a space for critical reflection and the sharing of their stories. As the only national journal read and edited by people directly affected by the criminal legal system—including those who are incarcerated, formerly incarcerated, and their loved ones—Mend brings together voices from across the country to contribute to this ongoing dialogue. Editors review the pieces collectively, not only selecting what to publish but also engaging in meaningful discussions that emerge from the work. More than just a publication, the journal serves as a learning space where participants—many of whom never envisioned themselves as part of the academic world—develop skills in editorial work, multimedia projects, and public engagement.
The themes explored in the journal—such as time, reentry, and resilience—challenge society to see formerly incarcerated individuals beyond the confines of their past convictions. These themes illuminate the complexities of their experiences, highlighting not just the struggles of incarceration but also the possibilities for transformation. For instance, in the essay Time and Prison: Are They Mutually Exclusive? contributor Marvin Wade reflects on how incarceration seeks to strip individuals of autonomy, yet time itself remains a source of agency, growth, and self-discovery. He expresses “Prison is a dark, cold, and unforgiving place, controlled by powers that want to break you mentally, spiritually, and physically. Time, on the other hand, is your friend. It’s controlled by no one. It is there for you to do with it as you please.” In this way, Wade highlights how prison policies deliberately obstruct personal development, yet time, when seized intentionally, can become a tool for transformation. These reflections call for a society that values healing and reintegration over punishment and exclusion.
Through this work, Project Mend operates with an ethic of care, countering the dehumanization of incarceration by recognizing the voices and experiences of its contributors. As Patrick explains, “Mass incarceration takes an incredible toll on people’s lives, erasing their humanity and reducing them to their prison number or crime. That erasure inflicts deep and lasting harm.” As part of the broader abolitionist movement, Project Mend demonstrates how storytelling can be a form of resistance and structural transformation. Rather than simply advocating for the elimination of prisons, the project highlights the importance of investing in alternatives that prioritize creativity and support networks. By centering the perspectives of those directly impacted, and amplifying their voices, Project Mend refuses to let people be defined by a dark shadow of stigma, allowing participants to reclaim their humanity, and emphasizing the need for investment in community-building rather than punitive systems.
Center for Community Alternatives (CCA)
The Center for Community Alternatives (CCA) works to challenge the prison system by advocating for policies that reduce incarceration and providing support to individuals impacted by the criminal legal system. Their efforts center on sentencing reform, and the development of community-based alternatives to incarceration. As Thomas Gant, advocacy and community organizer at CCA, explains, the organization is dedicated to supporting individuals who have served their time and are striving to rebuild their lives, yet continue to face systemic barriers to housing, employment, and education. “We’re helping people who went, did their time in prison, and want to come home and be productive,” he emphasizes, highlighting the urgent need to dismantle policies that perpetuate punishment long after incarceration ends.
A key aspect of CCA’s work is supporting legislative efforts that create pathways to freedom for incarcerated individuals by shifting public perception and legislative priorities away from punishment and toward restoration. Advocates like Thomas highlight the racial and economic injustices embedded in sentencing laws, particularly the legacy of the 1994 Crime Bill and harsh sentencing policies from the War on Drugs era, which have led to excessive sentences and prison overcrowding. Rejecting the notion that justice must come through incarceration, CCA champions measures like the Second Look Act, which allows individuals to petition for resentencing, and the Earned Time Act, which expands opportunities for incarcerated individuals to earn time off their sentences through good behavior, incentivizing personal growth and rehabilitation. As Thomas explains, these reforms aim to “give hope to people who are incarcerated and create real opportunities for transformation.”
CCA’s abolitionist vision goes beyond reducing incarceration—it seeks to dismantle the very structures that make prisons seem necessary. This means not only ending draconian sentencing laws but also transforming the conditions that funnel people into the criminal legal system. This objective is deeply informed by the lived experiences of organizers. Thomas, for instance, was sentenced to 25 years to life at just 21 years old. His time in prison was shaped by harsh sentencing laws that prioritized punishment over rehabilitation, leaving little opportunity for growth, transformation, or a second chance. During his incarceration, he committed himself to education, mentorship, and community work, earning a college degree and developing programs aimed at violence prevention. Reflecting on his journey, he shared, “I wanted to make amends—to do something better and different—which, for me, meant giving back to my community and working to repair the harms I had caused.”
Now, after returning home, Thomas is using his experience to advocate for others still trapped within the system, working to pass legislation that gives incarcerated individuals opportunities for early release and reentry support. As he emphasized, prisons do not rehabilitate; they deprive people of hope, making true reintegration nearly impossible. “Prison right now is not a place that is rehabilitative-driven. It’s more punitive,” he explained, stressing that meaningful change requires investing in education, employment, and community-based support—not cages. By centering those most impacted by mass incarceration and demanding bold policy changes, CCA is not just advocating for reform—it is actively working to build a world where prisons are obsolete.