“Abolition is about presence, not absence. It’s about building life-affirming institutions.”
-Ruth Wilson Gilmore
Abolition in the Central Valley Livestreams
Abolition in the Central Valley
This stream serves as an introduction what we as panelists all felt abolition in the San Joaquin Valley looks like, beginning to paint a picture for our community for what can be possible.
Speakers: Adrienne Carcha-Diaz, Cristel Jensen, Brenda Angelica Gutierrez Mora, Des Jackson
Abolition + Education
Our first topic was on education and how the education system indoctrinates and sets BIPOC students down the School to Prison Pipeline by allowing police interaction to occur on campuses. We discuss what alternatives there are to policing on campuses.
Speakers: Adrienne Carcha-Diaz, Cristel Jensen, Brenda Angelica Gutierrez Mora, Des Jackson, Tiffany Villagomez, Yadira Hernandez-Figueroa
Environmental Justice + Abolition
Being in the heart of agriculture, we must also face the detriment that Colonization, Oil Corporations, and the Agricultural Industrial Complex has had on the environment and ultimately the health of all of us residing in the Central Valley.
Speakers: Adrienne Carcha-Diaz, Brenda Angelica Gutierrez Mora, Des Jackson, Mario Sifuentez, Pedro Hernandez, Ryan Jensen
Survivorhood, Pleasure + Abolition.
With a change in pace and format, we talk about Survivorhood and Pleasure through poetry.
Speakers: Cristel Jensen, Brenda Angelica Gutierrez Mora, Tiffany Villagomez, Michael Jasso, Michael Dominguez.
Communal Care, Non-Profit Industrial Complex + Capitalism
We live in the intersections of many Industrial Complexes because of Capitalism. We also talk about how because of capitalism, even non-profits perpetuates the systems of oppression they claim to fight against, as well as the importance of Communal Care.
Speakers: Adrienne Carcha-Diaz, Brenda Angelica Gutierrez Mora, Des Jackson
Disability Justice + Abolition
A lot of transformative Justice and abolition ideas come from the disability justice movement, and with the rise of the pandemic in 202, it was essential to talk about disability rights and the importance of communal care, and accessibility.
Speakers: Sarah Marquez, Adrienne Carcha-Diaz, Brenda Angelica Gutierrez Mora, Des Jackson, Cristel Jensen
Body Liberation + Abolition
Continuing the discussions of bodies and ability, we talk must talk about the importance of body liberation. We talk about our personal experiences with existing in fat bodies, femme bodies, and queer bodies, as well as, the implications of body positivity and how it doesn’t necessarily solve fatphobia.
Speakers: Jasmine Leiva, Brenda Angelica Gutierrez Mora, Adrienne Carcha-Diaz, Cristel Jensen
Food Sovereignty + Abolition
Despite living in an agricultural epicenter, the San Joaquin Valley continues to be a food swamp and lacking an adequate food system. We talk about indigenous food systems and how we can grow enough food, and a variety of food to feed our communities.
Speakers: Nicole Celaya, Kassandra Hishida, Adrienne Carcha-Diaz, Rosalba Lopez, Des Jackson
Medical Industrial Complex + Abolition
Often in rural areas, access to quality healthcare is limited or nonexistent. We talk to Dra. Vanessa Avila Ayala about her experience being a family medicine practitioner as well as her experience going to Medical School outside of the United States in Cuba.
Speakers: Vanessa Avila Ayala M.D., Brenda Angelica Gutierrez Mora, Adrienne Carcha-Diaz, Cristel Jensen
Prison Industrial Complex
We cannot talk about abolition without talking about the Prison Industrial Complex(PIC) and Mass Incarceration. The Central Valley is a prison alley in the state of California. We also discuss the ways we can support formerly incarcerated folx and prevention and intervention from the PIC.
Speakers: Hugo Aguilera, Brenda Angelica Gutierrez Mora, Cristel Jensen, Adrienne Carcha-Diaz
Indigenous Sovereignty + Abolition
We are on Stolen Land. As a community living on unceded and colonized Yokuts territory, we must continue to acknowledge to active forms of anti-indigeneity we participate in on the daily basis. Our community members share their story and perspectives as indigenous individuals in their respective communities.
Speakers: Victor Camacho, Yenedit Valencia, Yaynicut Franco, Jordan Alex Williams, Rosalba Lopez, Adriene Carcha-Diaz
Gender Abolition
Gender is such a huge part of our identities and how we move through the world. The invention of gender and the enforcement of a false gender binary, has thrust those who fall outside and in between that binary to suffer, as well as maintain the system of class oppression invented by Capitalism.
Speakers: Emalee Farley, Des Jackson, Brenda Angelica Gutierrez Mora, Adrienne Carcha-Diaz