In the last few years, there has been ever increasing media attention on the subject of incarceration, particularly in how those institutions affect transgender inmates. From CeCe McDonald’s imprisonment for defending herself in an assault, to Laverne Cox’s portrayal as Sophia Burset in Orange Is the New Black, to Jennicet Gutierrez’s White House protest of transgender detainee treatment in ICE custody. Today we have two guests joining us to discuss the current state of the American prison system, the concept of abolition and the reforms necessary to protect transgender and gender non-conforming prisoners. Joining me are Mik Kinkead, staff attorney from the Prisoner Justice Project at the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, and Reese Rathjen who is a political organizer and development professional.
Resources:
Prisoner Justice Project: https://srlp.org/about/legal-services/prisoner-justice-project/