Week 9: Review and Closing – 8 to Abolition and Next Steps

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Video Introduction

Video Introduction Transcript

In this final lesson, we invite you to learn about specific steps you can take to change and challenge policing in your community. You’ll learn about 8 to Abolition, an organization that works to reduce police violence and influence. You’ll also be introduced to resources that can help you and your study group participate in the abolition movement by connecting to other organizations already doing this work, or beginning a new collective in your area. The resource page provides connections to other Mennonite congregations engaging in abolition work. 

Opening Ritual

Facilitator invites participants to take one minute in silence to think through the previous lessons.

Then invite participants to share the following:

• • One word that describes how they came to the class.
  • One word that describes how they describe their experience in the class.

Lesson

Activity 1

Facilitator brings up the 8toAbolition.

Scroll down to where it displays the eight policies in boxes. Invite each person in the class to read aloud one of the initiatives by clicking on each box and reading the descriptions.

Facilitator offers these questions for discussion. 

1. 1. Where is this city in enacting reforms?
      
   2. Do you know if these reforms are happening in your city? 
   3. What would it take to enact these reforms in your area? What do you perceive as the barriers?

Activity 2

In this activity, you will look up and display your local police budget.

To do this, you can visit the Cost of Police website from the Action Center on Race & the Economy and enter your city, or enter your state to find the city closest to you.

As a group, make a “wish list” of how you would reallocate this money for the issues most important to you.

Facilitator invites reflection on this discussion question: 

• • Based on what you’ve learned in this class, how would those efforts go towards a world without policing?

Activity 3

Facilitator leads discussion with these questions.

1. 1. As a group, talk about the area or topic that most interested you from these lessons.
   2. What are concrete steps your church or community could take towards enacting real change in policing in your city or town?
   3. What groups are already doing this work?

Next Steps 

• • If you already have organizations and activists working in the police abolition movement, discuss steps for how you can connect with them.
  • If your community is new to this work, utilize one of the following toolkits from Interrupting Criminalization: Research in Action to begin your journey: Link to toolkits
  • Find connections to other Mennonite congregations engaging in abolition work on our resource page.