A Community Vision on Police Abolition: Lessons on Theorizing from Below

As police abolition enters mainstream discourse, there remains a paucity of research examining how affected communities themselves are theorizing, understanding, and practicing abolition. This paper addresses that lacuna through an analysis of the Coalition to Reimagine Public Safety, convened to produce a community-driven vision for public health and safety. Through brainstorming and research led by affected community members, the community vision represents abolition democracy as theorized “from below” by organic intellectuals directly impacted by criminal legal practices. It demonstrates how affected communities are producing abolitionist theory while urging sociologists to participate in movements challenging erroneous understandings of crime, safety, and health.