Abolishing Prisons with Jessica Evans

We often shrug off the brutality of prisons as regrettable, yet ultimately inevitable. But the recent rise of prison abolitionist movements prompts a question: are prisons obsolete? Can we imagine more humane solutions that address the root causes of crime and promote true rehabilitation? Dr. Jessica Evans is an Assistant Professor in Criminology at Toronto Metropolitan University, who researches the causes, conditions, and consequences of incarceration in Canada. She is also active in the prison abolition movement as a co-founder of the Toronto Prisoners’ Rights Project. In this conversation, Jessica explains the history and current landscape of incarceration in Canada and presents the case for prison abolition.