“Tear Down The Walls” is the rallying cry of abolitionists around the world. For those people who understand the harm caused by prisons, the concept of dismantling the prison-industrial-complex seems like the most logical conclusion. But there are still those who cannot imagine a world without prisons. That is why, this March, members of the Empty Cages Collective will be traveling the country to host workshops on the prison-industrial-complex and prison abolition.

There are currently 85,690 people held in prison, not including people detained under the Mental Health Act, in Secure Children’s homes or in Immigration detention. The prison population of Britain has doubled over the last twenty years.

Not only do we have the highest prison population per capita in Europe, but we also have the most privatised prison system with 11.6% (over 10,000) of prisoners held in private prisons. Plans are already under way to build the country’s first “super prison” in Wrexham that would hold 2,000 people alone.

It is clear that we are seeing a growing trend towards an ever expanding prison-industrial-complex similar to the one we see today in the United States. The United States has 25% of the global prison population despite only being home to 4% of the world’s population.

Now is the perfect time to strike and stem the growth of the prison-industrial-complex in our country. Though the drive towards privatisation and increased incarceration has already begun it is not too late to organise to stop it.

The aim of the Tear Down The Walls Tour is to highlight the importance of prison abolition as part of the wider struggle against oppression and spread literacy around the prison society. We will also be promoting our project, Prison Abolition 2014, which is a year of action & organising against the prison-industrial-complex.

Join us this March and help us organise to Tear Down The Walls and create healthy alternatives to incarceration!

Dates:

Sunday 23rd March:
Bristol, Kebele Social Centre, 14 Robertson Road, Easton BS5 6JY

Monday 24th March:
Manchester, The Bunker, 3 Birch Polygon, Manchester, M14 5HX

Tuesday 25th March:
Edinburgh, Room G5, St. Margaret’s House, 151 London Road

Wednesday 26th March:
Glasgow, Fred Paton Centre, 19 Carringdon Street, Glasgow, G4 9AJ

Thursday 27th March:
Liverpool, 121, John Foster Building, LJMU, 80-90 Mount Pleasant, Liverpool L3 5UZ

For more information about any of the dates, please e-mail us at:  info@prisonabolition.org