Prison and policing abolition might seem like a radical idea now, but we have the power to make it a mainstream one. Learn from a panel of abolition experts how fan activists can become abolition advocates.

KRIS HENDERSON, AMISTAD LAW

Kris Henderson is the Executive Director of Amistad Law Project. They grew up in East Orange, New Jersey-- a majority Black, working class community. Their educational career began in East Orange's underfunded schools, continued at a private Christian School and led to boarding school in New England for high school. Their diverse educational experiences and the realization that a quality education is possible but often incredibly expensive, led them to work towards making sure we all have what we need. They are a movement lawyer, a co-founder of Amistad and a co-founding member of the Coalition to Abolish Death By Incarceration. They are on the steering committee of Free The Ballot! Incarcerated Voter Family Network. They are a 2018 Law for Black Lives and Movement Law Lab Legal Innovators Fellow and a 2019 Soros Justice Fellow.

NIKKI GRANT, AMISTAD LAW

Nikki Grant is Amistad Law Project’s Policy Director and co-founder. She is the proud daughter of Jamaican immigrants and grew up in a tightly-knit, working class West Indian community in Orlando, Florida. As a young person, she witnessed poverty, racial segregation and inequitable schools in her community, as well as her father’s disabling chronic illness. She was inspired by the demonstration of care by primarily Black women neighbors and church family to work towards social equity through a Black feminist lens. Nikki is a movement lawyer, Courtwatch Organizer for the Judge Accountability Table, and a founding member of the Coalition to Abolish Death by Incarceration.   

NEIL PHELPS, ORGANIZING EMPOWERMENT

An organizer, conservationist, bikewrench, and occasional barista committed to work that furthers self-determination, environmental reparation, and access to abundance in communities of color. Neil lives, works, and is in love with Saginaw, Michigan. He’s overjoyed to be part of organizing efforts all over the nation, as part of Organizing Empowerment’s training team.

MODERATOR: KATIE BOWERS

Katie (she/her) has been leading Fandom Forward’s campaigns since 2013, first as a volunteer and then as Senior Staff after joining the team in 2015. Katie has played an integral role in some of our most iconic campaigns, and her commitment to relational organizing and community-centered leadership has played an essential role in shaping the organization into what it is today. An avid reader with a desire to do good, Katie has been integrating her love of pop culture and social justice through youth organizing initiatives and experiential education since 2005.