This update was written by DeAnza Cook, Assistant Professor of History & Leadership at Ohio State and OPEEP faculty member.
P4H is a learning community at the Southeastern Correctional Institution (SCI) in Lancaster, OH.
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We began the new year by settling back into the rhythm of our community with light check‑ins that helped us reconnect after the break. Much of our work so far has focused on preparing to welcome new members. Several people are waiting to join us. Group members emphasized the importance of bringing them in with intention—especially as we continue our collective learning about prison abolition with Angela Davis’s Are Prisons Obsolete?
This conversation led us to revisit our mission and vision for the first time in several years. While parts of the original language still resonate, many felt the overall framing was too academic or too vague. New ideas emerged around emphasizing bridge‑building, encouraging humanization, and creating a glossary to make our commitments more accessible. We plan to refine this foundation as we welcome newcomers this semester. We also discussed opportunities to build connections with external organizations engaged in transformative work aligned with our mission and vision. Black History Month offered a timely moment to revisit our abolitionist praxis as we invite new folks into a shared space that is grounded, evolving, and moving onward and outward.
Our three working groups gathered to reflect on their progress and determine priorities for the months ahead. Together, we are building strong momentum this spring with the goal of finalizing long‑term projects by the end of the summer. The Storytelling Group facilitated a powerful listening session centered on community reflections about healing, accountability, and the impact of liberatory narratives. The Creative Arts Group is finalizing the second issue of the P4H Zine, Prison Abolition & the Importance of Home. Meanwhile, the Abolition Writing Group is gearing up for a full group discussion of our latest book chapter draft, Liberation of the Mind: A Collective Statement by the Philosophy for Humans Learning Community.
As we enter March and begin Are Prisons Obsolete?, we are pairing activity components from The CR Abolition Organizing Toolkit with each chapter of Davis’s seminal text. And we’re setting the stage for a season of deep learning, bold freedom dreaming, and purposeful public engagement.