On alternatives to incarceration that focus on harm reduction rather than punishment. With Courtney Allen, Policy Director, Maine Recovery Advocacy Project and moderated by Winifred Tate, Professor of Anthropology, Colby College and Director, Maine Drug Policy Lab at Colby College.

The Freedom & Captivity Podcast presents conversations with people at the forefront of abolitionist organizing and visioning in Maine. A new episode is launched weekly during fall 2021. The episodes will cover a broad range of issues, from abolition’s history in Maine to current calls to end youth incarceration; from alternatives to punishment that prioritize harm reduction and a different approach to drug policy to the impact on families of the criminal legal system; from the disproportionate policing experiences by Black and brown people to the use of surveillance to monitor political dissent. The Portland Media Center sponsors the podcast, which is produced by Catherine Besteman, edited by sound engineers Josh Riddle and Dino Raymond, and accompanied by the music of Samuel James.

Stream the episode above or access it via Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, or the Portland Media Center website.

Resources for Further Learning:

– Recovery Advocacy Project

– Michelle Alexander (2010) The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Coloblindness. The New Press.

– After 50 Years of the War on Drugs, ‘What Good is it Doing for US?’ (2021) NPR.