Workshop: ABO + Flying Over Walls, Prison Letter Writing 101

Connect with LGBTQ+ prisoners!  Come learn the basics of writing with people in prison from two prisoner advocacy organizations based in the Bay Area: A.B.O. Comix Collective and Flying Over Walls.

Are you interested in making a difference in the life of an incarcerated person? Are you looking for ways to build bonds of solidarity with queer and trans people across prison walls? Are you curious about the what and the why of the prison industrial complex? We will be writing birthday cards for LGBTQ+ people incarcerated all over the nation, and our collective members will be available to match people with one or more of our hundreds of friends in prison looking for penpals. We'll have all the necessary supplies on hand; all you'll need to participate is an open heart and a willingness to try something new.

A.B.O. Comix is a collective of creators and activists who work to amplify the voices of LGBTQ prisoners through art. By working closely with prison abolitionist and queer advocacy organizations, we aim to keep queer prisoners connected to outside community and help them in the fight toward liberation. The profits we generate go back to incarcerated artists, especially those with little to no resources. Using the DIY ideology of "punk-zine" culture, A.B.O. was formed with the philosophy of mutual support, community and friendship. Our collective is working towards compassionate accountability without relying on the state or its sycophants. A.B.O. believes our interpersonal and societal issues can be solved without locking people in cages. Our mission is to combat the culture that treats humans as disposable and disproportionately criminalizes the most marginalized amongst us. Through artistic activism, we hope to proliferate the idea that a better world means redefining our concepts of justice.  A.B.O. publications will be available at the event. 

Flying Over Walls is a Queer/Trans Prisoner Solidarity Project in the SF Bay Area. Our work towards the abolition of the prison industrial complex is rooted in the experiences and wisdom of currently and formerly incarcerated people. We are outraged by the violence of the prison industrial complex against LGBTQ people, and respond through advocacy, education, direct action, and community building. Our letterwriting & penpal program resists the violent isolation of the prison system by connecting queer and trans prisoners to community members outside of prison.

Connect: 

A.B.O. Comix - Website | A.B.O. Comix - Twitter | A.B.O. Comix - Instagram 

Flying Over Walls - Website | Flying Over Walls - Twitter | Flying Over Walls - Instagram