There are modern-day abolitionists, following in the footsteps of Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth, helping people live better lives and make communities safer. Today’s abolitionists work in their communities to eliminate situations that would otherwise require the police. In addition, they help people who are struggling connect to resources that will improve their lives.

Jason Sole is an abolitionist, and he collaborates with others using mutual aid and transformative justice, which relies on “community members instead of police, the law or government” to address harm done by individuals in the community, hold them accountable and work toward healing. I met Jason about ten years ago when he applied for and received a Bush Fellowship. Jason is an educator, author and co-founder of: 

• Humanize My Hoodie, which challenges “threat perceptions of Black people,” through clothing, art exhibitions, documentary screenings, and workshops.

• Relationships Evolving Possibilities, a network of abolitionists who show up in moments of crisis, to provide support and show “care and respect for the full dignity and autonomy of the people in crisis.”  

In addition, he founded the Institute of Aspiring Abolitionists to provide “political education for community members and practitioners to learn effective ways to improve relationships and reduce harm through courses, workshops, trainings, and coaching.” The Institute’s goal is to educate over 15,000 people in the Upper Midwest. In 2021, a KickStarter campaign raised over $100,000 in two months to support their work.

In 2018, Jason was hired as the first director of the Community-First Public Safety Initiatives for the City of St. Paul. First thing, Jason was out in the community sharing his story of moving beyond gang involvement while maintaining important relationships, being a victim of gun violence and being incarcerated. He also engaged with community members to learn their ideas for a safer St. Paul. A little over a year later though, Jason left because the mayor wasn’t supporting him, his vision or his beliefs and ideas for public safety.

Jason is putting the ideas he onced hoped to implement through the city into his current work with abolitionists across the country.  He is encouraged by how his message and vision for public safety is resonating with so many people, and he feels validated in his work.    

Hope is a practice for abolitionists. Hope is what abolitionists nurture in the people they support in moments of crisis and beyond.  Abolitionists take action. They never lose sight of the humanity of those they support and work with, and abolitionists always meet people where they are, not where they think or want them to be.

Jason is very clear and vocal about his hope to abolish the police and prisons because of their deep roots in slavery.  But he realizes they will not cease to exist in his lifetime. Instead, the work he and other abolitionists are doing is about laying the groundwork for their end in the future. 

In the meantime, Jason continues to engage with and support community members, especially those who were previously incarcerated, to heal and live healthy lives. He also spends time with people currently incarcerated to remind them there are people who care about them.  There are many people who strongly oppose abolishing the police and prisons, but that doesn’t deter abolitionists. As Jason said, Harriet Tubman didn’t wait for approval or consensus to bring enslaved people to freedom.

Thanks to abolitionists the likelihood of a shooting is reduced because two people work through their conflict and make peace. A formerly incarcerated person isn’t at risk for returning to prison, because he has people who believe in him and is excited about his future. A family is healing from domestic violence. Hope is spreading.

Learn More

Please visit a 2021 MinnPost Q & A with Jason Sole and He Views It As Co-Struggling.