Created for people committed to ending the violence of police and prisons—but relevant to all liberation movements—this book affirms the everyday lives of those who persevere in love and struggle in the face of carceral violence and the pain it inflicts. The stories of these grassroots visionaries are at once steadfast, resourceful, and revelatory. A living toolkit for teaching and organizing, illustrations throughout the book provide readers with accessible entry points into the framework of Radical Mothering, supporting its application in real-life educational, organizational, and community contexts.
Nadine Naber is cofounder and research director of Mamas Activating Movements for Abolition and Solidarity (MAMAS) and board member of the Arab American Action Network. She is founder of Liberate Your Research Workshops, professor of Gender and Women’s Studies at UIC, and author/coeditor of books such as Research Can Be Radical, Arab America, Arab and Arab American Feminisms, and The Color of Violence.
Erica Bentley is a codirector of Mamas Activating Movements for Abolition & Solidarity (MAMAS) and a coordinating member of the No New Prisons Illinois campaign. As a harm-reductionist and yoga practitioner organizing with people who are incarcerated, she is deeply committed to co-creating a liberated world in which all people have the opportunity to feel loved, valued, and whole.
Mothers of the Kidnapped is a collective of people within MAMAS who are mothering and caregiving for incarcerated survivors of police torture and/or frame-ups. They are: April Ward, Armanda Shackelford, Bertha Escamilla, Christina Borizov, Denice Broins, Denise Spencer, Regina Russell, Rosemary Cade, Valerie Neal, Esther Hernandez, and Frank Ornelas.