The official flyer

This week, Columbia Prison Divest is holding a Week of Engagement along with several other schools throughout the country.  From Monday to Friday, CPD will be holding events in a variety of locations around Columbia in order to publicize their cause and to talk about the issues surrounding mass incarceration.

Earlier this semester, a group of students from CPD entered PrezBo’s office and read a letter demanding an end to Columbia’s significant investment in companies involved in the prison industry.

Students Against Mass Incarceration (SAMI), AlterNATIVE Education, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), cIRCa, Radical College Undergraduates Not Tolerating Sexism (Radical C.U.N.T.S.), LUCHA, Columbia Prison Reform & Education Project (PREP), Freedom School, O.G., and Potluck House will also take part in the events of this week in connection with CPD.

Last night, CPD kicked off the week with a discussion on education and liberation entitled “Unequal Opportunity for Miseducation.”  The event was co-facilitated by PREP and AlterNATIVE Education.  While you might have missed that, we’ve got the schedule for rest of the week below:

• Tuesday from 7 to 10 pm in 409 Barnard Hall: screening of “The House I Live In” followed by a movie discussion with Dr. Carl Hart
• Wednesday from 7 to 9 pm in the Malcolm X Lounge: a discussion about criminalization with LUCHA and Columbia Students Against Mass Incarceration.
• Thursday at 3 pm on Low: an information session on maps, mass incarceration, and settler colonialism facilitated by SJP.
• Thursday from 5 to 7 pm in the Malcolm X Lounge: a discussion of sexual violence, punishment, and the possibility of healing in the age of mass incarceration.  This event will be co-facilitated by Radical C.U.N.T.S..
• Friday from 2 to 5 pm on Ancel Plaza: general information about CPD and other groups in New York doing similar work.
• Friday at 7 pm in Potluck House: a kickback cosponsored by O.G. including a discussion of the future of the fight against mass incarceration.

On Monday and Tuesday, CPD will also be handing out flyers and tabling in Lerner and at the Sundial, where you can talk to them if you’re seeking more information about their cause.  CIRCA will also be showcasing student art, music, and spoken word performances around the Sundial as they respond to the prompt, “Questioning Justice.”

You can also stop by the Sundial on Thursday to learn about the CCA, G4S and the GEO group, from which CPD is trying to get Columbia to divest.

It’s sure to be a happening week for CPD, especially around the Sundial and in Lerner.  Be sure to check them out on your way to class and get a little more educated on this important issue.

Flyer via Columbia Prison Divest