Abolitionist Activist Perceptions of Alternative Justice Solution and Criminalized Deviance
Location
PANEL: Sociology Honors Pt. II
Wilder 101
Moderator: Greggor Mattson
Document Type
Presentation - Open Access
Start Date
5-1-2026 4:30 PM
End Date
5-1-2026 5:30 PM
Abstract
This study investigates how anti-prison activists understand sub-felonies in the context of their work. Past research on criminalized deviance suggests that abolitionist-oriented activists face an uphill battle in moving from the existing to the possible, but are more likely to be lastingly effective when they stick to their ideals. The literature nonetheless overlooks activist-level engagement and framing processes which illuminate both strategies and conditions for abolitionist activism. Toward this purpose, I conducted 13 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with abolitionist activists, getting at individual background, tactics, and ideals in the form of preferred societal responses to hypothetical petty crime instances. Preliminary results suggest that activists employ creative prognostic engagement. Activists also use different motivational tactics. Together, these deflect from one-to-one replacement of criminal-legal policies towards alternative normative frameworks and social resource use. These findings have implications for social movements scholarship, abolitionist criminology, and anti-prison activism.
Keywords:
Sociology, Social movements, Abolition, Deviance
Recommended Citation
Rosen, Ethan, "Abolitionist Activist Perceptions of Alternative Justice Solution and Criminalized Deviance" (2026). Research Symposium. 37.
https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/researchsymp/2026/presentations/37
Major
Sociology; Politics
Award
Jerome Davis Research Fund
Project Mentor(s)
Alexander B. Kinney, Sociology
Veljko Vujačić, Sociology
2026
Abolitionist Activist Perceptions of Alternative Justice Solution and Criminalized Deviance
PANEL: Sociology Honors Pt. II
Wilder 101
Moderator: Greggor Mattson
This study investigates how anti-prison activists understand sub-felonies in the context of their work. Past research on criminalized deviance suggests that abolitionist-oriented activists face an uphill battle in moving from the existing to the possible, but are more likely to be lastingly effective when they stick to their ideals. The literature nonetheless overlooks activist-level engagement and framing processes which illuminate both strategies and conditions for abolitionist activism. Toward this purpose, I conducted 13 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with abolitionist activists, getting at individual background, tactics, and ideals in the form of preferred societal responses to hypothetical petty crime instances. Preliminary results suggest that activists employ creative prognostic engagement. Activists also use different motivational tactics. Together, these deflect from one-to-one replacement of criminal-legal policies towards alternative normative frameworks and social resource use. These findings have implications for social movements scholarship, abolitionist criminology, and anti-prison activism.
