Beyond Prisons is a podcast on prison abolition that elevates the voices of people directly impacted by the system.
Beyond Prisons is a podcast on prison abolition that elevates the voices of people directly impacted by the system.
Beyond Prisons is a podcast that explores incarceration from an abolitionist perspective. We amplify the voices of people directly impacted by the system and seek to tell stories that push us to imagine and work toward a world without prisons.
Launched in 2017 by Kim Wilson and Brian Nam-Sonenstein, Beyond Prisons is an educational and political resource for those new to abolition and those long engaged in movement work.
Kim Wilson is an educator, self-taught artist, and cohost and producer of the Beyond Prisons podcast.
Dr. Wilson holds a Ph.D. in Urban Affairs and Public Policy, a Master’s in Education in Adult and Organizational Development, and a Bachelor’s in Business Administration with a concentration in Human Resources. Her doctoral research focused on the effects of incarceration and reentry on communities. Dr. Wilson has twenty years experience teaching in the humanities and in education.
Kim is the mother of three adult children. Her daughter is doing well. Her two sons are currently sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole (LWOP) in Delaware. Kim speaks candidly about her story and the impact that incarceration has had on her and her family. She uses art as a tool for healing from carceral trauma, and teaches others how to cultivate their own creative practice.
As a freelance consultant and facilitator, Kim has facilitated hundreds of workshops over the years. She works to raise awareness about the conditions in prisons, and organizes with others to build a world without prisons. She writes and speaks on issues related to prison abolition. Her work has appeared in Shadowproof, TruthOut, and Abolition Journal, and her art has been shown in galleries across the country.
Brian Nam-Sonenstein is a journalist living in Portland, Maine. He is the cohost and editor of the Beyond Prisons podcast.
Brian was the Associate Publisher and Campaign Director for Firedoglake.com, where he organized multiple campaigns in support of whistleblowers, drug policy reform, health care reform, social security and protest movements like Occupy.
In 2014, he started Prison Protest as a home for his writing and investigations on US corrections and criminal justice.
In 2015, Brian co-founded the independent journalism outlet Shadowproof.com, where he writes about incarceration and the various issues and movements with which it intersects.
He was also a columnist for the Portland Phoenix from 2017-2019, covering criminal justice news in Portland, Maine.
Brian’s journalism has been published in TruthOut, Solitary Watch, SFBayView, and Prison Legal News.
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