About Communities of Resistance

Communities of Resistance (CoRe) is a new grassroots initiative that aims to stop prison expansion in Britain. We oppose building new prisons, because prisons do not make our communities safe. Our long-term aim is to build a vibrant and broad-based movement to end the violence of incarceration. We support and believe in developing effective, community-based solutions to social problems that do not rely on models of imprisonment.

CoRe Organizing Principles

1) Abolitionist Stance: We are part of an international movement that believes prisons are not a solution to social harms, but part of the problem. We cannot support work that extends the life, or increases the number, of prisons or perpetuates the Prison Industrial Complex (PIC)** worldwide.

2) Inclusive and accessible: We will reach out to all who are affected by prisons and social problems. We will explain our campaign in terms mast easily understood and with thought given to those who may have particular difficulties in participating.

3) Prioritise involvement by, and direction from, communities most affected by the prison industrial complex:*** Our campaign is based in our communities and must be guided by the needs of the community, particularity those most affected by prisons and social problems. We will help people to organise, inform others, share skills and gain support in struggles against imprisonment.

4) Grassroots and non-hierarchical model of organising: We do not have leaders, a hierarchy or make top-down decisions and all decisions within our organising efforts are made by consensus.

5) Politically independent: We are not aligned with any political party or group.


**Prison Industrial Complex (PIC)
The prison industrial complex (PIC) is the network of governmental and private interests that uses prisons as a response to social, political and economic problems. The PIC includes all institutions, government branches, agencies, NGOs and businesses that have a financial, organisational or political interest in maintaining the prison system, such as the Home Office, Border Agency, security corporations, prison construction companies, surveillance technology vendors, etc.

***Communities most affected by the PIC
Everyone is affected by the violence of the prison industrial complex (PIC). However, by using the term “communities most affected” we recognise that particular groups of people are disproportionately targeted by, and bear the brunt of, the prison industrial complex. By communities most affected, we refer to groups that are more likely to be criminalized, regulated and punished through the PIC. In the current social, political and economic context in Britain, communities most affected includes, but is not limited to: people of colour/non-white people, including Blacks and Asians, Muslims, Roma/traveller communities and immigrants; youth; poor and working class people; sex workers; queer, transgender and gender non-conforming people; drug users; people with learning disabilities; people with addictions and mental health issues; psychiatric survivors; and political activists.

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