According to Jesse Olsavsky, vigilance committees in Philadelphia, Boston, and other northern cities constituted the militant, highly organized urban wing of the Underground Railroad. According to Olsavsky, the interviews conducted by vigilance committee members with runaways acted as crucial conduits for information, ideas, and strategies for resistance. (Encore presentation.) Jesse Olsavsky, The Most Absolute Abolition: Runaways, Vigilance … Continued


In the first of a two-show retrospective marking Against the Grain’s twentieth anniversary, C. S. presents excerpts of some of his favorite interviews. Featured are David Hawkes talking about money, magic, and ideology; Laura Kipnis on monogamous coupledom; Theodore Brown on the history of socialism; Juliet Hooker on “democratic loss” and Black activism; and Louise … Continued


The poorest and most vulnerable regularly find themselves at the mercy of the juvenile and criminal justice systems – through policing and detention, of course, but also child removals and child support, property seizure, and probation. Scholar and lawyer Daniel Hatcher illustrates how U.S. courts, prosecutors, sheriffs, and probation departments are generating vast amounts of … Continued