Question 1
Khan paints the picture of her family being poor and set out on the outskirts of the society where life is tough and somewhat risky. The neighborhood is nothing compared to that of the whites, thus bringing out the racism issue that she seeks to communicate to the reader. Both boys and girls herein get rough treatment from the police whenever they are found in the wrong.
Question 2
Tamir was a 12-year old who was shot by the police despite his cooperation when he was asked to raise his hands. Mike Brown was also shot after a confrontation with the police, who still fired at him when he raised his hands to surrender. Khan’s memoir adds a perspective to these deaths in that khan is also a child who is subjected to such risks as a result of the affluent racism.
Question 3
Angela Davis says that abolition is a feminist demand in that it is looking out to see change and progress that intertwines the struggles and issues that are faced in everyday society. She argues that it goes beyond the idea of merely stripping off the police of their budgets and rendering them powerless. She goes on to say that the aspect of abolition is aimed at the greater good of the people of the society in that the money reduced or deducted from the police budget is meant to be channeled towards activities and services such as mental health counselors. It is to shift funding to education, housing, recreation, and many other things that are to create safety and security. Abolition, in this case, is not primarily a negative case but rather a chance to re-envision and to bring about change that is meant to cause a new influence on how the society views the everyday issues of life beyond mere gender questions.
Abolition feminism differs from carceral feminism in that the latter assumes issues such as violence towards women can be resolved by using police force. The former deals with the issue of decriminalization, with the emphasis that the societal aspects that challenge the security and the safety of the people fall in the bracket of crime.
Question 4
Davis explains that ‘Neoliberal’ logic assumes that the fundamental unit of society is the individual.’ What she means by this is the fact that abstract individuals are the ones who parade the media and the limelight with the aim of fighting for liberalization. This is to say that the individuals categorically fight for what affects them personally. She argues that what is more fundamental on how the society works, is the institutional barriers that cannot be brought down by individual efforts. She references WEB Dubois on this point to elaborate the aspect of wholesome perspective as opposed to individuality. She uses his argument on restructuring of the post-slavery society to explain the idea of institutionalism being more fundamental than individualism.
QUESTION 5
Davis believes that the dismantling of statues and other symbols of racism is uncalled for and does not serve any purpose. She explains that this would only act to erase history but not solve the racism issues that are deeply rooted in the society. She goes on to say that the relationship between racism and capitalism lies in the fact that most of the capital circulating now is part of what was created by the slaves who happened to be black people. I agree with her opinion on destruction of the facilities that have been used to fuel social punishments so as to give room for the eradication of racism in its entirety.