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All This Safety Is Killing Us: Health Justice Beyond Prisons, Police, and Borders
A multi-discipline, multimedia guide to abolition through the lens of healthcare and medicine – featuring writings and artwork from 10+ incarcerated and post-detention activists
Exposing how marginalized communities are vilified by “carceral safety” systems, educators and health justice advocates Carlos Martinez and Ronica Mukerjee call for a radical break with reformist strategies in favor of ones grounded in grassroots organizing and abolition
Prisons, border security, and police forces are meant to protect. Yet for the most vulnerable, they more often cause harm. Funded in response to a never ending “crime wave,” people with disabilities, Black and brown people, trans and queer people, people with mental health diagnoses, and survivors of trauma and abuse are targeted by punitive carceral policies. These policies perpetuate physical, psychological, and intergenerational harm. And they don’t keep anyone safe.
All This Safety is Killing Us reflects this view, combining political strategy with evidence-based medical and social science research to envision a post-carceral society.
With contributions from scholars, activists and artists, All This Safety is Killing Us marks a radical break from punitive frameworks. Special features
Contributions from nurses, doctors, doulas, public health workers, physical therapists, acupuncturists, and disability justice workers.Woodcuts, comics, mini-zines, infographics, and drawings by community activists, queer and trans/gender expansive-focused writers, current prisoners, deportees, and survivors of state-sanctioned violence.Interviews with leading abolition and health justice scholars.
Bringing scholarly research into public conversation, this book shows that those working within public health and medical fields have a critical role to play in creating a truly safe and flourishing society.
Exposing how marginalized communities are vilified by “carceral safety” systems, educators and health justice advocates Carlos Martinez and Ronica Mukerjee call for a radical break with reformist strategies in favor of ones grounded in grassroots organizing and abolition
Prisons, border security, and police forces are meant to protect. Yet for the most vulnerable, they more often cause harm. Funded in response to a never ending “crime wave,” people with disabilities, Black and brown people, trans and queer people, people with mental health diagnoses, and survivors of trauma and abuse are targeted by punitive carceral policies. These policies perpetuate physical, psychological, and intergenerational harm. And they don’t keep anyone safe.
All This Safety is Killing Us reflects this view, combining political strategy with evidence-based medical and social science research to envision a post-carceral society.
With contributions from scholars, activists and artists, All This Safety is Killing Us marks a radical break from punitive frameworks. Special features
Contributions from nurses, doctors, doulas, public health workers, physical therapists, acupuncturists, and disability justice workers.Woodcuts, comics, mini-zines, infographics, and drawings by community activists, queer and trans/gender expansive-focused writers, current prisoners, deportees, and survivors of state-sanctioned violence.Interviews with leading abolition and health justice scholars.
Bringing scholarly research into public conversation, this book shows that those working within public health and medical fields have a critical role to play in creating a truly safe and flourishing society.
383 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 15, 2025
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456 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
February 21, 2025
I chose to read this as an advanced reader copy because as someone going into medicine and obtaining a public health degree, it’s vital to understand how the systems we practice in perpetuate harm and vilify communities and populations. As someone who has worked in the carceral healthcare system in one of the largest state prisons in the US, I have also seen the abject and horrible neglect, abuse, violence, racism, sexism, homophobia, and transphobia that occurs at the juncture between medical care and the carceral state. So needless to say, I agree that the next path forward is abolition of these states that perpetuate these deleterious and unjust systems. The work done by the editors and various chapter authors to find correlating research and fact dissemination is exemplary and should be a used as a great example of the intersectionality between public health theory and public health practice. By taking the lived experiences of every member representative of these systems, you get a more nuanced and structured approach that all argue for the same thing - abolition of our so called “safety” systems, which are merely punitive measures for those individuals who do not meet the normative demands of “success” or “productivity.”
In reading this book, I had two critiques of it. The first and largest critiques is that while this book features a lot of carefully done research and pointing to real world examples of abolitionist movements and communities, they’re not nationwide. The abolitionist movements described here and the authorship base are primarily in California and New York - two “blue” or “liberal” states. If you’re going to talk about abolition and amplify the voices of the marginalized, you have to talk about things happening all across the country. The authors/editors make no mention of southern states like Texas - which has the second largest state prison system, the TDCJ - which has so many underreported crimes against humanity for their inhumane treatment of individuals in the system. I was expecting at least one of the chapters on the carceral system to address Texas’ abject carceral system - and all there was was one paragraph in the last chapter that was quite paltry.
This marginalization of southern states and the work that abolitionists are doing in southern states is a chronic issue I see sometimes in advocacy efforts - it’s not enough to amplify what is being done in a liberal state, you need to take care to mention the states that are hit the hardest with racism, gerrymandering, school to prison pipelines, criminalization of drugs, and so much more. There is a whole chapter devoted to abolishing ICE transfers - and yet the chapter focuses on California again, and not Texas.
My second critique was a more particular argument made in the last chapter. The primary authors make it clear that medicine and the US medical system is built on racist foundations - I do not argue that in the least. However, when they make the argument that black, Latinx, and indigenous populations are the least represented in medicine, they take a slight at Asian populations - claiming that they are overrepresented. Now I’m not saying that that isn’t true - but did anyone stop to think about why that is? The movement of Asian populations into medicine has everything to do with racism, from things such as the model minority myth to how we perpetuate stereotypes against Asian culture and their commitment to academic excellence. I merely wish the primary authors had taken a little more time to address why the system is oversaturated with Asian populations instead of having them get caught in the cross fire.
In all, I think this is a really strong work with some shortcomings, like most works out there. But I think this is a flaw of the system, not the individuals. I can easily see this book being used in academic or community it y book clubs, focus groups, or even a textbook for academic medicine, public health, social work, and community partners. I know that despite my critiques which I have levied here, I will still be purchasing this book and recommending it when it is released. My thanks to NetGalley, North Atlantic books, and the authors for this electronic advanced reader copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.
In reading this book, I had two critiques of it. The first and largest critiques is that while this book features a lot of carefully done research and pointing to real world examples of abolitionist movements and communities, they’re not nationwide. The abolitionist movements described here and the authorship base are primarily in California and New York - two “blue” or “liberal” states. If you’re going to talk about abolition and amplify the voices of the marginalized, you have to talk about things happening all across the country. The authors/editors make no mention of southern states like Texas - which has the second largest state prison system, the TDCJ - which has so many underreported crimes against humanity for their inhumane treatment of individuals in the system. I was expecting at least one of the chapters on the carceral system to address Texas’ abject carceral system - and all there was was one paragraph in the last chapter that was quite paltry.
This marginalization of southern states and the work that abolitionists are doing in southern states is a chronic issue I see sometimes in advocacy efforts - it’s not enough to amplify what is being done in a liberal state, you need to take care to mention the states that are hit the hardest with racism, gerrymandering, school to prison pipelines, criminalization of drugs, and so much more. There is a whole chapter devoted to abolishing ICE transfers - and yet the chapter focuses on California again, and not Texas.
My second critique was a more particular argument made in the last chapter. The primary authors make it clear that medicine and the US medical system is built on racist foundations - I do not argue that in the least. However, when they make the argument that black, Latinx, and indigenous populations are the least represented in medicine, they take a slight at Asian populations - claiming that they are overrepresented. Now I’m not saying that that isn’t true - but did anyone stop to think about why that is? The movement of Asian populations into medicine has everything to do with racism, from things such as the model minority myth to how we perpetuate stereotypes against Asian culture and their commitment to academic excellence. I merely wish the primary authors had taken a little more time to address why the system is oversaturated with Asian populations instead of having them get caught in the cross fire.
In all, I think this is a really strong work with some shortcomings, like most works out there. But I think this is a flaw of the system, not the individuals. I can easily see this book being used in academic or community it y book clubs, focus groups, or even a textbook for academic medicine, public health, social work, and community partners. I know that despite my critiques which I have levied here, I will still be purchasing this book and recommending it when it is released. My thanks to NetGalley, North Atlantic books, and the authors for this electronic advanced reader copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.
March 14, 2025
I received an ARC for review
Content Warnings: This is a nonfiction book that touches on: Police Violence, Drug Use, Death/Dismemberment, Violence, Trauma, etc.
All This Safety is Killing Us is an incredibly important and timely book, especially in the current climate. Through a powerful blend of data, personal anecdotes, interviews, and art, the authors effectively illuminate how systems meant to protect us—such as law enforcement, border control, and social services—are, in fact, perpetuating harm. The book delves into a range of critical issues, including the prison industrial complex, the war on drugs, border patrol, and even family protective services. By connecting these systems, it shows how they disproportionately impact marginalized communities, often in ways that were not originally intended.
One of the key strengths of this book is its nuanced approach. Rather than demonizing these institutions, it takes a step back to explore their origins. The authors trace the history behind each of these systems, showing how they were initially created with certain intentions—protection, order, and safety—but because of biases these systems have always been against the very populations they were meant to serve whilst using the propaganda of "order" so communities remain compliance. This historical context provides a deeper understanding of how these systems came to be and why they often fail to protect those who need help the most.
Additionally, the book places a strong emphasis on restorative justice as an alternative framework. Restorative justice seeks to repair harm through dialogue, understanding, and healing, as opposed to punitive measures. This is particularly important in today’s world, where we seem to be experiencing an "anti-empathy epidemic." With the pressures of economic hardship, such as inflation, and the difficulties posed by these institutional systems, people are increasingly looking out for themselves. In this context, the book underscores the necessity of building community, practicing empathy, and fostering solidarity, even during tough times. As the author wisely points out, while people will inevitably do wrong, the focus should be on finding ways to mitigate harm, not simply punish it.
However, the book is not without its critiques. The final chapter, while attempting to shed light on underrepresentation in medicine—specifically the lack of Black and Latine doctors—falls short in a few ways. In an effort to discuss this underrepresentation, the author touches on the model minority myth regarding the AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) community, suggesting that the AAPI community is overrepresented in the medical field. This assertion, though intended to highlight a disparity, inadvertently feeds into harmful stereotypes that don’t fully capture the nuances of this issue.
From my own experience working with an AAPI community health organization, I can attest that the reality is more complex. There are not as many AAPI doctors as one might assume, and language barriers due to forced assimilation create a shortage of providers who can effectively serve AAPI communities. Many AAPI individuals do not speak the languages of their parents or grandparents, which further exacerbates healthcare access issues. This gap in representation and accessibility should be addressed with more sensitivity, ensuring that all communities are represented accurately and without perpetuating oversimplified stereotypes.
In conclusion, All This Safety is Killing Us is a must-read, especially for anyone interested in understanding the complexities of modern systems of power and protection. It challenges readers to think critically about the unintended consequences of these systems and urges a shift toward restorative justice and community-based solutions. While the book provides a comprehensive analysis, it could have benefited from a more nuanced approach in its treatment of the AAPI community in the final chapter. Nonetheless, its broader message is one of profound importance, especially in today’s challenging socio-political landscape.
Content Warnings: This is a nonfiction book that touches on: Police Violence, Drug Use, Death/Dismemberment, Violence, Trauma, etc.
All This Safety is Killing Us is an incredibly important and timely book, especially in the current climate. Through a powerful blend of data, personal anecdotes, interviews, and art, the authors effectively illuminate how systems meant to protect us—such as law enforcement, border control, and social services—are, in fact, perpetuating harm. The book delves into a range of critical issues, including the prison industrial complex, the war on drugs, border patrol, and even family protective services. By connecting these systems, it shows how they disproportionately impact marginalized communities, often in ways that were not originally intended.
One of the key strengths of this book is its nuanced approach. Rather than demonizing these institutions, it takes a step back to explore their origins. The authors trace the history behind each of these systems, showing how they were initially created with certain intentions—protection, order, and safety—but because of biases these systems have always been against the very populations they were meant to serve whilst using the propaganda of "order" so communities remain compliance. This historical context provides a deeper understanding of how these systems came to be and why they often fail to protect those who need help the most.
Additionally, the book places a strong emphasis on restorative justice as an alternative framework. Restorative justice seeks to repair harm through dialogue, understanding, and healing, as opposed to punitive measures. This is particularly important in today’s world, where we seem to be experiencing an "anti-empathy epidemic." With the pressures of economic hardship, such as inflation, and the difficulties posed by these institutional systems, people are increasingly looking out for themselves. In this context, the book underscores the necessity of building community, practicing empathy, and fostering solidarity, even during tough times. As the author wisely points out, while people will inevitably do wrong, the focus should be on finding ways to mitigate harm, not simply punish it.
However, the book is not without its critiques. The final chapter, while attempting to shed light on underrepresentation in medicine—specifically the lack of Black and Latine doctors—falls short in a few ways. In an effort to discuss this underrepresentation, the author touches on the model minority myth regarding the AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) community, suggesting that the AAPI community is overrepresented in the medical field. This assertion, though intended to highlight a disparity, inadvertently feeds into harmful stereotypes that don’t fully capture the nuances of this issue.
From my own experience working with an AAPI community health organization, I can attest that the reality is more complex. There are not as many AAPI doctors as one might assume, and language barriers due to forced assimilation create a shortage of providers who can effectively serve AAPI communities. Many AAPI individuals do not speak the languages of their parents or grandparents, which further exacerbates healthcare access issues. This gap in representation and accessibility should be addressed with more sensitivity, ensuring that all communities are represented accurately and without perpetuating oversimplified stereotypes.
In conclusion, All This Safety is Killing Us is a must-read, especially for anyone interested in understanding the complexities of modern systems of power and protection. It challenges readers to think critically about the unintended consequences of these systems and urges a shift toward restorative justice and community-based solutions. While the book provides a comprehensive analysis, it could have benefited from a more nuanced approach in its treatment of the AAPI community in the final chapter. Nonetheless, its broader message is one of profound importance, especially in today’s challenging socio-political landscape.
April 23, 2025
“Just as health justice will not be achieved without abolishing harmful punitive systems, the abolitionist project will require the involvement of health practitioners to support the development for new structures of care, healing, and solidarity outside the reach of prisons, police, and borders.”
Thank you to NetGalley and North Atlantic Books for the eARC! This book was released in the US on April 15, 2025.
Abolition asks: what if no one were disposable? What if healing required care, not cages? All This Safety Is Killing Us is a blistering, brilliant response to these questions—a collection of essays and visual art that rejects the myth of safety through surveillance and exposes the carceral scaffolding propping up American healthcare. Edited by Carlos Martinez and Ronica Mukerjee, and peer-reviewed by its contributors, the anthology reimagines what it means to be healthy in a world obsessed with punishment.
From ER trauma bays to prison infirmaries, from mandated reporting to border militarization, these essays speak with clarity and fire. Contributors—clinicians, organizers, incarcerated activists—trace how policing, prisons, and the family policing system (FPS) not only fail to create safety but actively produce harm, disease, and death. This is health justice work rooted in abolition, where care is not conditional and survival is not up for debate.
Mihir Chaudhary’s standout piece on the presence of police in trauma bays captures the dissonance between healing and surveillance. Her observations—clinical yet gutting—detail how law enforcement disrupts care, violates patient confidentiality, and deepens trauma. In another standout, Naomi Schoenfeld and Jenn Heresteen interrogate carceral psychiatry, revealing how even “non-police” crisis responses often replicate the same punitive logic.
The essays are as intersectional as they are uncompromising. Leroy F. Moore Jr.'s reflections on disability justice, and the critical work by Jenna Heath, Elizabeth Hur, and Nicole Mitchell Chadwick on the FPS and criminalization of pregnancy, lay bare the racialized, gendered, and ableist foundations of the carceral medical system. Again and again, we are asked: how can anyone heal in a place built to punish?
What emerges is a call—not just to dismantle, but to dream. Abolition here is not absence, but presence: of mutual aid, of trust, of systems that love instead of surveil. All This Safety Is Killing Us is not just a book I’ll recommend—it’s a manifesto I’ll press into the hands of every healthcare worker I know. Urgent, visionary, and devastatingly clear, this collection is abolitionist medicine, healing justice, and harm reduction at their most necessary.
📖 Read this if you love: abolitionist frameworks in healthcare, radical critiques of carceral systems, or the works of Mariame Kaba, Dorothy Roberts, and Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha.
🔑 Key Themes: Carceral Medicine and Medical Racism, Disability Justice and Reproductive Autonomy, Policing and Public Health, Abolition as Healing and Care.
Content / Trigger Warnings: Police Violence (minor), Racism (minor), Murder (minor), Gun Violence (minor), Death of Parent (minor), Child Abuse (moderate), Incest (minor), Domestic Abuse (minor), Pedophilia (minor), Sexual Harassment (minor), Alcoholism (minor), Pandemic (minor), Death (minor), Medical Trauma (moderate), Sexual Assault (minor), Medical Content (moderate), Drug Use (minor), Drug Abuse (minor), Mental Illness (moderate), Forced Institutionalization (minor).
Thank you to NetGalley and North Atlantic Books for the eARC! This book was released in the US on April 15, 2025.
Abolition asks: what if no one were disposable? What if healing required care, not cages? All This Safety Is Killing Us is a blistering, brilliant response to these questions—a collection of essays and visual art that rejects the myth of safety through surveillance and exposes the carceral scaffolding propping up American healthcare. Edited by Carlos Martinez and Ronica Mukerjee, and peer-reviewed by its contributors, the anthology reimagines what it means to be healthy in a world obsessed with punishment.
From ER trauma bays to prison infirmaries, from mandated reporting to border militarization, these essays speak with clarity and fire. Contributors—clinicians, organizers, incarcerated activists—trace how policing, prisons, and the family policing system (FPS) not only fail to create safety but actively produce harm, disease, and death. This is health justice work rooted in abolition, where care is not conditional and survival is not up for debate.
Mihir Chaudhary’s standout piece on the presence of police in trauma bays captures the dissonance between healing and surveillance. Her observations—clinical yet gutting—detail how law enforcement disrupts care, violates patient confidentiality, and deepens trauma. In another standout, Naomi Schoenfeld and Jenn Heresteen interrogate carceral psychiatry, revealing how even “non-police” crisis responses often replicate the same punitive logic.
The essays are as intersectional as they are uncompromising. Leroy F. Moore Jr.'s reflections on disability justice, and the critical work by Jenna Heath, Elizabeth Hur, and Nicole Mitchell Chadwick on the FPS and criminalization of pregnancy, lay bare the racialized, gendered, and ableist foundations of the carceral medical system. Again and again, we are asked: how can anyone heal in a place built to punish?
What emerges is a call—not just to dismantle, but to dream. Abolition here is not absence, but presence: of mutual aid, of trust, of systems that love instead of surveil. All This Safety Is Killing Us is not just a book I’ll recommend—it’s a manifesto I’ll press into the hands of every healthcare worker I know. Urgent, visionary, and devastatingly clear, this collection is abolitionist medicine, healing justice, and harm reduction at their most necessary.
📖 Read this if you love: abolitionist frameworks in healthcare, radical critiques of carceral systems, or the works of Mariame Kaba, Dorothy Roberts, and Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha.
🔑 Key Themes: Carceral Medicine and Medical Racism, Disability Justice and Reproductive Autonomy, Policing and Public Health, Abolition as Healing and Care.
Content / Trigger Warnings: Police Violence (minor), Racism (minor), Murder (minor), Gun Violence (minor), Death of Parent (minor), Child Abuse (moderate), Incest (minor), Domestic Abuse (minor), Pedophilia (minor), Sexual Harassment (minor), Alcoholism (minor), Pandemic (minor), Death (minor), Medical Trauma (moderate), Sexual Assault (minor), Medical Content (moderate), Drug Use (minor), Drug Abuse (minor), Mental Illness (moderate), Forced Institutionalization (minor).
December 10, 2024
Thank you so much NetGalley and the publisher, North Atlantic Books, for providing me an opportunity to read this book. It was fascinating and also extremely eye-opening about so many topics that my privilege allows me to not encounter, unlike so many other people in this country. I was especially interested in the chapters about prison and what occurs in hospitals related to family protective services and police presence in places where you are seeking help. As someone with a counseling background and a base level understanding of how trauma effects the body and mind, this book ties together how our entire thought process behind methods of safety are actually harmful vs. helpful. It is no secret that black and brown individuals have been harmed in so many ways for generations, but this poignant book peels back the layers on everyday encounters that many of us with privilege may have and never think twice about. But for a black, brown, trans, or disabled person, that same interaction with a medical professional, police officer, social worker, etc. could mean life or death.
I am so grateful to have had a chance to read this.
I am so grateful to have had a chance to read this.
April 12, 2025
***Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review***
As with any collection with multiple contributors, this one included a lot of variation that allows for a wide audience appeal. From activists to medical professionals to the formerly or presently incarcerated, the perspectives in this book are experienced and informed in ways that help them make their case that carceral systems are not and have never been spaces for health justice. Some of the writing is very academic while others are personal and full of anecdotes. There is art interspersed as another form of expression. If the goal was to help create a vision of a post-carceral society, I think the book did a decent job. The application of this knowledge and experience was addressed to some degree, but I wouldn't mind another edition focusing on that!
As with any collection with multiple contributors, this one included a lot of variation that allows for a wide audience appeal. From activists to medical professionals to the formerly or presently incarcerated, the perspectives in this book are experienced and informed in ways that help them make their case that carceral systems are not and have never been spaces for health justice. Some of the writing is very academic while others are personal and full of anecdotes. There is art interspersed as another form of expression. If the goal was to help create a vision of a post-carceral society, I think the book did a decent job. The application of this knowledge and experience was addressed to some degree, but I wouldn't mind another edition focusing on that!
July 31, 2025
thanks to netgalley for providing me an e-arc of this book!
this book focused on how all of the resources we spend on "making us safe" actually do nothing of the sort and only further harms all of us, especially marginalized groups. this was an important read for me who works in the healthcare system, at a state hospital. while many who work in the medical field want to to do good, those systems continue to be deeply flawed and harmful. i will take the new things i learned into my work with patients and colleagues.
this book focused on how all of the resources we spend on "making us safe" actually do nothing of the sort and only further harms all of us, especially marginalized groups. this was an important read for me who works in the healthcare system, at a state hospital. while many who work in the medical field want to to do good, those systems continue to be deeply flawed and harmful. i will take the new things i learned into my work with patients and colleagues.
November 16, 2025
Some real heavy stuff. Looking up close at healthcare for incarcerated invididuals.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews