Read more about various abolitionist projects in Massachusetts, and learn how to get involved!
Boston Immigration Justice Accompaniment Network (BIJAN or Beyond)
MISSION: BIJAN’s mission is to free people from immigration jail in New England and end ICE’s presence in Massachusetts while reducing the harm of the immigration system on those in detention and others who are targeted by the violence of our immigration system.
ABOLITIONIST VALUES: BIJAN is committed to abolitionist values and believe no one should be caged for any reason. They work to free people and end ICE contracts, making steps towards the abolition of ICE and immigration detention.
HOW TO SEEK SERVICES: Check out this info sheet, written in both English and Spanish. BIJAN can be contacted at bijan.accompaniment@gmail.com or 617-396-7143 (leave a message if the phone isnt answered).
HOW TO GET INVOLVED: Join the BIJAN email list, check out this document with current volunteer needs, and donate to support the immigration bond fund.
Cambridge HEART
MISSION: Cambridge HEART’s mission is to model a world where people in crisis are met with care, compassion, and transformative accountability—rather than punishment. They aim to centering marginalized people and build local capacity to disrupt cycles of harm by responding to crises, conducting research, and facilitating community cohesion.
ABOLITIONIST VALUES: Cambridge HEART operates a crisis hotline with trained peer-support responders that does not involve or collaborate with law enforcement. Their goal is to build a society that is free from carceral systems, where the dignity of every individual is respected.
HOW TO SEEK SERVICES: The confidential, peer-run HEART line, 617-902-0102, is available on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 AM to 4 PM. They can also be reached via email at help@cambridge-heart.org.
HOW TO GET INVOLVED: Subscribe to the Cambridge HEART newsletter, email them at info@cambridge-heart.org to volunteer, and donate to support their efforts here!
Families for Justice as Healing (FJAH)
MISSION: Families for Justice as Healing is led by incarcerated women, formerly incarcerated women, and women with incarcerated loved ones. Their mission is to end the incarceration of women and girls.
ABOLITIONIST VALUES: FJAH is a proud abolitionist organization that uses a “Reimagining Communities” approach to shift resources away from the criminal punishment system and into Black and Brown communities.
HOW TO SEEK SERVICES: Fill out this form to apply for an emergency/healing stipend. Email info@justiceashealing.org for information on how to join the Participatory Defense and Transformative Justice groups.
HOW TO GET INVOLVED: FJAH is leading the charge on the No New Women’s Prison initiative, filing legislation in 2021 to establish a 5-year moratorium on jail and prison construction and expansion. Check out this toolkit for contacting your legislators and email campaign organizer Kira Matthews to get involved. You can also use this link to donate to FJAH.
Abolitionist Mail Project (AMP)
MISSION: The Abolitionist Mail Project was formed in 2024, with the goal of connecing people incarcerated in Massachusetts with people on the outside.
ABOLITIONIST VALUES: The AMP believes that forming genuine relationships between incarcerated and non-incarcerated people can help dismantle the Prison Industrial Complex and bring about abolition.
HOW TO SEEK SERVICES: If you know of an incarcerated person who is interested in a pen pal or in receiving cards, you can either print out the membership form to give to them or fill out the online form on their website.
HOW TO GET INVOLVED: To become a pen pal with someone incarcerated in Massachusetts or get involved with card-writing, fill out this form on the AMP website. If you are interested in attending monthly card-writing meetups in Jamaica Plain, fill out this form.
Defund Somervile Police Department
MISSION: Defund SPD’s mission is to build collective power around a vision of abolition, and harness that power to defund—and ultimately abolish—police and prisons.
ABOLITIONIST VALUES: Defund SPD is a BIPOC-led collective of Somerville residents working toward an abolitionist future. They not only believe a world without police and prisons is possible, but are actively committed to building it. They aim to shift public opinion around safety so that restorative and transformative justice are centered along with the needs of communities of color, the working class, and other marginalized people
HOW TO GET INVOLVED: To join one of the various teams in Defund SPD, fill out this form. Additionally, you can join their mailing list here and read there 2022 zine, Mapping the Money, here.
Massachusetts Bail Fund
MISSION: The Massachusetts Bail Fund pays bail to free people from pre-trial incarceration. Massachusetts jails are filled with people awaiting trial simply because they cannot afford bail, and pre-trial freedom allows individuals, families, and communities to stay productive, together, and stable.
ABOLITIONIST VALUES: The MBF sees itself as a radical direct service organization and a site for abolitionist imagination and advocacy. They are committed to practicing harm-reduction by bringing home community members serving pre-trial sentences, and to working towards abolishing pre-trial detention and supervision in the long-term.
HOW TO SEEK SERVICES: The MBF is able to post up to $1,000 per person at the following prisons and jails: Billerica House of Corrections, MCI Framingham, Middleton House of Corrections, Suffolk County House of Corrections, Nashua Street Jail, Worcester County House of Corrections, Ludlow House of Corrections, and Western Mass Regional Women’s Correctional Center. If someone you know is in need of funds for bail, check out their website.
HOW TO GET INVOLVED: Head to the MBF website to donate to the bailfund.
Western Mass Bailout Project (WMBP)
MISSION: The Western Mass Bailout Project is an initiative from Decarcerate Western Mass, a coalition of people and organizations that aim to support incarcerated folks and get people released. They post bails without judgement with respect to charges.
ABOLITIONIST VALUES: The WMBP is led by abolitionist politics and believe in the importance of centering the voices of those who are currently and formerly incarcerated. They work in the short-term to get people out of jails and prisons and in the long-term to reimagine our communities beyond police, prosecutors, and prisons.
HOW TO SEEK SERVICES: The WMBP is able to pay up to $1,500 in bail per person for people incarcerated in Franklin County Jail and Hampshire County Jail. If you know someone in need of bail funds, fill out this application form.
HOW TO GET INVOLVED: Use this link to donate to the WMBP.
Massachusetts Abolitionist Hub 