丁香园AV

When Mercedes Eng applied to be a Jack and Doris Shadbolt Fellow in the Humanities, she did so as a poet and community organizer, rather than as an academic. Although she鈥檚 a post-secondary educator, Eng sometimes feels she鈥檚 not part of the world of academia. Thus, it鈥檚 not surprising that during her eight months as a fellow she focused on advocating for social change in the community.

An award-winning poet, Eng has written three poetry collections, including 2017鈥檚 . In this text, she focuses on her father鈥檚 incarceration and the growing number of Indigenous people and people of colour in the Canadian prison system. During her fellowship, Eng worked on an anthology featuring writers who have lived experience of the prison system.

鈥淭he fellowship has certainly given me the time to deepen the community connections that serve this project,鈥� says Eng. 鈥淧art of my public engagement for the Shadbolt fellowship was to convene in person for a conversation with a group of writers on the prison industrial complex that I hope will contribute to this anthology.鈥�

This in-person conversation became the March 25^th event, . Hosted by Eng and writer Cecily Nicholson, the speakers included, Cassandra Blanchard, Magin Payet, jaye simpson, and Harsha Walia. Both prison reform and abolition were discussed, though Eng identifies as an abolitionist.

鈥淲hen folks think of prison abolition, they think of doors opening and 鈥榙angerous criminals鈥� being out in the world,鈥� says Eng. 鈥淪o, sometimes I think people maybe see it as this monolithic thing that鈥檚 huge, and it鈥檚 impossible to even know where to start.鈥�

Thus, Eng pointed out small acts of abolition are possible, as noted in an example that speaker Magin Payette gave at the event.

鈥淚f you see someone taking food from a store because they鈥檙e hungry, don鈥檛 say anything; it鈥檚 a small act of abolition.鈥�

Eng also notes that, rather than prisons, mental health facilities should be built to help those who are currently incarcerated and are neurodiverse and/or struggle with drug addiction. She points out that law enforcement unfairly targets racialized populations and ultimately incarcerates them in much higher numbers, as well.

鈥淚ndigenous people, Black people, and people of colour, are disproportionately represented in the prison system, and that鈥檚 simply because it is a colonial institution,鈥� says Eng. 鈥淭hey should not be targeted the way they are. There would be so few folks in prison if we just didn鈥檛 incarcerate the folks I have just mentioned.鈥�

Aligned in some ways with her overall abolition project, and continuing the work she started in her book, Prison Industrial Complex Explodes, Eng is also working on a book of poetry called, Cop City Swagger.

The 鈥淐op City鈥� part of the title refers to Vancouver and the Vancouver Police Department (VPD).

鈥淚鈥檓 looking at the VPD at this particular moment in time where the city now has a new mayor鈥攁 mayor that was endorsed by the VPD鈥攁 mayor who promised to increase the police presence in the city, rather than to build more housing,鈥� says Eng. 鈥淭he mayor is also the first Chinese-Canadian mayor of the city and that is occurring at a time where we have seen hate crimes against Asian Canadians increase in a distressingly speedy way.鈥�

The term 鈥渟wagger鈥� in the title of the book came from Mayor Ken Sim. In one of his , Sim said in the not-so-distant future he wants to see a Vancouver with a renewed swagger. Many, along with Eng, wonder what 鈥渟wagger鈥� means to Sim. She wonders whether it involves making the city more expensive and gentrifying neighbourhoods like Chinatown.

鈥淎s a Chinese-Canadian, I am not particularly proud to have the first Chinese-Canadian mayor of the city. It doesn鈥檛 matter when there is a certain agenda being served, and that agenda leaves out low-income folks,鈥� says Eng.

In reflecting on the fellowship, Eng says it was incredible to have the time and the money to think further through her book project, as well as gather the speakers together for her event.

鈥淚t was very useful to help me think through things, particularly as I said that idea of the scale of abolition and small acts of abolition,鈥� says Eng. 鈥淚t was incredible to have a budget for to be able to pay people well, provide speakers鈥� gifts, delicious food for everyone, and to have money for American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters.鈥�