Countering Structural Violence Through Community-Led Intersectional Politics of Care: A Review of Alternative Approaches to Public Safety

What is it about?

This article explores how different communities are creating safer environments by focusing on care and mutual support, rather than relying on traditional, often harsh, methods of public safety enforced by the state. We look at how practices of care—actions that help and support people—are used to solve social problems. However, in recent times, some governments and powerful groups have twisted these care practices to keep existing inequalities in place. This often leads to care becoming something private and individualized, rather than a shared community effort, and it can maintain unfair systems related to race and gender. To challenge these negative trends, our paper highlights the importance of communities coming together to create their own ways of providing care that address deeper societal issues. We examine ideas from various perspectives, including Black feminist, abolitionist, Indigenous, and anarchist viewpoints. These groups offer unique insights into how care can be used to fight against systemic violence and create peaceful, supportive communities. By discussing these alternative approaches, we show how people are reclaiming the concept of safety from the state's often militarized and aggressive methods, promoting instead a more collective and just form of security.

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