Penal Abolitionism

Abolitionism is not only a strategy or a set of demands, aimed at the reduction (or suppression) of custody, it is also a perspective, a philosophy, an approach which challenges conventional definitions of crime. This book examines the origin, philosophy and achievements of abolitionism and reviews the literature on penal abolitionism from the 1960s to the 1980s. By collecting and discussing the key abolitionist arguments, the author critically analyses the views expressed by its leading proponents; Nils Christie, Louk Hulsman, Thomas Mathiesen and Herman Bianchi, examining in particular how their views took shape, their philosophical foundations, and the social and political context of abolitionist ideas and perspectives. Through assessment of the achievements and experiments of specific abolitionist ideas, the author attempts to identify the legacy of abolitionism from a European perspective, whilst bringing into focus more recent contributions concerning the study of terrorism and war.