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Angela Davis

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description Angela Davis Overview

Angela Davis is an American political activist, philosopher, and author born in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1944. Emerging as a prominent figure in the 1960s and 1970s, her work focuses on feminism, race, class, and Marxist theory, particularly advocating for prison abolition. She was famously arrested and tried in the early 1970s, later being acquitted of all charges. Davis is a retired professor with the History of Consciousness department at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

help Angela Davis FAQ

What books has Angela Davis written?

Angela Davis is the author of several foundational texts, including 'Women, Race, and Class' (1981) and 'Are Prisons Obsolete?' (2003), which helped shape modern prison abolition discourse. She also published 'Angela Davis: An Autobiography' in 1974, originally written while she was incarcerated awaiting trial.

Why was Angela Davis arrested in 1970?

Davis was charged with conspiracy, kidnapping, and homicide in connection with a Marin County courthouse shootout in August 1970 involving Jonathan Jackson. After roughly 16 months in jail, she was acquitted of all charges in 1972 following an international 'Free Angela Davis' campaign.

Where did Angela Davis teach?

Davis was appointed to the philosophy faculty at UCLA in 1969 but was fired by the University of California Board of Regents under pressure from Governor Ronald Reagan because of her Communist Party membership. She later became a professor in the History of Consciousness program at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

What is Angela Davis's role in the prison abolition movement?

Davis is one of the most widely recognized voices in the prison abolition movement, arguing that the prison-industrial complex perpetuates racial capitalism and social control. She co-founded Critical Resistance in 1997, an organization dedicated to abolishing the prison-industrial complex, which remains active today.