Episode 201: Defund Fear w/ Zach Norris

For today’s episode, Tyrell and Daphne welcome a very special guest, Zach Norris—the Executive Director of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and the author of Defund Fear, which explores the concept of safety without policing and prisons. In addition to discussing Zach’s journey to abolition (39:20), they discuss his collective campaign to close youth prisons (46:20) and his motivation for writing Defund Fear (51:30). Next, they discuss myths and misconceptions around the defund movement (57:00) and how Zach’s personal experiences with harm informed his beliefs about and vision for public safety (1:04:10). They close the episode by discussing Zach’s upcoming projects (1:10:25) and his advice for those interested in community advocacy (1:14:45).  

Other Topics Include: 
00:30 – Check in with Tyrell and Daphne 
03:50 – BhD “Oh Lawd” News 
32:20 – Introduction of the Topic  
35:10 – Learn More about Zach Norris 
1:21:00- Tyrell and Daphne Reflect on the Interview 

Resources:

• BhD Patreon – https://www.patreon.com/bhdpodcast 
• Zach Norris – https://zachnorris.com | @ZachWNorris 
• Ella Baker Center – https://ellabakercenter.org