Grantee Database

A.B.O. Comix

Grant Year

2026-27

Grant Program

Impact Projects

Award Amount

$17,500.00

Project Description

With support from the California Arts Council, Abolition Inc will develop and produce The Things We Made in Captivity: Lessons in Art, Survival, and Freedom with Queer/Trans Prisoners, a collaborative illustrated book documenting ten years of A.B.O. Comix’s arts, publishing, correspondence, and community-building work with incarcerated and formerly incarcerated LGBTQ2S+ artists. CAC funds will support archival review, manuscript development, contributor consultation, editorial labor, design, image preparation, accessibility materials, printing, and public engagement. The project will gather artwork, letters, comics, interviews, essays, and first-person reflections exploring censorship, chosen family, survival, grief, reentry, creativity, and abolitionist care. The book will be shared through an initial printed publication and related Oakland-based community programming that connects public audiences with the art, stories, and cultural knowledge of system-impacted queer and trans artists.

Organization Summary

Publishing and Artist Development
Abolition Inc DBA A.B.O. Comix provides a publishing and artistic development platform for incarcerated and system-impacted LGBTQ2S+ artists and writers. We work with contributors to develop artwork, writing, comics, memoir, and other creative projects, provide editorial support, and help artists build skills, portfolios, and credentials. Programs include annual comic anthologies, solo publications, autobiographical works, omnibus collections, and multi-volume comic series.

Artist Compensation and Material Support
We fundraise for and provide financial assistance to incarcerated LGBTQ2S+ contributors and community members, especially those with little or no outside support. Revenue from publications, events, and donations is reinvested into commissary assistance, supplies, reentry needs, and material aid.

Correspondence, Community Connection, and Solidarity
We maintain LGBTQ2S+ community contact, friendship, and support across prison walls through correspondence, contributor relationships, referrals, and ongoing communication. We connect incarcerated artists with outside organizations, publishers, advocacy groups, and resources that support their creative, legal, personal, or reentry needs.

Public Education, Exhibitions, and Community Engagement
We introduce the public to the experiences, creativity, and political realities of LGBTQ2S+ people impacted by incarceration through publications, exhibitions, workshops, book/zine fairs, community events, public programs, and collaborations.

Oral History and Media
Through long-form interviews, podcast production, and narrative media, we document the experiences of currently and formerly incarcerated contributors, advocates, organizers, and people working in solidarity with those inside prisons.

Reentry, Parole, and Homecoming Support
We provide parole and reentry support for LGBTQ2S+ people preparing for release or returning home, including recommendation letters, documentation of artistic participation, referrals, resource navigation, community connection, and material support.

Community Space and Organizational Infrastructure
We maintain a physical space that supports programming, community gatherings, volunteer engagement, outreach, and collaboration with aligned organizations. Our space helps us reach neighbors, build local relationships, host safer community activities, and sustain long-term arts and solidarity work.

Organization

A.B.O. Comix

Address

2520 Telegraph Ave.

Oakland

94612

County

Alameda

Region

Bay Area – Other

Website

Email

Congressional District

California's 13th congressional district

State Assembly District

District 15

State Senate District

District 9

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