Derek Denman
@dereksdenman.bsky.social
Political theorist. Author of Fortress Power (@uminnpress.bsky.social). Fortification, infrastructure, technology, urbanism, and democracy. Philadelphia.
This was publication week for my book, Fortress Power. It's about hostile built environments from the bastion fortress to contemporary cities and borders. It examines how the desire to fortify is thwarted by a turbulent world and the damage that defensive architecture does along the way.
Important new books release today:
-Fortress Power by Derek S. Denman.
"A fascinating account of the centrality of the fortress."
— @irit-katz.bsky.social
-Opposition by Imitation by Christina Jerne.
"Radically new directions for thinking about social movements."
—Kevin McDonald
-Fortress Power by Derek S. Denman.
"A fascinating account of the centrality of the fortress."
— @irit-katz.bsky.social
-Opposition by Imitation by Christina Jerne.
"Radically new directions for thinking about social movements."
—Kevin McDonald
July 10, 2025 at 9:40 PM
This was publication week for my book, Fortress Power. It's about hostile built environments from the bastion fortress to contemporary cities and borders. It examines how the desire to fortify is thwarted by a turbulent world and the damage that defensive architecture does along the way.
"‘Defund,’ if it were properly talked about in the mainstream media, would be referred to as an evidence-based public safety program.”
The police aren’t very good at solving crime, nor do they reduce crime. We need to completely decouple “police” from “crime reduction.”
www.currentaffairs.org/news/we-stil...
www.currentaffairs.org/news/we-stil...
We Still Need to Defund and Abolish the Police
"Defund the Police" came into the spotlight during the 2020 George Floyd uprisings. Despite what conservatives and pro-police propagandists say, "defund" never happened. But it should—because the poli...
www.currentaffairs.org
May 22, 2025 at 4:31 PM
"‘Defund,’ if it were properly talked about in the mainstream media, would be referred to as an evidence-based public safety program.”
40 years ago today, Philadelphia police dropped a bomb on Black residents of the city. It killed eleven people and started a fire that destroyed the block. The Logan Center at Temple and The Inquirer have put together an amazing podcast on the bombing of MOVE to mark the dark day in Philly history.
MOVE: Untangling the Tragedy | The Standoff
Philly tries to evict MOVE from its Osage Avenue headquarters. As neighbors evacuate the block, former Inquirer reporter Maida Odom and former NBC10 photojournalist Pete Kane stay as the siege begins.
www.inquirer.com
May 13, 2025 at 4:56 PM
40 years ago today, Philadelphia police dropped a bomb on Black residents of the city. It killed eleven people and started a fire that destroyed the block. The Logan Center at Temple and The Inquirer have put together an amazing podcast on the bombing of MOVE to mark the dark day in Philly history.
Federal prison & detention expansion is not just about Alcatraz but also FCI-Dublin (CA), North Lake (MI), Delaney Hall (NJ), and Leavenworth (KS), and family detention facilities in Texas.
Not just Alcatraz: the notorious US prisons Trump is already reopening
Amid outrage over ‘far-fetched’ plans to revive Alcatraz, Trump is pushing to expand Ice detention to other closed lockups marked by scandals
www.theguardian.com
May 12, 2025 at 8:06 PM
Federal prison & detention expansion is not just about Alcatraz but also FCI-Dublin (CA), North Lake (MI), Delaney Hall (NJ), and Leavenworth (KS), and family detention facilities in Texas.
Justice Department cuts are having devastating effects on community violence intervention programs and other alternatives to policing and incarceration in Philadelphia.
Trump's Budget Cuts Reach the Front Lines of Philly's Fight to Reduce Shootings
The Trump administration is yanking funding from several Philadelphia organizations, despite their role in slowing bloodshed.
www.thetrace.org
May 12, 2025 at 7:51 PM
Justice Department cuts are having devastating effects on community violence intervention programs and other alternatives to policing and incarceration in Philadelphia.
From @templeunivpress.bsky.social: "'Building ghosts' are the idiosyncratic remnants or imprints of demolished buildings, left behind on the sides of neighboring structures ... They can be ... unveiled and never re-covered in a neighborhood that has not seen new construction in a long time."
Building Ghosts
buildingghosts.com
May 4, 2025 at 6:42 PM
From @templeunivpress.bsky.social: "'Building ghosts' are the idiosyncratic remnants or imprints of demolished buildings, left behind on the sides of neighboring structures ... They can be ... unveiled and never re-covered in a neighborhood that has not seen new construction in a long time."