CZM Book Club: Phone Resistance, by Safear Ness -- with In The Belly Magazine

In a powerful episode of the Cool Zone Media Book Club, host Margaret Hilljoy dives into 'Phone Resistance' by Safir Ness—a memoir from an incarcerated abolitionist that reveals how a group of prisoners in Pennsylvania successfully fought back against a draconian phone restriction during the pandemic. What began as a seemingly minor policy change—limiting calls to one 15-minute slot per day—became a catalyst for a coordinated, multi-pronged resistance that united people across racial, religious, and gang lines. Through strategic organizing, a carefully managed boycott, outside pressure via social media campaigns, and the use of covert communication methods, the prisoners not only reversed the policy but also exposed the prison system’s hypocrisy: claiming to rehabilitate while actively dismantling the very connections that reduce recidivism. The episode underscores that organizing isn’t about dramatic rallies, but about quiet, persistent relationship-building in the most hostile environments. Hilljoy frames the story not just as a victory, but as a blueprint for resistance in any oppressive system—especially one designed to isolate and control. The piece is both a gripping narrative and a practical guide, proving that collective action can flourish even in the most anti-organizing spaces.