Court: No proof Black August incites prison violence

by Paul Sangu Jones

Black-August-Assata-poster, Court: No proof Black August incites prison violence, Abolition Now! I’m writing to update you on the continuing attempt to deny us Afrikan descendants here at Pelican Bay solitary confinement SHU control units the exercise of the human birthright to read, write, study, learn and celebrate our African heritage, history and culture, just as their racist Klan brethren denied Blacks during slavery. Today’s Jim Crow is the new re-enslavement via mass imprisonment!

As you may recall from my last communiqué to you, we are challenging the above described acts of institutional racism as soon as it rears its wicked, demonic head. Currently, my state civil rights case was removed from the state court into the federal court – U.S. District of Northern California – under the case title Jones v. Horel, et al, No. CV-08-4077 MHP, Marilyn Hall Patel, Judge. Bay View readers can locate and obtain a copy of this complaint at www.cand.uscourts.gov.

In addition to my case, the same court recently ruled in a similar civil rights First Amendment case, Harrison (Marcus) v. Institutional Gang Investigator, that prison officials here at the Pelican Bay SHU “appear to contend that a categorical ban on things related to Black August is proper, as they have not identified any particular statement about Black August in Harrison’s mail that actually might be thought to encourage violence,” quoting Procunier v. Martinez, 416 U.S. 396, 416.

The court continues:

“Black August commemorates some people who prison officials may not think are worthy of commemorating, but the defendants have not made an adequate showing … that the court could find it undisputed that mail pertaining to Black August actually presented a danger to prison security or actually encouraged violence. … (D)efendants even stated that Black August honors deceased members of the Black Movement. …

“Defendants’ showing is even less convincing with regard to the confiscation of materials pertaining to New Afrikan Collective Think Tank, the New Afrikan Institute of Criminology 101, and the George Jackson University,” all of which along with “Black August Memorial,” has the “central focus and objective of promoting educational, social, cultural, and political awareness form the viewpoints of the New Afrikan.” The court denied the state’s motion for summary judgment against Mr. Harrison and ordered them to settle the case. We’ll keep you updated.

Send our brother some love and light. Write to Paul Sangu Jones, B-26077, PBSP, P.O. Box 7500, D4/107, Crescent City CA 95531.