Monthly Archives: October 2011

Across Africa, the United States and its allies are creating a new series of future enemies to fight – but after initially working with them or using them to sow the seeds of chaos in Africa. “Human rights” and “democratization” are being used as a smokescreen for colonialism and war.

The fact that men are willing to starve themselves to death ought to speak volumes to these primitive practices that require a man to be some sort of snitch in order to have any chance at all. This says a lot about the judgment society passes on the lives of those it imprisons.

For 15 years the California Coalition for Women Prisoners - activists on the outside together with prisoners on the inside - have published an extraordinary newsletter called the Fire Inside. Hear Angela Davis keynote the anniversary celebration, hosted by our own Wanda Sabir, Friday, Oct. 14, 7 p.m., at the Women’s Building, 3543 18th St. at Valencia, San Francisco.

Residents of the Columbus United Cooperative (CUC) celebrate an end to their 13-year housing struggle as they take ownership of their building as a permanently affordable, resident-owned limited-equity housing cooperative (co-op). Now the residents can purchase “shares” in the co-op for $10,000, allowing them to become cooperative home owners with control of their building

Paul Sangu Jones, who wrote this letter received today, has been locked in solitary confinement for 20 years and has lost over 25 pounds in this second round of the hunger strike. As many as 12,000 California prisoners have participated, along with prisoners around the world. Although some prisoners have suspended their strike pending new promises by CDCR, we need to flood Gov. Jerry Brown with 160,000 calls by Wednesday. Paul writes, "The SHU causes physical and psychological trauma whose end result is a hammer blow to the mind and to the body." Hold Gov. Brown accountable.

Mediators who met with hunger strike representatives at Pelican Bay confirm that prisoners there have decided to stop their hunger strike after nearly three weeks. The prisoners have cited a memo from CDCR detailing a comprehensive review of every SHU prisoner in California whose SHU sentence is related to gang validation.

We live in times when Western extremism has been elevated to pure logic, and we have been made to realize our military worthlessness as NATO terror bombers descend on Libya with a high-tech military arsenal specifically meant to intimidate the African leadership and to make it abundantly clear that military might will define and determine the affairs of this world, especially in weaker nations.

My OG potna, Fleetwood from Frisco, just put out his second book, “Bloodtest.” It is an urban fiction novel that is based right here in the Bay Area. It is important for us to support the writers, media-makers and artists in our communities who tell our stories.

“Imprisonment is an aspect of class struggle from the outset. It is the creation of a closed society which attempts to isolate those individuals who disregard the structures of a hypocritical establishment as well as those who attempt to challenge it on a mass basis. Throughout its history, the United States has used its prisons to suppress any organized efforts to challenge its legitimacy.” – George L. Jackson, “Blood in My Eye”

Black and Brown folks have long known that whenever economic troubles “necessitate” austerity measures and the people are asked to tighten their belts, we are the first to lose our jobs, our children’s schools are the first to lose funding, and our bodies are the first to be brutalized and caged. Only we can speak this truth to power.

With the second phase of a massive California prisoner hunger strike in its third week, prisoners have begun to report grave medical issues. Prisoners at Corcoran have stated, “Due to what they have done here to us, some men have stopped drinking water completely, so we may well be close to death in a few days.”

The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected the Philadelphia district attorney’s attempt to reinstate the death penalty on Brother Mumia! In order to reinstate the death penalty at this point, the DA would have to call for a new trial on the question of the sentence, with a new jury having to decide on whether to reinstate the death sentence. Otherwise, the sentence of life in prison – without parole – remains. Now on to freeing Mumia!

Prisons and the millions who are imprisoned are a critical issue in this society for the 1 percent and for the 99 percent - and certainly for the Occupy Wall Street movement. At Occupy LA – and everywhere – we have a moral responsibility to expose and demand an end to prison torture and especially the high-tech torture chambers called SHUs. On Thursday, Oct. 13, 5-7 p.m., at Occupy LA at LA City Hall, family members of those locked up in the SHUs and others will give VOICE to the prisoners on hunger strike. As their medical condition deteriorates, a strong turnout is critical.

Troy Anthony Davis shouldn’t be dead. But on Sept. 21, 2011, at 11:08 p.m. ET, the candle flame of his brilliant, strong and beautiful physical life was snuffed out in the bloody hands of a state sanctioned illegal lynching.

Patricia Wright is a prisoner in Central California Women’s Facility’s Nursing Unit coping with an extraordinary array of challenges. She is legally blind, has stage four cancer that has spread to her breasts and her brain, causing her to lose control of her bodily functions, leaving her diapered, and has been given six months to live. What’s worse is that she’s innocent.

There’s six of us here that started an indefinite hunger strike on Aug. 1, 2011, in solidarity with our brothers in California and to stop the inhumane treatment. A letter was sent to the Governor’s Office and Commissioner’s Office with a list of demands, such as provide adequate food, health care, access to families and out-of-cell recreation, stop police and staff brutality and many other requests.

Malcolm X, one of my heroes, believed that “[o]ur objective is complete freedom, justice and equality by any means necessary.” I am asking for your support in this election so that we can reach this objective together.

It pains my heart to say that my great grandmother, Mrs. Elouise Westbrook, passed on Sept. 13, 2011, in the comfort of her own home in the city she loved, San Francisco. Even though she was never an elected politician, she was a force to be reckoned with in the political world. She had a voice that made people stop and listen.

The numbers of strikers began dropping this week from the 12,000 refusing food a few days ago, after the CDCR intensified retaliation against them, such as air conditioning the small concrete cells at 50 degrees. The hunger strike representatives at Pelican Bay were moved to Administrative Segregation, while at least one inmate on strike who was denied medications has suffered a heart attack. Readers are urged to pressure Gov. Jerry Brown to tell CDCR to meet the prisoners’ five core demands and cease all retaliation against the hunger strikers. Call (916) 445-2841.

I am trying my best to help myself, but I am greatly suffering from traumatic psychological emotional breakdowns. Sometimes I have to stop doing everything and sing to myself for an hour or I break down and start crying or I start eating when I do not want to eat. I do not have anyone to help me do my suit and I wrote you this letter asking if you can get one of the smart people you have there to help me.