Show 29 2001

Freedom of speech? 
Prisoners report on their struggles against censorship 


Prisoner reports victory against censorship in Indiana

Here recently I was given all of the old MIM newspapers that were
previously confiscated. I think we have a victory against this 
kamp for now. I'm still filing grievances and pursuing litigation 
and will keep you informed as things unfold. Do keep me on the 
mailing list and inform all the comrades of this small but 
meaningful victory today!!!

This was a letter from a prisoner in Indiana.

[brea]


In a few moments we will bring you a commentary by Mumia Abu 
Jamal. Mumia is a Black Nation revolutionary fighting for his life 
on Pennsylvania's death row. Mumia was framed for the murder of a 
police officer because 
he is an outspoken opponent of Amerikan imperialism.  This Mumia 
Abu Jamal commentary was recorded by Bruderhof Radio. Bruderhof 
Radio can be contacted at www.freespeech.org SLASH bruderhof, or 
via the phone numbers 1 800 778 8361 or area code 914 658-8351.

This Mumia Abu Jamal commentary  is entitled "Race and Rage in 
Wilkensburg". Listen to how the eavesdropping guards respond to 
Mumia criticism of Amerikan injustice

[race and rage in wilkensburg (3:38)]

[break]

SCI-Greene prisoners hunger strike

This is a report from a Pennsylvania prisoner.

On August 30, 2000 forty-eight Death-Row prisoners at SCI-Greene 
in Pennsylvania have been participating in a hunger strike. Our 
goal is to obtain a policy that will grant capital cases the same 
privileges as those given to the general population except the 
freedom to move about the institution. Currently we are subjected 
to extreme restrictions, limited visits, lack of educational 
programs, poor medical treatment, and a denial of other basic 
needs. Because power never concedes anything without a demand, we 
must demand by sacrifice.

This was a letter form a Pennsylvania prisoner, 4 September 2000.




Segregation in prisons helps expansion policy 

This is a report from prisoners in Kansas 

As inmates here in segregation, we sit down here and continuously 
watch the Parole Board pass inmates for a year and they recommend 
work release, or a treatment program which is not available in 
segregation.

We've seen that years go by and those inmates are still being held 
in segregation, and the Parole Board passes them once again 
without even asking the Department of Corrections in Kansas why 
they did not act on the Parole Board's recommendations regarding 
that inmates' treatment needs.

The fact of the matter is that segregated inmates have become 
pawns in a sinister political game that Correctional Officials are 
playing with the State Legislature. Lamentably, the Parole Board 
has been duped (if not willingly) into a perfunctory party to this 
machination.

Medium and Minimum custody inmates are being kept in these maximum 
security bed spaces at the Correctional Facilities solely ITAL to 
keep the appearance of always being full to capacity END so 
correctional officials can keep going to the legislature every 
year to ask for more money to keep building onto these 
correctional facility compounds.

Without someway to maintain this appearance of being full capacity 
ITAL every legislative session END, there is no compelling reason 
for the legislature to keep granting correctional officials 
requests for more funds.

Governor Graves said in his state of the State address that 
building prison space is a priority for his administration. His 
spokesperson, Don Brown, put it this way, "What we want more than 
anything is some way to address the prison crowding problem. The 
Governor's preferred alternative is to meet the prison space needs 
head-on by expanding in Maximum Custody bed spaces." (Topeka 
Capitol-Journal, 14 April 2000) Correctional Officials have made a 
calculated decision to use segregation or segregated inmates to 
assure this achievement of the Governor's policy objective i.e. 
more units at these Correctional Facilities. 

If a study were commissioned by the Legislature and done by an 
independent organization (like the Rand Corporation) it would 
reveal that more than half of the inmates being continuously 
housed in segregation not only do not need to be segregated, but 
also that they do not even need to be in a maximum security 
facility at all (which is easily proven by the fact that most that 
are housed in Max have Medium and Minimum security points in their 
files.)

Keeping all these minimum and medium security inmates in these 
maximum security bed spaces has become an efficient political 
economy or currency for these clever ass prison-crats who are now 
running and controlling the Kansas Department of Corrections.

When the reported we just aired was printed in MIM Notes, the 
Maoist Internationalist Movement added the following commentary: 

These comrades do a good job exposing one of the reasons for 
housing prisoners in segregation or maximum security - to bolster 
support for additional prisons. Another reason is to segregate 
prisoners who can educate and organize other prisoners. Prisoners 
who are politically active leaders, write us frequently to explain 
how they have been targeted for unjustified segregation - even by 
the rules of the white settler nation controlled prisons.

The various players, from the Governor, to the legislature, to the 
parole board and prisoncrats all represent the interests of the 
white settler nation. Their purpose is to use Amerikan prisons as 
a tool of social control and national oppression. MIM does not 
believe that any group of these players is "duped", but rather, 
they are serving their class and national interests in 
proliferating Amerika's prisons.

The comrades suggest that the Rand Corporation would be able to do 
an unbiased study of prisoners incorrectly housed in segregation. 
The Rand Corporation is not an independent agency, it serves the 
interests of the bourgeoisie, just as the New York Times and other 
bourgeois 'journalist' sources. When we talk about independent 
institutions and independent research, we are talking about 
proletarian institutions and research. The national, class and 
gender interests behind reports molds the outcome. A better 
solution would be for these prisoners (and others in other 
institutions) to use this example of Amerikan Injustice as a means 
to build support for proletarian struggles. Specifically, do your 
own research, to the extent possible. Use the information to 
expose this specific aspect of the Amerikan prison system's 
corruption and injustice.

That was a report from prisoners in Kansas.



Report from a Pennsylvania prison

I have been organizing the brothers in prison as well as on the 
outside and I am sure I will do much better once I'm outside. 
Here, one fifteen minute phone call costs between $13.00 and 
$15.00 and a visit to the infirmary is $2.00 plus another $2.00 
for medication. About building education for the prisoners, most 
of the education programs have been cut and we can only have 10 
books at a time.

That report was from a Pennsylvania prisoner.







Prisoner fights denial of medication in Illinois

This report is from a prisoner in Illinois

I've been taking medications for hypertension and cardiac problems 
for 25 years. I was prescribed [two medications] by my family 
doctor and have taken them since. When I arrived at the Menard 
Correctional Center in downstate Illinois the health care medical 
director Dr. Frinerman told me their pharmacy services did not 
carry the two drugs that were prescribed so therefore we were 
going to have to experiment with what was available until we found 
something that worked to control my problems. I refused and made 
him aware that my medical file clearly reflects that [the two 
medications] were controlling my condition just fine and I was not 
a guinea pig to experiment on. They wrote it up as I refused my 
medication and allowed 12 days to elapse without supplying me with 
either my hypertension or cardiac medication. I had submitted a 
sick call request slip that went unanswered, had written an 
emergency grievance to the warden (no response). And I addressed 
the health care unit administrator after the 12 days without 
medication. The administrator forwarded me this memorandum:

QUOTE

"Subject: Medical concerns -- blood pressure medications

"In response to your recent request, I am offering the following. 
Upon investigation and a discussion with the director of nurses, 
it is revealed that you have been compliant with your medications 
and that you did not refuse to accept your medication as reported. 
This has been a breakdown in the medication distribution system. I 
appreciate you reporting this incident and a complete 
investigation will be conducted into this matter by the director 
of nurses with corrective action taken." END QUOTE

I addressed the director of nurses in regards to what correcting 
action did her office take pertaining to this issue and never 
received a reply. Talking with a dozen or more prisoners with 
long-standing chronic problems it was revealed that after Dr. 
Frinerman became the medical director he systematically started to 
change medications of people who had taken them for years with 
some adverse reactions. A lot of grievances were filed and a 
couple of prisoners filed mandamus action in state court. My 
refusal to comply with experimentation forced staff to replenish 
my former medications.

This was a letter from an Illinois prisoner, 23 September 2000.


Guards brutalize Florida prisoners

This report is from a prisoner in Florida

I received your newsletter but it took a while for me to receive it. It
was being scanned; on the envelope it has impound crossed out, 
questioned
crossed out, then it was finally approved but pages 6-10 were taken
completely out. So you see they scan and read every word they can, 
trying
to find something so they can deny it. The Department of Corrections 
doesn't want us learning anything that's going to benefit us in any way.

The same conditions that are described in Under Lock & Key, cruel
conditions at Montana State Prison, are happening right here in 
Florida's
many prisons. These people can keep you on so-called strip status for up
to seven days and sometimes they keep you even longer whether it's cold 
or
hot they don't care as long as they can torture you any way they can. 
Here
in Florida a person can be held in lock-up up to six months just under
investigation without any type of hearing whatsoever. Prisoners can 
state
witnesses on the Disciplinary Report but seldom are those witnesses
allowed to appear at the Disciplinary Report hearing. Prisoners are 
found guilty just by the officer's statement or the extent of the 
Disciplinary Report. Prisoners seldom beat violent Disciplinary Report. 
The officers have many ways of getting a person they don't like, in any 
way they can.

In the newsletter a writer speaks of the close-management status we have
in Florida but we also have a lock down called CMX, that's only at
probably two prisons in Florida, where you're locked down five years at
the least before you see a review board. CMX is the strictest lock down
that Florida has. I myself just got off of CM after 22 months. I worked
myself down from CM1 and 2, finally made it on the compound in July. So
you see we go through pure hell in Florida as well.

Now I'm out here trying to open up some of my brother's eyes, at least
those who want to see. Continue to keep the newsletter coming and I will
continue my studies and try to broaden my mind in my studies and daily
life. Peace to the people.

This was a letter from a Florida prisoner, 7October 2000.