MIM NOTES No. 197,		November 1, 1999

Under Lock & Key

ADX Florence: Fascism means no speech for prisoners

It is said that the death of capitalism marks the birth of 
fascism, and Sis. Assata Shakur in her autobiography stated that 
once a government has reached a stage of fascism no organization 
with views opposing the government will be allowed to exist above 
ground.

Here in the ADX Florence we see the Sister's words bearing fruits, 
with the designation of H-Unit as the "Prison Gang Unit."

H-Unit will be operated on the same basis as the Gang Units 
already established at prisons such as Pelican Bay in California 
and Huntsville in Texas. Once committed to this unit, prisoners 
will remain here until their prison sentences expire, unless they 
renounce gang affiliation, or cooperate and become informants.

There is reason for citizens on the outside to be alarmed by this 
move, because right now the Prisoncrats are filling up these re-
education units with the members of the more visible prison 
groups.

So-called prison gangs such as the Crips and Bloods, Latin Kings, 
Gangster Disciples, Texas Syndicate, Aryan Brotherhood and Mexican 
Mafia are now being targeted.

Right now 90% of the men in ADX are being persecuted for their 
affiliation to a particular gang, religious, or political group. 
These units have been instituted with the purpose of controlling 
entire prison populations.

Prisoners are receiving longer sentences and having to serve their 
sentences under harsher conditions, due to the new federal 
sentencing guidelines and the racist and unjust crack laws. The 
Prisoncrats foresee many prison rebellions in the not-too-distant 
future resulting from these longer sentences. They are using the 
more visible prison gangs as scapegoats to justify the 
establishment of these control units.

If this fascist agenda is allowed to continue behind the walls, 
soon it will filter out into society, and detention centers will 
be filled with members from the militia groups such as the 
"Freemen," religious groups such as the "Nation of Islam," and 
leftist groups such as "December 12th" and the "Anarchist Black 
Cross."

These and a host of other civic groups that are deemed as 
subversive will be targeted for persecution, just as the men now 
being shuffled into H-Unit.

In Struggle,

 -- a Federal prisoner in Colorado, 27 June 1999.



MIM responds: We thank this comrade for raising the issue of 
fascism & repression of political expression in prisons. In MIM 
Theory 11: Amerikkkan Prisons on Trial, we argued that while the 
united snakes is a bourgeois democratic society at this stage, it 
contains the seeds of fascism. Emergent fascism -- through which 
the state and capital combine for the forcible extraction of 
surplus value -- exists in the prisons system although not in 
other parts of the u.$. government today.(MT11 is available from 
MIM for $6, or send an extra $60 and buy copies for 10 prisoners.)

Prisoners are held as a pool of captive labor and are indeed 
forced to work (under threats of solitary confinement and loss of 
good time among other things). Propaganda rationalizing forced 
labor through confinement is plentiful: "if you do the crime you 
gotta do the time" (says the state that is fighting a war of 
starvation against the Iraqi people), "prisoners should work for 
their keep instead of living off the taxpayers" (say the taxpayers 
who live off of prisoners' confinement as they reap jobs in 
construction of new prisons and as guards in the prison boom).

This prisoner is quite correct to connect the issue of fascism to 
that of political repression. Dissenting voices that draw light to 
the dark but growing corners of a repressive system are not 
popular in prisons; MIM Notes readers know that fighting 
censorship of prisoners' subscriptions is a constant battle. But 
we disagree with this comrade's characterization of the Freemen as 
being in a threatened group together with Black nationalists and 
anarchists.

It is true that as fascism progresses, more segments of society 
come under its influence and the allowable spectrum of political 
activity narrows. But a fundamental part of MIM's line is the 
recognition that this country is not the "United States" it claims 
to be -- Amerika is the imperialist white settler nation that 
holds the internal semi-colonies within u.$. borders under 
forcible military and economic control. This is why we are seeing 
anti-gang policies in the prisons that target the clothing styles 
of oppressed nation youth as symbols of gang membership, this is 
why the five percenters and other oppressed nation religious 
organizations are being targeted as gangs. This is also why there 
are more Black men in this country's prisons than there are white 
-- even though Blacks are only 12 percent of the u.$. population.

MIM's recognition that as a whole white workers in this country 
represent what Lenin called a labor aristocracy defines the 
current level of development of imperialism in the united snakes. 
Our opposition to the current criminal injustice system of which 
the prisons are a part is based on our understanding that this 
system serves imperialist goals within u.$. borders -- it keeps 
the internal semi-colonies under police threat just as south Korea 
lives under a military occupation. The issue of emerging fascism 
here is inseparable from that of national oppression.


Prisoner fights oppression with anti-censorship pack and study

A universal soldier salute and power to all my people locked down 
in the jaws of hell (Amerikka's Penal Institutions). And also a 
great respectable greetings to the brothas and sistahs at MIM. 
Power to the People!

I recently won a battle against the beast in the Pennsylvania 
region of the capitalist kountry. MIM did a great justice by 
mailing soldiers in the belly of the beast the pamphlet "How to 
Fight Prison Censorship." This pamphlet will increase your 
understanding of how to stand against the big pig and his 
cronies...

At this point, the pigs and his piglets have placed me in the RHU 
due to my accomplishments in starting the study group with the 
brothas on this plantation. The beast made a serious mistake 
because while my body may be separated, the mental accomplishments 
that we made will help MIM spread like wildfire. The domino affect 
has taken place. Now, since my placement in the RHU, I have gotten 
the brothas back here standing up for the cause of liberation and 
justice. Like our fellow revolutionary Mao Zedong said, "If you 
want to know the theory and methods of revolution, you must take 
part in revolution." The revolution is not for the weak at 
heart... I want to show the revolutionaries that we must stand up 
together.

-- A Pennsylvania prisoner.



MIM adds:  MIM has mailed hundreds of prisoners the "How to Fight 
Prison Censorship" pamphlet. It is not legal advice, but is a 
brief guide to help comrades get started in fighting the 
repressive and very undemocratic Babylon that denies freedom of 
speech. We need prisoners who have legal knowledge or practical 
experience in fighting censorship to improve the campaign to end 
censorship. Prisoners with such experience should write to MIM to 
help build the Serve the People Prisoners' Legal Clinic, improve 
the current anti-censorship information that we provide, and 
develop state-specific anti-censorship guides. For instance, we 
invite the above writer to develop a more specific guide to 
fighting censorship in Pennsylvania. MIM publishes legal research 
and summations of practice within MIM Legal Notes as a means to 
guide other prisoners in work against Amerika's repression within 
prisons.



At Columbine High


A never sought to raise a fool
I sent my son to a rural school
Where he'd grow strong and wise
Be safe from gangs and jails' demise

And how I smiled with pride to see
Him strutting home with As and Bs
"I'll be a college grad some day"
I often smiled to hear him say

And when his white friends came and called
I did not mind the thing at all
We lived and worked and played with glee
Until the news was broke to me

"We have bad news" they sadly said
"your son was shot square in the head
Nigger, they called him, nigger, they said
And now in school your son lies dead"

"How could this be?"  I wept to say
This isn't Chicago, New York, or L.A.
Where oh, where is the black child safe
From bullet, prison and back-slapped faith?

-- an Iowa prisoner, 16 August 1999.


Revolutionary Greetings, I received everything, everytime. I thank 
you all for your time and support. I want you all to know that I 
am the only Marxist-Leninist-Maoist down here, and I am forever 
surrounded by religious fanatics who know nothing about class 
struggle, resistance, or the social-circle of human development. I 
have formed a study group out of all the so-called leaders of 
these groups only to be let down time and time again. But I do 
know that the world is based on relationships, not beliefs, or any 
other fantasies, so we will prevail! The united front is what I am 
trying to put into motion. Me and a few other comrades have 
demonstrated it before, only to be thrown out of that camp. But it 
was a learning experience, and the word spread that three were men 
of that nature who did exist.

With all the many examples of the 'police state' and its 
existence, you would think that someone would of saw this movement 
growing. Truth in sentencing, ride-outs to Virginia, all the 
property getting taken by the state, pass-overs of parole, out 
backs on educational and vocational needs, sky-high phone bills 
held up by our captors, censorship and last but not least "Work!"

This hell-hole could not stay afloat if these fools would not 
work. It may sound simple, but it is a very difficult task in 
getting the masses to understand sacrifice. Same way as in the 
world.

Reminds me of Chairman Mao when he was rallying the peasants after 
the Long March. I have been here for ten straight years, and I 
know the power that these cowards possess. The power that they 
have is unbelievable when one looks at it from the class aspect. 
There are men in here with precious resources, but they have been 
failed by the so-called leaders of this culture. Believe me when I 
tell you that no one takes us seriously when we talk about 
liberation and freedom. We (Blacks) have been stereo-typed to 
where the whites never come in contact with us unless the 
relationship is based on homosexuality, gambling, protection, 
sports, or some other temporary amenities. I do not care what any 
one says, in order to achieve true liberation, we will need as 
many people involved as possible. (Directly or indirectly). This 
is a fact that cannot be over-looked. I refuse to even compromise 
on it. Me and the men who are with this theory are trying. It is 
hard on us when we have to watch the pigs, watch the watchers, and 
create a theory based on a good moral cause. We are working with 
all possible resources available. It was Lenin who said that: 
"Every new form of struggle, accompanied as it is by new dangers 
and new sacrifices, inevitably "disorganizes" organizations which 
are unprepared for this new form of struggle."

The task of the USW is to prepare the masses for mass 
participation in their social-development. Since prison is a tool 
for the ruling class to oppress the poor, would it only seem 
logical to take this lemon and turn it into lemonade? Especially 
for the guys who are considered mummy's dust anyway? Did not Karl 
Marx tell us all in the Communist Manifesto that the ruling class 
not only digs its own grave, but also calls into existence the 
very men who would carry out this deed? (Proletariat) Were we not 
all supposed to work "according to our ability and according to 
our needs? What the USW needs to do is create a united front 
consisting of an influential, intelligent, and class conscious, 
human-being from each religious organization and work from there. 
The body of these organizations do not even have to know what is 
taking place. A lot of confusion can be kept to a minimum this 
way. (Lifer's Group, Melanics, Moors, Sunni, Muslims, Nation of 
Islam, Growth and Development, Vice Lords, HASTA, Cobras, 
Christian, Workers, Peasants). Out of all these people, I know 
beyond a reasonable doubt that we could create an elite group of 
people to lead the way toward liberation. (Know that when I speak 
of liberation, I speak of developing the human potential first, 
and then the human-being.) We need to begin a new breeding process 
inside this prison culture shit. I'm, serious. Out of all my years 
in, I have worked unselfishly, with the ultimate goal in mind: 
"Revolution and Developing the person." (As of right now, I am in 
a situation with a group of folks over the question of whether or 
not to let these groups of fanatics preach to the youth who are 
falling in here by the dozen.) Understand that if they (Prison-
Preachers) were issuing out purposes out there on the yard, I 
would have no problem. But that is not taking place. In fact, the 
complete opposite is happening. Besides all that, do not the earth 
and its many nations have enough preachers, deacons, pastors and 
fakes already? You do know that I believe in the dictatorship of 
the people. I also believe in the freedom of speech. But there 
will be no speech where they is no facts!!! This is why we need 
the dictatorship of the people. With the majority of us, (black, 
white, and other) in control, no task would seem hard or fearful.

--A Michigan prisoner, 11 August 1999.



MIM responds: A United Front may include many individuals and 
organizations that are petty bourgeois and even national bourgeois 
(like Black capitalists) and even religious people. But the 
deciding factor in the success of a United Front to achieve 
advancement is the leadership. The only successful United Fronts 
in history have been various classes united under proletarian 
leadership. This is why we encourage comrades like the above to 
study the fundamental principles of Maoism and to join MIM in 
building a strong proletarian Party. With the correct line and 
analysis, your leadership of individuals and/or other 
organizations that represent non-proletarian interests will be 
more successful.

The writer mentioned the use of other organizations to further the 
Maoist agenda. It is important that prisoners who are more 
advanced and working to build support for Maoism understand MIM's 
position on relations with other organizations. MIM has one essay 
pertaining to this in the pamphlet "What is the Maoist 
Internationalist Movement?" (available for $2). The essay details 
the reasons that MIM does not infiltrate other organizations that 
are less radical. Instead, we build our own independent 
proletarian Party and also provide leadership for the more radical 
organizations within the MIM-led United Front i.e. USW and RAIL. 

Working with religious organizations is not always an antagonistic 
relationship. There are some religious people who will accept 
proletarian leadership on campaigns and goals. These are the 
people who we must unite around common objectives. For those 
religious organizations that diametrically oppose advancement 
toward liberation, they should be exposed to the masses. Our role 
should include clarity for the masses on what interests religion 
serves. Again, it is essential that leaders study the universals 
of Marx, Lenin and Mao to best equip ourselves with the most 
correct analysis for building unity without relinquishing 
proletarian control.



Florida prisoner questions MIM

Dear MIM,  I've observed you for 2 years now. There are pros and 
cons to receiving your letters. The advantage is that you provide 
the most oppressed people in the world -- America's prisoners -- 
with a voice. But the disadvantages stem from the depression I get 
from watching you use your political platform as badly as Dan 
Quayle (the inept presidential candidate) gets his message across. 

You constantly speak about changing public opinion so imperialism 
can be ousted. But the indoctrinated masses financially benefits 
from the exploitation of the oppressed, as evidenced by the rush 
to build even more prisons for profit. So it would seem your 
mission is to get the majority to become moral people and forsake 
greed and favoritism. Yet, you don't advocate such a moral message 
because you have an athiest prison ministry that essentially 
worships the dead spirit and doctrines of "father" Mao.

Let me digress for a moment.

I enjoy your rare legal notes. They should be in every letter. But 
even legal victories for the oppressed requires having a judge 
with moral integrity. In Florida, the courts only follow the law 
if the law is against the prisoner. But if the law at issue 
legally liberates the prisoner - the law won't be enforced.

Non-Hispanic white people comprise about 75 percent of this 
county. And none of them refuse the stolen inheritances given to 
them by their slave owning parents. In fact, they're maintaining 
their hegemony through discriminations galore. So right off the 
top, that's 75 percent of the public's opinion that will never be 
changed through politics. While a few of them may be reachable on 
a moral level. What is politics without ethics?

On the contrary, you have those token loving "free" Black people, 
most of whom are walking around dead due to nearly 400 years of 
brainwashing. No one has ever awakened from brainwashing 
politically -- but they have spiritually.

Considering you write much on foreign affairs that the average 
prisoner has zero interest in, you try to be all things to all the 
oppressed -- which raises suspicions in my mind.

You have often advertised in MIM that you are the most censored 
publication in America. And then you have the nerve to complain 
about the censorship. That makes about as much sense as a woman in 
a miniskirt bodysurfing in a crowd of men -- then complains of 
being fondled.

Manufactured crime!

I would not be surprised if you were undercover pigs monitoring 
dissidents. And I dare you to print that!

P.S. Measure your warped "political" progress by how much your 
circulation and support increases in comparison to the increases 
in niggas getting locked up.

Not convinced,

-- A prisoner in Florida, August 1999.



MIM responds:  We appreciate honesty in criticisms of MIM. Our 
first response is that if you agree with the point and theory 
behind our work but think that we do it ineptly, you should take 
action and do better yourself. MIM Notes ia open to your 
contributions. You misunderstand our mission when you say that we 
expect the majority to become moral people in imperialist 
countries, before society is changed. Instead we expect the 
oppressed and exploited people of the world to rise up, in their 
own material interests, and overthrow imperialism. Only then can 
we start to build a truly moral society.

We do not worship Mao, rather we learn from history and theory. 
Maybe you'd be interested in reading some Mao to form your own 
opinion? We'd be happy to supply a book.

On censorship, is it wrong to point out, as a point of pride even, 
that we are hated by the very imperialists we work to overthrow? 
We expose the censorship as part of Amerikkka's hypocrisy. It 
claims democracy, yet prisons censor newspapers and books.

As for whether or not MIM is a pig organization. First, we assume 
radical organizations are infiltrated by pigs. That's why we 
evaluate the work of others based on political line. You should 
evaluate us the same way. Ask yourself if there is something more 
correct, if there is a historical example of liberation which 
exceeded the successes of the Chinese revolution. If you have no 
alternatives but are still suspicious, we encourage you to be more 
specific in criticisms as you work with us on common objectives.