***MIM mourns the deaths of Carl Wayne Howard, James Dixon,  and Billy Balance who were killed while incarcerated in  Arizona prisons.***

Dear Maoist Internationalist Movement,

I am presently incarcerated in the Arizona Department of  Corrections(ADOC). Due to my sexual orientation I have  suffered many hardships. I am a homosexual and sadly most of  my abuse has directly or indirectly come from prison staff  members. I am contacting your organization out of sheer fear  and desperation for my health and safety. I am hoping that  you can help bring an end to my torture by writing letters  of concern on my behalf to ADOC central office and  government and officials, (names and addresses enclosed).

The acts of abuse that I have been subjected to is nothing  short of "hate crimes". I have been physically struck while  being called, "bitch, faggot, punk, and sissy". I have been  spit on while being called "faggot." I have had both my  personal and legal mail tampered with, lost, delayed for up  to six months, and returned to sender for no reason. I have  had my personal property lost and stolen. I have even had my  very life endangered when inmates were falsely told [by ADOC  staff members] that I am a "confidential informant" and  "that fucking faggot has more pull up front than I do." The  last statement could have gotten me killed, and did in fact  lead to me being brutally beaten by two inmates on Feb. 6,  1997. The worst part of all these acts of abuses was at the  hands of the ADOC staff members.

The list of abuse goes on and on. . . and I must say  considering the track record of ADOC when it comes to  protecting inmates from being stabbed or killed, I really do  have something to worry about. I'm enclosing a copy of a  newspaper article about a gay inmate who was killed. [The  murderer] used the defense [that the] "inmate was a gay man  with AIDS so I killed him". This reflects the total attitude  of most ADOC staff members that I have encountered. It's  this type of open homophobic hatred of gay/transgender  inmates that puts us at risk of being hurt or killed daily.  When other inmates see that prison staff members will openly  abuse inmates like myself it gives them the green light to  do the same. I have even went so far as to try to get a  court order granting me protection against abusive ADOC  staff and inmates. So far this effort has been to no avail.  I have filed two law suits in federal and state courts, and  for some reason I'm not getting through to these people that  this is a life and death situation. I want to share some  situations that have happened due to neglect by ADOC staff  which has caused inmates in their custody to lose their  lives. In 1994 at the South Unit in Florence, AZ, inmate  James Dixon was stabbed to death. The reason inmate Dixon  isn't alive today is because ADOC staff sent him back out on  the yard after he requested protective custody. Not only did  they send him back out on the yard, they told the inmate  population about his request for protection. A few days  later her was found stabbed to death in the tool shed.

I'm telling you about this because while I was at the South  Unit I was raped. Since my crimes are non-violent/non- dangerous, and non-repetitive, that I should have ever been  sent to South Unit. Knowing what happened to James Dixon I  was too afraid to report my being raped for fear ADOC staff  would tell the inmates that I had told.

The next act of neglect happened on Feb. 7, 1997. It was at  the Douglas Unit and inmate Billy Balance was stabbed to  death. It's my understanding that he too had asked for  protective custody and was refused. I tend to believe this  due to the fact that my requests have fallen on deaf ears.  Then on Feb. 12, 1997, at the Tucson Complex, another inmate  by the name of Inmate F was stabbed while in the same lockup  unit that inmate Howard was killed in. Inmate F had also  requested protection and thank God he is living proof that  ADOC neglect doesn't always end up in the death of an  inmate. Inmate F is, however, in the intensive care unit at  a near by hospital, my prayers are with him..

The abuse that I've suffered has left many scars. I'm now on  three different medications for mental health problems  related to stress and depression. When I say that I'm at the  end of my rope, I mean just that. The Psychiatrist has even  put it right in my mental health file "NO GROUP HOUSING".  ADOC doesn't care about the Doctor's orders, and is in fact  trying to send me to the Echo Unit where I would be housed  in tents with 11 other inmates. If 12 inmates isn't group  housing, what is?

Please send some letters on my behalf soon. I don't want my  name to be added to the long list of lives lost behind these  walls. I know that we are living in a time when getting  tough on crime is the rage. In keeping with that thought I  feel that everyone should be held accountable for their  actions, even if it's the keepers themselves. -- An Arizona Prisoner, 21 February 97

Letters of protest can be sent to:

Mr. Daniel G. Knauss, First Assistant U.S. Attorney,  District of Arizona, Tucson Division, 110 South Church St.  Suite 8310, Tucson, AZ 85701 tel. (520) 602-7300

Mr. Grant Woods, Attorney General State of Arizona, State  Capitol Building, 1275 W. Washington St., Phoenix, Arizona  85007

Mr. Terry L. Stewart, Director, Arizona Department of  Corrections, 1601 West Jefferson, Phoenix, AZ 85007

MIM RESPONDS:  This letter does a good job of demonstrating  the gender oppression faced by gay men in prison. And as the  letter writer points out, this oppression is mainly at the  hands of the DOC. But there is also a problem in our society  in general that leads many people to believe that gays are  inferior and deserve to be abused. Because of this, guards  are able to use a prisoner's sexual orientation against him  and create conflict among the inmates. There is no more  basis for considering gays inferior than there is for  considering wimmin or Blacks or Latinos inferior.

MIM deplores violence amongst the people and calls on all  prisoners to fight the imperialists' attempts to pit inmates  against inmates. It is good that this prisoner recognizes  that the violence is principally coming from the DOC staff.  But calling on the staff for protection is clearly not a  solution when they are perpetrators of much of the violence.  Instead we must organize for our own protection. Comrades on  the inside and on the outside can help out this prisoner and  many others by getting involved in the struggle. On the  outside we should be writing letters on behalf of the many  prisoners cases covered in these pages. And on the inside  prisoners must work together to defend themselves and to  organize and educate others behind the bars.

 GULAG KOP RAPES PRISONER: NO SURPRISE, PIG ESCAPES PRISON

 Dear Comrades, I read about RAIL in the MIM newsletter....  The reason I am writing you is becuz I was sexually  assaulted by a prizon kop named Alan Reuben Collard in March  of 1996. I had to go through a bunch of krap and even pass a  lie detector before they would investigate it. It took them  over a year to even arrest the pig. Had I been accused of  raping a kop, I would have been arrested the next day.  Anywayz, they have tried their best to kover this up. They  are gonna let the pig plead guilty to reduced charges, and  he won't do a day in jail. This same kop has messed with  other POW's in the past they knew about it as early as 1992,  but they kept him on the job.

I am in a max prison, even though I was only sentenced for  fraud. Since I got this pig arrested, my life has been hell.  All the other kops are always on my ass, trying to  intimidate me. They give me bogue write ups, trying to mess  up my changes with the parole board (who I see in October).

I am hoping that you can help me out, and bring this case to  the attention of the people. As long as the Michigan  Department of Korruptions can sweep this under the rug,  nothing will change, and more POWs will be abused. I have no  problem standing up to these fux, but I would certainly  appreciate some support.

I hope to hear from you soon. NO SURRENDER,

-- A Michigan Prisoner 28 July 1997

 MIM ADDS: The way we see it is that the settler nation of  Amerika is at war with internal colonies. In a systematic  manner, Amerika brutalizes, oppresses and commits genocide  against oppressed nations. The systematic terror is easily  seen if you examine the police and the prison system. Within  the prisons where the masses are kept in order to quell  revolutionary opposition to settler domination prisoners  face brutality, unjust and inhumane treatment, slave labor,  rape and even murder at the hands of the prison guards.

The fact prisoners are raped and assaulted by the guards  shows that under the current imperialist and patriarchal  system, the oppressors use gender privilege to exert force  and power as a way to oppress the masses and further  dominate and cement the power of the oppressor.

MIM and RAIL do not expect that pigs like this will be  punished. When they are, it is only a token and irregular  circumstance. Their brutal actions are part of the  systematic domination of the settler nation. The only way to  end this shit is to build opposition to the system in its  entirety and build support for revolution.

 PRISON WORK & ECONOMIC REALITY

PRIVATIZATION, EXPLOITATION AND REBELLION  

I'm a prisoner being held captive in Virginia where the  introduction of privatized prisons is being formed. This is  a move at industrialism from within prisons nationally  instead of moving the jobs to other countries, just put them  in the prisons. With the abolition of parole and the  governor's (George Allen) Truth Sentencing Act (meaning 85%  of your sentence will be served),  the sentences are still  20, 30, 40 and 50 years. [This act] says a prisoner would  have to serve 17 years on an 20 year sentence, with no time  off for good behavior. The plan is to have as many potential  workers [in prison] as possible.

These conditions aren't new. After the Civil War, which left  the majority of the South devastated, the South replaced  slavery with sharecropping. The devious system which kept  poor farmers bound to the land by perpetual debt to the  landowner, and the introduction of Prison Farms, by 1871  state prisoners were laying railroad tracks and mining coal  from Memphis to Knoxville. Their urine was collected and  sold to tanneries by the barrels. Their bodies where sold  often to medical schools after they died so the medical  students could practice on them. "In a waste not, want not  campaign." The most notorious example of this institution  design was the Parchman Penitentiary on the Mississippi  Delta opened in 1905, turned a $185,000 profit in its first  year, and kept pumping out cash by Reviving the Basics of  Plantation Slavery. (V.C.E, Virginia's Correctional  Enterprise, made a profit of $24,638,000 in 1996)

1996 was a year of rebellion against increasing policies of  denial and the racketeering of prisoners' funds. The hiring  of Ronald Angelone as Director of Virginia's Department of  Corruptions, who has several lawsuits pending in Nevada  (where he was the Director there as well) for his "Shoot  first ask questions later" policy. He has now brought this  same slogan here. Dec. 26, 1996 at the Buckingham  (In)Correctional Center the warden, Eddie Pearson, was  stabbed, the Canteen liberated, gym and law library set  ablaze, and four (unarmed) prisoners are shot. The  governmentally, backed media says it was just an isolated  incident, and no need alarm.

The new policies of taking and limiting privileges via:  no  college programs, only vocational training in the prison  factories, denial of legal accesses in the form of a $120.00  filing fee, and the limiting of visiting hours. In some  cases, families drive 4 hours to spend 2 hours with the  relative, then four hours back. Also, the monitoring of all  phone calls, taking away of personal property, then selling  it right back through commissary at much higher rates.

With public opinion being "We don't want the Bad Guys  around, we want them locked away and gone from our midst for  good." So they're all right with the increasingly  restrictive conditions. Deprived and Oppressed people,  packed together in not so nice surroundings. That's a time  bomb ticking -- and the clock is showing seconds.

-- A Virginia Prisoner, 3 February 1997

 NEW JERSEY PRISON INDUSTRY EXPOSED

As you can see I'm a Prisoner of New Jersey State. Actually,  I'm now in the so-called infamous, East Jersey State Prison  (formally Rahway State Prison). As I've been incarcerated  here in this fascist state for the past [#] of years, I've  seen my share of changes within the prisons and outside far  as politics are concerned.

I'm more concerned with the political aspect of things, at  this time, because of the new bill of laws about to be put  into effect. At first, it was the "3 strikes you're out  law". Now it is the "do 85% of your sentence law". New  Jersey has a total of 8 prisons, one of them a sex offender  prison. There's also another one being built -- Regular  KKKoncentration KKKamp. East Jersey State Prison will become  a double max as the infamous Trenton State Prison. Prisoners  with 10 years or less will be packed in the newly built  kkkamp, while the lifers and other prisoners with large  stips (stipulated sentences) will occupy the maxs.

Not only that, there was a program speaking on the use of  New Jersey state prisoners sentenced to life as sacrificial  lambs in scientific research and development of biochemical  testing of drugs and viruses. From what I understand, this  has already been placed into law.

Right now we face the reality of paying for medical and  dental expense, while most prisoners have accepted inmate  state decreases. [The wages] weren't much to begin with.  Governor Christie Whitman had the audacity to lie to the  public concerning the living status of New Jersey Prisoners  as well as the state pay rate. The starting rate went from  35-40 cents per hour down to 28-30 cents per hour.

It urkes me to watch fellow prisoners sit back and watch our  situation become more and more deplorable. Others who are  released from behind these walls, go out and forget about  the warriors who've sacrificed time, material of  consciousness, and to some extent their very lives.  Unbelievable - In any case continue to send me MIM Notes. I  need the inspiration. Peace, love, Respect and Unity.

-- A New Jersey Prisoner, 24 March 1997

 PRISONER WAGES CUT

Greetings and I wish you health and happiness!

I would like to bring my problem to your attention. The  department of Corrections has instituted a new policy that  targets certain detail and it don't effect the entire  population. The inmates in the Institution, in the Chapel,  and the Act. Dept. were getting paid for working eight hours  a day. Starting April 4, we will only be compensated for  seven hours which is a very serious demotion considering the  fact that we inmates haven't had a pay increase in the last  three years and everything keeps going up all of the time. I  would like to know if anything at all can be done about this  unfair policy?

The inmates in this Prison have been complaining about the  cable in this prison for years. I made an attempt to get  everyone to cancel their subscription so that we could get a  better contract however everyone would not cooperate.

I was told by my superiors, as they refer to themselves,  that this directive will effect all of the state prisons. If  this is true I wish to call a massive work strike until this  unconstitutional policy has been recalled.

Inmates must stick together, we must refuse to live in  double cells. Simply refuse to take a celly. As long as we  permit these prison officials to have their way, they will  continue to warehouse us human beings like animals.

We inmates at Camp Hill pay for our own medication. Our  cable just went up and we were not given any new channels.  We pay twenty dollars a month for five channels. Every  prison in the state of pennsylvania gets more for their  money.

The cable is not my primary concern. My primary concern is  the fact that this prison could not function without inmate  work crews and we are being stepped on and mistreated.  Everything in the inmate store has gone up and the prices  just keep going up all of the time. I supposed this is the  reason Prison industries are so very profitable. The  commissary store here makes 5,000 dollars a day, that alone  says it all.

-- A Pennsylvania Prisoner, 27 March 1997

P.S. The guards and the staff are still being paid for eight  hours and we inmates do all of the work.

 PRISON BRIEF: AMERIKAN OPPRESSION TACTICS

ARIZONA REMOVES LAW LIBRARIES FROM PRISONS

MIM, As of July 1997 the state of Arizona has decided to  remove all law libraries from its prison system. I would  like to be able to keep up with the law concerning prisoners  rights. Therefore could you send me any information  concerning other publications that I can receive.

 -- An Arizona Prisoner, 28 Jun, 1997 

 PIGS CHARGE PRISONER

I would like to inform you that an officer here at this  prison had brought an assault and battery charge against me.  But the problem is that the evidence in the case is no good,  because the evidence is a picture that was taken a minute  before the alleged assault took place. I went to an all  white jury trial on [date] and was found guilty after the  jury deliberated for six (6) hours. The first time the jury  sent their decision to the judge it was a deadlock, and the  judge sent them back into deliberation. I still have to go  back to be sentenced as they think. When I return to the  judge I am going to give my defense. I understand how the  political system had done Mumia wrong and they're doing me  that way. I seriously hope that Mumia will go free. The  capitalists and imperialists are to be totally destroyed by  any means necessary.

 --A Michigan Prisoner, 10 March 1997

 MEDICAL AND HYGIENE ABUSES

Dear MIM, As you know I've spent already almost seven years  in solitary confinement isolation and I have stood up for  the cause of the struggle and Prisoner's rights both in  prisons and on the streets all the way.

Because of me being able to mobilize thousands of prisoners,  I have been subject to barbaric corporal punishments in  large doses. 31 months of bread and cabbage only; three  piece, full restraints, always leg irons cuff behind the  back to waist chain. Yet I suffer from epilepsy and asthma  attacks, and 10 other medications I take for disabilities  etc., coming to a total of 12 medications. At the present  time I'm also on deprivation of shower/yard exercise,  haircut, cell cleanup and a pillow.

I'm dying. My blood sugar count is only 29. Extremely low  blood pressure 100/60, gastritis, chest pains, dizziness,  seizures, asthma, migraine headaches, infections, allergies,  sinusitis, upchucking blood, etc.

The beastly pigs even urinate on the bread and cabbage. If  you wish, send complaints to:

M. McGinnis, Superintendent, Southport Correctional  Facility, PO Box 200, Pine City, NY 14871

Dr. Wright, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Department of  Correctional Services, State Office Campus Building #2, Albany, NY 12208

Respectfully,
-- A New York Prisoner, 10 July 1997

 DON'T EAT THE FOOD

Dear MIM:  ...I'm a prisoner at the Moberly Correctional  Center in Missouri. And to show you the shit that is going  on in this place, I was recently sent to the hole due to the  fact that I would not eat the food from a cook who didn't  have the proper equipment to serve the inmates. (1) No hair  net, (2) No gloves, (3) No chin guard. So I took it upon  myself to get my own tray and I was put in lockup at that  point.

Then I was released the next day. Prior to release from  lock-up, I was seen by the [Administrative Segregation]  Committee. They told me that I was wrong for getting my own  tray. So I told them pigs that I don't care what they say.  If the cook won't put on the proper gear to serve the food,  then I will get my own food from the table myself, even if  it means going to the hole each time. I don't care, my  health comes first and the health of my brothers as well.

This goes to show you that these pigs don't care if you live  or die in these KKKamps. So someone has to stand up for  what's right.

Respectfully Submitted,

 -- A Missouri Prisoner, 20 May 97