MIM Notes 223   December 1, 2000

From a revolutionary prisoner: Develop the understanding and raise 
the consciousness of the masses

United Struggle from Within comrades, Revolutionary clenched fist 
salute.

My fellow comrades Under Lock & Key here in the belly of the 
beast, we all know there's over two million of us under Amerikkkan 
lockdown and the numbers are constantly growing and conditions and 
becoming more and more draconian, torturous and inhumane each day.

Attacks are being made against us physically, mentally, 
legislatively and financially and in any way the blood sucking 
capitalist parasites see profit to sink in their fangs. As long as 
they exist and [emphasize] profit more prisons will be 
constructed, more oppressed nationals will be imprisoned, and 
state repression will be increased inside these penal colonies. 
That's why we need [representatives] like MIM Notes and its Under 
Lock & Key section. We can inform the oppressed nation 
communities, which the pigs also occupy, of how their conditions 
in the internal and semi-colonies are similar to our conditions in 
these penal colonies and the relevancy of why they should 
organize, work with and join MIM or RAIL.

We, the United Struggle from Within comrades must take up 
responsibilities, carrying out our duties to revitalize the prison 
movement which is key in the genuine liberation movement. We must 
move to develop the understanding of the prison population. By 
doing the necessary work such as holding study groups and 
political education classes, we are at the same time constantly 
developing our own understanding of the fellow prisoners and 
intensifying our roles in the movement.

Oppressed nationals must realize that and understand that nowhere 
in history has the oppressor liberated the oppressed, the 
oppressed must liberate themselves and to do so armed struggle [is 
necessary]. But first we must develop the understanding and raise 
the consciousness of the masses and build public opinion.

Our work is not limited to developing the consciousness of 
prisoners in these dungeons, torture chambers, concentration 
camps, reservations and plantations. We must also become community 
activist advisors and develop the consciousness of the oppressed 
nations being subjected to imperialist-controlled, capitalist-
manipulated bourgeois-administered ideology and miseducation. It 
is our duty to communicate to the masses the correct information 
and the unvarnished truth about the injustices of the entire 
imperialist system, the Amerikkkan empire and its brainwashing 
institutions of deception and indoctrination.

MIM is the only organization that I know of that has a section in 
its newspaper for prisoners to have our writings published and 
convey our message: free speech for real. MIM has the most 
advanced, broadest and correct definitions of political 
prisoners/prisoners of war, and works more closely and more 
effectively with prisoners while having limited resources.

So again, [let's talk about the importance and] relevance of 
putting out an extra four pages of Under Lock & Key for the EAL 
month October 15 issue. Putting out the four pages may not happen, 
but it can happen. If the four pages don't happen for the second 
annual EAL Month, let's focus on the third annual EAL Month so it 
can happen. If we have taken for granted that the four extra pages 
of Under Lock & Key would be made manifest by the work and 
contribution of others and not from our own contribution that line 
of thinking is not only incorrect, it's counter-productive. Let's 
think again.

Many of us have problems receiving MIM Notes in whole, in part, 
period. Some of us can receive MIM Notes without any problems, 
including distribution copies, at least for a while that is. Most 
of these gulags are imposing censorship of MIM Notes because 
prisoners are challenging [the censorship] without support from 
people on the outside and because there aren't any protest and 
litigation coming before them and we aren't and haven't prepared 
for the long haul. Even those of us who have won censorship 
battles are not out of the woods. Our captors increase their 
repression against us, retaliate by bringing false charges against 
us, as the prisoncrats try to construct strategies to over-turn 
our censorship victories, the overall power struggles continue. 
[We need to] research and study the law and form study groups so 
strategies for fighting censorship can be devised; [we need to] 
rally for outside support, legal and community.

USW members should consider helping with MIM's Serve the People 
Free Books for Prisoners program by writing colleges, libraries, 
businesses, churches. Explain that prisoners in the U.S. don't 
have a right to education and rehabilitation, college level 
programs have nearly all been terminated and that's why we are 
requesting they donate books and/or funds to MIM's STP Free Books 
for Prisoners program. [Ask them to contact MIM to find out what 
books are most needed. - MIM]

USW comrades, let's reaffirm our commitment to the movement, take 
action and increase and intensify the struggle on all fronts. USW 
comrades, we should also advance the demands of the Attica 
prisoners, study and build on those issues and agitate around 
them.

In struggle, 

-- an Illinois Comrade, 26 August 2000