Anti-censorship
campaign: Illinois
The Tamms C-Max (Control-
Maximum Security) in Illinois is
censoring the newspaper MIM Notes,
books sent in as part of MIM's Free
Books for Prisoners program, and
correspondence from individual
prisoners. The prison has generally not
disclosed why it stopped certain
materials.
We fear that the mailroom staff is
capriciously discarding mail, especially
mail to and from MIM and Men Against
Control Segregation (MACS). MACS
organizes against the abuses of controlunit
facilities.
Control units like Tamms are prisons
under permanent lock down. Prisoners
typically spend 23 hours of every day
alone in a 6' by 8' cell. Beatings by guards
are common. Control units are designed
to isolate prisoners - stopping contact
with the outside in one way this happens.
Illinois prisons have a history of
censorship. Tamms, for example, banned
the receipt of reading material from
friends and family members. Prisoners
in Illinois are waging a class action
lawsuit against this kind of censorship.
MIM is calling on all readers to protest
the censorship by Tamms officials and
throughout the IDOC. You can address
complaints to:
Warden George C. Welborn
200 East Supermax Road
P.O. Box 400
Tamms, IL 62988
Director Donald Snyder, Jr.
Illinois Department of Corrections
1301 Concordia Court
Springfield, IL 62794
Governor George Ryan
Office of the Governor
207 Statehouse
Springfield, IL 62706
Please send MIM a copy of all protest
letters you send.
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