Fighting censorship in California prisons

I have taken this matter (a mail problem) to the director's level in Sacramento, California in a 602 inmate appeal process. Informal, formal, first, second and third levels. The outcome ended in denial. This mail issue is filed and pending in court under civil rights act 42 U.S.C 1983. My complaint so far is mail tampering (especially legal mail), refusal to give access to legal and regular mailing supplies, and censoring certain mail.

If there are any more complaints in the mail area, please file and help this struggle on this part. This is a very important thing so people on the outside and inside lets work to win our mail rights inside prison.

--a prison in California, April 2003

MIM responds: We need our comrades behind bars in California to take up this censorship battle. As our organizing has expanded in California prisons so has the censorship. Books and magazines we send in to prisoners in Tehachapi are being censored almost completely and letters as well as other literature is being censored at CSATF in Corcoran. We have also experienced sporadic censorship at other prisons in the state. MIM does not have the resources to fight this censorship alone. We need prisoners to appeal the censorship, and pursue it to the courts if necessary. We will always notify you if we learn our mail to you has been censored, and we can send you our resource guide to fighting censorship, but we need your help to win this battle.