MIM(Prisons) is a cell of revolutionaries serving the oppressed masses inside U.$. prisons, guided by the communist ideology of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism.
www.prisoncensorship.info is a media institution run by the Maoist Internationalist Ministry of Prisons. Here we collect and publicize reports of conditions behind the bars in U.$. prisons. Information about these incidents rarely makes it out of the prison, and when it does it is extremely rare that the reports are taken seriously and published. This historical record is important for documenting patterns of abuse, and also for informing people on the streets about what goes on behind the bars.
I was first introduced to revolutionary politics when I was 16 and from
then on it has been a continuous evolutionary process that I have gone
through. When first I was blessed to have the blinders lifted from my
sleepy eyes, I was going through a battle with the revolutionary
politics that I was engaged in. Those politics were reactionary because
they were derailing the efforts of the people who sacrificed their
minds, sweat, blood and even their bodies to ensure a better future for
their posterity. I was going through this phase because I was just
learning how to think.
I was born again through Allah’s mathematics and I also saw people such
as comrade George as a source of inspiration. Being that in my past life
I was a gang member, I encountered a lot of opposition from my once gang
homies, but I was determined to follow in the way of Allah and to also
become a part of the vanguard that does not fear the death of a thousand
cuts. So a brother by the name of comrade Teddy helped to open the eyes
of the once sleeping giant.
I had always had a rebellious streak but didn’t know why. I now know
that it was due to my innate ability to resist and never kowtow. In the
wilderness of N. Amerika its hard to relate ideas and ideals of struggle
for liberation to even lower disenfranchised segments of the population.
It’s hard because they have accepted their position as national (and
international) scapegoats. So in the belly of the beast in KY where the
intellectual level is relatively minute, it’s even harder. The beast
(pigs) have convinced the inmates against writing grievances! This is as
absurd as the Vietnamese liberation fighters not shooting the soldiers
who they must kill in order to survive.
But some guys are starting to stir. It can happen overnight, but then
they have to learn the arsenal of anti-fascist responses. When I
communicate with others I am doing so in hopes to affect change. I help
them by getting them to see the reality of their positions and our
position as a whole. Since materialism has altered my vocabulary, I come
to them in a language that they can understand and try by first helping
by bringing formations together. It is a hard job trying to organize a
cadre however I am fully committed to the peoples’ struggle.
These were very thought provoking question you asked: Do you find it
impossible to relate to people in your facility? Do your organizing
conversations go nowhere? Do you struggle to get people to see the
importance of writing grievances? Well yes, yes and yes.
Many people say it is futile – show them, tell them examples of
otherwise. Offer to help if necessary.
I get angry with those who say, and this is quite common, “don’t come to
prison if you don’t like it.” I say “so, you must like prison by that
logic?” And I point to the relatively small-time offenses here compared
to the larger ones perpetrated on us and the other oppressed people.
I’ll say, look around, see anyone with any money, any rich or much less
upper class people up in here? I will appeal to their humanity and ask:
is it okay to take parents (mothers in my case, it’s a women’s facility)
away from their children for trying to support themselves? Point out the
economic basis of most crime in here.
Drug addicts often say “prison saved my life.” I’ll ask what else
might’ve helped you even if it was not available to you at the time?
What is prison helping you do differently to not use drugs? Do you know
the statistics of recidivism to not only drugs (relapse) but
re-incarceration? In a group, one can say all 5 of you claim you won’t
come back but 4 of you will, which ones? Why could this be? And point
out the “felon branding,” job killing, underclass designation. We don’t
have realistic options to not be around opportunities to use drugs, sell
drugs, etc. And more importantly why do people use the drugs they do?
I’ll talk about Dr. Gabor Mate’s theories of addiction, science of
addiction and how drug cases and/or addiction is dealt with in other
countries. How capitalism and materialism feed the alienation and
psychic (and physical) pain behind some addictions. Is there
recreational use? Why is marijuana now legal in 2/3 of states from full
recreational to medical yet Feds still criminalize (we have several
women here on marijuana charges).
Most importantly, I cultivate good will, openness and friendliness to
most inmates. I ask them about their families and comment on family
support being such a blessing. I talk to women, joke with them and show
my own struggles, vulnerability and wishes. I share pictures and stories
of their dogs and my dogs together, boyfriends, and I see people’s good
characteristics and basic drive to connect.
I redirect all the “positive thinking” into imagining what constitutes
actions. From first being thought of as “crazy” now I am considered the
fiery, spunky “fighter” in my 60s (I don’t look or act like it, they
say), and I do not believe I have a single enemy out of 93+ women. A few
of the COs do not like me however, because I will challenge them (not
needlessly or if I am doing something I could get written up for). For
example one telling me I was “disrespectful.” Well, this is true, I do
not respect lizards who jail people and profit off suffering. However,
they cannot punish a feeling, only an action. So, having the correct
attitude, but avoiding an action that only hurts yourself and denying
the CO “a win” is a win for the cause.
I cannot see the state weakening. It seems ever more powerful everyday
especially legally. The Feds especially are punishing small economic and
drug crimes with five years and up sentences. The new attorney general
is pushing the agenda for prosecutors to go for the high end of
guidelines and give out longer sentences for victim-less crimes than
murder in most other countries. The decisions by the Supreme Court and
Appeals Courts have seldom been in the interest of the people.
The reason gay and lesbian movements are being championed is because
they do not challenge the status quo on the capitalistic power structure
whatsoever. Think if felons received the same considerations in hiring
and for governments benefits. But it is completely legal to be
prejudiced and deny any employment or service based on being a felon.
The New Jim Crow isn’t just for New Africans anymore.
That’s my thinking. If I am to be a martyr you will know. I’d like my
life or death to have some consequence in the struggle.
MIM(Prisons) responds: In everything we do, we must try to
determine what will have the most impact the fastest. Sometimes people
are ready to just hear facts and then start doing political work. More
often, people hear truth in what we’re saying, but also have a lot of
resistance and ambivalence. As organizers, we’re trying to influence
them and push them. So helping them through these roadblocks is our job.
In these types of conversations, there is a natural dialectic that
occurs, where when one persyn takes one position, the other persyn
naturally argues the opposite position. And the more we argue a
position, the more likely we are to internalize that position and behave
accordingly.
So often we fall into the trap of trying to tell people what to think,
inadvertently entering into a head-on debate. Or we rely on luck that
the timing is right for them to grasp on to what we’re saying. These are
the easy routes of recruiting, because they don’t require as much
thoughtfulness or introspection on our part. And when people don’t grasp
it, we can put the blame on them for being lazy, or too caught up in
tribalism/capitalism/whatever. And sometimes we get lucky and people do
grasp it, which validates our mediocre approach.
But if we want to be the most effective at helping people grow and
change, we have to understand where they’re coming from, where they’re
at.
In impersynal recruiting such as sloganeering, public speaking and
writing in ULK, understanding our audience might just mean
understanding (or defining) their class, nation, and gender
intersections, and cultural background. There is always individual
variability, but even when trying to reach people on a group level, we
can have an understanding of where they’re coming from. We aim to speak
to and with our audience, not at them.
If we’re having 1-on-1 conversations, then helping them break through
their roadblocks might also include getting to know what’s important to
people on a persynal level. Then we can relate the growth back to their
persynal goals and show how the two are actually intertwined. This
author explains how ey takes this approach to show people that they’re
on the same team. This is much different than the “you’re wrong, if you
don’t agree with me, fuck you” approach that so many of our comrades
take in their recruiting.
When we know someone is interested in doing political work, but is
showing resistance or ambivalence, we can choose to dismiss them, or we
can go deeper. We can lay blame, or we can take responsibility.
Organizing is hard. We can try harder.
This comrade’s criticism that some movements are allowed or even
promoted because they don’t challenge imperialism is on point. Allowing
gay people to serve in the military is a good example of this; we won’t
fight to expand the imperialist military in any way. At the same time
allowing discrimination against felons is a way to target oppressed
nations while masking it behind a label of “criminal” activity. People
convicted of felonies are disproportionately New Afrikan or Chican@.
This is where our understanding of the bigger picture of prisons as a
tool of social control is critical. Oppressed nations are targeted for
imprisonment even though white people also get caught up in the prison
dragnet. This is most definitely a system of national oppression and a
way to handle the lumpen population which would otherwise be idle and
questioning its lack of economic opportunity – a perfect recipe for
politicization. In fact, the prison boom was a direct response to
revolutionary activity in the 1960s and 70s!
I’m relaying a conversation I had with the leader of a certain
organization and the events that brought it about. About a month ago on
Ad-Seg yard the cat in the cage next to me got stabbed up while he was
in full restraints behind an argument him and this other dude had the
night before. These types of attacks have become really popular the last
few years here in Arkansas and coincidentally so have drugs like K2 and
ice. The types of attacks I’m talking about are: in gen pop, prisoners
getting cracked with locks while they’re asleep. Or getting jumped by
5-6 dudes and not just taking an ass whoppin but getting stabbed on top
of getting jumped.
Then the Ad-Seg yard has become a death trap. These dudes have learned
how to cut through the chainlink fences. While dudes are getting moved
it ain’t shit for one of those other cats to pop out of his cage and
butcher another prisoner that will be handcuffed behind the back and
shackled up in full restraints. To me this is a coward move, I can’t
respect that shit. So I got to thinking what it would take for those
dudes to take a second look at their tactics. So I decided to have a
conversation with an org leader I’ve been knowing for about 10 years and
I know his word has a lot of weight.
Throughout my experience I’ve learned a lot of these leaders have ego
issues so when you put forth any type of idea that may be enforced you
have to put it forth in a way so as it’s like it’s their idea and play
it off what you know are their likes and dislikes. I know he happens to
despise cowards so I put forth my argument on these types of attacks
being really cowardice along with stupidity, especially for the reasons
that they are taking place (words and name calling over the tier). I
shot it at this cat how we as prisoners have to govern ourselves through
certain rules, just like his org has rules against members stealing from
other prisoners.
I was surprised to find out that not only does he not care but he
actually condones these attacks! And proceeded to debate with me using
as his argument telling me to imagine one of these dudes slandering me,
calling me a snitch or whatever. I saw I was going nowhere so I steered
the conversation to more neutral matters but later I thought, “I may
have been swayed by an argument of what if dude was a snitch himself and
there was paperwork and witnesses to corroborate but some dude calling
me names?”
Maybe I have a better understanding of the fact that most of these dudes
have mental health issues of some sort and compound that with being
behind millions of $s worth of concrete and steel, they start feeling
invisible and lose touch with reality. I gave up trying to hold people
to the same moral standards I hold myself to, but these types of attacks
are wrong on so many levels. There needs to be some type of honor
amongst prisoners, some type of integrity, some type of standards we
hold ourselves and our comrades to. Stop provoking these mental health
dudes and instead educate in how to deal with each other. You don’t have
to become best friends but some shit you just gotta overlook.
MIM(Prisons) responds: We fully support this comrade’s efforts to
organize for peace in the facility where ey is held. We agree that there
should be a minimum standard of behavior amongst prisoners, and we
uphold the 5 principles of the United Front for Peace in Prisons as our
ideal model.(see p. 3)
If a conversation is going nowhere, turning it to neutral territory is a
perfectly good tactic. Better to end on neutral ground than with even
more discord. And choosing who to have these conversations with
(i.e. don’t agitate people with mental health challenges) is another
sharp lesson from this author.
Often times a conversation will seem like a failure in the moment,
because we aren’t obviously going from point A to goal Z. But even
something as small as beginning a dialogue, planting a seed, or removing
the taboo from a topic of conversation, can be victories in themselves.
There are many reasons why a conversation might seem unproductive in the
moment, but actually have a lasting positive effect.
We can also examine conversations like this to try to figure out exactly
what is holding it back. Often it’s easier on our own egos to blame
failures on others’ unwillingness to accept our “correct” position.
Rather than looking at what we can improve on our end, we just label the
persyn we’re arguing with as unreasonable. We might not ever win this
person over on this issue, but ultimately we need to take responsibility
for our own successes and failures in our organizing efforts, and learn
and grow and improve from them.
To become an expert in any field, it takes approximately ten thousand
hours over ten years. Think about the amount of effort you are putting
into being a great organizer. Are you on track to becoming an expert?
Quantity of effort is not the only important factor to improving our
skills. Quality of our practice is just as important. Experts don’t just
practice more, they practice deliberately.
“This is how experts practice:
“First, they set a stretch goal, zeroing in on just one narrow aspect
of their overall performance. Rather than focus on what they already do
well, experts strive to improve specific weaknesses. They intentionally
seek out challenges they can’t yet meet…
“Then, with undivided attention and great effort, experts strive to
reach their stretch goal. Interestingly, many choose to do so while
nobody’s watching. Basketball great Kevin Durant has said, ‘I probably
spend 70 percent of my time by myself, working on my game, just trying
to fine-tune every single piece of my game.’ …
“As soon as possible, experts hungrily seek feedback on how they did.
Necessarily, much of that feedback is negative. This means that experts
are more interested in what they did wrong – so they can fix it –
than what they did right. The active processing of this feedback
is as essential as its immediacy. …
“And after feedback, then what?
“Then experts do it all over again, and again, and again. Until they
have finally mastered what they set out to do. Until what was a struggle
before is now fluent and flawless. Until conscious incompetence becomes
unconscious competence…
“And… then what? What follows mastery of a stretch goal?
“Then experts start all over again with a new stretch
goal.
”One by one, these subtle refinements add up to dazzling
mastery.”(1)
The process of deliberate practice requires us to identify a goal, stay
focused on our goal, break it into tiny parts, seek out feedback, be
open to criticism, try, try, try, try, try, succeed, and then stretch
again. All together this requires a ton of persynal growth and
commitment.
If we want to be the best organizers we can be, we can take a lesson
from Durant. Treat our organizing skills like ey treats eir basketball
career. Write down your goals and failures. Think about them deeply.
Read about negotiation and conversation tactics. Get input from others.
Consolidate our experience. Try again.
While growing up in Newark, New Jersey, I always heard of the stories
about the riots, the grassroot movements, and life in the aftermath of
the 1960s and 70s. However, I was a young kid who only cared about
getting high, gang banging, and wanting to be recognized as being big
and bad. Well I got recognized alright, but for the wrong reasons. In
1999, at the age of 20 years old, I was convicted of murder and
sentenced to 40 years in prison.
In the first few years in prison I was still acting a fool, still trying
to be recognized as big and bad. But it wasn’t til 2005 when that
revolutionary spark first ignited in my mind. It all started when I went
to solitary confinement for a fight I was involved with. While in
solitary confinement I didn’t have nothing to read or anything to keep
my mind occupied. So I spent hours at a time just standing at the door
yelling and cursing out the pigs as they went by for their counts.
Anyway, I guess my next door neighbor got tired of listening to me
yelling, so he knocked on my wall and ask if I needed a book to read. So
I said, “yeah, sure why not.” He passed me a book called Assata
by Assata Shakur. Before this I never knew who she was or even read the
book, but being that I had nothing better to do while in solitary I read
it.
While reading the book, flipping through page after page, Assata’s story
spoke to me. I felt and recognized her struggle. Within two days I
finished the book and now it was me knocking on my neighbor’s wall,
wanting more to read. My neighbor was an older brother, and throughout
the year I spend in solitary he kept feeding me books such as Blood
in My Eye, Soul on Ice, and other great books. My neighbor
was a firm believer in the ideology of the Black Liberation Army and the
Black Panthers. Being a Latino myself, he also taught me about people
and groups such as Che Guevara and the Young Lords Party. Now, instead
of yelling on the gate for hours on end, my neighbor and I would spend
hours talking to each other, building and helping me become more
conscious of myself. He helped me realize that me wanting to be known as
big and bad was just that egotistical force for recognition, which will
one day lead me into a brick wall.
After my sanction in solitary confinement was complete, I continued my
studies while on mainline. I read up on people such as Mahatma Gandhi,
Mao Tse-tung, Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Marx and many others. Gang
banging wasn’t even on my radar. That one spark became a single flame,
changing the way I think, the way I talk, and the way I conducted
myself. Throughout the years since then, that flame is now a hungry fire
inside of me, like the heat of earth on fire. My sole mission is to help
educate those oppressed about their political and social conditions that
we live under! Because as my neighbor taught me so long ago, “Each one
teaches one!” Power to the people!
Recently I was transferred here to SCI Chester and was shocked at the
difference in the prisoners here compared to my comrades at SCI Greene,
SCI Pittsburgh, and SCI Somerset. This facility is very different. A
program was incorporated here called welfare to work which allowed many
welfare recipients from the surrounding area to be hired at this prison.
Now I’m all for giving the underprivileged opportunities but this prison
is so “Ratchet” now it’s ridiculous. Staff does not do their jobs here.
Grievances are ignored, campaigns challenged, and anyone who speaks out
is locked down for “inciting a riot” and promptly transferred. With
mostly short-term prisoners at this “program prison” prisoners are
afraid to fight for their rights out of fear for negative marks on their
record for parole.
I’ve been putting in non-stop paperwork since arriving and all I’ve
accomplished is gaining the ire of my unit manager and other staff. I
have even been threatened. I have succeeded in starting an
anti-imperialist study group but am persecuted for it. My unit manager
lies and makes up reasons to put me on “cell restrictions” so I can’t
hold group. But I keep pushing and have gotten some other prisoners to
start standing up for themselves. But none of our paperwork is being
addressed. 90% of the time we receive no response whatsoever.
I have no idea how they get away with it. You would think these staff
members who were underprivileged and grew up in the streets like we did
would be more sympathetic to our plights but instead they go on power
trips and neglect most of their duties. These types of people are why we
can’t make classless society work. It seems all our efforts here are in
vain. We are sending out a call for help; any assistance or advice will
be greatly appreciated. Spirits seem broken here at SCI Chester and
comrades are dropping out of the struggle and though it is dissuading I
will not quit. I will remain constantly a soldier on the front lines of
this war. But I’m calling for backup.
MIM(Prisons) responds: While this writer sees the Welfare to Work
program at SCI Chester as the cause of repression, many prisons without
this program have similar conditions. We can’t speak to the effects of
this program specifically, but more generally we know that many prisons
are built in communities where job opportunities are limited. And that
people generally don’t take jobs as prison guards out of a desire to
help people; just as with most capitalist jobs, people are working for
the money.
More generally this writer’s letter raises the question of why so
many people working in prison perpetuate oppression rather than being
kind and helpful to prisoners. There is evidence that oppressing people
is not an inherent characteristic of humyns. Instead, this is a result
of the economics of capitalism and our capitalist culture. First there
is the economic side of things: the vast majority of people in this
imperialist country are getting paid more than the value of their labor.
They are basically being bought as supporters of imperialism. So when
they get paid well to work in an institution that is based in social
control and torture of other humyns, they’re ok doing it because that’s
part of supporting capitalism.
Second we have capitalist culture which trains people to be ok with
harming others and exerting power over others. There have been studies
that show that even random people put in a situation where someone in
charge tells them to hurt another persyn, most will do it because
they’re told to. Most famously in the United $tates there was the
Stanford Prison Experiment back in 1971.
But there also has been huge social experiments such as the Cultural
Revolution in China in the 1960s and 70s which showed that even people
who formerly were oppressors with great power can be re-educated and
become peaceful productive members of society. It’s not easy, and we
won’t win on the re-education front on a mass scale until we have the
power to implement a cultural revolution to eradicate a system that
values and glorifies power and oppression.
Rather than despair and say that these guards are why we can’t make
classless society work, we say these guards are exactly why we need
socialism and a dictatorship of the proletariat. Clearly we have a lot
of work to do to re-train and re-educate people so that they respect all
humyns and act kindly towards others. We need a system that is set up to
serve the oppressed and forcibly stop those who want power for
themselves for persynal gain. The system of socialism will require a
long period of cultural revolution, where we transform our culture into
one that values humyn life and teaches people to treat others equally
rather than valuing power and wealth at any cost to others. It will be a
long struggle to reach a society where there is no class, nation or
gender oppression. But it is the only path to survival for humynity.
Prisoners in New Folsom PSU/SHU have minimal contact to or with the
outside world, other prisoners, friends or family, and receive little to
no medical or mental health care but we sure do have a lot of
overwhelming remarkable amount of physical contact with poor white trash
guards. Much of this contact occurs during assaultive cell extractions,
which are conducted if a prisoner refused to be harassed, intimidated or
wear restraints which are painful, such as small cuffs squeezing on too
tight or leg irons that scrape the skin off your ankles when we are
forced to walk far distances or slammed by guards. Some prisoners don’t
want to be set up by guards who prey and pay weak (PC) prisoners to sell
their soul for the life once they attack other prisoners for white trash
pigs.
For the most part, if a revolutionary prisoner leaves out his cell,
guards will stage a hit, mostly on young blacks form southern
California. Guards will claim we are not recognized to Constitutional
protections. And once one leaves his cell shanks are planted, one has no
safe guard to privacy rights in his for the moment cell dwelling. Pigs
secretly creep through your belongings, legal papers, your rap lyrics,
tamper in food, ravish one’s living quarters, etc.
Sometimes prisoners who lack self-knowledge and education coupled with
mental-illness are used by pigs to clog toilets and smell up the whole
unit so female clinical workers will desire not to check on their
clients. I call it cowardness. Sometimes even the best of us might hold
a food port open to get immediate response. Nevertheless one might
refuse to return a food tray, kick the cell door or throw excrement at
guards in these situations; the assaultive cell extraction retaliation
is much more flagrant.
Prisoners who are ongoing targets of prejudiced and biased pigs are much
more likely to be ambushed and attacked while in hand cuffs by other
prisoners while volunteering to be escorted by pigs to and from medical
health care appointments or group training.
It is useless to notify pigs at New Folsom if you’re suicidal. Prisoners
are left naked in the cold weather outside, for over four hours,
shivering in outdoor cages smaller than the width of 2 crates.
Pigs are conspiring to break the spirit of young Black African
Amerikans.
My only conclusion is to stand by the 122 Nelson Mandela rules and don’t
break under pressure. Submit to moral principle.
The September 9th Day of Peace and Solidarity is an opportunity for
prisoners to commemorate the anniversary of the Attica uprising and draw
attention to abuse of prisoners across the country. This event was
initiated in 2012 by a prisoner organization and has been taken up as an
annual United Front for Peace in Prisons (UFPP) event, with people
participating in prisons across the country.
We can not effectively fight the oppressors if we don’t have unity among
the oppressed. And that unity behind bars needs to start with peace and
solidarity. This is why activists spend the 24 hours on September 9
promoting peace and education. We call for a full halt on all
hostilities and engagements, whether between lumpen organizations or
individuals. All participants should use the day to educate and build
peace. In some places prisoners will observe a 24-hour fast. In others
there will be group classes to study and discuss political history and
current events. Figure out what you will do and get started organizing
people today.
We use September 9 to build on the UFPP principle of Peace: “WE organize
to end the needless conflicts and violence within the U.$. prison
environment. The oppressors use divide and conquer strategies so that we
fight each other instead of them. We will stand together and defend
ourselves from oppression.” This is a critical step in building a united
front among prisoner organizations and individuals committed to the
anti-imperialist movement. We do not need to agree on every political
question, but we must come together united around core principles to
build and succeed together. For those who are engaging others to
participate, the unity building starts well before September 9. It is a
long process of education and organizing to build the anti-imperialist
movement.
This 24 hour action will require a little sacrifice, but should incur no
harm, and should lead to a reduction in violence as all
prisoner-on-prisoner hostilities cease for the day. We can build greater
awareness of the oppression against which we fight, and build the unity
that is necessary for that battle, by organizing groups and individuals
to participate. Comrades organizing around the solidarity demo are
encouraged to send their plans or reports to Under Lock &
Key. To be included in ULK 64, your reports must be in our
mailbox by Monday September 17.
In this article we print letters from our imprisoned comrades across the
country, which explain their recruiting methods. Our comrades do a great
job of learning from their mistakes and turning what could be a negative
challenge to our struggle (such as splitting up the study group) into
something that makes us even stronger (spreading the fire). We have to
expect repression from the pigs, and it will only get worse as we get
stronger. We need to roll with it and turn it into an advantage for us.
We trust through your reading of the submissions below that you can pull
out lessons for your own organizing. We were warned against sharing this
info in ULK because our newsletter passes through the hands of
the pigs. But most of the lessons below are about mindset and
conversational approach, which the pigs can’t touch.
Some comrades give examples of things that haven’t worked, and we are
sharing these as examples because surely other people are trying the
same tactics and facing the same challenges. If it’s not working, try
something else.
We encourage readers to go through this issue of ULK for ideas,
switch up what you’re doing, and write in to MIM(Prisons) to tell us how
it went.
A Nebraska prisoner: It is surely a challenge to get study groups
started when they move us around in seg, but we have found it also helps
to spread the spark of that fire that is a need for something better.
Over the years it’s been easier to open dialogue with new people and
show people the benefit and truth of communism/socialism, even
anarchism. Different individuals seem to have different feelings about
parties from their various background, and knowing the three are closely
related helps find a common foothold when bringing individuals into the
fold so to speak, and shine the light about the failure of capitalism.
Knowledge is power in any debate when you’re trying to convince someone
to reconsider the truths of their ideals, especially when they have
failed to really dissect their own ideals and just have been going with
the flow. It is interesting indeed.
A Michigan prisoner: An important lesson I’ve learned from
politicking with brothers held captive here with me is that if you speak
truth to them, you find that they come over to your side. Because, 9
times out of 10, their direct experiences usually match up with what it
is that you’re saying. So what I’m saying, what I’m speaking here, is
the absolute truth. If organizers are looking for explanations for why
their organizing techniques aren’t working, they should look in the
mirror. In our line of work it’s what we do, or don’t do, that is
decisive. This is true for two reasons. First, we can’t simply apply
organizing techniques dogmatically to any situation without doing an
analysis based in dialectical materialism to try and understand the
dynamics of the situation and, therefore, try to employ our techniques
in a way which is going to have the most likelihood of success. Second,
organizers cannot expect lumpen who are not familiar with political work
to automatically engage in struggle if we do not put forth the necessary
effort to teach them how to struggle. Our job as organizers is to
organize and educate the lumpen in the lessons of political struggle, as
well as inspire them to take matters in their own hands and become
agents of their own liberation.
I come from, or should I say, I am a lumpen organization (LO) leader
myself. That said, I have firsthand knowledge of LO politics and history
and I use this knowledge to my advantage when politicking with other LO
leaders. For example, most LOs are based on certain fundamental
principles that are uplifting. Though not revolutionary by a long shot,
some LOs began as a righteous cause. However, the leadership of LOs
eventually corrupted and completely distorted the fundamental principles
and began wielding their power and influence for destructive ends –
thereby compounding the oppression that oppressed nations suffer under
imperialist domination in the ghettos of Amerikkka. Usually, when I’ve
pointed this out to other LO leaders and explained to them that, as
leaders, they have a duty and responsibility to look out for not only
the interests of those they command, but the community and “our people”
as a whole, they tighten up somewhat.
As a result of politicking like this, they (LO members) can become more
receptive to revolutionary teachings. In fact, some of the brothers I’ve
instructed in Maoist principles are actually taking heed and developing
a genuine interest in revolutionary theory. I am pushing them very hard,
and they have become more radical. And, together, we are pushing hard to
(1) organize our struggle, and (2) take the political position of the
United Front for Peace in Prisons.
In Conclusion, dialectical materialism, when grasped firmly, is
relatively simple. We study situations, set our tasks, aim for success,
inevitably fall short, try to learn from our mistakes, and come back
better prepared, more organized, and more determined than ever to win
the next time around.
In addition, Maoism in particular teaches us that there are two ways of
learning – direct knowledge and indirect knowledge. Direct knowledge
involves firsthand experiences through the senses: sight, hearing,
taste, touch, and smell, whereas indirect knowledge involves looking at,
listening to, or reading about someone else’s experiences. In other
words, we can learn from the experiences of others just as well as we
can from our own experiences. So when we gain experience at a certain
thing and develop techniques in the midst of struggle, we should share
our experiences and techniques in the hope that they will explain,
inform, or aid other comrades in their political work.
Above all, organizers should bear in mind that our main task when
organizing is to unite all those that can be united. In all the world,
whether inside or outside prison, oppressed people know that unity in
action is a necessary precondition for waging successful struggle. If
you aren’t for the unity of action, you aren’t for the struggle.
However, for those of us who are really for the struggle, we must prove
it in action (practice) – in a concrete way.
An Oregon prisoner: I thought I’d share a few thoughts on my own
strategies & tactics. Firstly it must be noted that I was literally
raised in the feds, and in that system, violence is a social construct
propagated by all. As such, men were much more receptive to
community-organizing/unity. I personally went from ignorance and tribal
identity to New Afrikan. And what I’ve used as a tool to build
consciousness are “group/tribe - specific” literature & exercise
regiments.
The first is taking say, a book by & about “Kiwes and Damus” and
using it to spark dialogue. What I’ve found is “most” tribe-aligned men
are more receptive to older men they respect & who take interest in
learning about them and their tribe! Forging common ground if you will.
The second is using a physical exercise program as a means to build men!
Starting with instilling discipline and accompanying self esteem, that
follow one’s acquiring a fit body. Now, obviously within a prison
environment, the “group exercise(s)” (i.e. machine) can be seen by the
AmeriKlan guards as “gang related.” So I caution men to do so in a
proper & compartmentalized manner to negate the erroneous
misconception(s)!
I am a fluent Ki Swahili speaker. I have been for over 20 years. Now!
What I’ve also discovered is that even in this ideologically backwards
state, many New Afrikans and Chicanos take to learning the language.
Which, for the New Afrikan, opens up a dormant sense of long-lost
cultural identity. For the Chicanos, it rebuilds bridge(s) to the past.
The days of Caesar Chavez, the Party, Unity in Struggle. A time of Klass
unity, and our shared socio-political agenda = Power to the People!
Enough said!
Clenched fist salutations to all who stand firm on progressive ideals
& work diligently to build amidst the reactionaries whom aid our
oppressors!
A Nevada prisoner: Between this issue of ULK 60 and the
pamphlet Fundamental Political Line of MIM(Prisons) I came up
with what I believe to be the biggest problems we face. Many people shy
away from revolutionary struggle like trying to convert a Christian to
Islam. It’s despised like conspiracy theories. So with that said,
Problem #1 is appealing to and reaching those best positioned to make
changes.
The situation of what prompted me to say this: I study mostly on the
tier. Curious people come over to see the unique Fundamental
Political Line pamphlet on the table. First thing they ask me is if
I’m doing bible study. I smile, then turn to the first page explaining
what it is. I truly believe it scares them off because it is
intimidating, it’s bold, but it’s truth. This happened several times.
Noticing this, I tried to come up with a way to better explain what our
struggle is about. I found what I will use in ULK 60 p. 7 by
USW23. I will say “This is about how to better understand our situation
and how to change our conditions.”
A Michigan prisoner: As for organizing different conversations.
Yes, they do seem to get nowhere unless we’re talking about gangs or
some other subject that interests them. Very few people want to hear
about doing something productive, as in educating their minds or
developing some new skill or improving their community when they are
released. A lot of these inmates want to continue selling drugs or
becoming a rapper, or “what’s the new clothing line or style,” new
phones, things like that – instead of empowering the youth.
Yes, I do struggle with people telling them or asking to write
grievances because they don’t want to snitch but when it’s against these
pigs they don’t see that unless more complaints or grievances are seen
or written, changes will not be made. They would rather deal with it
than change it. I understand that if grievances are written on these
pigs then in most cases they will be targeted, but as I mentioned, if
nothing is said nothing will change! I am not sure what else I can say
or do. You can help those whom do want to be helped. I show people the
issues and I mention to them that they can be part of the change and
movement to write to MIM and start there.
USW27 writes: As a member of the council of USW, September 9 Day
of Peace and Solidarity is a blessing to us behind enemy lines who are
committed to struggle against injustice. This gives us a chance to
reflect and learn from history of our struggle from the lumpen
viewpoint. And a chance to connect the dots of imperialism and
capitalism and the characteristic of every stage of capitalism.
One of my strategies I’ve been using is talking to one Askari at a time
to revolutionize the mind. Trying to change the reactionary into
revolutionary. Reactionaries look at situations as war for influence, an
ideological struggle to manipulate the situation for their gang. As we
push for peace and solidarity there are some reactionary forces that see
you as a threat because those same forces are benefiting just the way it
is. They see you as a force of change. The question is, do you see
yourself as a force of change? As a member of USW, you are an example on
the front line. Your characteristic, the way you talk and the way you
handle situations, and your attributes and commitment to the struggle.
These young dada are looking for role models.
A Texas prisoner: I place one-page legal decisions on the wall to
help anyone that may happen to need this information. Besides this
information are two other items: a football schedule and the food menu.
My bunk-living area is in the dorm day-room. So, I look and can see
directly these three papers. How prisoners act or react by looking at
each, is what I call “falling in love with incarceration,” or “falling
in love with TDCJ.”
Why do I say this? Just as a person knows when a person looks at them,
from across a room, it is easy to see a person look at – or read – some
item. I see them review breakfast, lunch, and dinner; even the next
day’s breakfast. They go into a long talk: “I ain’t gonna to to
breakfas’ tomorah - it is jess pancakes.” Another looks at the menu,
then at the football schedule. “Yep! I know Minnesota will be in their
own stadium – they can’t lose the Super Bowl!” Others, their eyes glance
at “Four Tips on Your Habeas Corpus Application.” Their eyes, in a
moment, move to the menu. “Hey, they got beek sketty tonite. You gonna
go? I is.”
Rarely have I witnessed, day or night, anyone taking time to look at and
review how to get out of prison. I have several precedental case-laws
from 1992 until 2016. Yet, all say, “he doesn’t know what he’s doin.”
MIM(Prisons) adds: Finally, the comrade below shows us what
recruiting looks like from the other side. The details are different for
everyone, but just in case we forgot the small moments that led us into
organizing, we are including it as an example here. Even if our one
conversation or posting of a document on the wall falls flat in the
moment, we are facilitating the repeated exposure of people to political
organizing. These “retriggers” are what lead to eventual independent
interest.
A West Virginia prisoner: I always knew I was anti-government
because the oppression of the government towards my people was clear.
Majority of the time my people committed crimes against willing
participants in the streets, so I didn’t understand why the government
was kidnapping my brothers and abusing my sisters. It shocked me to see
the police come in the projects and cold killers take off and run.
Something I’m not really into no more.
Once I was in prison I was introduced to the Black Guerilla Family by a
dude straight outta the District of Columbia. He told me that I’m a
revolutionary. I laughed at the word and told him to say it again
because it resonated with me, but I didn’t know what it meant, so he
told me look it up.
It just so happened he led me astray and the next thing I knew we were
in a war with the folks. I was sent to a maximum security facility in
West Virginia, quality of life program, better known as administrative
segregation, locked down 23 hours a day. I decided to get the book
Blood in my Eye by George L. Jackson and learned the history of
the movement. It opened my eyes!
El 9 de septiembre, USW (United Struggle from Within - Lucha Unida del
Interior) de California debe preparar la unidad entre la línea principal
y SNY (Sensitive Need Yards -Yardas de necesidad sensible), por USW 44
de United Struggle from Within, abril 2018 permalink.
Estoy escribiendo sobre este tema un poco antes porque muchos hermanos y
hermanas no tienen el conocimiento verdadero o real con respecto al
Black August y Bloody September. Pero para aquell@s de nosotr@s que
somos políticamente conscientes, ambos meses son ricos con nuestra
sangre, nuestra lucha y nuestra resistencia. Como personas que luchan
contra la opresión durante estos dos meses como un movimiento del pueblo
debemos enfocar nuestras energías en las discusiones y acciones de
George Jackson, los Black Panthers (Panteras Negras), Assata Shakur, Che
Guevara, y cualquiera de l@s muchos revolucionari@s que nos han
precedido.
Deberíamos impulsar la educación política, la acción progresiva y la
historia revolucionaria. Deberíamos enfocarnos más agresivamente en el
establecimiento de una seguridad más sólida, porque el 16 de abril de
2018 el Departamento de Corrección y la así llamada “Rehabilitación”
comenzaron una limpieza de armas en todo el estado de todas las
prisiones de California para garantizar que no haya armas en los patios
de la prisión cuando el estado integra a la línea principal de
prisioneros con prisioneros de SNY (Yardas de necesidad sensible) a
finales de este año.
Sabemos de primera mano lo que está haciendo la estructura de poder:
esperan que todos los patios estallen. Eso mostraría que sus trabajos
todavía importan y que tenemos que estar en la cárcel. Esta es su movida
más demente en años, y han estado alimentando la desconexión de la línea
principal y SNY (Yardas de necesidad sensible) durante años como una
herramienta de dividir y conquistar. La táctica de dividir y conquistar
nunca ha sido tan efectiva como hoy.
Como dicen, un árbol sin raíces está muerto, y también lo es un pueblo
sin raíces. Hombres como el camarada George, Huey P. Newton y Malcolm X.
Comenzaron y mejoraron su línea política en prisión como coloniales
criminales. Dentro de estos campos de concentración y confines oscuros y
profundos de La prisión de Soledad y San Quentin, la alquimia de la
transformación humana tomó lugar. Todos comenzaron a convertir las
celdas que tenían en bibliotecas y Escuelas de liberación. Como dijo
George, para crear un mundo nuevo tenemos que ser una representación de
este nuevo ser, “El hombre nuevo”, en palabras y en hechos, pensamientos
y acciones. Este nuevo hombre estará en su más alta forma
revolucionaria. Así como ellos convirtieron sus celdas en aulas,
nosotros también debemos hacerlo. Y así como internalizaron las ideas
más avanzadas sobre el desarrollo del ser humano, también debemos
nosotros.
George dijo que: “Conocí a Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, Engels y Mao, y me
salvaron. Durante los primeros cuatro años, no estudié nada más que
política y economía e ideas militares. Conocí a Black Guerrillas, George
Big Jake Lewis, James Carr, W.L. Nolen, Bill Christmas, Tony Gibson y
muchos otros. Estábamos intentando convertir la mentalidad criminal
negra en una revolución de la mentalidad”.
George y sus camaradas se convirtieron en ejemplos vivientes e
inspiraciones de la resistencia organizada para l@s pres@s en todo el
país. Pero el 21 de agosto 1971, el camarada George Jackson y otros dos
fueron asesinados junto con tres guardias de la prisión en un tiroteo
dentro de una de las prisiones de máxima seguridad de California,
llamada San Quentin. Por esta razón, y muchas más, mantenga el
sangriento agosto como sagrado.
Huey P. Newton fue asesinado el 22 de agosto de 1989, en West Oakland, a
la altura del décimo y el centro, por un joven traficante de drogas
llamado Little Blood. Era un producto de este sistema, l@s jóvenes
odiando a los viejos, l@s de piel clara odiando a l@s de piel oscura.
Esa es la misma división que tenemos aquí hoy. Puedo meterme en esa
mierda y levantar el polvo con el resto y con los mejores. Pero no
permitiré que nadie detenga mi arduo trabajo como organizador y
educador. He dado veinte años para esta red principal y SNY, así que voy
a seguir adelante. Como Frantz Fanon declaró en Wretched of the Earth
(Los condenados de la tierra), “No hay toma de la ofensiva – ni
redefinición de las relaciones.”Sabemos que el poder estructural nos
quiere muertos o encerrados. Entonces, en caso de que no lo supieras, la
revolución está activa. Poder para la gente hecha para ganar y la gloria
es el juego que está en el hombre calvo
Maoist Internationalist Ministry of Prisons (MIM- Ministerio
Internacional de Prisiones Maoísta ) agrega: El manual de USW (Lucha
Unida del Interior) de California explica cómo la división SHU (Unidad
de vivienda de seguridad) / red principal y SNY en California está en el
corazón de la construcción de un frente unido de prisioneros en el
estado. Todos l@s camaradas del USW de California deben tener una copia
del manual como guía para su trabajo. L@s lectores veteran@s de la ULK
(University of Local Knowledge) sabrán que hemos impreso innumerables
artículos sobre este tema. Escriba si puede usar copias de algunos de
estos artículos para ayudar a organizar el Día de la Paz y la
Solidaridad del 9 de septiembre de este año. La campaña para construir
la paz y la unidad entre la red principal y SNY llegará a un punto
crítico este año, y USW debe jugar un papel primordial en orientar las
cosas en una dirección positiva como lo exige este camarada.
My celly and myself formed a small coalition between my brothers and his
brothers, red, blue, white, even hispanics to speak out against the
administration (the real enemy) about their abuse of power and their
negligence. We strategically created conversation and before you know it
the whole housing unit was in an uproar. We had planted the seed. Now,
without organization, we tend to turn our anger and frustrations into
violence and destruction, which is a losing battle. So, we pushed that
pen, which turned out to be mightier and more effective than the sword.
We wrote Administrative Remedy Procedures (ARP), the Inmate Grievance
Office (IGO), the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services
(DPSCS), commissioners, the Deputy Secretary of Operations, and even the
Governor, Larry Hogan, himself.
The issues we raise weren’t addressed, so we’re still waiting for
responses. But regardless if we’re denied any relief and we are aware of
those possibilities, we created a solid peaceful foundation for unity
and realized who the real oppressors are. So as long as we support each
other’s positive causes we are making forward progress, in the opposite
direction of negativity. One step at a time!
Some brothers feel we won’t get any relief because the administration do
what they want. So I ask them, “if they ain’t giving us this and taking
that already, how is filing complaints and grievances and them not
giving us any relief hurting?” “They doing what they want without so
much as an inklet of rebuttal, so how do you lose writing them up?” Then
I wait… No response.
MIM(Prisons) responds: Elsewhere in this issue of ULK the
point is raised that leading includes showing victories, and not just
talking about them.
Committed revolutionaries know that building a movement strong enough to
end oppression worldwide is a huge task that takes years and years, and
we’re going to have lots of small failures along the way. But when
building with new recruits, we need to be careful to not lead them down
a dead end, in a way that discourages them and undermines unity
building. Building initial interest should be energizing. It should
inspire people.
At the same time, we can use our organizing defeats as opportunities for
education. As this writer is doing, creating a foundation for unity and
clarifying who are the real oppressors is a victory in and of itself.
But we should be clear with people that there’s a good chance we won’t
win grievances. This doesn’t mean the time was wasted, because we’ve put
the administration on notice that we won’t take their bullshit lying
down. Where we anticipate few victories we need to think creatively
about how to inspire people to action and help them understand how this
work fits into the larger struggle so that movement building is a
victory in and of itself.