Tracking Prison Censorship in the United States

Menard Correctional Center
Attn: Publication Review Officer
711 Kaskaskia Street
PO Box 711
Menard, IL 62259

10 May 2010

Publication Review Officer,

This letter is to object to the notifications of denial to deliver mail from MIM Distributors to prisoners A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, and I. The publication that was denied delivery is titled Under Lock & Key issue #13 (March/April 2010). The reason that Publication Review Officer L. Shemonic gave for this denial was "Pg. 7 promotes hunger strike and suicide, possible other pages" in addition to alleging that it "appears to be otherwise detrimental to security, good order, rehabilitation, or discipline or it might facilitate criminal activity or be detrimental to mental health."

On page 7 of Under Lock & Key issue 13 there is an article titled "Prisoner driven to suicide" that is a narration by a prisoner regarding her/his experience with defeatism, hopelessness and suicide. The article continues on to page 12 of the newsletter and is followed by a response from MIM(Prisons), that says,

"We are writing to remind you that your life is very valuable. . . We encourage you to become more involved in revolutionary struggle instead of suicide. . . For someone like yourself, who supports the struggle against all forms of oppression, to remove your life as a resource from this world is to work in favor of the oppressors."

In light of this fact, it is obvious that the article about suicide and hunger strikes on page 7 of Under Lock & Key issue 13 does not "promote hunger strike and suicide," like L. Shemonic erroneously claimed.

We look forward to your timely response concerning the overturn of this incorrect denial. We also would appreciate the timely deliver of Under Lock & Key issue 13 to the prisoners named above.

Additionally, we would appreciate a thorough retraining of the mailroom staff at Menard Correctional Center because issues of Unlock Lock & Key are routinely denied to prisoners at Menard on initial receipt, and then the denials are overturned on review. This runaround is a waste of time for MIM Distributors, the prisoners involved, and the Publication Review Officer who has to review these incorrect denials.

Sincerely,

MIM Distributors


CC: Affected parties

see 06/30/2010 documentation for "Prisoner requests explanation for censorship"

see 07/25/2010 documentation

Despite its initial rejection, I did get the MIM Theory 10 after a hearing held at this prison. As I suspected I would, being that we are in Detroit, a community where everyone is just a single slip-up from these prisons,