Under Lock & Key

On July 19th I was escorted to the medical clinic to request liquid nutrients, vitamins and proper directions on the re-feeding process after hunger strike. I was denied all requests. I was specifically told by nursing staff that CDCR officials have told all medical staff not to intervene in the on-goings of hunger strike patients until otherwise directed. I continued to request said items during daily nurse/medical rounds for the days leading up to July 21st only to be denied with some sort of unprofessional response.

On July 21, during my allotted rec time my body shut down. I fell, hitting my head on the concrete and knocking myself unconscious for at least two minutes. I was brought to the emergency prison hospital and once again provided with inadequate medical care. After blood/urine/vitals samples and testing I was told there was the possibility of death if I were to continue hunger strike for 24 hours. I obviously requested liquid nutrients/vitamins/etc. And I was denied. I was told by the doctor that CDCR officials are not letting med staff intervene in hunger strike participants and was told to go back to cell with no medical help.

[In response to the article MIM(Prisons) printed about the Martinez hunger strike demands, calling on prisoners there not to isolate the “mental health” prisoners from the “non-mental health” prisoners, we received the following update and clarification.]

Maybe we were not clear on the housing of mental health prisoners here in Ad-Seg. Our point is that there is an entire module for mental health prisoners where they can get help for their issues with trained staff. There is no mental health staff stationed in Ad-Seg, and no groups or therapy for prisoners. Bottom line is, mental health prisoners should not be housed in Ad-Seg on the whims of classification unit. Yes these guys are a headache to have in Ad-Seg, but more importantly they receive no help and deteriorate further by being warehoused in Ad-Seg. We are not trying to cause division in the prison population.

There are 53 inmates housed in Ad-Seg here. 13 prisoners did a 24 hour support strike while 5 of us continued for 6 to 12 days. We continue to support all those still on strike. Our strike is suspended, not stopped. If we do not continue to move forward in our demands or we come to a place in time when it is warranted, then we will continue our strike.

MIM(Prisons) responds: This letter addresses our criticism of the demand by MDF prisoners to “immediately cease and desist the unconstitutional custom, practice and unofficial policy of improperly housing inmates with mental health issues among the non-mental-health-status Ad-Seg detainees” as unnecessarily divisive. The original demand complained of the disruptive behaviors from the mental health prisoners but did not mention the lack of treatment options for these individuals. If conditions are better in the mental health module, it would be an improvement for these individuals to escape Ad-Seg and be placed there. However, the “treatment” for people with mental health problems in the United $tates is, at best, a targeting of the symptoms, and at worst leaves people either physically or medically restrained in a drug-induced stupor.

Mental illness in prisoners can often be linked to the conditions in which they are housed, especially long-term isolation. So we are naturally skeptical of any treatment offered by those same captors who insist on locking people up in conditions that induce the health problems in the first place. But we appreciate the additional explanation that the MDF prisoners did not intend the demand for mental health prisoners to be divisive but rather targeted treatment for these individuals. We hope they will consider carefully the wording of such demands in the future.

In the short term, we know that capitalism will continue to produce new cases of mental illness which can not be successfully treated until we address the problems of a society that generates these illnesses. We look to China under Mao for an example of successful treatment of mental health conditions by addressing both the immediate problems and the systemic roots of these conditions.

Meanwhile, the comrades in Martinez are not the only ones on suspended hunger strike. A number of comrades have reported a willingness to restart in support of the five core demands as the struggle heightens.

Recently a report was released by the U.$. Department of Justice - Civil Rights Division. The report concerned a survey conducted relating to sexual assaults and abuse taking place in Amerikan prisons and jails. The state of Texas was at the very top in terms of sexual assaults and abuse reported by prisoners. In fact, the Bill Clements unit located in Amarillo, Texas and the Mark Stiles unit located in Beaumont, Texas rated high in prison rape cases as well as sexual assaults. There has been no evidence to suggest the Texas Department of Criminal Justice is overly concerned about the persynal welfare and safety of the humyn beings held captive in their modern day gulags. Recent evidence shows the blatant disregard for humyn life in Texas prisons.

In Kennedy, Texas where the Connally Unit is located. A drought has caused 2 of the 10 water wells servicing the area to dry up. In a sign of extreme stupidity the warden of Connally Unit offered the water wells servicing the prison to the civilian population in Kennedy!

Some viewed this as an admirable gesture of good will. Although no one stopped to think about the prisoners housed at Connally. In Mid-August there have been reports of no-showers, no-toilet flushes, no-water being offered to prisoners on the unit. What the hell was the warden thinking? That’s the point comrades, the oppressors down here don’t think. A prisoner in Texas is less than humyn, a barn animal, cattle, chattel, dog or cat but far from being viewed as humyn.

This is why political and legal education is so very important for the lumpen underclass housed in Texas state prison. We cannot organize against these oppressors if we don’t embrace the stage we are in. Cutting edge revolutionary scientific analysis tells us we are at the stage of A) Educate B) Raise awareness and consciousness and C) Garner public support for our struggle!

If the U.$. Department of Justice knows Texas allows the abuse of prisoners, what do they intend to do about it? A fancy report doesn’t do jack to solve the problem. We need tangible realistic solutions. We must lobby hard for these oppressors to be held accountable. This executive director Brad Livingston?! Out! This Prison Rape Elimnation Act Ombudsman Ralph Bales?! Out! This Warden on Connally Unit who has ignored the basic needs of the humyn beings in her/his care? Out! And add some civil rights violations and criminal charges to their resume and perchance they will take their job more seriously.

As always I encourage all comrades in Texas and beyond to join USW in order to learn how to remove the boot of the oppressor from your neck!

Imperialism;
you are the highest elevation of capitalism,
you are the cause, and the source of all racism,
you murdered egalitarianism, communism
and gave birth to this oppressive machanism
called prison.
Imperialism;
you built and bought the slave ship Jesus,
that brought my innocent ancestors into slavery.
You hired the guns that assassinated bravery,
you paid for the ropes that lynched knowledge
and courage,
you are the main cause of all our sufferage.
Imperialism;
you have caused slaves to become overseers,
local representatives of the oppressor,
by placing the needles in the veins of our
so-called niggero brothers and sisters.
Imperialism;
you created the miseducation that keeps us blind,
and the mis-justice that keeps us confined.
You created poverty;
and when you created poverty, you created crime.
You locked up our bodies when you locked up our minds
and I’m not just making up excuses.
I’m a clock, best believe, I know the time.
Imperialism;
your agenda may be instilled in our every move,
your ideals may be in every thing we learn and know,
show and prove,
your hands may be in every aspect of our lives,
your blood may be in every one of our husbands
or wives,
your products may be in everything we consume,
but none of this will stop or prevent your doom.
Imperialism;
Your tel-a-lie-vision, weapon of mass distraction
and destruction is evil,
but no amount of lies and weapons can defeat
the fighting spirit of the lumpen proles - the people.
Egalitarianism, communism will rule Supreme,
you may win the fight, but the war you will not win.
Once red and blue, black white brown and yellow
unite under MIM, United Struggle from Within
Imperialism;
you already know, you are the ultimate sin.

Here’s a gun now shoot that
bum. Now here’s another senseless
crime. Death by ignorance. We
continue to kill for colors and blocks,
drugs and shoes. But not the
imperialist fools who really own
the hoods and goods. Black on
Black, white on black. Damn who’s
my friend and who’s my foe.
In prison they say strip and dip
to check our ass holes. But we so stupid
for not choking this asshole for
taking our freedom. Death, death
death all around me. Drugs and
guns. AIDs ain’t fun. Money is
low so I rob a store. Dumb
fuck now you locked up and
still broke as a joke and sprung
on coke. Join the party and take a
stand for your rights. Be a sport
and support a righteous cause,
a Maoist cause. Struggle is a
must, to rid the dust of the
imperialist fuss. So catch a tune
an’ bring these united snakes to
doom. Let’s break free the enslavement
and get back our sanity.
Let’s shout for the communist
movement and stand up to
fight. The cold punches of the
racist pigs you dig, fight or
flight.

As day 30 of our hunger strike comes to an end with nothing being resolved it was good to hear that our plight is being heard and shared out there. Also it strengthens us to hear all the b.s. that our captors are doing just to discourage us. Yet, many of us have learned from prior experience that they would stop at nothing to quiet down our movement. Despite it all we continue with it all.

The recent update is that close to 50 remain and almost all of us, except a small number, have gone “man down” and taken to be placed on IV support in the infirmary here. Only to be brought back a few hours later, feeling a little better and continuing on (in agony) on hunger strike. Though we’ve received promises of change, we have yet to see anything on paper. Until then we shall continue, I just hope no more have to perish because these captors refuse to be human.

Editor: Clearly there is nothing in these new rules that could be considered an advance for the plight of California prisoners who face torture (and the threat of torture) in the Security Housing Units. We print this for informational purposes for those facing this repression and hoping to understand it better.

This is in regards to “the new rules for deciding who is a gang member or associate and whether those prisoners are placed in a Security Housing Unit.”

Prisoners in California: you must request and insure that your institution makes the new rules concerning “gang validation” available to every prisoner as they are not currently making them so. In the meantime if you wish to receive them independent of CDCR, then you can request them directly from the California ‘Prison Law Office.’ You should also request the new ‘Pilot Program Memorandum’ concerning the new validation process as this has also not been made available to many prisoners. You can also request the newly revised criteria for the ‘Step Down Porgram’ (SDP) as the Title 15 California Code of Regulations has not yet been changed to reflect these changes. “The new rules are being phased in between October 2012 and summer 2013 and will be in effect at all CDCR prisons. The pilot program will last for two years while the CDCR evaluates whether it is”effective.”

What are the main changes under the Pilot program?

1. The validation and housing rules now refer to a broader category of “security threat groups” STG which includes prison gangs, disruptive and/or street gangs;
   
2. When validating prisoners as STG affiliates, the CDCR will continue to take into account similar types of “source items” as under prior gang validation rules. However, there is a new “point” system by which different sources carry different weights. There must be three source items adding up to at least 10 points to validate a prisoner as a STG affiliate, replacing the old rule that just required three source items. To be current, evidence of STG behavior must have occurred within the previous four years.
   
3. STG behavior or possession of STG contraband are now listed as administrative rules violations. STG related directing, controlling, disruptive or violent behavior is a serious rule violation. STG behavior is that which promotes, furthers or assists a STG. There is a matrix setting forth the consequences of STG related rule violations on housing and program status for validated STG affiliates or former affiliates.
   

“According to CDCR headquarters staff, the DRB (Departmental Review Board) reviews will be conducted at each prison and prisoners can attend their review hearings. The reviews have already started, but it is not known how long it will take to complete review of approximately 3000 prisoners who were validated as gang affiliates prior to October 2012. Although there are no rules regarding when current SHU prisoners will be reviewed, it appears that the CDCR is starting with the associates who have been in the SHU the longest.

“Prisoners who are released from SHU as a result of the case-by-case DRB reviews (or who were released from SHU under the old rules for inactive gang members) can be placed in SDP for confirmed STG behavior, for getting one serious STG-related rule violation, or for getting two STG-related administrative rule violations within a 12 month period. Prisoners can also be sent to the SDP based on newly received information from other law enforcement agencies or from outside CDCR’s jurisdiction; the STG behavior must have occurred within the last four years and the source information must total at least 10 additional validation score points.

“Validated prisoners who were already serving indeterminate SHU terms prior to the enactment of the pilot program will not be re-validated under the new process and criteria. Instead each of those prisoners will be reviewed by the DRB to determine if the prisoner will remain in or be released from the SHU.”

What are the criteria for validating prisoners as STG affiliates under the pilot program?

“Validation as either a member or an associate requires at least three independent source items with a combined weighted value of 10 points or greater coupled with information/activity indicative of membership or association. At least one of the source items must be a direct link to a current or former validated STG member or associate, or to a person who was validated within six months of the activity described in the source item.

“The types of validation source items that can be considered are the same as those used by the CDCR in the past. However, the different assigned so that some items are weighted more heavily than others. The points assigned more heavily than others. The points assigned to the various categories are as follows:

“Two points: symbols e.g., hand signs, graffiti, distinctive clothing), written materials that are not in the personal possession of the prisoner (e.g. membership or enemy lists, constitutions, codes, training material)
Three points: association with validated STG affiliates information information, debriefing reports
Four points: written materials that are in personal possession of the prisoner, photos that are no more than four years old, CDCR staff observations, information form other agencies, visitors known to promote or assist STG activities, communications (e.g. phone conversations, mail, notes)
Five points: self admissions
Six points: crimes committed for the benefit, at direction or in association with an STG, tattoos or body markings
Seven points: official legal documents showing STG conduct”

What is the process for validating prisoners as STG affiliates under the pilot program?

“The process for validation under the pilot program is quite similar to the CDCR’s previous validations process, although the titles of some of the staff and the names of the forms have been changed.”

Where are validated STG affiliates housed?

“Under the pilot program, some STG affiliates must be placed in the Step Down Program which generally requires placement in SHU. However, some STG affiliates can remain in the general population. Where the validated prisoner is housed will depend on the level of STG involvement and/or the prisoner’s behavior:

“An STG-1 member will be placed in the SDP

“An STG-1 associate will be placed into the SDP if any of the validation source items involve serious rule violations for STG behavior that are SHU-able offenses.

“An STG-II member or associate will be placed into the SDP if at least two of the validation source items involve serious rule violations for STG behavior that are SHU-able offenses. Otherwise, and STG II member or associate shall be housed in the general population or other appropriate housing (This also applies to the previous STG-1 definition)

“And STG-II member or associate will be sent to the SDP if found guilty of two STG related rule violations which are SHU-able offenses per 15 CCR 3341.5 (c) (9). Prisoners can also be moved to higher validation levels based on newly received information from other law enforcement agencies or from outside CDCR’s jurisdiction; the STG behavior must have occurred within the last four years and the source information must total at least 10 additional validation score points.

“Once a prisoner is in the SDP he/she must complete four steps to return to non-segregated housing. However, a prisoner does not need to acknowledge or admit to being an STG-affiliate”

Can validated STG affiliates debrief?

“…Prisoners who are validated as STG-II affiliates can debrief while they are in the SDP, although they may also be allowed to debrief if they are housed elsewhere such as in general population or a regular SHU. The procedures for debriefing are somewhat similar to those under CDCR’s previous rules in 15 CDCR 3378.1 through 3378.3. One important difference is that there is no longer a requirement that a debriefing prisoner serve an observation period prior to being in the Transitional Housing Unit (THU).

Note: “In a recent court case, a court held that a jailhouse lawyer’s possession of a validated gang associate’s chronos for use in preparing legal documents could not serve as validation source item. Since CDCR rules say that prisoners can possess other prisoners documents to assist them with legal work. Because none of the other source items in the validation packet provided a direct link to gang members, the court vacated the validation and ordered the CDCR to release the prisoner from segregation.” See: In re Villa (2012) 209 Cal. App. 4th 838 (a de-publication request and consideration for review are pending as of 12/17/12)

The aforementioned new criteria and rules and regulations as listed here is in no way comprehensive, but is merely the most pertinent to the prisoner population. For a more comprehensive copy of the new STG validation, placement and debriefing memo get at your MAC reps and make them do their jobs! or do it yourself and request these documents from the administration at your prison or write the prison law office at:

Prison Law Office, General Delivery, San Quentin, CA 94964-0001

And once you get a copy, try to make enough copies for every building, dorm, etc. on your yard and put them somewhere everyone can see them, such as the dayroom; and spread the word!

On 7/30/13 (day 23 of the hunger strike) at approximately 1pm, prisoners on my tier began alerting adjustment center custody staff that one of the hunger strike participants was unresponsive. Prisoners kept yelling “man down, man down!” and banging on their doors until a goon squad was formed. One member of that goon squad was Officer Persaud, who sarcastically ordered the semi-conscious man down to come to the door and cuff up. During this potentially life threatening delay, the man down actually found strength to get his hands behind his back and through the solid door’s food port. The prisoner reports he was then held by his wrists and then by the cuff chain as a mechanical issue getting the cell door to open ensued. Ultimately Persaud let go of the cuff chain and the prisoner then explains he fell face first into the concrete floor. The door was finally opened and the goon squad stormed in as if pouncing, ordering the prisoner to stand up.

The same day a second man down situation followed, with a similar response. Custody staff are expressing blatant resentment and disrespect toward participants in the hunger strike. It is my suggestion to those pigs that if their current job is not to their liking they should go back to “Bob’s Burgers” or convince their torture unit overlords to grant the reasonable requests for basic human needs set for in the open letter, instead of throwing vigilante green wall style shit fits.

The bourgeoisie seems to be losing the battle for free enterprise against the repressive U.$. government. There can no longer be any commercial email service that does not provide direct access to all its users’ information to the U.$. intelligence agencies. We discovered this today when our email server, lavabit.com, was no longer accessible and the owner posted a message stating,

I have been forced to make a difficult decision: to become complicit in crimes against the American people or walk away from nearly ten years of hard work by shutting down Lavabit. After significant soul searching, I have decided to suspend operations.

The clear implication is that the feds approached him to demand access to the communications on his server. Existing communications were advertised as not accessible to anyone but the user who owns the account. In order to not release any future user info to the feds he shut down the server; a decision surely not taken lightly when people depend on their email for so much of their lives.

Just earlier this week it was revealed that a popular hosting service for Tor hidden services was comprimised and sites on that server were infected with malicious javascript to reveal users’ IP addresses (usually hidden by the Tor network) to a server located in Virginia. The obvious implication there was that this operation was related to U.$. intelligence agencies which dominate the region. One of the more popular sites affected by this attack was Tormail, another self-proclaimed secure email service.

All of this comes on the heels of the release of information on the U.$. National Security Agency’s (NSA) system of monitoring all electronic communications in the world. Information released makes it clear that all major commercial software companies have provided backdoors to their software and online services to the U.$. government. With the destruction of Lavabit and TorMail, it seems clear that the United $tates has no intention of letting any exceptions to that rule continue. Whistleblower Edward Snowden was known to use lavabit.com for his email, leading many to conclude that Lavabit was a victim of the U.$. hunt for Snowden himself. Others have speculated that the attack on Tor was an attempt to scare people out of the so-called darknet and back into the friendly arms of Google, Microsoft, et al.

While using allegedly secure online services can provide an extra layer of protection, you cannot rely on an unknown party for your security anyway. That is why services with built in PGP encryption, like hushmail.com, are a joke from the get go. Hushmail.com openly works with the Amerikan government already even though they are not a U.$. company. Certainly other nations will attempt to seize the competitive advantage they now have over a business that has long been dominated by U.$. companies. And as we recently said, the positive of all this is a surge in demand and innovation in the realm of computer security.

For now, you cannot email MIM(Prisons); instead, see our contact page. We will be investigating alternative solutions and post them on our announcements and contact page once they are available. If you’re still using unencrypted email for political work, get with the times and start studying our security links on our contact page. The last revolutionary generation underestimated the role of COINTELPRO until it was too late. It would be a crime against the people for us to make the same mistake with everything we know today.

I am sending my revolutionary greetings to you in Black & Gold. I am an enforcer of the Latin Kings and I am extending an invitation to all Latino inmates to join forces with us to protect one another against all forms of aggression and discrimination. We should build solidarity and unity in a united struggle against this system of oppression. We must fight for our civil and human rights. I am encouraging you to unite with the ALKQN in our United Front against the capitali$t Imperiali$t United Slaves of Amerika. We should join MIM(Prisons)’s United Struggle from Within and start study groups.

MIM(Prisons) adds: We welcome this comrade’s support for United Front work against imperialism. This statement echoes the call to Build a United Front for Peace in Prisons, which was first initiated in 2011. A number of organizations and individuals have signed on to the United Front, and we encourage the ALKQN organization as a whole to take the leadership to a bigger stage and formally become a signatory to the UFPP. We believe that the politically conscious leaders of the ALKQN, including this writer, agree with the five principles of the UFPP: Peace, Unity, Growth, Internationalism, and Independence. And for the leadership of large organizations such as the ALKQN to come together and declare to the membership that these are core principles of their LO will send a powerful message to individuals and other LOs across the country.

For those interested in joining the United Front for Peace in Prisons, send your organization’s name and a statement of unity to MIM(Prisons). Your statement can explain what the united front principles mean to your organization, how they relate to your work, why they are important, etc.