MIM(Prisons) is a cell of revolutionaries serving the oppressed masses inside U.$. prisons, guided by the communist ideology of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism.
Under Lock & Key is a news service written by and for prisoners with a focus on what is going on behind bars throughout the United States. Under Lock & Key is available to U.S. prisoners for free through MIM(Prisons)'s Free Political Literature to Prisoners Program, by writing:
MIM(Prisons) PO Box 40799 San Francisco, CA 94140.
Mail the petition to your loved ones and comrades inside who are
experiencing issues with their grievance procedure. Send them extra
copies to share! For more info on this campaign, click
here.
Prisoners should send a copy of the signed petition to each of the
addresses listed on the petition, and below. Supporters should send
letters on behalf of prisoners.
Director April Wilkerson Alaska Department of Corrections PO Box
112000 Juneau, AK 99811-2000
United States Department of
Justice - Civil Rights Division Special Litigation Section 950
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, PHB Washington, D.C. 20530
Office of Inspector General HOTLINE P.O. Box 9778 Arlington,
Virginia 22219
And send MIM(Prisons) copies of any responses you receive!
MIM(Prisons), USW PO Box 40799 San Francisco, CA 94140
Mail the petition to your loved ones and comrades inside who are
experiencing issues with their grievance procedure. Send them extra
copies to share! For more info on this campaign, click
here.
Prisoners should send a copy of the signed petition to each of the
addresses listed on the petition, and below. Supporters should send
letters on behalf of prisoners.
Commissioner, Georgia Department of Corrections 300 Patrol Road
Forsyth, GA 31029
Southern Center for Human Rights Law Offices 83 Poplar
St. NW Atlanta, GA 30303-2122
GDC Office of Internal Affairs, Investigation and Compliance PO Box
1529 Forsyth, GA 31029
United States Department of Justice - Civil Rights Division Special
Litigation Section 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, PHB Washington,
D.C. 20530
Office of Inspector General HOTLINE P.O. Box 9778 Arlington,
Virginia 22219
And send MIM(Prisons) copies of any responses you receive!
MIM(Prisons), USW PO Box 40799 San Francisco, CA 94140
this petition was first put up in November 2014, updated October
2017
I want to inform you about a new torture tactic being used here in the
Security Housing Units (SHU). Since August 3 [2 weeks ago] the staff
have been doing what has been termed “security/welfare checks” which
entails staff walking by every prisoner’s cell every 30 minutes 24/7 and
pressing a button that has been installed next to our cells. Due to the
design of the SHU the sound everyone and everything makes is louder than
it should be and at night we are woken up every thirty minutes due to
staff opening/closing the pod door, which is extremely loud, stomping up
the stairs to the top tier and back down, and making a loud bang sound
when hitting the button next to our cells as they are hitting metal on
metal.
During the day it’s the same thing except the wand makes a high-pitch
beeping sound when hitting the button. So 24/7 it’s non-stop excessive
noise that doesn’t allow us to sleep longer than 30 minutes without
being woken up. I feel like I’m living in a dream 24/7 as I’m always
stirred and feeling the effects of being denied sleep and not being able
to go through my normal sleep cycles. Anyone with common sense can see
this is cruel and unusual punishment. The ironic thing is staff say it’s
to prevent suicides. Yeah let’s make a bunch of excessive noise all day
and night and not let anyone sleep longer than 30 minutes at any given
time, that should prevent suicides. If it’s driving relatively stable
prisoners crazy I’m sure it’s pushing those with mental health issues
over the edge.
Also by doing this, even though it’s misguided and unnecessary, the CDCR
is admitting that the SHU makes people more likely to commit suicide if
they need to check on everyone every 30 minutes. I have filed an
administrative appeal on this to have it stopped or modified and plan to
file a lawsuit if we are not allowed to sleep normally again. In the
mean time I’m writing friends/family to call the prison/CDCR head
quarters and complain about this, and I’m writing all prison
organizations and public servants to make them aware of this new form of
torture being conducted.
MIM(Prisons) adds: This sleep deprivation torture tactic has been
reported on from San Quentin for some time, and we recently received
word from a comrade on pending litigation on this issue:
“I am challenging a blatantly obvious psychological torture program put
in play by Jeffrey Beard, Secretary of the gulag system in California,
as a payback to the SHU guys for the hunger strikes. The CDCR had to
throw us, death row, under the bus too, to make it less obvious who the
target really is.
“There is a program whereby they come and shine lights in eyes, bang and
yell, using a ‘beeper’ stick to hit the cell tray slots, every 20 to 30
minutes, all day and night.
“In my moving papers I proved it is utterly pointless as stated, as a
suicide prevention program. Anyone knows you can commit suicide during
the half hour between walks, and also in our unit it takes them over 20
added minutes to get the keys, get shields, and race in and pounce on a
guy hanging by the neck. It is specious.
“So I filed saying this is far too onerous to be a mere act of
stupidity, it is a malicious torture of the SHU units only (including
PSU, psych wards, all lock-up units). If this does not cause suicide,
what would? Ha!”
This latest tactic of inhumane sleep deprivation reinforces our point
that the
settlement
of the Ashker v. Brown lawsuit will do nothing to end
torture in California prisons. As the comrade above points out, this is
not rogue COs, this is facility policy. We received reports over a year
prior about the new
Guard
One torture program. As one comrade pointed out at the time, most
deaths in cells are due to medical neglect.
Calling this a “new tactic” is a bit of a misnomer. This same exact
system of
“security
checks” every 30 minutes has been used in recent history in Texas
and
North
Carolina. Though in these cases they seemed more targeted, and the
comrade
in North Carolina grieved the abuse and won. In fact, this type of
sleep deprivation dates back more than 50 years when prisoners suffered
similar conditions in Walpole, Massachusetts. All these examples go to
show that the system is inherently oppressive, and only by overthrowing
imperialism will we ever begin to see humane treatment of prisoners.
We view the latest behavior by guards at Pelican Bay as a form of
retaliation against the prisoners held in SHU, to show them who is in
charge and that torture is alive and well in spite of the “successful”
settlement. Exposing this consistent mistreatment of prisoners in
California is a must to counter the narrative that the modern prison
movement has succeeded in transforming the CDCR, or the conditions they
submit their prisoners to, in any way.
The acute threat of this form of torture requires an immediate response.
A concerted effort has been taken up by a number of groups supporting
the California prison movement to contact the warden to demand an end to
this torture.
Write to: Warden Clark E. Ducart Pelican Bay State Prison
P.O. Box 7000 Crescent City, CA 95531-7000 email:
CDucart@cdcr.ca.gov call: (707) 465–1000 ext. 9040
We, under the union of the United KAGE Brothers, joined with the
Prisoners Political Action Committee (PAC), welcome you to our
communion. We aim to unite and unionize internationally the peace
movement – under the Agreement to End Hostilities – as an ad campaign
from prison to the street.
As people of all colors, races, creeds, genders and sexualities, we
stand in solidarity with the following pledge:
Contribution to Peace
I contribute to peace when I strive to express the best of myself in my
contacts with others.
I contribute to peace when I use my intelligence and my abilities to
serve the good.
I contribute to peace when I feel compassion toward all those who
suffer.
I contribute to peace when I look upon all as my brothers and sisters
regardless of race, culture or religion.
I contribute to peace when I rejoice over the happiness of others and
pray for their well-being.
I contribute to peace when I listen with tolerance to opinions that
differ from mine or even oppose them.
I contribute to peace when I resort to dialogue rather than force to
settle any conflict.
I contribute to peace when I respect nature and preserve it for
generations to come.
I contribute to peace when I do not seek to impose my conception of God
upon others.
I contribute to peace when I make peace the foundation of my ideas and
philosophy.
The Cesar Chavez Peace Plan
The National Coalition of Barrios Unidos Summit in San Antonio, Texas,
produced the Cesar Chavez Plan in April 1996. It has become the central
organizing vehicle for the Barrios Unidos Movement.
Development of community peace agreements and truces.
Implementation of a viable violence-prevention model.
Creation of “barrio enterprise zones” for youth-centered economic
development.
Public policies to create alternatives to incarceration and the root
causes of youth violence and police brutality.
Organization mobilization of youth-centered network to access resources
for violence prevention.
MIM(Prisons) adds: We are glad to see two groups coming together
to develop plans for building peace in prisons. They sent us the above
in response to the United Front for Peace in Prisons and the 3-year old
Agreement to End Hostilities in California prisons. The agreement was
formed by and for the major lumpen organizations (LOs) in the California
prison system. It has been historic in bridging the divide between the
LOs and the various political organizations, who are all echoing the
call and working to build the prison movement in the interests of the
oppressed.
I thought I’d share how it works up here in Ad-Seg. I trip on how I’ve
been going at it since the end of September. I’m doing what I’m supposed
to do, from request forms, to 22 [inmate request] forms, to 602 [inmate
appeal] and no good results. The appeals here are quick to catch a
mistake and return it. First off, I am not a lawyer, second I’m a CCCMS
mental health prisoner. But that does not mean anything here.
Anyhow, I wrote Sacramento, letting them know that I never wanted to do
a 602 but it concerns my back brace and prescription glasses. And
they’re in my property at the property room. I had to pay for those 2
items in state and I needed them so I was OK with that. Now I’m just
asking for what’s mine and it’s a need. I use a cane and have a vest. I
bought some glasses from another prisoner who wanted hygiene, but I’m
not supposed to do that.
Nobody listens here and the 602 process is meaningless. I don’t know
what else to do.
MIM(Prisons) responds: California was where the demand for
grievances to be addressed began five years ago. It has since been taken
up by comrades in a dozen other states. The focus is on petitioning
state and federal officials responsible for the care of prisoners. In
doing so, comrades are attempting to rally prisoners together as a group
to defend their basic rights, like the ones the writer above describes;
basic medical care and property rights.
But there are reasons why the arms of the injustice system are so
unaccountable. Their central task is to control certain populations, and
they must be given leeway to achieve that task. If their task was about
justice, then obviously injustices like the ones above would not be
tolerated. So we must rally together to ensure the rights of all are
respected. Yet, ultimately, we must build a system that serves the
interests of those who are oppressed and exploited by the current
imperialist system that dominates our world. Petitions will not prevent
these ongoing abuses.
I hope this helps some how people in Texas, California, and Florida with
how their grievance procedure is done. We have nothing compared to what
I read goes on in those places. I filed 26 ICRs (informal complaints)
and 11 NOGs(Notice of Grievance) in 2015. A five year low for me. The
most serious grievance I made was a staff member trying to kill a litter
of kittens.
Chillicothe Correctional Institution (CCI) is an old army base. It’s 100
years old. There’s 74 acres inside the fence with 2800 prisoners here.
It’s Ohio’s oldest, largest, and most inmates prison. There are
approximately 40 cats (outside cats) that we take care of that CCI
refuses to help. We found homes for 14 last year.
Most of my grievances last year were to fix things or get things like
fixing lights and coffee makers, to getting trash cans and clocks. But
I’ve had years where it’s been a lot worse and I’ve dealt or helped deal
with problems closer to what I read in ULK.
It’s nice having an institutional inspector who takes pride in his
numbers. He likes having one of the lowest number of grievances compared
to the other 29 institutions while in some instances having 2 times the
number of prisoners. In doing that, he plays with the numbers a little,
but that’s how I get things done for myself and others. Commissary won’t
reimburse someone for a $2 copy card that was defective? Well, here’s
the claim (an NOG). Once he gets it, looks at it, he calls you up to his
office. He then says if you take this NOG back, I’ll copy anything you
need. In another case, he’s given out stamped envelopes, just so he does
not have to log the grievance and keep his numbers down. For a small
compensation grievance like this it’s easier to do this than to put
through the paperwork for a credit to your account. Quicker too.
MIM(Prisons) responds: This comrade sets a good example pursuing
grievances that are both large and small. And it’s a very good tactic to
take advantage of any opportunity to win a case, even if it’s just for a
few copies. Our victories and losses will come and go over time, but we
must remain vigilant in fighting for our rights and seeking
opportunities to gain some organizing space and resources. Our struggle
is a long one, with the goal of overthrowing imperialism not likely to
come in the near future. Let’s take advantage of these small victories
to help build unity and strength to fight the bigger anti-imperialist
battle.
In Missouri, our complaints are easily silenced; the caseworker simply
throws the grievance form in the trash. A prisoner has no way to prove
the form was ever even submitted. This tactic is especially prevalent in
segregation units.
I wonder what state has the best grievance system. I certainly hope it
isn’t Missouri, because ours is too easily sabotaged. I do not have any
experience with other states’ procedures, but I did see a grievance form
for Arizona’s procedure belonging to a prisoner in Missouri on
interstate compact. It looked better than Missouri’s, mainly because the
prisoner keeps a copy.
Will comparing states grievance procedures in a court case be effective
in bringing about change? I am willing to entertain the possibility, but
how will we know what state has the best procedure? The Prisoners’ Legal
Clinic will need to form a team of comrades from the various states to
discuss the differences and their experiences.
MIM(Prisons) Legal Coordinator adds: We don’t rely on the
Amerikkkan court system for our ultimate liberation, but while we’re
stuck here in the belly of the beast we try to use the courts to our
advantage in our revolutionary organizing. A long-term project of United
Struggle from Within and the Prisoners’ Legal Clinic (PLC) is the
campaign to ensure our grievances are addressed. Our subscribers have
been submitting petitions to prison administrators, prisoner advocacy
groups, and the Federal government in several states, some for years.
These petitions notify the prisoncrats of all the corrupt ways
grievances are being mishandled and misused on the ground.
In some states, we’ve had success with our grievance petitions. Other
states have come down with more creativity with their repression. In
those states that don’t respond to the petitions, a lawsuit will likely
be necessary to push this struggle further.
This author discusses the tactic of comparing grievance procedures to
see which states have more reliable remedies for administrative relief,
and using this information in a lawsuit to push your own state to adopt
these tactics.
It is vital to keep a copy of the grievance in any case and in any
system. If the system does not allow the you to keep a receipt or copy
of the grievance, then it is much more difficult to track a grievance
and prove that it was submitted. This of course makes it much easier for
the grievance to end up in the trash.
As we’re looking forward to the development of the campaign to have our
grievances addressed in several states, we can start discussing legal
tactics to use in a lawsuit. Besides ensuring that a prisoner is able to
keep proof that a grievance was submitted, what other procedural reforms
would improve the grievance process?
Of course procedural safeguards won’t always prevent the grievance from
being “lost,” or keep it from being used as an excuse to harrass the
persyn filing the complaint. But the more protections we can build into
the grievance processes, the better we can protect ourselves from abuses
– abuses of the grievance process, and in prison generally.
Mail the petition to your loved ones inside who are experiencing issues
with the grievance procedure. Send them extra copies to share! For more
info on this campaign, click
here.
Prisoners should send a copy of the signed petition to each of the
addresses below, which are also on the petition itself. Supporters
should send letters of support on behalf of prisoners.
Warden (specific to your facility)
Office of Inspector General HOTLINE P.O. Box 9778 Arlington,
Virginia 22219
ADC Office of Inspector General Mail Code 930 801 South 16th
Street Phoenix, AZ 85034
United States Department of Justice - Civil Rights Division Special
Litigation Section 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, PHB Washington,
D.C. 20530
Senator John McCain 4703 S. Lakeshore Drive, Suite 1 Tempe, AZ
80282
Representative Raul Grijalva 810 E. 22nd Street, Suite 102 Tucson,
AZ 85713
And send MIM(Prisons) copies of any responses you receive!
MIM(Prisons), USW PO Box 40799 San Francisco, CA 94140
Petition updated January 2012, July 2012, December 2014, October
2017, and April 2019
For the past three years, on September 9 prisoners across the country
have joined in a solidarity demonstration on this anniversary of the
Attica uprising. It was initiated by an organization that was a part of
the United Front for Peace in Prisons. That organization is no longer
around, but new organizations and individuals have carried forward the
struggle.
The organizers call on activists to take this day to promote the United
Front for Peace in Prisons (UFPP) by building unity with fellow
captives, and to demonstrate resistance to the criminal injustice system
by fasting, refraining from work, engaging only in solidarity actions,
and ceasing all prisoner-on-prisoner hostilities. In some prisons the
demonstrations are big and involve many participants, in others just a
handful of people join in, and in some places only one persyn stands up.
But every action, large or small, contributes to raising awareness and
building unity.
This year we received only a handful of reports from comrades about
their September 9 organizing work. This is in contrast to the reports
from the past two years which showed a growing interest and involvement
in this day of protest. It is also in striking contrast to the
widespread
response and organizing around the Palestine petition by United
Struggle from Within (USW) comrades.
We take this opportunity to re-evaluate the September 9 action. The
question for all UFPP signatories and USW organizers: Why was organizing
for the September 9 Day of Peace and Solidarity so limited in 2014?
Should we do something different in 2015, either to help promote the
September 9 action, or by focusing on other campaigns and protests? Send
us your thoughts so we can sum up and continue to expand our efforts to
cease prisoner-on-prisoner violence in the U.$. criminal injustice
system.
To the comrade who wrote the article titled
“South
Carolina Stops Grievance Challenge Process” in ULK 33, I
would like to commend you and provide ammo. You say the pigs move you
around to different segregated dorms when they find out you are
assisting other prisoners with their legal work. The clearly established
right to assist others with legal work has been in place for over three
decades in Corpus v. Estelle 551 F2d 68 (5th Cir 1977). Even
though South Carolina is in the 4th Circuit, case law from the 5th
Circuit can still be cited as a persuasive authority.
As for the problem of unprocessing your grievances, take a look at your
prison’s policies and see if they make reference to an offender
grievance manual. They might have criteria for making a grievance
unprocessed. Check and see if there is information on access to courts
and if the manual has criteria with words such as what that
administration “must,” “will,” or “shall” do before unprocessing the
grievance. This is how you determine a “liberty interest,” if the policy
mandates any constitutional process due under the 4th or 14th
Amendments.
Also look at these cases: Tool Sparashad v. Bureau of Prisons, 268
F3d 576, 585 (DC 2002) and Herron v. Harrison, 203 F3d 410-416
(6th Cir 2006) on matters concerning grievance and retaliation.
Teach as much as you know to others wanting and willing to learn, and
keep on pushing comrade! Keep promoting use of the pen in legal warfare!
Remember, winners never quit and quitters never win.
