Under Lock & Key

Freedom:
is contraband in prison because free thinking, independence of spirit and open mindedness are like acids that eat away at a prison bars and locked doors. Liberating the heart and mind, even when the body is not free.

Equality:
is contraband in prison because brotherhood always speaks out against oppression and poses threats to the power structures. Color-blind prisoners overcoming racism, prejudice and hate, to see each other as equals, is the system’s biggest fear.

Justice:
is contraband in prison. How many of my brothers are here who shouldn’t be? Some innocent of guilt, others guilty of innocence. While many here have harmed others, still there are those whose “crimes” have no victim. Moreover, we must never forget that cops, judges, jurors, and prison guards often see to it that justice is not done for the poor, oppressed, and helpless inside these walls.

Peace:
is contraband in prison. From fists and shanks to shields and batons, violence is the way of all tyranny. Remember: The system wants us at each other’s throats because it makes us much easier to control. And the worst violators of the peace are often those pledged to defend it (e.g. killer cops, military leaders, jingoistic politicians, etc.).

Love:
is contraband in prison. The warm embrace of family and friends. The touching and holding of lovers dear. The fires of passion, stoked and quenched by hands, lips, tongues, and bodies. All this is denied and forbidden here. There is no room for love in Hell! When you can’t be with your loved ones in times of joy or crisis…That is when the contraband nature of love in a carceral state becomes most clear…But really…In a society where hatefully punitive laws, institutions and practices are all too often the established norms…Should anyone be surprised that love is nowhere to be found in prison??

Truth:
is contraband in prison because, if we knew even half of what the system didn’t want us to know, surely the walls would come tumbling down. For their bricks are laid with the mortar of doublethink and their foundations are always built upon falsehood. This is the house Orwell’s Big Brother built. But, by developing a new and revolutionary consciousness…Together perhaps, we can find a way out of this deception, this misnomer, this evil hoax, this lie the system dares to call “corrections”, when, in fact, it is absolutely nothing of the kind. For the ultimate truth is this: The ruling elites need to keep the most marginalized elements of our society stuck in the revolving door of recidivism, because they fear them!

Reason:
is contraband in prison. How else can it be in a place like this? Where inane rules, illogical policies, twisted thinking and warped minds reign supreme…Among both prisoners and staff. Here, the authorities often make up the rules as they go along. What regulations do actually exist are always interpreted in ways that serve the interests of the powers that be…So…If you’re a victim of wrong-doing in prison, don’t expect there to be a common sense resolution to your problems. Especially not if it inconveniences those who run the hell holes in any way, shape or form they please. Critical thinking means nothing where arbitrariness is the order of the day. Power always trumps fairness and logical deduction and rationality are never approved of in slaves.

Happiness:
is contraband in prison. As powerless beings we are jammed into tiny cubes, forced to live in unnatural close quarters or unnatural solitude. Manacled, thwarted, squelched, isolated and restrained at every turn. Required or compelled to do this; prohibited or punished if we do that. Deprived of simple pleasures and quite often necessities as well…When you are locked up, contentment can be as fleeting as a lightening flash and seeking joy can be as futile as a dog chasing its tail. Those who say: “Prisoners have no right to be happy,” just don’t understand. Such people should be made to suffer and endure the demeaning life behind bars and locked doors which is our constant reality, but not part of our sentences, because then, such hateful fools wouldn’t be so quick to open their mouths against us!

Dignity:
is contraband in prison. When you’re treated like a cross between a wayward child and a potentially dangerous or predatory animal, it’s often as if you’re a nonentity, devoid of rights, privacy and humanity. So how can respect for the inherent worth of the life, person and meager possessions of inmates ever be achieved? Such a thing stands an ice-cube’s chance in Hell as long as the modern day slavery of imprisonment in penal institutions, mental hospitals and all other such places continues to exist.

Unity:
is contraband in prison. Because through unity, we can join the fight against cruelty, malfeasance and corruption as a bulwark of mighty solidarity. For unity always stands tall against unfairness of all kinds. But, if I take your hand…You, me and tomorrow link up as one. Regardless of race, creed, color, class or cultural background, no matter who or what we are, or what some of us have done, we must never forget that we’re all in this together. “Gung Ho” is the Chinese word for “All together now!” This must become our motto! For united there is little we cannot do! Making vows against injustice. Raising voices in loud protest against harm masquerading as “Rehabilitation”. Speaking truth to power, we are a resounding war cry, shouting down all that is unfair! Together, our siren duet can reach a great thundering crescendo. Shaking rafters of established order, from chambers of crypto-Fascist inhumanity, our voices will be heard, like clarion trumpet calls wailing! Until the rotting floors of authoritarian control collapse and fall away. As one for all and all for one, we must fight and work and scream and bleed. We are a pair! We are a team! We are a movement for a better way! We are the caged wretches, whose words are a conspiracy against the silence of indifference. And our voices will never stop yelling “Foul!” until we are heard. The bottom line is that all prisoners lives matter!

Therefore…

We refused to be branded, “The irredeemable dregs of humanity”.

We, the first world’s lumpen proletariat who vacillate between the jail cells, street shelters, crash pads and alleyways of your plutocratic, quasi-police state, nightmare society.

We, the poor souls caught between the stigma of our criminal past and our society’s refusal to truly help us integrate.

We, the oppressed ex-offender, caught between the violence of poverty stricken urban jungles on the one hand and the violence of the constant threat of re-incarceration or death on the other…

We, the disenfranchised masses for whom the promises of “Free Enterprise”, “Democracy” and Bourgeois bliss ring hollow.

We, say:

No More!

No More to locking people up like animals!

No More to police shootings and brutality!

No More to all the evils that the prison industrial complex perpetuates.

Our Demands for recognition.

Our Demands for fair treatment.

Our Demands for radical change should never be deemed…

Contraband!

Proverbs 14:17:

A quick-tempered man acts foolishly, and a man of wicked intentions is hated.

Part One: What Happened?

It is imperative to recount the details of an event that happened many years ago here at USP Tucson. At about 2:15pm, Thursday, July 21 st, an incident happened which begs this question: Did an officer here at USP Tucson use excessive force against a prisoner?

First, the details At about 2:15-2:30pm: a friend and I were sitting against the fence on the soccer field yard, near the corner of the yard. From where we sat, it was close to the sidewalk, which led into the hallway that was close to Education. We were the closest prisoners to the vantage point.

About that time, it was the Northside Program move, when the prisoners here can leave the dorm and go outside, or go back inside, or go to the Library, Indoor Recreation or other places, so there was movement of the prisoners, but also of staff as well, since it was also shift-change. As my friend and Isat in the shade, we saw volunteers from religious service leaving the building from the door closest to Education. They were coming from the Chapel, which was in the same building as Education. There were also two officers, one being the officer in question. Let’s call him Officer Burt, although Officer Coward could be a better name. The other officer I do not know.

At the same time, there was an elderly prisoner, Mr. Montgomery (his name I would learn later) who came down the walkway and headed towards Education - or that area. Normally prisoners don’t use the sidewalk to go to Education, they are supposed to go through the prison yard; but for whatever reason, he did not.

My friend and I saw Montgomery go in, just as the volunteers were leaving, through the same door. He went in, then we heard some exchange of words: someone was asking Montgomery why he didn’t go through the yard as he was supposed to. He was then told to leave; and as he came out, Officer “Burt” first told him to leave. Then he changed his mind, telling Montgomery to put his hands up, because Burt was going to put cuffs on him.

Montgomery… a 60+ year old man, turned to Officer Burt, and put his hands in front of him. I saw very clearly this action, and perhaps it might took like Montgomery was being aggressive; but he did EXACTLY what Officer Burt told him to do. Montgomery thrusted his two hands up in front of him, much like one would after running their hands through a bowl of water, pulling the hands upwards. But Officer Burt paused for a split second, then immediately went and grabbed Montgomery and slammed him into the fence.

Among the endless profanities Burt spoke - while the volunteers of the religious service looked on - Burt proceeded to roughly put Montgomery on the cement, breaking his glasses and drawing blood from his nose or lips. It was very clear that Montgomery wasn’t resisting, yet Burt roughly forced the prisoner face down on the cement… on a 105+ degree day, while the volunteers looked on.’

Montgomery showed no reasonable signs of resisting; an elderly man (or any man) slammed on the fence, then on a hot cement sidewalk while profanities are spewed over him, while forcing his arms to his back, will naturally resist a LITTLE: it’s a “fight or flight” reaction.

The second officer helped Burt subdue him, as help was called. It was shortly canceled, as Burt told them it was under control. The volunteers were held away by another officer, while Burt and the officer pinned Montgomery down, and put cuffs on him, as a bleeding Montgomery cried.

I then heard Officer Burt say, “He lunged at me”, to which I felt immediate contempt. He told the officers arriving on the scene that Montgomery LUNGED at him, which justified his actions. After cuffing him, they picked Montgomery up off the cement, and took him inside, Burt cursing continually.

Later, my friend and I sat there, furious at what Burt did to that old man. From the same doors to Education, a couple of staff members came out, looking at the small area of blood left by Montgomery. My friend and l were still there, in fact moved closer to see the blood spot. I overheard the two staff members talk about the incident, but tried not to be too nosy. One said, “i can’t believe he did that in front of those people”.

Who was he talking about? Montgomery… or Officer Burt?

So, I saw what happened, and was sickened by Officer Burt’s response to the situation. Naturally, when the other prisoners on the yard saw what happened, they came over to see the situation. They asked us what was going on, and I was adamant in saying that Montgomery did NOT lunge at the officer. One of the other prisoners said that the officers told Montgomery to go through the yard, and he refused. He was stubborn about it, and decided to take his own route to Education or Psychology. I heard he was trying to go to Psychology, so he could get his medication.

So—excessive force? Was Officer Burt’s actions necessary, or was this based on a man with a quick—temper? Consider the factors: USP Tucson — although a penitentiary, is almost non-violent. One case manager once said, “this is the softest penitentiary in the country.” Most prisoners are non—violent (at that time, because MUCH has changed in the last few years), or ex gang members trying to leave that life behind. So relaxed is this prison, that during rec move, the softball field, the middle yard, and the soccer field can be full of prisoners, with ZERO guards, because it is not needed. This was not an “active” yard, so aggressive confrontations with officers are minimal; hardly existent at all.

So was this exessive force? We’ll explore that in the second part.

Part Two: So Was it Exessive Force?

So, what are we looking at? A situation where an elderly man, in his 60s, is taken down by an officer when he “went the wrong way” here at USP Tucson. The officer (let’s call him Officer Burt) told the old prisoner to put his hands up because he was going to cuff him.

The prisoner, named Montgomery, did as he was told, and in the action, he put his hands up straight in the air. Officer Burt paused, then roughly pinned Montgomery to the fence, then took him down to the hot cement… all this while visitors to the prison for the religious service stood mere feet away.

Is this “Rodney King 101”, where an officer can justify rough and excessive treatment of an elderly prisoner, who happens to be on psyche medication? How will the prison justify this action? Normally this is a simple task for the prison to do; they’d just ignore the prisoner complaint and discredit anything we say. After all, nobody believes prisoners: that’s the running theory.

But there’s a problem with that this time: there were witnesses from outside the prison. Those volunteers for religious service came from ministries outside the prison, right here in Tucson. Will the prison say that those people didn’t see what they saw? Or, will those visitors believe Officer Burt’s story, and make Montgomery the villain? I might wager the latter, but it depends on what those people from religious service is willing to believe. I mean, I know what I saw; they saw the same thing.

So now the problems in society; the abuse of authority by officers, now reflects in this prison (which has always been an issue). This isn’t new: officers have been roughing up prisoners for the longest time, but the prison never took accountability, because it’s always our word (the prisoner) vs their word (the prison). But now with about 5—6 visitors from a ministry, looking on while Officer Burt virtually assaults a 60+ year old man, breaking his glasses and drawing blood, the prison has to find a way to spin this.

It was also interesting to note: I saw officers running to the scene when the “deuces” were hit (a call on the hand unit for help). I could be wrong, but when some of them arrived, they were hesitant to physically get involved because they saw the visitors. Had they NOT been there, would they have been more aggressive? Even the second officer with Burt seemed hesitant to assist Burt, possibly having a moral check; was he thinking, “is this the right way to go about this?”

So, what happens now? If I know this prison, they’ll defend the shield and do the wrong thing. An officer with a quick-temper showed poor judgment and excessive force on an elderly man on medication in front of a group of volunteers from outside the prison: witnesses. There is no question that in my eyes, my friend’s eyes, the prison surveillance and the volunteers who saw the incident that all the facts were congruent. It all matches.

So, IF the prison chooses to side with Officer Burt, they are wrong, and no different than abusive police officers who beat people or kill them, then justify it to the victim. Something has to be done to restore respect to these officers, and I fear that this prison may not be capable of doing that.

Proverbs 17:15 says:

“He who justifies the wicked, and he who condemns the just, both of them alike are an abomination to the Lord”.

I don’t expect the prison to do the “right thing”, because it would be an admission that they make mistakes. And they’d never admit that to prisoners. They’d rather cover it up, discredit or forget the valid points of view we give. Yet in doing this, prison abuse flourishes. Just two weeks prior to this incident, a man was murdered in the SHU (Specials Housing Unit) based squarely on prison ignorance and neglect. Officers have been accused of discrimination, yet the prison has been slow to act, if at all.

Bad behavior by officers is ignored, or even rewarded, since many get promotions; but half questionable behavior by prisoners have been met with full frontal condemnation.

Where does it end? Sadly, at this rate, it won’t. Prisons don’t learn from their mistakes, even if it is shown on television shows a hundred times. Prisons believe they can do what they want to prisoners because it’s some given right; and if (when) they do abuse people, it’s like Las Vegas: “What happens in [prison] stays in [prison].” Besides, who believes prisoners anyway?

But I didn’t lose my humanity when I got locked up. I still have values, so I will stand strong on this, regardless of what people say or think. Prisoner or not, people should be treated with a level of respect until something critical changes the situation. Officer Burt is known for having a temper; I had a run in with him before, and I am not a fan of his tactics at all. That doesn’t make me prejudiced against him (from one black prisoner to a black officer). I think he’s a bad officer, and persecutes prisoners because he can get away with it; and nobody working at USP Tucson has the intestinal fortitude to hold him accountable. Lots of officers here are like that: not ALL, because there are a couple of “good” officers here, but people like Officer Burt make prison so much harder than it needs to be.

The punishment is to BE in prison, not the abuse done by any officer. So, this incident which happened several years ago, as I look back at it. Montgomery got his family to sue the prison for abuse, which I helped by documenting what I saw. I hope it got Burt fired. But, years later, not much has changed. Bad officers get promoted, while the good ones leave, going elsewhere.

USP Tucson has gotten worse since then, so, I have to keep writing.

Some of those familiar with Our organization, who’ve read Our Tx TeamOne Primer, and Our other numerous articles, or followed us on Twitter, may ask what is the purpose for this writing. For you would have already known that Texas TeamOne is not a nationality-specific organization.

The articulated reason some have become confused and muddle-headed is because a comrade here decided to initiate campaigns on dates some associate with New Afrikan revolutionary nationalism, and have taken exception to this.

The campaigns in question were initiated on Black August 21st and ended September 9th. The other campaign is one We’re working on now, and have promoted in Under Lock & Key (ULK) which is Our Juneteenth Freedom Initiative.

First let’s look at Black August 2st - September 9th and why We chose that. These two dates are associated with George Jackson’s assassination and the Attica uprising. What were Jackson’s politics? Jackson, at the time of his death was a Communist. Jackson expressed his desire to eradicate ‘racism’ and the necessity to differentiate himself and others as Black, or whatever color. Jackson said “Black, white and Brown are all victims together.” i say this to say that Jackson was more than just a Black man; to see him as such is to showcase one’s own limited perspective. Jackson was and is a paragon for imprisoned people entering the realm of revolutionary ideas and practice, he was a living legend to an entire state prison system, even to those who did not like him. Telling of all this is that on his death date the other prisoners who rose up in defense to smite their enemies, and were charged and came to be known as the: San Quentin Six, some of these comrades were Chican@s. Hugo Pinnell, one of this group and also a supposed Black Guerrilla Family member, was Puerto Rican.

So when We take these hystorical facts into account We have a better understanding that August 21st isn’t merely about George Jackson but also solidarity to the death, shown by those comrades that day. Furthermore, August is also the month of the Chicano Moratorium, and is commemorated each year, as Chican@s learn of their hystory of revolutionary struggle around this time.

September 9th, the day of the Attica uprising, is clearly a day of multi-national prisoner solidarity, when New Afrikan, Amerikan and Puerto Rican comrades occupied the prison compound as one body. This is held up as the ultimate example of multi-national unity among prisoners.

In regards to Juneteenth, i believed that in 2022 the connections would be clear to everyone, but apparently not. Apparently some think that only New Afrikans were and are slaves. This is not the case. According to the U.$. constitution all those in prison are slaves. The contradiction is that Juneteenth commemorates a day when slavery was supposed to have ended, and Biden’s regime has made this a federal holiday now, while millions of ‘slaves’ still exist in this kkkountry, and their colors vary like the rainbow. The Juneteenth actions are so set in order to raise the visibility of this flagrant contradiction, a method used to tell the public, to showcase that while most are busy incorporating themselves into amerika INC, We, the lumpen-prisoner class are among the last unincorporated people, or class resident to North America. This is the most basic ideal behind Our Juneteenth Freedom Initiative, but not the only. The J.F.I. consists of three stages, the first mentioned above, is to publicize, the second acts to bring the issue of targeted mass incarceration and its role in the genocide of oppressed nationalities domestic of N. America, to the federal level.

The third stage acts to bring these two issues to the international level. We’ve released a more in depth communique surrounding the J.F.I. Please write in to MIM(prisons) to obtain it and be sure to provide postage via stamps.

In political struggle there are many forms of oppression and exploitation. However, these many can summarily be broken down into three primary forms of oppression, and these are national, class and gender.

In Our quest as people to undermine and ultimately devour this oppression We formulate specific types of organizations and organizational methods that We infer will best allow us to meet Our goals, and do so swiftly. Some organizations are organized around gender, for example, the National Woman’s Organization, while others are organized around nation(al) issues, like the Black Panther Party, NAACP, UNIA, RNA, Black Lives Matter and many many others. And still there are some which organize around issues of class, United Struggle from Within, Socialist Workers Party, Prison Lives Matter, and such organizations are examples here.

After much discussion within the Texas TeamOne organizational body it has come to Our attention that We must make Our position clear on the question of the basic purpose of Our organization. Some within and without the organization seem to assume that Texas TeamOne is a New Afrikan-based organization, and thus is organizing on the question of nation and nationality and this has subsequently alienated some, or at least been an excuse for their inactivity. Therefore, i would like to use this platform to publicly declare that although some in Texas TEAMONE are New Afrikans, We’re not a New Afrikan-based organization. Some of Our comrades are Chican@s/Mexican@s, but We’re not a Chican@-based organization either. Texas TEAMONE is focused upon uniting the prisoner(lumpen) class, as a class statewide, guiding this class in asserting its class interest in a manner aligned with proletarian internationalism, and working within the masses of this class to develop political cadres (professional revolutionaries) to send out to the ‘free world’ to assist in freeing Our peoples. This is Our long-term mission.

So to be clear, what is a ‘class’? Marx didn’t see classes as simply economic groupings. Instead, Marx gives-us indispensable criteria, which could be listed as: 1) that class members must share a common position in their relations to the means of production, i.e., common economic conditions, relative to their labor and the appropriation of the social surplus; 2) that they must share a separate way of life and cultural existence; 3) that they must share a set of interests which are antagonistic to other classes; 4) that they must share a set of social relations, i.e. a sense of unity which extends beyond local boundaries and constitutes a ‘national’ bond: 5) that they must share a corresponding collective consciousness of themselves as a ‘class’ and; 6) they must create their own political organizations, and pursue their interests as a ‘class’.(1)

So while Texas prisoners are ‘naturally’ a ‘class-in-itself’, by meeting the first above criteria alone, We at Texas TeamOne are about leading the charge to make the Texas prisoner class develop into a ‘class-for-itself’, “which will depend on the acquisition and development of the remaining elements. Meaning the group must develop consciousness of itself as a class; create political organizations engage in unified action to oppose and defeat class enemies; begin to build a new society free from all exploitation and oppression and: eliminate all class division”.(2)

Texas prisoners already share a definite and distinct way of life separate from the rest of society’s classes represented in Texas. As many of you already know, despite Our inability to unify strongly in massive numbers, We do have common interests, however We get in Our own way. Numbers four, five, and six are the role Texas TeamOne shall occupy for prisoners in this state, and We will contribute to the countrywide lumpen/ prisoner class organizing being done by USW, and groups like Prison Lives Matter. The key is to build solid cadre state-to-state, then organize these cadres across the country to actualize the mighty reservoir of revolutionary potential that lays dormant behind these walls.

Before i close this out, i would like to express the importance of an in-depth study and comprehension of WORLD hystory. The oppressed nations in the United $tates have an extended hystory of organized unity. Remember Santa Anna? Why did the General call for the war against Anglo-Texan colonizers? Was it not to force them to abolish slavery? Why do people celebrate Cinco De Mayo? When the French, led by Maximillian I, invaded Veracruz, Mexico to re-institute slavery, didn’t the Mexican people fight admirably to repel the French? Didn’t free New Afrikans stand in solidarity with their/ Our Mexican counterparts? Cinco De Mayo was initiated by the Mexican Amerikan Union Army veterans in the SouthWest(Aztlán) to commemorate the Mexican victory over the european invaders who were hell-bent on re-enslaving the people. It was a holiday symbolizing national independence, resistance to imperialism, and the abolition of slavery. What is telling is that the Mexican Amerikan Union was actively fighting in the Amerikan civil war on the anti-slavery side while they called for the Cinco De Mayo celebration.

What’s my point here? In case you’ve missed it, the point is that Chican@, Mexican@, Indigenous, and New Afrikan people have been intrinsically connected throughout Our hystory. We would do well to remember this, to not see Our struggles as separate but see them as Our ancestors did. For they always knew that if one allowed an Indian to be colonized, a Mexican would be colonized next. If the African was mired in slavery, the Mexican would be returned to it. Thus their unity was one of anti-imperialism, anti-colonialism, and international abolition.

As a final note, in recent years, because of the legacy mentioned above surrounding the days of Aug 21st & Sept 9th, comrades within the countrywide prisoners movement have utilized this period of time to mobilize outside support and action, as well as inside. This call has already gone out to mobilize for this year’s ‘Shut ’Em Down’ demonstrations, as they’ve come to be called. This adds to the reason why comrades have chosen those dates, and We hope that this brief piece dissolves any assumptions, myths regarding Our work, and that many others will actively join us in our level of commitment.

COMBAT GENOCIDE!!!! COMBAT NEO-COLONIAL VIOLENCE!!!

MIM(Prisons) adds: We want to acknowledge that a comrade in Anti-Imperialist Prisoner Support, the MIM(Prisons)-led organization for outside supporters, also contributed to this confusion by posting an image on social media promoting last year’s hunger strike against RHU in Texas calling for support for “New Afrikans.” Once we noticed this we asked the comrade to change it, which took some days to happen. This is a lesson to the outside supporters of anti-imperialist prison organizers who may not be aware of the sensitivities among the oppressed nations to these questions.

What Team One is experiencing is something MIM(Prisons) has experienced for many years. To an extent it is unavoidable in a country where the oppressed nations are constantly pitted against each other, we will continue to alienate some readers when we support national liberation struggles. But we can be careful in how we do this, be clear on our politics, do our best to promote a diversity of voices and campaigns when they exist, etc. As the definition of United Struggle from Within on p. 2 reads:

“USW won’t champion struggles which are not in the interests of the international proletariat. USW will also not choose one nation’s struggles over other oppressed nations’ struggles.”

As the local representation of USW in Texas, Texas Team One shares this line as they describe above. Likewise, they echo the spirit and line of USW in this statement.

<sup>Sources:
1. Meditations On Frantz Fanon’s Wretched of the Earth, James Yaki Sayles; pg. 286; citing Karl Marx, The 18th Brumaire; Karl Marx, The Holy Family.
2. Ibid, pg.287</sup>

As you know, Black August is here. Do something wherever you are for all the brothers who gave their lives so our struggle could be easy. This year I’m asking our comrades to focus not only on our problems, but focus on our solutions.

I read somewhere, when we think of ourselves as individuals rather than as collectives, we fail to consider the importance of solidarity and collective resistance. We are more likely to treat others as competitors as opposed to comrades.

CDCR administration is anti-Black and Brown, its calculated policy works against the needs and aspirations of our freedom. It is our duty to use every necessary and accessible means to protest and to disrupt the machinery of oppression and so to bring such general distress and discomfort upon the oppressor.

For you young Afrikan who are asleep, an example was shown last month. Chicano, Raza comrades here at Calipatria showed collective resistance to the store for the month. I salute them comrades. At the end their goal was met. Their focus was the solution, not the problem. That how brothers fight collectively at the administration. Abolitionists From Within will show up for this Black August here, collectively with all willing participants.

What is Black August?

Black August is a promotion of a conscious, non-sectarian mass based New Afrikan resistance culture, both inside and outside the prison walls all across the U.$. Empire. Black August originally started among the brothers in the California Penal System to honor three fallen comrades and to promote a Black culture of resistance and revolutionary development.

The first brother, Jonathan Jackson, a 17 year old man child was gunned down 17 August 1970 outside a Marin County California courthouse in an armed attempt to liberate three imprisoned Black Liberation Fighters (James McClain, William Christmans and Ruchell Magee). Ruchell Magee is the sole survivor. George Jackson, Jonathan’s older brother and comrade, a great Black revolutionary theoretician and leader was assassinated 21 August 1971 by guards during a Black prison rebellion at San Quentin, in an unsuccessful effort to cover up the state’s pre-planned assassination of comrade George. The third brother, Khatari Gaulden, was victimized by the blatant assassination of capitalist corporate medical politics in prison on 1 August 1978. In 1979, over 40 people came together to form the Black August Organizing Committee from a united front of New Afrikan prisoners formed in 1978 following Khatari’s murder.

Some tenets for Black August from K.A.G.E. Universal:

• We aim to fast as a show of self-discipline and resistance. From the sunrise until evening meal we will abstain from eating.

• We aim to abstain from consuming any type of opioids, or other smokable or liquid intoxicants during the month of August.

• We aim to combat liberalism even by limiting our selection of non-frivolous TV shows and educational programs i.e., radio, historic documentaries, journal writings and other creative art exhibits.

• During Black August, we emphasize political and cultural evolution studies for those participants who care to assemble with other brothers and sisters rather by way of social media internationally and/or via facilitation within the institution forum.

Peace be unto you… Thank you for providing me, the much needed information on AIPS-GA/Outside Reports.

Those warehoused and enslaved within this illicit system, particularly at Telfair State Prison (i.e. Koncentration Kamp), are subjected to unprecedented hazards. The entire staff is not being screened for COVID-19, upon reporting to work daily. The staff continues to interact with those of us held captive, without wearing any PPE (i.e. Masks or gloves), even while serving the units at meal times.

Units of korruption officers from various kamps, forming what they call a tactical squad, come to this facility to shake us down frequently. Countless outside visitors employed with the state are permitted to enter the facility without being screened as if they are immune to catching or spreading the coronavirus. Mind you, that the state cancelled all family visits in March, so no one has been able to see a family member since that time.

What is the difference between them going home and any place of their desire and then returning here possibly exposing us to COVID-19, or allowing our families which live in the same society as they do to come visit us?

The chemicals (or lack thereof) that are given are watered down so much that their ability to effectively clean and sanitize is questionable. The drinking water is tan or brownish due to the piping being rusted out. The food being slopped together will not satisfy a three year old. Nor does it meet the required calorie standards recommended for adults.

Amid the federal declaration of national emergency; issued on or around the thirteenth day of March 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, little to virtually no cohesive measures have been implemented within the Georgia Department of Korruption (i.e. GDC), to protect the lives of the country’s most vulnerable population; Its prisoners!

In fact, prisoners are forced to exist in congregate settings. Where physical social distancing is all but impossible. Adversely, inherently enhancing our enslavement sentences; to that of a sentence of death. Because we are not at all able to effectively protect ourselves from this pandemic. That has now taken well over four hundred thousand lives in the U.$. [as of January 2021].

For, it is essential that the humanity of those being held captive be reevaluated at once. Because: Prisoners’ Lives Matter, as well!

The nature of COVID-19 requires an unprecendented and empathic response. The states have taken up many measures to curb the pandemic, in free society. With little success at slowing the spread of this virus; as evidenced by the 23 million who have now tested positive, just within the U.$. [as of January 2021].

The Georgia Department of Korruption; governor of Georgia: Brian Kemp; the Department of Injustice (i.e. DOJ), nor have the United $tates Attorney General: Wiliam Barr, thought it to be necessary to act upon implementing actions to release those held within their state and federal kamps that have not been sentenced to death.

For, it is no secret, that the state kamps are understaffed and overcrowded with vulnerable citizenry. These koncentration kamps are unsanitary and unfit for humans to exist in. They are insufficient in providing adequate nutritional supplement for those of us that are being held captive. The level of medical care provided is egregiously inadequate.

Reducing every facility to susceptible petri dishes for infectious disease outbreaks.

In fact! Eight of the ten clusters of the coronavirus are located within state Korrectional facilities, according to the: New York Times (in July 2020). For though many state have increased COVID-19 testing, the country’s prison system maliciously refuses to test those being held captive, within its vile entity.

For it is the duty of those in office, to use every tool available to prohibit this pandemic from claiming anymore lives. The conventional philosophic way that has become our approach to civility is morally despicable. We cannot pick and choose, who amongst us are deserving of being saved. For that is the creator’s job!

We must prioritize the safety and well-being of as many people as humanly possible.

The United States are quick to censure a variety of countries, due to the way those countries treat their citizenry. While all along treating their own citizenry much worst.

The demographics of the cruelty that already existed within the illicit prison system of the United States, did not need the addition of COVID-19, included to the many different forms of weaponized impunity that already exist within a system designed to tear a person down.

The United $tates’ prison system was designed to be a governmental body to enslave New Afrikan people to rebuild the southern states, which relied on slave labor to bolster the economy. This is officially documented in the Thirteenth Amendment.

Prisons were not designed to be a death chamber for those accused of breaking the so-called law. The perception of government in the nineteenth century was to make the public think that the nations’ prisons were places of rehabilitation. There is no rehabilitation going on behind these enemy lines. Just death! All that exist is Kruel treatment by Korrupt bigots and their house nigga’s, which thrive on dehumanizing human-beings to augment their own self-worth.

It is now time to unlock these chains and cages, before they are responsible for the deaths of thousands.

Prisoners’ Lives Matter!