This is a presentation of some of the Q and A session which took place after the IDOC Watch panel in Chicago last year. If you are hearing this and don’t know what I’m talking about, head on over to the previous episode to catch up!
In this segment, we’ll hear Kwame Shakur, Lorenzo Stone-Bey, Sheila, and Zolo Azania speak on supporting incarcerated people, the tactic of the prison strike, and ways that attitudes in society about and toward prison and incarceration have changed over time.
Before we get into it tho I would like to say a big hearty FUCK THE POLICE to the murdering cowards we call cops everywhere and especially Minneapolis. I would also like to say big ups and strength to those who are fighting this white supremacist enemy in the streets this week. I hope y’all are staying safe from tear gas, having each other’s backs in whatever ways make sense, and enjoying all that liberated shit. We’re thinking of y’all and sending love!
Relatedly, our friends at the United Panther Movement are seeking funds to send some delegates up there to help in the fight.
From their fundraising ask:
“They want us divided, fighting each other, so they can continue terrorizing our communities ! The United Panther Movement and the New Afrikan Black Panther Party will be there boots on the ground for the people whenever and wherever we can ! And now the people our crying out for justice in the wake of George Floyd’s public lynching. We want to get out there yesterday ! We are asking the people to support our travels and lodging.
If you can, please donate to
cashapp:$unitedpanthers or paypal.me/upm2019.”
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Here is an announcement from Oso Blanco’s support website:
“Indigenous prisoners at USP Victorville are being denied access to essential supplies for their sweat ceremonies. This has been a routine occurrence even before COVID-19 response protocols were in place. Most recently, after further attempts to raise their legitimate grievances, newly arrived chaplain Sadiq ordered corrections officers to take the sacred pipe from its elected pipe carrier, Oso Blanco/Yona Unega (also known as Byron Shane Chubbuck). Oso Blanco is urgently requesting letters and emails to bring attention to these grievances and demand action. NOTE: Oso wants the tone to stay polite and non-confrontational for the time being. Send both letters and emails to the addresses below:
Assistant Warden Martinez
USP Victorville
P.O. Box 5400
Adelanto, CA 92301
fmartinez@bop.gov
VIM/ExecAssistant@bop.gov
Chaplain Michael Northway
USP Victorville
P.O. Box 5400
Adelanto, CA 92301
mnorthway@bop.gov
VIM/ExecAssistant@bop.gov”
If you do send anything, please do not mention Oso Blanco by name as he is already receiving a lot of shit from the administration.
Further reading recommended by Kwame Shakur:
Freidrich Engels – The Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State PDF version
New Jim Crow; Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
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Music for this episode: