This week, we’re featuring two conversations relating to the so-called Green Border in Podlaskie region of eastern Poland, on the Belarus border concerning topics of migration, repression, militarization, nationalism and solidarity among residents and people on the move into Fortress Europe.
First up, you’ll hear Alex, a member of the feminist anti-repression group, Szpila Collective, about the H5Poland case of 5 activists facing charges for aiding people in need in what could be a landmark case in Poland and Europe. More at Szpila.BlackBlogs.Org or on Mastodon: @Szpila@kolektiva.social [ 00:01:34 – 00:15:08]
Then, you’ll find a chat with an anarchist who grew up in this border region and returned in adulthood and whose affinity group does solidarity with people on the move through the Białowieża forest. [00:19:58 – 01:32:18]
This week, we’re sharing words from anarchist, author, organizer and former participant in the Black Panther and Black Liberation Army, Ashanti Omowali Alston, in the key note address at the 2024 Another Carolina Anarchist Bookfair in so-called Asheville. The presentation was entitled “Solidarity, Spirituality and Liberatory Promise on a Turtle’s Back”. You can support Ashanti’s GoFundMe here.
Trusting in solidarity, the mysterium of spirituality, and a promise from god knows where—a “where” that at this historical moment, might just be Palestine. What does it mean TO BE in the midst of all this right now? RIGHT NOW!
M. Ashanti Alston is a revolutionary Black nationalist, anarchist, abolitionist, speaker, writer, elder motivator. A long-time member of The Jericho Movement, he is presently an advisory board member of the National Jericho Movement and co-founding board member of the Center for Grassroots Organizing (Vermont land project). He continues giving talks and writing inspirational analyses concerning the dismantling of the myriad oppressive regimes in which we find ourselves enmeshed.
Ashanti is one of the few former members of the Black Panther Party who identifies as an anarchist in the tradition of ancestor Kwesi Balagoon (BPP & BLA). He developed abolitionist politics in the early years of Critical Resistance. He has helped save the life of a baby pig with animal liberationists, learned depth-queer politics from being challenged, and wants to see non-ego eldership partaking through sincerely loving the younger generations who truly want to ‘CARRY IT ON.”
Prisoners have been filing grievances at Granville CI, a prison in Butner, North Carolina, to no avail complaining about a lack of the legally mandated showers and access to the exercise yard, and are asking for phone calls and emails to demand a resumption of serving these basic needs despite any claims of understaffing. If you check our show notes, you can find a call or email script and the numbers and addresses to direct your words at.
By Joseph ”Shine White” Stewart
How many prisoners must die and how long must we languish in solitary confinement subjected to these harsh and unconstitutional living conditions before there is a public outcry?
The deficiencies in the day-to-day operations of this prison have been longstanding/persistent and well documented. In the past I’ve reported on the culture of abuse, negligence and unprofessionalism here at Granville Correctional.
Over the past couple of months the conditions have only worsened. Those of us who are assigned to Restrictive Housing for Control Purposes (RHCP) are being deprived of showers, recreation, subjected to inadequate health care and other unconstitutional treatment.
Pursuant to Chapter C subsection .1205(A) of the NCDAC policy and procedure manual, prisoners assigned to RHCP will have the opportunity to shower a least three times a week.
Lately prison staff have been using the excuse that there is not enough staff to give us showers or even saying that they are too tired to do showers. As always I must maintain my integrity and be honest when reporting on these conditions. The laziness and neglect I am mentioning here doesn’t apply to all the staff. Sergeant Jones, the second shift sergeant here in C-1 building, makes sure that we are afforded the opportunity to shower. However when it’s not her shift or if she’s not scheduled to work we’re likely not to receive showers if there is a shortage of staff.
Despite being demoted to a less restrictive solitary confinement setting I’ve yet to be offered to exercise outside.
Pursuant to Chapter C section .1206 of NCDAC policy and process manual, prisoners assigned to RHCP shall he allowed one hour per day, five days per week to exercise outside of the cell, moreover the outdoor exercise cages should be used as the primary exercise area. During the exercise periods we are to be allowed to exercise unrestrained.
As when it is time for us to take showers the same excuse is used to deprive us of any recreational time. They don’t have enough staff. As mentioned I haven’t been afforded outside exercise for almost three years now despite being demoted to a lower security level.
Recreation here in C-1 building consists of us being placed in full restraints and allowed to pace up and down the tier for one hour. Lastly, custody staff are having any medical appointments cancelled claiming there isn’t enough staff to escort is to the nurse’s station. This includes mental health appointments as well.
Of course the foregoing isn’t all that needs to be addressed, however these are the issues that my peers and I find to be the most important, thus we entreat that the reader call and demand redress for the aforementioned issues.
Warden James Williams and unit manager Eldridge Walker are responsible for promulgating the aforementioned policies and procedures and for the allowance of the aforementioned practices/customs, therefore they are the individuals who should be held accountable. Please contact these officials repeatedly:
Granville Correctional Institution warden, James Williams – 919-575-3070 (call main line and ask for warden’s office)
Granville CI C-1 Unit Manager Eldridge Walker- 919-575-3070 (call main line and ask to be connected to Unit Manager Eldridge Walker)
NCDAC Dep. Director of Rehabilitation/Correctional Services Maggie Brewer – maggie.brewer@dac.nc.gov – 919-733-2126 (call main line and ask to be connected to Brewer’s office)
“I am (calling/emailing) to demand that prisoners being held in solitary confinement in the C-1 building be afforded the opportunity to shower and exercise outside according to NCDAC’s policies and procedures and pursuant to their U.S. Constitutional rights.
I am demanding that an internal investigation be conducted at the Granville Correctional concerning the grievances being made by prisoners there and I demand warden James Williams and C-1 unit manager he held accountable for the deliberate indifference they have demonstrated.”
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Featured Track:
Free Your Mind… And Your Ass Will Follow (instrumental) by Funkadellic from Free Your Mind… And Your Ass Will Follow
This week, I spoke with two members of No More Deaths, a 20 year old humanitarian organization operating in the borderlands between Mexico and the USA. We talked about the organization, the work it does, how the border has changed, the political legacy of the Republicans and Democrats in the current situation for immigrants, deaths at the border and ways to get involved in supporting people on the move. Here’s a chat from 2017 we did with NMD as well.
Our chat with Louis, an anarchist emergency room nurse who has just returned from a second tour doing healthcare work in Gaza and is about to leave again. During this difficult conversation, we talk about medical conditions that he encountered in Gaza, what aid is getting in and how it’s being distributed, health infrastructure and how this relates to his prior mutual aid and anti-border work in the so-called USA. You can find a prior interview with Louis from Living and Fighting blog.
This week we’re sharing audio from Dr. Mohammed Bamyeh’s presentation entitled “The No-State Solution” as recorded at the 2024 Another Carolina Anarchist Bookfair in so-called Asheville, NC. Dr. Bamyeh is a Palestinian sociologist and professor at Pitt and the author of multiple books. There is a youtube video of this chat available on the Firestorm Books channel. Shuli Branson’s current podcast is The Breakup Theory and she also authored a zine by the same title as this presentation.
A prior presentation of this title appeared at The Victoria Anarchist Bookfair, a discussion between Dr. Bamyeh and Dr. Uri Gordon. You can find a video or a zine of the dialogue.
Announcements
SCI Fayette hunger strike
According to incarcerated activists in SCI-Fayette in Luzerne Township, Pennsylvania, there are plans to initiate a peaceful hunger strike starting with breakfast on August 5th, 2024, to protest lack of out-of-cell time, locked down for laundry, commissary and evening recreation time during which they can contact family and friends. More on the details in our show notes to support their hunger strike demands.
The brothers at SCI-FAYETTE are planning a peaceful resistance 2 strike all the meals beginning the morning of 8/5/2024 because administration is continuing 2 limit our time out of the cell on the unit, as if we’re in a pandemic. This is the only facility n PADOC that are doing pandemic procedures. Continues to take from us. Creating problems & hostile environment. The men are tired of being locked down for commissary, laundry & now they’re restricting are evening recreation. For most inmates that’s the only time we can contact are family & friends. We want full day room recreation (no cohorts) on every housing unit 7:45-10-30am, 1:15-3:35pm & 5:00pm-8:30pm & more seats on the housing unit 2 accommodate the seating arrangements. We need their help on the outside to call #724-364-2200 & speak up 4 us.
Administration likes to keep matters like this in-house & hope we don’t have any outside support.
Please support us?
To hear about more ongoing and recent prisoner struggles and anti-repression news, check out the monthly column on ItsGoingDown.org entitled In Contempt.
Week of Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners
August 23-30th is the Week of Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners. To learn who is being supported, find propaganda and art and how to send your own updates, visit the website solidarity.international
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Featured Track:
Viva Tirado (part 1) by El Chicano from Viva Tirado
This week, we’re featuring an interview with Dominika Ożyńska (Egala Association) and Aleksandra Chrzanowska (Association for Legal Intervention [polish: Stowarzyszenie Interwencji Prawnej SIP]), two human rights activists in eastern Poland near the Belarus border who speak about the situation with the migrant route through the Białowieża forest in the midst of increased militarization on both sides of the border through this ancient forest and through the region. Both are active in the umbrella Grupa Granica, or border group, movement supporting people on the move.
In coming weeks we hope to feature more conversations with activists on the ground in this region and elsewhere speaking on similar topics, including locals who’ve seen social and environmental changes as tensions build between the neighboring nation-states and international alliances and how it impacts people seeking asylum and engaging their freedom of movement.
This week, we’re sharing audio from the presentation “Direct action abortion services in Latin America” 2023 Another Carolina Anarchist Bookfair in so-called Asheville, NC.
Thanks to the volunteers who re-recorded the presenter and audience questions where permission to share their voices was not granted and a transcription. Keep an eye out in August for our youtube video to include the slides from the actual presentation this recording was made from. Audios from the 2024 ACABookfair will be online in the near future on the bookfairs website, https://acabookfair.noblogs.org/
Here’s an interview with Walter of the Antifa International social media project. In 2016, this took over the running of the annual July 25th Day of Solidarity with Antifascist Prisoners that was formerly a day to show affinity with Jock Palfreeman, an Australian antifascist who was incarcerated in Bulgaria for defending some Romani people from a right wing attack in which an attacker died.
For the hour we talk about the day of solidarity, the associated Antifascist Defense fund, international lines of solidarity around antifascism, recent cases of repression and continuing to support cultures of resistance while comrades are behind bars.
This week we’re featuring three segments. First up, you’ll hear a conversation I had with Asphalt, a supporter of a recent federal grand jury resister in Charleston, South Carolina. [00:04:53 – 00:36:28]
After that Cyprus Hartford, the grand jury resister, speaks for herself and reads her statement of resistance. [00:36:28 – 00:40:39]
Finally, you can find an interview that Ian did with Marisa Holmes and Molly of the Metropolitan Anarchist Coordinating Committee about their recent anarchist film festival. [00:42:32 – 01:01:29]
Then you’ll hear Sean Swain’s review of the presidential debate [01:02:06 – 01:09:16]
By way of introduction to this first segment, I’d like to remind people that none of the people speaking about grand juries here are lawyers, but we are sharing information we’ve gotten from lawyers and legal experts to the best of our abilities. I’m going to read a bit from the website NCResistsTheGrandJury.Wordpress.Com:
What is a Grand Jury?
In the federal legal system, the grand jury is used to decide whether someone should be charged (“indicted”) for a serious crime. The grand jury hears evidence presented by the prosecutor: the U.S. Attorney. The grand jury uses subpoenas to gather this evidence. It can subpoena documents, physical evidence, and witnesses to testify. The “special” federal grand jury, created in 1970, can be used to investigate “possible” organized criminal activity rather than a specific crime. The California legal system also has grand juries, but it is optional whether criminal prosecutions are initiated by grand jury indictment, or by a complaint by the District Attorney and preliminary hearing before a judge.
How is a Grand Jury Different Than a Trial Jury?
Unlike the “petit” jury, which is used to determine guilt in a trial, a grand jury consists of 16 to 23 jurors who are not screened for bias. The purpose of the grand jury is not to determine guilt or innocence, but to decide whether there is probable cause to prosecute someone for a felony crime. The grand jury operates in secrecy and the normal rules of evidence do not apply. The prosecutor runs the proceedings and no judge is present. Defense lawyers are not allowed to be present in the grand jury room and cannot present evidence, but may be available outside the room to consult with witnesses. The prosecutor and the grand jury members may not reveal what occurred in the grand jury room and witnesses cannot obtain a transcript of their testimony.
How Has the Grand Jury Been Used by the State?
Because of their broad subpoena powers and secretive nature, grand juries have been used by the government to gather information on political movements and to disrupt those movements by causing fear and mistrust. The grand jury lends itself to being used for improper political investigation due in part to the prosecutor’s ability to question witnesses without regard for rules that prohibit irrelevant, unreliable or unlawfully obtained evidence. Those called before the grand jury may be compelled to answer any question, even those relating to lawful personal and political activities. That information has been used by the government as a basis to conduct further surveillance and disruption of political dissent. When used against political movements, the grand jury causes fear and mistrust because persons who refuse to answer questions about their First Amendment political activities, friends and associates may be jailed for the life of the grand jury: up to 18 months. If a witness asserts their Fifth Amendment right to remain silent, they may be forced to accept immunity or go to jail for contempt. Even a witness who attempts to cooperate can be jailed if minor inconsistencies are found in their testimony. Such a perjury charge may stand even when the grand jury fails to hand down any indictment for what it was ostensibly investigating.
The grand jury is a complicated and opaque process, by design. Our movements have decades of experience resisting grand juries, and there are resources available to learn more and support those who resist.
If you have been contacted by federal law enforcement, the National Lawyers Guild has a national federal defense hotline at 212-679-2811.
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Featured Track:
Setting Sun (instrumental) by The Chemical Brothers from Setting Sun
This week, we’re sharing a conversation I had with Matthew Lyons and Xtn Alexander, editors and contributors to the book Three Way Fight: Revolutionary Politics and Antifascism, out this year from Kersplebedeb Books and PM Press. We talked about the development of the political tendency which troubles the read of both liberal capitalism and the autonomous far right from a revolutionary left libertarian perspective, some of it’s progenitors and a bit about the state of the far right today.
