To commemorate Black History Month, we will examine the unjust case of Imam Jamil Al-Amin, formerly known as H. Rap Brown, who was targeted by the government on fabricated charges and sentenced to life without parole plus an additional 35 years in a federal supermax prison. Joining us will be his son, attorney and activist, Kairi Al-Amin, community organizer El-Hajj Amir Khalid A. Samad, and CCF board member and human rights advocate, El-Hajj Mauri Saalakhan.
Moderated by journalist Laila Al-Arian. Register on Zoom or watch on Facebook Live
Via NYC ABC We just found out that NoDAPL Water Protector Steve Martinez was arrested yesterday for contempt of court for resisting a grand jury in North Dakota. Steve was originally subpoenaed in the winter of 2017 and refused to cooperate, but at the time contempt proceedings did not happen.
He’s been re-subpoenaed, four years later, and is being held for (again) refusing to cooperate. We expect more info soon, including publicity materials. He’s being held in the Burleigh-Morton County Detention Center in Bismarck North Dakota.
Write: Steve Martinez PO Box 2499 Bismarck, ND 58502
David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson’s graphic novel The Black Panther Partymay be the first introduction to the revolutionary party for some. For others, it will provide additional context to the history. The graphic novel spans from the founding of the party by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale in the mid-’60s to its unfortunate demise when members were murdered, ostracized, or imprisoned. It covers the constant government attacks to the Party—cue J. Edgar Hoover, who stated the Black Panthers were the “greatest threat to the internal security of the country”—and its internal strife, against a background of increased racial tensions throughout the nation.
This graphic novel along with two other books are featured in NYC Books Through Bars‘ February bundle. You can buy all 3 books for only $30. They will be sent to this all-volunteer group who will send them to people in prison/jail. Order at www.freebirdbooks.com/shop.html
Check out the brand new documentary for free online. Its the story of how Dr. Mutulu Shakur, stepfather of Tupac Shakur, along with the Black Panthers and the Young Lords, combined community health with radical politics to create the first acupuncture detoxification program in America in 1973 — a visionary project eventually deemed too dangerous to exist in America.
“Much has happened in the first few weeks of this new year. Illinois is ending cash bail, pressure continues to mount for the new president to curtail Federal executions, and Covid-19 continues to disproportionately affect those locked behind bars. On January 15th former FALN Puerto Rican political prisoner Elizam Escobar succumbed to cancer. Escobar was a committed revolutionary—and a talented artist—until the very end.
If you haven’t yet gotten the new 2021 Certain Days: Freedom for Political Prisoners calendar, know that they are selling out quickly. Get one now while you still can. The moving essay for the month—a tribute to political prisoners and the inspiration they provide—is by Antoine Riggins, a politicized prisoner serving life in prison in Pennsylvania. The vibrant indigenous artwork for February is by activist and artist Gord Hill, aka Zig Zag.”
In the midst of a state-enforced mail ban, political prisoner Eric King compiled this new playlist in the first weeks of 2021. Learn about Eric, enjoy the music, and do what you can to offer support. #FreeEricKing . Listen to the new playlist!
Read about this scary new case out of Florida, where the Department of Justice is charging a young protestor with charges that could lead to many years in prison for alleged social media posts. Daniel Alan Baker is being held in a Florida detention center awaiting trial. Read more in this brand new article To See the Danger of a Domestic “War on Terror,” Look No Further Than This Florida Case.
Write Daniel and show support (but do not discuss his case): Daniel Alan Baker, 25765-509 FDC- Tallahassee 501 Capitol Circle N.E. Tallahassee, FL 32301
As a new administration enters the White House, we want to make clear, immediate demands to reduce and reverse the harm done by the past year of pandemic negligence in prisons and jails.
Join us in a spirited motorcade rally through the Capitol, while we hand-deliver our petition to the Department of Justice and incoming nominee to the DOJ Civil Rights Division, Kristen Clarke.Supporters can also join us virtually for “Stakeholders Event” at 10:30 that morning.
We demand a expedited executive clemency for prisoners, as well as investigation and enforcement action in all federal, state and local prisons to stop the rampant spread of COVID-19 among prisoners who are unable to socially distance or access proper PPE to protect themselves.Reducing the number of people behind bars must be the number one priority.While the CDC has acknowledged the danger in prisons, it has fallen short of advocating the level of decarceration that is needed to truly implement its guidelines.BACKGROUNDThere are over 6000 state, local and federal prisons across the United States. Many of them have become hotspots of Covid-19, with disproportionately high impacts among Black and Latinx prisoners, particularly in Southern states.
A recent statement from the DOJ in regards to public nursing homes offers an example of the sort of power they have to push state, federal and local facilities towards safer settings for vulnerable prisoner populationsThe Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division announced on Aug 26, 2020 that is looking towards investigations under the federal “Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act” (CRIPA), which protects the civil rights of persons in state-run nursing home facilities.
This can and should be applied to prisons and jails.In that statement, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Division Eric Dreiband stated that “Protecting the rights of some of society’s most vulnerable members…is one of our country’s most important obligations.”We agree. According to their website’s Pandemic Response Oversight page, the DOJ has completed two reports on COVID-19 in prisons (one in Lompoc, CA, the other at FCC Tucson, AZ).
This is a start, but its not enough.Research from Johns Hopkins and UCLA shows prisoners are 550% more likely to catch COVID-19, and 300% more likely to die from it than the general population.According to the New York Times COVID-19 Case Tracker, in mid-August 84 of the top 100 COVID-19 outbreak hotspots in the country were prisons and jails. Fifteen of them located in Florida’s incarceration system alone.A DOJ investigation into these state prisons systems could apply significant pressure to force life-saving changes.
If we do not get a sufficient response, we will take the issue to the United Nations to call for international attention on the reckless negligence of U.S. institutions with regards to the lives of prisoners in this pandemic.
