BK/NY – Tuesday, January 17th – Letter-Writing to Jordan Halliday and Mandy Hiscocks

What: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
When: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, January 17th, 2012
Where: 885 Park Avenue, Brooklyn, New York (see below for directions)
Cost: Free

And so comes 2012. Last time, we wrote about carrying energy and momentum into the new year, and here in NYC, it appears folks have answered that call. As the city builds toward a May Day General Strike, there is a lot of work to put in, including how to stay safe, especially in light of the machinations that put six comrades in prison following the 2010 Toronto G20. Speaking of…one of these comrades was remanded on January 13th. For this week’s political prisoner letter-writing night, we’ll be writing to her and to grand jury resister Jordan Hallliday, who was arrested and forced to start a ten month sentence well before his expected report date.

On January 10th, Federal Marshalls took Jordan to the Davis County jail for supposedly violating his parole by allegedly associating with folks who are vegan and straight edge– yes, a condition of his bail was that he could not associate with people who abstain from drugs and alcohol and are also vegan. After a successful call-in campaign, Jordan was finally given food he can eat and is now serving ten months for criminal contempt of a grand jury. He has already served time for civil contempt in regards to the same grand jury inquisition.

We are also writing to another of the 2010 Toronto G20 “Main Conspiracy” prisoners, Mandy Hiscocks. As we wrote when the first of these folks began their sentences, this case shows both the potential strength of revolutionaries working together and the depths of depravity to which the state will go to maintain itself and the economic system to which it remains beholden. For more information, watch this interview and continue to follow up by visiting Conspire to Resist and Guelph Anarchist Black Cross.

If for some insane reason you can’t make it out, but still want to support the prisoners, you can write to them at:
Jordan Halliday #201200256
Davis County Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 130
Farmington, Utah 84025

Mandy Hiscocks
Vanier Centre for Women
655 Martin Street
Box 1040
Milton, Ontario
L9T 5E6
Canada

Stay updated by visiting:
supportjordan.tumblr.com
conspiretoresist.wordpress.com

BK/NY – Tuesday, January 3rd – Letter-Writing to the Angola 3

What: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
When: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012
Where: 885 Park Avenue, Brooklyn, New York (see below for directions)
Cost: Free

First: Happy New Year! If you didn’t get a chance to come to the New Year’s Eve noise demonstration we organized, please take the time to read this reportback. To hear over 200 people calling out the names of comrades lost and those most recently imprisoned was motivating. So much so, in fact, that folks had to take that energy into the streets. And much of that energy still lingers, pushing us to continue the work of supporting our comrades who are still in prison. By now, you probably know that one way we do that is through every-other-week political prisoner letter-writing dinners. We’ve lost count, but this week’s dinner will be about the 120th we’ve hosted. This week we are focusing on the Angola 3.

The Angola 3 are three black liberationists who, while inside prison, made contact with members of the Black Panther Party. In 1971, this led to the creation of a prison chapter of the BPP. The men then organized prisoners to build a movement within the walls to desegregate the prison, to end systematic rape and violence, for better living conditions, and worked as jailhouse lawyers helping prisoners file legal papers. They organized multiple strikes and sit-ins for better conditions. Still in prison, Shaka Cinque and Herman Wallace were convicted of the 1972 murder of a prison guard. The third member of the Angola 3, Robert Hillary King, has been released and continues to speak out on behalf of his comrades. It is widely held that these men were framed in retaliation to their organizing, convicted under a wholly racist justice system, and systematically tortured via housing in solitary confinement for decades on end.
More info: angola3.org

If for some insane reason you can’t make it out, but still want to support the prisoners, you can write to them at:
Herman Wallace #76759
Elayn Hunt Correctional Center
Post Office Box 174
Saint Gabriel, Louisiana 70776-0174

Albert Woodfox* #72148
David Wade Correctional Center – N1A
670 Bell Hill Road
Homer, Louisiana 71040
NOTE: Address the envelope to Albert Woodfox, but the letter to Shaka Cinque

Over 200 in the streets for NYC NYE Noise Demo

When some of NYC ABC arrived early to prepare for the New Year’s Eve noise demo, there were already folks there. By 9:00pm, our numbers had grown and we had enough potential noise to reach the prisoners inside MCC New York– a federal Metropolitan Correctional Center cemented into a maze of other city, state, and federal buildings. Though organized by NYC ABC and not an OWS event, it was posted by OccupyWallSt.org on their front page and this drew ever more folks. In the high rise prison, cell lights flickered on and off as silhouetted prisoners showed their connection to what was going on outside.

Whereas critics of the demo questioned the effectiveness  of protesting with noise on the noisiest night of the year, this was not an appeal to authority. We were not there to change policy, nor to sway opinion. We were there in solidarity with those locked up, to let them know that they were neither forgotten nor alone. As the demo grew louder, more revelers made their way into the street, the noise bringing more people who in turn brought more noise. By 9:30, amid chants of “you are not alone,” and “Occupy Wall Street is in town! Burn the prisons to the ground!” the crowd fell silent and, via call and response, the following statement made its way to the prisoners:
“To many it feels like we live in a time like no other with surveillance and repression at every turn, but also resistance, rebellion, and open revolt. This is neither the new golden nor dark age, it is simply another moment in time where we can collectively force conflict with a fundamentally fucked system.

Every day there are revolts of varying scale, most of which you never hear about. For those captured in revolt, we come together in protest and celebration. Through the din of revelry and rage, we tie ourselves to those who suffer systematized white supremacy and war against the working class, behind steel bars and safety glass.

Prison is a means of social control to be absolutely destroyed.

Here’s to the total destruction of a prison-based society!

Tonight we bring with us the courage of Sundiata Acoli, the ferocity of Joe-Joe Bowen, the wisdom of Mutulu Shakur.

We remember in every act of rebellion against the state, our deceased comrades- Marilyn Buck, Lefty Gilday, Geronimo Pratt– your legacies will never be forgotten.

We hold in our hearts comrades soon to be or recently imprisoned: Tim DeChristopher, Norberto González-Claudio, Leah Henderson, Mandy Hiscocks, Peter Hopperton, Alex Hundert, Erik Lankin, Adam Lewis, Breanna Manning, Joy Powell, and Justin Solondz.

YOU. ARE NOT. ALONE.”

As the chants and noise restarted, it was clear folks were getting antsy. Within ten minutes, we took to the street. Heading against traffic, and with cops either busy with Times Square or expecting us to head to Zuccotti Park, we were able to make our way to a crowded intersection, that leads onto one of the city’s high traffic bridges. At that point, still 200 strong, the chants, dancing, flyer-bombing, and noise took over. “A-Anti-Anti-Capitalista” rang through the streets, folks on foot, on bike, and in cars took flyers to figure out what this was all about. Some came off of the sidewalk and joined in. After holding the intersection for fifteen minutes, it was time to move on.

NYPD showed up and were deftly outmaneuvered. As they tried to race around the narrow streets of Chinatown, we surged. A lone police cruiser made the mistake of rushing up, two slack-jawed buffoons jumped out, and as quickly as they had gotten out, they were shouted down, told to get the fuck out and hopped back in. They turned the block and were gone. We moved on, though cops on foot and in more cruisers were making the situation tense.

All told, we suffered four arrests, the last being a bicyclist who was tackled and pulled to a waiting van for allegedly riding the wrong way on a largely deserted one way street. After a few minor clashes with cops, calls were coming in that still more folks had arrived at MCC and were asking that we rejoin them. As we made our way back to the prison, there were in fact 50-75 folks already there. We rejoined the demo, made more noise, and eventually scattered to the wind.

May this simple night of noise-bringing carry momentum into a new year of open conflict with the state and capital.

NYC/NYE – Noise Demo Against the Prison Industrial Complex, In Solidarity with PPs and POWs

WHAT: Noise Demo Against the PIC, for the Liberation of PPs + POWs
WHEN: 9:00pm, Saturday, December 31st
WHERE: Metropolitan Correction Center (MCC, the federal jail in downtown Manhattan); 150 Park Row (J to Chambers Street or 4/5/6/ to City Hall)
BRING: Noisemakers, air horns, drums, anything that is loud!

To many it feels like we live in a time like no other– with surveillance and repression at every turn, but also resistance, rebellion, and open revolt. However, this is neither the new golden nor dark age, it is simply another moment in time where we can collectively force conflict with a fundamentally fucked system.

Every day there are revolts of varying scale, many of which never make it to your local news or facebook stream. For those captured in revolt, we heed the call for an international night of noise demonstrations. In the rotten heart of world capital, we honor this call and use it as a reminder– prison is a means of social control to be absolutely destroyed.

We come together in protest and celebration. For those locked up, we bring that celebration. Through the din of revelry and rage, we tie ourselves to those who suffer systematized white supremacy and war against the working class, behind steel bars and safety glass.

May this simple night of noise-bringing carry momentum into a new year of open conflict with the state and capital.

BK/NY – Tuesday, December 20th – Come Support Canadian G-20 Comrade Leah Henderson

What: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
When: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, December 20th, 2011
Where: 885 Park Avenue, Brooklyn, New York (see below for directions)
Cost: Free
Hey, everyone. It’s supper time again. Coming off of an amazing Send Love Through the Walls holiday card party for political prisoners and prisoners of war, NYC ABC is carrying momentum into the new year. While joyous over the several comrades who were released from prison this year, we also mourn those who died behind bars. This sober fact reminds us that there is a lot of work to do to get our folks free. And other comrades are facing trials and sentencings that will require still more resolve in the support we provide. One practical means to support prisoners is through the Anarchist Black Cross Federation’s Warchest Program. Another is to come to NYC ABC’s every other week Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner.

This week we are writing to another of the 2010 Toronto G20 “Main Conspiracy” prisoners, Leah Henderson. As we wrote last time, this case shows both the potential strength of revolutionaries working together and the depths of depravity to which the state will go to maintain itself and the economic system to which it remains beholden. For more information, watch this interview and continue to follow up by visiting Conspire to Resist and Guelph Anarchist Black Cross.

If for some insane reason you can’t make it out, but still want to support Leah, you can write to her from home. Check nycabc.wordpress.com for a current address following her sentencing.

Leah Henderson
Vanier Centre for Women at Milton
665 Martin Street
Milton, Ontario L9T 5E6
Canada

BK/NY – Tuesday, December 6th – Come Support Recently Imprisoned Canadian G-20 Comrades

What: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
When: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, December 6th, 2011
Where: 885 Park Avenue, Brooklyn, New York (see below for directions)
Cost: Free

While the state continues its coordinated assault on what it deems a threat, global capitalism moves ever closer to the precipice. Here in the states, revolt against capitalism comes from many directions. It’s impossible to imagine these actions outside the context of a history of struggle that includes the imprisonment of our comrades. To that end NYC ABC hosts another of our every-other-week Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinners.

This week we are writing to three Canadian comrades– Peter Hopperton, Adam Lewis, and Erik Lankin, recently imprisoned as the result of alleged organizing against the 2010 G-20 summit in Toronto. This case shows both the potential strength of revolutionaries working together and the depths of depravity to which the state will go to maintain itself and the economic system to which it remains beholden. For more information, read this analysis and continue to follow up by visiting Conspire to Resist and Guelph Anarchist Black Cross.

If for some insane reason you can’t make it out, but still want to support the prisoners, you can write to them at:

Peter Hopperton
Central North Correctional Centre
1501 Fuller Avenue
Penetanguishene, Ontario
L9M 2H4
Canada

Adam Lewis
Toronto West Detention Centre      Central North Correctional Centre
111 Disco Road                                1501 Fuller Avenue
Post Office Box 4950                       Penetanguishene, Ontario
Rexdale Ontario                               L9M 2H4
M9W5L6                                           Canada

Erik Lankin
Toronto West Detention Centre      Central North Correctional Centre
111 Disco Road                                1501 Fuller Avenue
Post Office Box 4950                       Penetanguishene, Ontario
Rexdale Ontario                               L9M 2H4
M9W5L6                                           Canada

BK/NY – Tuesday, November 22nd – Letter-Writing Dinner For American Indian Warriors Oso Blanco and Leonard Peltier

What: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
When: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011
Where: 885 Park Avenue, Brooklyn, New York (see below for directions)
Cost: Free

It’s supper time again, and we’re back for our every-other-week Political Prisoner Letter Writing Dinner. As anarchists, it should come as no surprise that we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving– we’ll take you’re damned day off from work, but not in exchange for commemorating the historic and ongoing genocide of indigenous folks and the 250 million turkeys that are killed each year. So this week we turn our attention to indigenous political prisoners. While we might be eating the fruits of the Fall harvest, don’t confuse that with an acceptance of the Thanksgiving myth.

This Tuesday’s dinner will focus on two indigenous Political Prisoners: Oso Blanco and Leonard Peltier.

Oso Blanco was labeled “Robin the Hood” by the FBI for repeatedly expropriating funds from banks, only to give the money to folks in the hood and to the Zapatista rebels of Chiapas in southern Mexico. Also known as Byron Chubbuck, Oso Blanco is now serving 80 years in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Unwilling to renounce his politics, Oso Blanco is periodically attacked and tortured by guards. For updates and ways to help, visit osoblanco.org

Leonard Peltier is an American Indian Movement (AIM) warrior. In the 1970s, the United States government continued its legacy of decimating indigenous communities, focusing on those organized and prepared to challenge its authority. Peltier is imprisoned for the 1975 shoot-out between the FBI and AIM in which two federal agents and an indigenous man were killed. Four years after his imprisonment, a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request released documents which prove Leonard Peltier’s innocence and the FBI’s targeting him. And still, Peltier remains imprisoned, recently again denied parole. For more information and ways to help, visit whoisleonardpeltier.info

If for some insane reason you can’t make it out, but still want to support the prisoners, you can write to them at:

Byron Chubbuck #07909-051
USP Lewisburg
Post Office Box 1000
Lewisburg, Pennsylvania 17837

Leonard Peltier #89637-132
USP Coleman I
Post Office Box 1033
Coleman, Florida 33521

NYC – December 7th – Raffle and CCR + Family and Friends of Daniel McGowan Panel Discussion

WHAT: Panel discussion with Robert Meeropol, Will Potter and Jenny Synan with an introduction by Rachel Meeropol plus an AMAZING raffle
WHEN: 6:30-8:30, Wednesday, December 7th
WHERE: Community Church of New York (40 East 35th Street, between Park and Madison Avenues)
COST: Free entry; raffle tickets are $2 each or three for $5

On the sixth anniversary of the first wave of Operation Backfire arrests, including that of friend to NYC ABC Daniel McGowan, the Center for Constitutional Rights and Family & Friends of Daniel McGowan are hosting a panel discussion and raffle. The panel will discuss the Red Scare, the Green Scare, and ongoing repression of political dissidents in the United States.

Raffle prizes are being added daily, but currently include:

• Fingerless mittens, hand-knitted by Sarah Paul (mother of Jonathan Paul, Daniel’s co-defendant!)
• Sparrow Media Shirts: One, Two, and Three
• Bluestockings membership & t-shirt
• Books from Crimethinc. (Recipes for Disaster and Work)
• Pie Any Means Necessary: The Biotic Baking Brigade Cookbook
• $75 worth of Books from Justseeds
• IFC Membership (The Cineaste Plus One)
• If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front DVDs
• Livescribe Echo 4GB smartpen + 4-pack of Livescribe Dot Paper
• BORF signed limited-edition Support Daniel print ($100 value)
• Dr. Bronner’s Holiday Gift Basket ($50 value)
• Let Freedom Ring, edited by Matt Meyer
• Eco-Warriors by Rik Scarce
• Subscriptions to Fifth Estate
• The Will of the Many by Marrianne Maeckelbergh
• Books by Brian Tokar (“Toward Climate Justice” and “Agriculture & Food in Crisis“)
• 2012 Justseeds/Eberhardt Press Organizers
• Books from Eberhardt Press
• Books from Combustion Books
• Books from Burning Books (Buffalo, New York)
• Green is the New Red book donation and signed posters
• A pair of tickets to the Spectacle Theater
• Two gift certificates to Book Thug Nation
• 1 acupuncture session with Famous
• Wind(s) from below: Radical Community Organizing to Make a Revolution Possible
• Team Colors Posters
• 1/2 Gallon Wilder Brook Farm Maple Syrup
• DVDs from Whispered Media (Boom and We Interrupt This Empire)
• Art by Elektra KB
• Support Daniel McGowan T-shirt
• Support Daniel McGowan Water Bottle
• Certain Days: Freedom For Political Prisoners 2012 Wall Calendar
• One year subscription to 4StruggleMag

Buy your raffle tickets at supportdaniel.org

NYC ABC + Book Thug Nation Host Certain Days Calendar Release Party

WHAT: NYC Release Party for the 2012 Certain Days Calendar with folks from Toronto ABC
WHEN: 7:00pm, Monday, November 14th
WHERE: Book Thug Nation – 100 North Third Street (Between Berry Street and Wythe Avenue), Brooklyn
COST: Free. There will be copies of the calendar for sale at the event.

The theme for this year’s calendar is “COINTELPRO: Repression and Resistance, Then and Now” and folks from Toronto Anarchist Black Cross will give a brief presentation on the calendar project. For more information about the calendar, head to certaindays.org

BK/NY – Tuesday, November 15th – NYC ABC + Book Thug Nation Host “Crimethinc. Presents: Capitalism & Resistance”

WHAT: CrimethInc. Presents: Capitalism & Resistance in the 21st Century
WHEN: 7:00pm, Tuesday, November 15th
WHERE: Book Thug Nation – 100 North Third Street (Between Berry Street and Wythe Avenue), Brooklyn
COST: Free. There will be copies of the Work book for sale at the event.
NOTE: If you can’t make it to this event, the same folks will be at ABC No Rio the next night.

After so much technological progress, why do we have to work more than ever before? Why is the old labor movement powerless to stop the new assault on workers? Can capitalism survive another century of crises? And how do we get out of this mess?

Please join us at Book Thug Nation for a high-energy discussion of these questions and more. We’ll focus on the ways capitalism has changed over the past few decades, and scrutinize recent examples of resistance in the US and overseas to propose anti-capitalist strategies for the 21st century.