Support Zolo Azania and Barbara Curzi

It’s not uncommon for those of us in NYC ABC to write or talk about the importance of post-release support of political prisoners. We’ve seen comrades come home and know all too well that appropriate support can not end when they leave prison. What post-release support looks like is not a singular thing. Some folks need immediate support that might be financial, emotional, medical, or entirely something else. Others have communities of support to which they return and it is only years later that needs arise. We are at a point in time when two folks, at different stages of imprisonment, need your direct support. Both Zolo Azania—still imprisoned, but expecting to be released in early 2017 after 35 years inside, and Barbara Curzi—a former political prisoner released in 1991 who now faces a medical crisis, need those of us in radical and revolutionary communities to pitch in and help them out.

Excerpted from gofundme.com/HelpZoloRebuild:
Zolo will exit prison practically penniless and will face enormous financial challenges. He will need to pay for housing, food, clothing, transportation, furniture, a cell phone, utilities, and the many other expenses we all encounter.

Let’s ease Zolo’s path and make sure he does not confront his financial challenges—and all the challenges he will face, alone. Please generously donate .

Zolo is alive today due to his efforts and the work of his supporters and a strong legal team.

In spite of his difficult circumstances, Zolo is a positive person with a quick smile and a vibrant laugh. Let’s answer his positivity with support.

All funds will go directly to Zolo and will be deposited into a fund managed by a team that has supported him for 13 years. For more information contact zoloazania.org or the Chicago Committee to Free Black Political Prisoners.

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Excerpted from Sacramento Prisoner Support:
Barbara is a former political prisoner, one of the Ohio 7, who, after their arrests in Ohio in 1984, went on trial for actions by the United Freedom Front against corporations who upheld apartheid in South Africa and contributed to the wars in Central America.

Unfortunately, Barbara was recently diagnosed with a very aggressive form of breast cancer. She is beginning an intensive six-month chemo regimen and then is expected to undergo surgery, possibly followed by radiation.

She was about to get a part-time job just before her diagnosis,to supplement her disability check but now instead finds herself way behind not only on her mortgage and utilities, but can’t get Internet and phones services back until she pays them off completely.

She returned to Massachusetts after her release from the federal prison system to rebuild her life with her children. As many former prisoners, and especially political prisoners, Barbara has struggled to find work and survive, but she is still deeply committed to the struggle for justice.

If you would like to contribute to the effort to minimize the stress to survive for Barbara, and help her make it through this battle, please see the linked “Go Fund Me” page at: https://www.gofundme.com/barbaras-loving-circle-2w49vnqs

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