Illustrated Guide Version 14.3 Uploaded!

We’ve finished the latest version of the NYC ABC “Illustrated Guide to Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War” and it’s available for viewing (and download) by clicking on the tab at the top of this page. This update includes updated mini-bios, photos, and address changes for several prisoners. Unfortunately, we are adding prisoners to the guide this month–Yellow Finch Treesit eco-defense activists Wren and Acre. We are thankful to remove (take a deep breath) Carmen Trotta, Martha Hennessy, & Stephen Kelly (Kings Bay Plowshares 7); Jaan Laaman; Loren Reed; Skelly (Cleveland 4); and Water Protector Steve Martinez.

Illustrated Guide Version 14.1 Uploaded!

We’ve finished the latest version of the NYC ABC “Illustrated Guide to Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War” and it’s available for viewing (and download) by clicking on the tab at the top of this page. This update includes updated mini-bios, photos, and address changes for several prisoners. Unfortunately, we are adding prisoners to the guide this month–Plowshares activists Clare Grady and Martha Hennessy and Water Protector Steve Martinez.

BK/NY – Tuesday, July 4th – Letter Writing Dinner for Josh Williams, Krow, and Ramsey Orta

WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, July 4th, 2017
WHERE: The Base – 1302 Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn, New York 11221 (directions below)
NOTE: The Base is on the ground floor, is wheelchair accessible, and has a gender neutral toilet.
COST: Free

While the rest of the country happily turns the other cheek to the daily atrocities committed under the name of the USA in order to get wasted and light off fireworks, NYC ABC will be doing something a little different.  Join us at this Tuesday to enjoy some vegan barbecue, relish in our disgust at the state and celebrate folks who have recently been captured.  This week we’ll be writing three individuals who have gone down for their participation in the Ferguson uprising, No DAPL, and cop watch actions.

Josh Williams became a vocal regular participant in the anti-police demonstrations following the murder of 18 year old Mike Brown in 2014. Later that year, Joshua was arrested for the arson of a convenience store that was located across the street from the fatal police shooting of Antonio Martin just days before. In December 2015 Joshua pleaded guilty to arson and burglary and has been sentenced to 8 years in state prison.

On April 12, Krow was taken into custody, to Morton County Jail, where she awaits extradition. True to form—always thinking of others— she spent her last day on the outside supporting other No DAPL prisoners and rescuing a cat.  On February 4, 2017—her 30^th birthday—she was assaulted and arrested by a member of the Bureau of Indian Affairs while in North Dakota supporting the resistance to the Dakota Access pipeline. She was held in Morton County Correctional Center until February 27. She is being charged with violating felony probation. Krow’s legal case set a precedent in North Dakota as the first case to release someone on bond preceding a formal extradition hearing.  For Krow’s statement after her initial release from jail on February 27, and before turning herself in on April 12, visit http://supportkrow.org

In July 2014 Ramsey Orta was in front of a corner store on Staten Island when vicious murdering pig David Pantaleo wrapped his arm around Eric Garner’s neck and squeezed until his final breath. Having dealt with police before Ramsey had the forethought to grab his camera phone and start recording. He captured the final moments of Eric Garner’s life, in which he uttered the now infamous phrase and rallying cry, “I can’t breathe.” Ramsey released the video, which instantly went viral and inspired folks to hit the streets across the country against the police. Given the State’s goals of maintaining white supremacy it should come as no surprise that the only person who both walked away from the scene of Eric Garner’s death alive and faced any real consequences handed down by the State is Ramsey. Since the uploading of the video, Ramsey has been harassed non-stop by the NYPD and was arrested numerous times. On one occasion when the police were targeting and arresting him, they even pulled out their phones and said “You filmed us, now we are filming you.” One of these charges stuck and Ramsey surrendered himself to begin a four year sentence on October 3rd.

If for some reason you can’t make it Tuesday, please take a moment to write these folks on your own time:
Josh Williams #1292002
E.R.D.C.C.
2727 Highway K
Bonne Terre, Missouri 63628

Krow*
Iron County Jail
300 Taconite Street
Hurley, Wisconsin 54534
*address envelope to Katie Kloth

Ramsey Orta 16A4200
​Franklin Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 10
Malone, New York 12953-0010

BK/NY – Friday, March 10th – The Frontlines Are Everywhere: Grand Jury Resistance Tour

WHAT: Grand Jury Resistance Workshop
WHEN: 7pm, Friday, March 10th, 2017
WHERE: The Base – 1302 Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn, New York 11221 (directions below)
NOTE: The Base is on the ground floor, is wheelchair accessible, and has a gender neutral toilet.
COST: Free
Hot on the heals of NYC ABC‘s recent letter-writing dinner for water protectors held captive by the state, we are excited to host an event to help not only water protectors but all folks engaged in revolutionary struggle.

NoDAPL water protectors and the Water Protector Anti-Repression Crew are facilitating trainings across Turtle Island sharing knowledge about resistance to the grand jury convened against water protectors at Standing Rock. They want to build capacity for strong movement defense against state repression.

Strong movements and interdependent relationships make attempts to shut down our struggle obsolete. Let’s build our capacity for defending our movements together!

This two-hour workshop is open to all who have participated in the movement at Standing Rock, those who have supported the efforts on the ground from their homes and territories elsewhere, as well as all those who wish to continue fighting on the many frontlines that continue to emerge across Turtle Island.

The fight isn’t over at Standing Rock, as nearly 800 Water Protectors continue their battles in the courtrooms with some facing federal felony indictments that carry a potential of 15 years in federal prison. The grand jury convened against water protectors continues as does the resistance to it. As extraction becomes the norm and the government ramps up its repression against those who stand in resistance, this workshop holds valuable information for those who struggle for Indigenous sovereignty, earth liberation and a future without oppression.

BK/NY – Tuesday, February 28th – Letter-Writing Dinner For #NoDAPL Prisoners

WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, February 28th, 2017
WHERE: The Base – 1302 Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn, New York 11221 (directions below)
NOTE: The Base is on the ground floor, is wheelchair accessible, and has a gender neutral toilet.
COST: Free

The images of the ceremonial burning of Oceti Sakowin that flooded the internet juxtaposed with those of violent arrests, bulldozers and humvees today are a stark reminder that this country runs on deeply rooted racist and imperialistic behavior that existed well before Agent Orange’s recent tyranny.  After nearly a year of putting their bodies on the line to fight the Dakota Access Pipeline and protect sacred land, water protectors endured yet another ugly confrontation with the state on February 22nd as the state began to enforce their eviction. As we wait with bated breath to see how the situation plays out and figure out how we can support from afar, join us Tuesday to write to four folks who continue to be locked up for protecting sacred land and water.

Rattler is a Water Protector who is currently being held pre-trial on federal felony charges produced through a grand jury indictment. Rattler’s home is at Pine Ridge and he comes from a long legacy of struggle that he continued at Standing Rock against the Dakota Access Pipeline and it’s world. Please support Rattler as he fights these charges brought against him by the federal government. Rattler would love to receive your letters and cards of support.

Krow was assaulted and arrested on February 4, 2017, by a Bureau of Indian Affairs officer while supporting the struggle against the Dakota Access pipeline in North Dakota. She is charged with violation of felony probation and is being held at Morton County Correctional Center. The probation is from previous charges stemming from an environmental protest in Wisconsin against mining in the Penokee Hills in 2013, for which she served nine months in jail. After a recent bail reduction hearing, Krow was assigned a cash-only bail of $100,000.

Charles Jordan has been held in Morton County Jail since November 17th, 2016 on three state felony charges. He was initially ineligible for bond and his current conditions of release set by the court are unable to be met at this time. His brutal arrest is not the only time Morton County Sheriffs enacted such violence on Water Protectors. We have received reports of continued mistreatment while in custody including lack of medical services and hygiene access for weeks at a time. Please send Charles a letter letting him know that he is not alone!

Red Fawn Fallis is still being held pre-trial on federal charges as well. An indictment filed Jan. 5 charges Red Fawn with felony counts of civil disorder and discharging a firearm in relation to a felony crime of violence — which, in this case, is civil disorder. These charges are in addition to an earlier charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Fallis has pleaded not guilty to federal charges in connection to an incident at a Dakota Access Pipeline protest. Fallis remains in federal custody and her trial date is scheduled for March 7. If convicted of discharging the firearm, Fallis faces a minimum of 10 years in prison.

We hope to see you Tuesday.  If for some absurd reason you cannot make it, please take the time to write a letter to one (or ALL!) of these folks:

Rattler (address envelope to Michael Markus)
Post Office Box 1108
Washburn, North Dakota 58577

Krow (address envelope to Katie Kloth)
Morton County Correctional Center RELEASED ON BAIL!
205 1^st Avenue NW
Mandan, North Dakota 58554

Charles Jordan
Burleigh County Jail
Post Office Box 1416
Bismarck, North Dakota 58502

Red Fawn Fallis
Burleigh County Detention Center
Post Office Box 1416
Bismarck, North Dakota 58502-1416

BK/NY – Tuesday, December 20th – Letter-Writing Dinner For Indigenous Water Protector Red Fawn Fallis

WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, December 20th, 2016
WHERE: The Base – 1302 Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn, New York 11221 (directions below)
NOTE: The Base is on the ground floor, is wheelchair accessible, and has a gender neutral toilet.
COST: Free
As the year is coming to an end we are left with much to reflect on. The ongoing battle at Standing Rock from indigenous folks and their allies against those who would take away their land and water has been an intense continuing inspiration of resistance. These defenders of water have faced serious repression from the State and private security forces since the beginning of this struggle with mass arrests, continuing harrasment, and physical attacks, including the recent assault on local #NoDAPL supporter Sophia Wilansky who nearly lost her greatly injured arm to an explosive deployed by local cops while she was assisting those on the front lines. This week we will be writing to Red Fawn Fallis, an Oglala Lakota Sioux water protector who is currently facing federal firearms charges.

On October 27th, Red Fawn and over 140 other water protectors were arrested on the front lines of Standing Rock during a massive police raid on a camp of resisters. Red Fawn was initially accused of firing on local cops while being arrested and charged with attempted murder but those charges have since been dropped and Red Fawn was then transferred into federal custody to face federal charges of possessing a firearm while being a felon. Red Fawn has been steadfast in her dedication to the struggle by putting her body on the line despite the endless attacks of the local cops and private security hired by the pipeline company and being arrested on two other occasions during her stay.

We encourage everyone who writes to Red Fawn to keep in mind that she is still facing trial and to be extra cautious in writing to her. As always, do not write anything sketchy or illegal as it will put Red Fawn in a worse situation as her mail is likely being monitored. For that reason, you should also not mention the charges she facing or the actions she is accused of, as any communication of that sort can only serve the State and their case and harm Red Fawn. Do not let this dissuade you from writing to Red Fawn as she can use all of the support that she can get right now. Her support crew also has a fundraiser setup for her legal expenses: https://www.generosity.com/fundraising/free-red-fawn

If you can’t make it to dinner, please write to Red Fawn at:
Red Fawn Fallis
Stutsman County Correctional Center
205 6th Street SE, Suite 201
Jamestown, North Dakota 58401

It is also with great heaviness in our hearts that we remember NYC resident and comrade Clark Fitzgerald who passed away while traveling to the front lines of Standing Rock in order to assist the resistance.

There is also a federal grand jury that is ongoing in relation to #NoDAPL. Always remember that if you are subpoenaed or approached by law enforcement in this and in any circumstance that you should not answer any of their questions and that you should immediately contact a lawyer. If you have been contacted by law enforcement or subpoenaed specifically in relation to the Standing Rock resistance, contact the Water Protector Legal Collective in order to protect yourself and your comrades.

BK/NY – Tuesday, November 22nd – Letter-Writing Dinner For American Indian Warrior Leonard Peltier

WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, November 22nd, 2016
WHERE: The Base – 1302 Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn, New York 11221 (directions below)
COST: Free

It’s supper time again, and we’re back at The Base 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 your damned day off from work, but not in exchange for commemorating the historic and ongoing genocide of indigenous folks and the 250 million turkeys who are killed each year. While we might be eating the fruits of the fall harvest, don’t confuse that with an acceptance of the Thanksgiving myth.

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. For more information and ways to help, visit whoisleonardpeltier.info

Leonard and his support team have launched a massive campaign to get the current president to issue clemency to Leonard on his way out of office. In this year of indigenous resistance in Standing Rock and the solidarity actions surrounding it, it is on folks on the outside to make clear that the warriors who get captured by the State for resisting its oppression and colonialism will not be forgotten about and will have continual support. This means supporting folks who are being arrested on the front lines of this struggle today as well as those like Leonard, who has been a prisoner of this colonial war against indigenous folks for four decades.

Leonard recently released this statement about Standing Rock and #NoDAPl:

Greeting Sisters and Brothers:

I have been asked to write a SOLIDARITY statement to everyone about the Camp of the Sacred Stones on Standing Rock. Thank you for this great honor. I must admit it is very difficult for me to even begin this statement as my eyes get so blurred from tears and my heart swells with pride, as chills run up and down my neck and back. I’m so proud of all of you young people and others there.

I am grateful to have survived to see the rebirth of the united and undefeated Sioux Nation at Standing Rock in the resistance to the poisonous pipeline that threatens the life source of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. It is an honor to have been alive to see this happen with you young people. You are nothing but awesome in my eyes.

It has been a long, hard road these 40 years of being caged by an inhuman system for a crime I did not commit. I could not have survived physically or mentally without your support, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart and the depths of my soul for encouraging me to endure and maintain a spiritual and legal resistance.

We are now coming to the end of that road, soon arriving at a destination which will at least in part be determined by you. Along the lines of what Martin Luther King said shortly before his death, I may not get there with you, but I only hope and pray that my life, and if necessary, my death, will lead my Native peoples closer to the Promise Land.

I refer here not to the Promise Land of the Christian bible, but to the modest promises of the Treaties our ancestors secured from enemies bent on their destruction; in order to enable us to survive as distinct peoples and live in a dignified manner. Our elders knew the value of written words and laws to the white man, even as they knew the lengths the invaders would go to try to get around them.

Our ancestors did not benefit from these Treaties, but they shrewdly and persistently negotiated the best terms they could get, to protect us from wars which could only end in our destruction, no matter how courageously and effectively we fought. No, the Treaties were to the benefit of the Americans, this upstart nation needed the Treaties to put a veneer of legitimacy on its conquest of the land and its rebellion against its own countrymen and king.

It should be remembered that Standing Rock was the site of the 1974 conference of the international indigenous movement that spread throughout the Americas and beyond, the starting point for the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The UNDRIP was resisted by the United States for three decades until its adoption by the UN in 2007. The US was one of just four nations to vote against ratification, with President Obama acknowledging the Declaration as an aspirational document without binding force under international law.

While some of the leaders of this movement are veterans of the 1970s resistance at Pine Ridge; they share the wisdom of our past elders in perceiving the moral and political symbolism of peaceful protest today is as necessary for us as was necessary for the people of Pine Ridge in the 1970s. The 71-day occupation of Wounded Knee ended with an agreement to investigate human rights and treaty abuses; that inquiry and promise were never implemented nor honored by the United States. The Wounded Knee Agreement should be honored with a Truth and Reconciliation Commission established to thoroughly examine the US government’s role in the “Reign of Terror” on Pine Ridge in the 1970s. This project should be coordinated with the cooperation of the many international human rights organizations that have called for my immediate and unconditional release for more than four decades.

I have to caution you young people to be careful, for you are up against a very evil group of people whose only concern is to fill their pockets with even more gold and wealth. They could not care less how many of you they have to kill or bury in a prison cell. They don’t care if you are a young child or an old grandmother, and you better believe they are and have been recruiting our own people to be snitches and traitors. They will look to the drunks, the addicts, and child molesters, those who prey on our old and our children; they look for the weak-minded individuals. You must remember to be very cautious about falsely accusing people based more on personal opinion than on evidence. Be smart.

I call on all my supporters and allies to join the struggle at Standing Rock in the spirit of peaceful spiritual resistance and to work together to protect Unci Maka, Grandmother Earth. I also call upon my supporters and all people who share this Earth to join together to insist that the US  complies with and honors the provisions of international law as expressed in the UNDRIP, International Human Rights Treaties and the long-neglected Treaties and trust agreements with the Sioux Nation. I particularly appeal to Jill Stein and the Green Parties of the US and the world to join this struggle by calling for my release and adopting the UNDRIP as the new legal framework for relations with indigenous peoples.

Finally, I also urge my supporters to immediately and urgently call upon President Obama to grant my petition for clemency, to permit me to live my final years on the Turtle Mountain Reservation. Scholars, political grassroots leaders, humanitarians and Nobel Peace Laureates have demanded my release for more than four decades. My Clemency Petition asks President Obama to commute, or end, my prison term now in order for our nation to make progress healing its fractured relations with Native communities. By facing and addressing the injustices of the past, together we can build a better future for our children and our children’s children.

Again, my heartfelt thanks to all of you for working together to protect the water. Water is Life.

In the Spirit of Crazy Horse,

Doksha

Leonard Peltier

Typically we would only ask that folks write to Leonard on this occasion, and while still encourage you to do so, the most important thing you can do for Leonard right now is to plug in to his clemency campaign. Below are the ways you can help to free Leonard as provided by his legal and support team:

Every day:

• Call President Obama for Leonard Peltier: 202.456.1111 (White House Comment Line)  or 202.456.1414 (White House Switchboard); and send a text to these numbers if your cellphone provider allows for text-to-landline service (a fee may apply) .
• Email President Obama: http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/submit-questions-and-comments.
• Post a comment on Obama’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/potus or message him at https://www.facebook.com/whitehouse (or https://m.me/whitehouse).
• Send a tweet to President Obama: @POTUS or @WhiteHouse and use hastags #FREELEONARDPELTIER #LeonardPeltier and/or #FreePeltier.
• Write a letter: President Barack Obama, The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20500.
• Watch the calls to action by the Human Rights Action Center. Then please urge President Obama to grant clemency.
• Also visit the 2016 clemency campaign for Leonard Peltier hosted by Amnesty International – USA and take action.
• The Office of the Pardon Attorney (OPA), DOJ, welcomes communications regarding clemency matters. Express your strong support of Leonard Peltier’s application for clemency in a letter, email and/or phone call to the OPA. Make reference to Leonard Peltier #89637-132 and his application for clemency dated February 17, 2016. Urge the OPA to recommend to President Obama that he grant clemency to Leonard Peltier:  Honorable Robert A. Zauzmer, Acting Pardon Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice, 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, DC  20530; Telephone: 202.616.6070; Email: USPardon.Attorney@usdoj.gov.

If you wish to write to Leonard in addition to helping him out by taking the steps to pressure the president to issue him clemency, you can write to him at:
Leonard Peltier #89637-132
USP Coleman I
Post Office Box 1033
Coleman, Florida 33521