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Over 100 in the streets for NYC ABC NYE Noise Demo
2019 started strong as we welcomed home water protector Dion Ortiz. Throughout the year, we saw more comrades released (Janet, Janine, and Eddie Africa; Little Feather, Connor Stevens, and Nina Droz Franco). And yet, as more elders age behind the wall, we lost a true warrior, Tom Manning. To close the year, NYC ABC organized a noise demo outside of Manhattan’s Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in order to protest, celebrate, and let folks on the inside know they are not forgotten.
We got there a little after 8:30 and others were there waiting. We greeted old comrades and folks we’d yet to meet and by 9:00pm, a decent crowd had formed. The night was relatively warm by winter standards, but comrades from the Metropolitan Anarchist Coordinating Council (MACC) showed up with tea and hot chocolate to make sure everyone’s vocal cords stayed nice and toasty as we yelled and sang upward, into the steel and cement monolith that is MCC.
There were all manner of noise makers, most folks brought their own. Hell, we even had a makeshift drum corps to keep this noise demo moving.
Photo by NYC RAM
And while folks were there to celebrate and reach through the walls, signs and banners also expressed the brimming rage of the crowd. A crew from The Base showed up with black flags and banners to make sure all inside knew there were anarchists organizing in solidarity with them.
The demo lasted a couple of hours, but not before folks broke out sparklers and fireworks. And not before a fair amount of cops came to observe. They didn’t have riot gear or visible plasitcuffs, so the threat was more in what a bunch of preposterous goons they are than in any potential for arrest.
We’ve been told before, by comrades who were once held in MCC, that the noise demos light up the whole place and get through to the prisoners. If you’re thinking about organizing a noise demo in your town, do it.
Shortly before the crowd started to break up and head out, the following statement was read as a call and response, ensuring that our comrades inside could hear it:
“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 fucked up 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
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 Bill Dunne, the ferocity of Joe-Joe Bowen, the wisdom of Mutulu Shakur.
We remember in every act of rebellion against the state, our deceased comrades Tom Manning and Robert Seth Hayes your legacies will never be forgotten.
We hold in our hearts comrades soon to be or recently imprisoned—David Campbell, Joseph Dibee, Gage Halupowski, Chelsea Manning.
Illustrated Guide Version 13.6 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 a prisoner to the guide this month–Water Protector Dion Ortiz. We are thankful to remove Robert Seth Hayes (released on parole!) and Nicole Kissane (completion of sentence!).
BK/NY – Tuesday, July 31st – Letter Writing Dinner for the MOVE 9
WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, July 31st, 2018
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
It’s uncommon that we are able to relate good news, but this week we can. Robert Seth Hayes has been released on parole, having met all criteria for release according to his sentence and after serving 45 years in prison. Welcome home, Seth! It’s impossible to celebrate Seth’s release without remembering that we have so many comrades still in prison. So NYC ABC will do what we do and host another of our every-other-week political prisoner letter-writing dinners. We are so close to the 40th anniversary of the police attack on the MOVE house that we are focusing this week’s event on the MOVE 9.
The MOVE 9 are a family of strong, serious, deeply committed revolutionaries who have endured decades of violent oppression at the hands of the racist state. They are innocent women and men who have been in prison since August 8, 1978, following a massive police attack on them at their home in the Powelton Village neighborhood of Philadelphia. This was seven years before the government dropped a bomb on MOVE, killing 11 people, including 5 babies. You will notice only six addresses below. That is because the state would rather see our comrades dead than free and allowed both Merle and Phil Africa to die while imprisoned. ¡Presente! Just last month, in June 2018, Debbie Africa was the first MOVE prisoner to be released on parole. Welcome home, Debbie!
If for some reason you can’t make it out on Tuesday, take a minute to write these folks from home (NOTE: Pennsylvania will ONLY accept mail in plain white envelopes):
Janet Hollaway Africa #OO6308
Janine Phillips Africa #OO6309
SCI Cambridge Springs
451 Fullerton Avenue
Cambridge Springs, Pennsylvania 16403-1238
Delbert Orr Africa #AM4985
Charles Sims Africa #AM4975
SCI Dallas
1000 Follies Road
Dallas, Pennsylvania 18612
Michael Davis Africa #AM 4973
SCI Phoenix
Post Office Box 244
Collegeville, Pennsylvania 19426
Edward Goodman Africa #AM4974
SCI Mahanoy
301 Morea Road
Frackville, Pennsylvania 17932
BK/NY – Tuesday, January 2nd – Letter-Writing Dinner For Herman, Seth, and Jalil
WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, January 2nd, 2018
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 majority of Americans use New Years Eve as an excuse to drink as much alcohol as they can consume only to ‘turn over a new leaf’ the following day by joining a gym, we at NYC ABC will be doing the work that we always do. We hope to see your smiling (albeit it freezing) faces this Sunday at our annual New Year’s Eve Noise Demo at MCC in Manhattan. And as per usual, we will be kicking off yet another calendar year of bi-weekly letter writing nights and hope to see y’all there, too.
This week join NYC ABC as we write to three of our New York state political prisoners: Herman Bell, Robert Seth Hayes, and Jalil Muntaqim. All three of these elders are up for parole this year for what feels like the millionth time. Parole preparation years can be particularly taxing; prisoners and their support team, legal crew, family, friends, and communities all pour a lot of time and energy into the preparations for getting them to the parole hearing in hopes of getting our comrades out from behind the walls. Come by on Tuesday for a hot vegan meal and to send them all a nice message of support during this time.
Herman Bell has been to the New York state parole board 7 times and been denied 7 times. His next parole board appearance will be in February 2018, when he will be 70 years old. At this next appearance, we hope that Herman will have a better chance of being seriously considered and therefore released. New regulations governing parole hearings mandate that an applicant’s risk of recidivism be considered as a “guiding principle” of the hearing. Herman has the very lowest risk score, based on the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision’s measures. In addition, six new parole commissioners were added to the Board and several, though not all, of the older, law-enforcement connected ones have been retired. More information at freehermanbell.org
Robert Seth Hayes has been to the New York state parole board 10 times and has been denied each time. Each time, the board—always made of up former law enforcement personnel and former prosecutors—reviews his very impressive record, all the institutional programs participated in and completed, college attended while inside, his job offers, his numerous letters of support from family, friends, and community members from many walks of life. Seth had a petition that received over 1000 signatures at his last trip to the board. Seth is one of the longest held political prisoners and suffers immense health problems, most notably his diabetes. It is imperative that he get out now before it is too late. More information at kersplebedeb.com/posts/robert-seth-hayes
Jalil Muntaqim has been rejected by the New York state parole board a total of 9 times. June 2016 was the last time Jalil had been to the Board, and the ninth time he had been denied, despite having an excellent record and meeting all requirements to be released on parole. Jalil has submitted a request to Gov. Cuomo requesting commutation of sentence to time served, as the parole board is obviously biased. A fair and just parole hearing is impossible for Jalil and our other NY State political prisoners. More information at freejalil.com
We expect to see you on Tuesday. If you can’t make it, please take the time to write a letter to Herman, Seth, and Jalil:
Herman Bell #79-C-0262
Shawangunk Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 700
Wallkill, New York 12589
Robert Seth Hayes #74-A-2280
Sullivan Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 116
Fallsburg, New York 12733-0116
Jalil Muntaqim* #77-A-4283
Sullivan Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 116
Fallsburg, New York 12733-0116
*Address envelope to Anthony Bottom.
Action Alert Against Gov Cuomo’s Proposed NYS Visitation Restrictions
We have been made aware of an awful piece of the Governor’s budget proposal that that would affect thousands of folks in New York State (NYS) prisons, including all of the political prisoners in New York who we list in our guide. This call to action has been circulating and we hope that you will take part and pass it along as well:
Governor Cuomo has just proposed to limit visiting at New York State maximum security prisons to three days a week instead of the current seven. If passed, this measure will be awful for David Gilbert, Herman Bell, Seth Hayes, Jalil Muntaqim and thousands of other maximum security prisoners.
This proposal will seriously escalate suffering and family disruption. Under the current seven-day system, weekend visitors (many are women with young children) often wait two to three hours to see their loved ones. With reduced days, the wait will be longer, the visitor rooms more crowded, the visiting days and hours even more limited. This will be terrible for everyone and impossible for many.
BK/NY – Tuesday, January 3rd – Letter-Writing Dinner For New York State Political Prisoners
WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, January 3rd, 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
Ah yes, 2017. Doesn’t the new year imbue such feelings of revitalization and a renewed sense of optimism? Yeah, right. We know better than that. Not only does 2017 mean looking down the barrel of an orange fascist presidency but it marks another calendar year that comrades who have fought for the revolution are stuck behind bars. This week NYC ABC will be writing to those closest to us, those held captive in New York State prisons: Jalil Muntaqim, Robert Seth Hayes, Herman Bell, David Gilbert, and Reverend Joy Powell.
Jalil Muntaqim and Robert Seth Hayes, both former Black Panthers, have been frequenting prison support news wires for the past few months; unfortunately for nothing positive. Jalil has been in the SHU (Special Housing Unit) since December 6th as a result of him teaching a Black history course. Although this course was approved by the prison administration, they have decided they didn’t like the accuracy of what he was teaching and threw him in the SHU as an ongoing effort to censor him. To read his explanation of the situation, read here.
Robert Seth Hayes continues to experience life threatening medical problems with (unsurprisingly) no help from the state. He was told on October 12th that he needs an insulin pump to help monitor his diabetes but the prison has still failed to deliver this life saving mechanism to him. Read more information and how you can support him fight for the medical care he requires here.
Herman Bell is also a former Black Panther who has been locked up for four decades. Like Jalil and Seth, he was yet again denied parole in 2016. Each time, the board – always made of up former law enforcement personnel and former prosecutors — reviews his very impressive record, the Bachelor’s and Master’s college degrees he has attained since being locked up, his job offers, his numerous letters of support from family, friends, and community members from many walks of life. They have before them evidence of all the ways Herman has helped so many people throughout the course of his confinement and is still leading a positive and progressive life despite being locked up now over four decades. See the petition for his latest parole request and hear from Herman his thoughts on his latest parole board appearance here.
David Gilbert was moved in 2016 to Wende Correctional Facility, luckily closer to some close comrades and unfortunately farther from others. David is a long time anti-racist and anti-imperialist who is serving a life sentence for his involvement as a white comrade to the Black Liberation Army during an attempted expropriation, better known as the Brinks Robbery. He has continued the struggle while held captive. For more information, see here.
Reverend Joy Powell was warned by the Rochester Police department that she was a target because of her speaking out against corruption. On many occasions, Rev. Joy held rallies and spoke out against the police brutality and “police justifications” in Rochester, New York. As a result, she was accused and convicted of 1st Degree Burglary and Assault. Rev. Joy has filed multiple grievances for sexual assault and religious discrimination among other things, as well as been repeatedly denied medical attention for her diabetes and asthma. For more information on how you can help support, read here.
We hope you’ll join us Tuesday to send these lifetime revolutionaries some love and solidarity. If for some reason you have something more “important” to do, then you can write to them from the comfort of your home office:
Jalil Muntaqim* (Anthony Jalil Bottom) #77-A-4283
Attica Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 149
Attica, New York 14011-0149
*Address the envelope to Anthony Bottom and the letter to Jalil.
Robert Seth Hayes #74-A-2280
Sullivan Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 116
Fallsburg, New York 12733-0116
Herman Bell #79-C-0262
Great Meadow Correctional Facility
11739 State Route 22
Post Office Box 51
Comstock, New York 12821-0051
David Gilbert #83-A-6158
Wende Correctional Facility
3040 Wende Road
Alden, New York 14004
Reverend Joy Powell 07G0632
Bedford Hills Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 1000
Bedford Hills, New York 10507-2499
Read more…
BK/NY – Sunday, September 4th – Running Down the Walls 2016!
WHAT: Running Down the Walls – 5k Run/Walk/Jog/Bike
WHEN: 2:00-7:00pm, Sunday, September 4th
WHERE: Prospect Park– Lincoln Road/East Lake Drive, east of the Terrace Bridge (see the below map for exact location)
COST: $10 registration (includes food and drinks afterwards)
Every year, prisoners and supporters of political prisoners organize solidarity events with Running Down the Walls. In the last few years, we’ve had runs in Albuquerque (NM), Arcata (CA), Ashland (OR), Bellefonte (PA), Boston (MA), Denver (CO), Elmore (AL), Inez (KY), Los Angeles (CA), Marion (IL), New York (NY), USP Navosta (TX), Pelican Bay (CA), Phoenix (AZ), Tucson (AZ), and Toronto, Ontario. This year we hope to expand the amount of runs in prisons and other cities, as well as increase the amount of funds raised for community projects. NYC ABC‘s goal with this year’s run is $3,000. You can donate online by going to gumroad.com/nycabc
This year’s run will take place on Sunday, September 4th at 2:00pm in solidarity and conjunction with runs that will take place in cities and prison yards across the country at the same time.
REGISTER AS, OR SPONSOR, A PARTICIPANT
To raise our goal of $3,000, we need your support.
* Promote – print and distribute this poster and/or this flyer to friends and local businesses, your doctor’s office, laundromat, food co-op, wealthy benefactor, et cetera.
* Run/walk/bike/roll in the 5k – We need participants who can run/walk/bike/roll the 5k and are able to collect financial pledges to offer as donations to the run. Download the brochure, complete with registration and sponsor form right here.
* Volunteer for the run – We need folks who are willing to staff a registration/literature table, hand out water, bike the route as street medics, and help chalk the route beforehand.
* Donate online at gumroad.com/nycabc
* Donate to the run/sponsor a participant – If you are not able to attend, but want to support this fundraising effort, please mail donations to:
NYC ABC
Post Office Box 110034
Brooklyn, New York 11211
Your donation of $10 or more entitles you to the celebratory picnic after the event.
Each year, we split proceeds between the Anarchist Black Cross Federation’s Warchest Program and a local organization. This year’s partner group will be the Queer Detainee Empowerment Project (QDEP).
The Warchest Program:
The Anarchist Black Cross Federation (ABCF) has initiated a program designed to send monthly checks to those Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War who have been receiving insufficient, little, or no financial support during their imprisonment. The Warchest program was initiated in November 1994. Its purpose is to collect monthly funds from groups and individual supporters, and send that money to Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War (PP/POW) via monthly checks. Over the last two decades, the ABCF warchest has dispensed over $75,000 to political prisoners in the United States. Currently, there are ten imprisoned comrades who receive a monthly stipend as part of the program; they are:
Joseph Bowen
Xinachtli (FKA Alvaro Luna Hernandez)
Herman Bell
Robert Seth Hayes
Maliki Shakur Latine
Ruchell Magee
Sundiata Acoli
Hanif Bey
Oso Blanco
For more information, visit: abcf.net/warchest-program
Queer Detainee Empowerment Project (QDEP):
The Queer Detainee Empowerment Project (QDEP) is a collective Alternative to Detention (ATD), detention center visitation, direct service, and community organizing project that works with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Queer, Two Spirit, Trans, Gender Non- Conforming, and HIV+ detainees and their families currently in detention centers, those that are recently released from detention centers, and undocumented folks in New York City. For more information, visit qdep.org
We’ll be starting here:
Directions:
From the Q train, get off at the Prospect Park stop. Walk to Lincoln Road and turn right into the park. We’ll be about 700 feet away.
The event will be one lap around what is known as the Main Loop, and will total five kilometers. For the curious, here’s what it looks like:
Of course, if you have any questions, e-mail us at nycabc at riseup dot net
BK/NY – Tuesday, March 29th – Letter Writing Dinner for Seth Hayes and Jalil Muntaqim
WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, March 29th, 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
How shocked can we really be that the New York State legal system will recommend house arrest for a few months and probation to a cop who murdered Akai Gurley for simply living in the projects while in the same week denying Herman Bell freedom once again by refusing him parole? The State has yet to shy away from their blatant hypocrisies. It is an unneeded reminder of why they have long outstayed their welcome.
Just because the parole system has continued its hubris by effectively re-sentencing our freedom fighting comrades year after year, it does not mean we should cease exhausting every possible option to bring them home to their families and community. Robert “Seth” Hayes and Jalil Muntaquim are both up for parole in the coming months. The parole process takes a lot of effort on both sides of the walls and Seth and Jalil can use all the support they can get.
Jalil Muntaqim is a former Black Panther and Black Liberation Army member who, in 1971, was arrested in California and ultimately convicted for the killing of two New York City cops. In 1974, Muntaqim was convicted and received a prison term of twenty-five years to life. Jalil is a writer, a poet, a scholar, and an educator. He has taken the same persistence and dedication he had on the outside engaging in the Black Liberation struggle to the inside, dedicating his time there to improving the lives of those who have found themselves behind the same bars.
To find out more about Jalil’s parole campaign: http://www.freejalil.com/2016parole.html
Seth Hayes joined the Black Panthers following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. He was drawn to the struggle of Black Liberation that was swelling at the time and put his body to work in the Panther’s medical clinics and free breakfast programs. When the FBI started infiltrating and cracking down on the Party and its supporters, Seth, like many others, decided to take the struggle underground and joined the Black Liberation Army. In 1973, following a shootout with police, Seth was arrested and convicted of the murder of a New York City police officer. Since his incarceration, Seth has continued the struggle by doing what he can to improve the lives of others on the inside by mentoring and educating them. Seth also has faced several life threatening health problems recently due to the medical neglect he faces while in the State’s custody.
For more about Seth’s parole campaign: http://www.jerichony.org/sethparole2016.html
Fundraiser for Seth’s fight for life and freedom: https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/810a58
If are unable to join us on Tuesday, you can still write to Seth and Jalil:
The deal, as always, is that you come bringing only yourself (and your friends and comrades), and we provide you with a delicious vegan meal, information about the prisoners as well as all of the letter-writing materials and prisoner-letter-writing info you could ever want to use in one evening. In return, you write a thoughtful letter to a political prisoner or prisoner of war of your choosing or, better yet, keep up a long-term correspondence. We’ll also provide some brief updates and pass around birthday cards for the PP/POWs whose birthdays fall in the next two weeks thanks to the PP/POW Birthday Calendar.
BK/NY – Tuesday, August 18th– Letter-Writing for Black August
WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, August 18th, 2015
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
Hopefully you’ve been training in preparation for Running Down the Walls 2015. The competition will be fierce, the food at the after party will be delicious, and the solidarity with our imprisoned comrades will be infinite. Please take this opportunity to get more folks to sponsor you as a participant and help build the ABCF warchest and help the Family and Friends of Maliki Shakur Latine. As a lead in to this year’s run, we are hosting another of our every other week Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinners. This week, NYC ABC will be hosting a Black August card signing.
As Black August began in remembrance of fallen Black liberation prisoner, George Jackson, and the San Quentin prison uprising of 1971– a prison uprising that included recently murdered San Quentin Six member Hugo “Yogi Bear” Pinell, we honor Yogi with this dinner.
27-30 April – Call and Fax in for Robert Seth Hayes
Robert Seth Hayes is one of the longest held political prisoners in the United States. He is 66 years old and suffers from multiple chronic and concerning medical problems. As you may know, the Medical Justice Project for Prisoners of War and Political Prisoners waged a medical campaign for Seth a few months ago regarding rapid and concerning weight loss as well as poorly controlled diabetes. Neither of these concerns have been addressed to date. The New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (NYS DOCCS) states on its website that denial of adequate medical care is a violation of a person’s eighth amendment constitutional rights, so please help demand that Seth be provided with proper care.
Please join the phone and fax campaign!
Talking points and sample letter below.
THINGS YOU CAN DO:
1) On Monday, 4/27 and Tuesday, 4/28 please call:
- Acting Commissioner Anthony J. Annucci, NYS Department of Corrections at 518.457.8134
- Dr. Carl J. Koenigsmann, Chief Medical Officer, DOCCS Division of Health Services at 518.457.7073
- Nancy A. Lyng, MS, Director of Health Services, at 518.445.6176
2) On Wednesday, 4/29 and Thursday 4/30, please fax (you can use a free online fax service like faxzero.com if needed):
- Acting Commissioner Anthony J. Annucci at Fax: 518.457.0076
- Dr. Carl J. Koenigsmann M.D. at Fax: 518.457.2115
- Nancy A. Lyng, MS at Fax: 518.445.6157
Suggested talking points:
- State who you are calling about and include his prisoner number: Robert Seth Hayes, #74-A- 2280 at Sullivan Correctional Facility;
- Say that you are requesting:
nnn1) an assessment and modification of his insulin treatment,
nnn2) that he is given a full work-up to have potential malignancies been ruled out considering his weight loss, and,
nnn3) that he is finally prescribed a diabetic diet.
Please email nycjericho@gmail.com and let them know what response you receive.
Read more…
NYC Anarchist Black Cross 