Atlanta: Statement on the Sept 9th Solidarity March

From Atlanta Anarchist Black Cross

On Friday protesters from many groups including Atlanta Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee, Anarchist Black Cross, and Street Groomers staged a march through Midtown targeting corporations which profit from prison slavery.

Inmates across the country are engaged in strikes and resistance against the prison system, demanding fair pay for their labor and an end to inhumane conditions.

To support the unprecedented prison strike, we visited Wendy’s, McDonalds, Aramark and Starbucks; all companies which exploit prison labor. Police were aggressive and hostile, at one point trying to run over protesters with a squad car. When the march reached Starbucks, police violently arrested three protesters, indiscriminately macing bystanders and even other officers. A Starbucks customer has claimed that the protest attacked him, but this is false. It appears that the police were looking for any excuse to crack down on the protest.

The real crime is the prison system’s abuse, and we reject efforts by the police and corporate power to distract the issue with false charges and unfounded accusations.