Holman Prison Report from Michael Kimble

The following report from Holman Prison in Alabama comes from long-time anarchist prisoner, Michael Kimble.

Back in 2006 a friend who practiced the Rastafarian religion was cut in the face while asleep by an unknown person. No one was ever charged and my friend sent word to me and another prisoner that he wanted us to hold down the slot he had in the chapel since he was going to be transferred because he had an unknown enemy in the population.

So, ever since 2006 I and the other prisoner have been holding talent shows, Kwanzaa events, Black August events, seminars and Black History Month events under the banner of the Rastafarian religion. Rastafarianism is just another bizarre liberation theology.

Anyway, this year i posted flyers and enlisted the participation of a few young prisoners to do a Black History Month event (speakers, poets, singers, rappers, and our first fashion show). During these events there is no pig (A.C.A.B.) participating or attending. It’s solely organized by prisoners for prisoners alone.

As you all know from reading my posts, Holman is undergoing low-intensity warfare aimed at the prisoner population: pacification and recuperation. The pigs have been using the old stick and carrot plot to seduce prisoners into compliance. The stick is the CERT (riot squad) who have been stationed at Holman since September 2016 and have beaten numerous prisoners. The carrot is the food and promises of legislative change in the criminal laws that will free prisoners being promoted by the missionary Browder ministries.

To lessen the impact of a radical Black history event organized for and by prisoners, the pig administration enlisted the aid of some Black prisoners who are housed in the Faith-Based Honor dorm to be part of an administration-sponsored Black History “program.” These prisoners unashamedly helped the warden and captain get other Black prisoners to participate in the administration’s sponsored Black History “program.” The leader of the National of Islam was asked by myself to participate with the prisoner-only organized Black History event, but refused to attend. As a matter of fact, this prisoner made announcements in the dorms for all to come to the pigs’ “program” and stated that if one didn’t attend they could stay slaves, overlooking the fact that the occupation of very people who enlisted him originated from slave patrols. The action of these prisoners makes them sellouts, uncle Toms and neo-kolonial puppets.

Holman has gone through an intense recuperative and pacification program where formerly rebellious prisoners are the first to intervene on the pigs’ behalf when a rebellious prisoner comes into conflict with the pigs, but do nothing when it’s a prisoner conflict. i don’t know how these neo-kolonial prisoners reconcile their actions with being fucked over and controlled for years by these pigs who give no consideration for their pain and suffering.

These neo-kolonials even demanded that those who was speaking and/or rapping submit their work in advance, so to insure that nothing was said to criticize, expose, or offend their masters, their controllers. And check this out: their Black History “program” wasn’t even held during February, the designated month for Black History; it was held in March.

This kind of practice was unheard of or never seen just a year and a half ago. Our conditions of being held captive was clearly defined. And that these lying, hypocritical creeps who represent authority, control, greed for greed’s sake, no respect for the earth and life (human nor wildlife), who make moral judgments about those of us who rebel, refuse to submit do not want to see us live our life free are the enemy.

See, we had created an environment of individuals who wanted as much control over our existence, although we are in captivity. And showed open contempt and “participated in some manner against these men (and women) and institutions in charge of justice.”

We had created an environment where collusion with the pigs, snitching, stealing, etc. was frowned on and punished. I’m not saying it was utopia, because it wasn’t; far from it, but it did create an atmosphere of solidarity among most of us.

Now, since they (pigs) began their campaign to smash the resistance here and gained some form of control through stick and carrot, all collective resistance has disappeared.