In this column, we present our monthly roundup of political prisoner, prison rebel, and repression news, happenings, announcements, action and analysis. Packed in as always are updates, fundraisers, and birthdays.
Mail is so difficult to predict and letters take a lot longer to clear the special investigation services mailbox than articles.When he gets a stack of mail it could be from last week or from 2 months ago it’s difficult to tell. Eric has been getting some amazing letters and he wants to answer them all but in the last few months his health problems that have developed over years of medical neglect and 5 years spend in isolation cells have left him so much pain writing letters is excruciating. He wanted to let folks know that he’s probably going to be unable to write in the next couple months leading up to hopefully at some point a halfway house placement. We know everyone is desperate and waiting for news, we assure you we are as well. That August estimate didn’t really age well did it ⌚?
He sends his love thanks and support. He’s nervous and excited about re-entering the world after 10 years of development he missed out on. He’s super giddy about the December release of this project that they have worked so hard on.
I am now at FMC Ft. Worth, as of September 18, and am waiting to find out what possible timelines it will take or even if I will be allowed to continue my transition surgically. I continue to take my HRT therapy and am meeting other trans inmates here – all transwomen who are oftentimes waiting for THEIR transfer to a female facility! I am hoping that this policy will continue to help many trans people, but am concerned that this policy may be in danger of reversal if the far right has their way! Please continue to fight for trans and queer people in prison, as so often we are invisible to the wider public and easier to shove under the rug and hide. I know that it is the support that we have from our community on the outside that helps our cause and gives us care and strength.
Thank you very much for your support in letters and cards this past year – I have a list of everywhere I got mail from, but it is packed up in my property and in a box on its way to Texas right now! I have even gotten a few letters at my new address here – but also, sadly, a few documents saying that the intended letter was returned to sender because of the new rules here at FMC Ft. Worth. So, to lessen the aggravation for anyone kind enough to write to me – here are a few of the different rules…
1) all letters have to be written on only one side of the page and are limited to 5 pages.
2) no letters that are on colored paper or on cardstock.
3) any photos must be sent through a company and not directly from the sender. No more than 25 photos will be accepted.
4) all acceptable letters will be photo-copied in black and white and that copy given to the inmate.
I am sorry to say that all the beautiful original artwork that I have received over the years will not be allowed into this facility. That is a great sadness to me, as I have been given such amazing original art from so many great people from all over the world. Thank you, everyone, for keeping me in their thoughts and including me in their outreach and educational work. I am so encouraged by the campaigns that continue to run bravely in the face of the worst destructive efforts – long live the Wild Free Earth!
I want to make more of an effort to reach out to you all – especially as it will be harder to write as many emails or send as many letters as I have before (which never seemed enough then). I will be facing a higher monthly fine payment now, as Congress has asked the prison administrators to enforce higher payments….but I will use the website more to compensate.
Thank you all, again – for taking this journey with me, for seeing me through so many years and over so many hurdles….I am constantly humbled and warmed by the power of solidarity. Together, we are strong!
Current Cases, Atlanta Forest, and Uprising Defendants
Bail has been denied to Pittsburgh based activist Peppy, who is facing heavy charges stemming from protests at a university against an anti-LGBTQ speaker. A message on his support site wrote:
We have an important and disappointing update to share with you about the federal case against Peppy and Krystal.
We received the devastating news on Thursday, October 26ththat the judge rejected an appeal regarding Peppy’s pre-trial incarceration. This means that Peppy is likely to remain locked up indefinitely, as the legal team prepares for trial.
Now that it seems clear that pre-trial detention is where he’ll remain for the foreseeable future, it’s time for us all to rally wholeheartedly behind Peppy and Krystal. There are many things we can do to keep building our loving network of support and keep light on this case to help influence the best possible outcome.
Here you can find the support flyer and poster to get the word out which is now more important than ever. This news comes as Peppy crosses the four-month mark of incarceration at a jail that offers prisoners no outdoor time whatsoever and no library. He needs your connection. It will absolutely help him get through this tough period. Please continue to write to Peppy and if you’re looking for ideas as to what to write this might help when you’re first putting pen-to-paper.
Here is his current address: Butler County Prison c/o Brian DiPippa #42322 PO Box 9156 Seminole, FL 33775-9156
Krystal also continues to face serious political charges. We are grateful that she is not in any sort of pre-trial imprisonment, but she needs love too! Send her encouraging messages via email to [email protected] and we will make sure she gets them, and if you’re directly connected with her and able to, please consider sending her a note by snail mail as well!
Also, as we begin to move toward a trial, there will be new and significant amounts of funds needed to support Peppy and Krystal’s legal defense. You can contribute to that fund directly through our website. Keep your eyes open for upcoming financial requests and please
get in touch if you have any particular ideas of major donors who could help ease that burden. We’d be happy to answer any questions or explore easiest donation possibilities.
We are calling for a sustained phone and email zap on behalf of Comrade Rashid. The list of demands is given below along with the numbers and email addresses of officials to be contacted.
List of demands
1. Release Kevin Rashid Johnson from solitary
2. Return all of his personal property
3. End the targeted harassment and set-ups of him
4. Stop interfering with his litigations and outside communications
5. End the abuses in Virginia prisons, especially Red Onion and Wallens Ridge State Prisons.
____________________
Complaints should be made and sent to:
Warden Kevin McCoy, Sussex 1 State Prison, Phone 804-834-9967, Email [email protected]
Virginia DOC Director Chadwick S. Dotson, Phone 804-674-3081, Email ChadwickDotson@vadoc.virginia.gov
The Texas-wide prison lockdown that began in September has now been lifted. The lockdown was officially described as an effort to combat drugs, but some prisoners have questioned this and suggested it was actually an attempt to suppress prisoner unrest after a particularly brutal staff beating at Coffield Unit. From a Texas Tribune article:
On Sept. 5, an inmate at the Coffield Unit stabbed a correctional officer in a high security unit. TDCJ officers responded to this incident with excessive force and prison system spokesperson Amanda Hernandez told The Texas Tribune established protocols were not followed.
After an internal review of that incident, seven correctional officers were fired and another six officers resigned.
“The inmate is recovering at the hospital,” she said. “This incident was forwarded to the Office of Inspector General for criminal investigation.”
TDCJ did not release the name of the inmate who was hospitalized after he was beaten by correctional officers.
In France, the “December 8” case, involving defendants associated with Black Lives Matter and Kurdish liberation, has finally reached a trial, almost three years after the original arrests. You can learn more about the case in this recent episode of the Final Straw Radio and on the December 8 blog. The verdict will be delivered on December 22.
One of the “Nebraska 2”, Black Panthers convicted in 1971 for the murder of a police officer. In the 1990s, Nebraska’s parole board recommended Poindexter and his co-defendant Mondo for release due to their exceptional conduct, accomplishments and recommendations but the Pardons Board– the Governor, Attorney General and Secretary of State– refused to grant them a hearing.
Their conviction was controversial and has never been accepted as legitimate by many in the African American community in Omaha. Poindexter and Mondo were suspects – before there was any evidence – because they were leaders of the National Committee to Combat Fascism (NCCF), an offshoot of the Black Panther Party.
Important: Ed has a cataract that makes it impossible for him to read. If you would like to write him a letter, it must be typed with 18 point or larger font. Put a large note on the envelope so that he knows that you are aware of his eye issues and have included a letter in a type that he can read. The Nebraska Department of Corrections does not plan to allow him to have surgery because “he has one good eye.”
Birthday: November 1
Address:
Edward Poindexter #27767
Nebraska State Penitentiary
P.O. Box 22500
Lincoln, NE 68542
United States
Pennsylvania uses Connect Network/GTL, so you can contact him online by going toconnectnetwork.com, selecting “Add a facility”, choosing “State: Pennsylvania, Facility: Pennsylvania Department of Corrections”, going into the “messaging” service, and then adding him as a contact by searching his name or “NT0000”.
Birthday: November 10
Address:
Smart Communications/PADOC
Dwayne Staats, NT0000
SCI Camp Hill
PO Box 33028
St Petersburg, FL 33733
Andrei Marach
Antifascist from Brest. Detained on 2 March 2021 on suspicion of involvement in a criminal organisation of anarchists and gross violation of public order (Articles 285 and 342 of the Criminal Code). Andrei has a history of repression, he was serving an administrative arrest in early August 2020. On September 6, 2022, Andrei was sentenced to 5 years in prison.
Belarusian prisons will usually only accept letters in Belarusian or Russian, so if you don’t speak one of those languages your best bet is to email your message to belarus_abc(AT)riseup.net or use this online form and they should be able to translate your greetings and pass them on.
IK-17, ul. 1-ya Zavodskaya, 8, g. Shklov, 213004, Belarus
Andrey Igorevich Marach
John Wade
John B. Wade is a Black Atlanta activist facing charges related to the George Floyd Rebellion in the Summer of 2020. He was arrested on November 2nd, 2020 in an inter-agency raid along with two others, Vida Jones and Ellie Brett. They faced charges related to a string of arsons against government property and police cruisers. Wade has been repeatedly harassed by law enforcement since the beginning of the mass rebellion. You can read some of his words here.
John Wade was sentenced on 2/28/22 to a mandatory minimum of 5 years (to include time served) after conviction on his federal charges. His projected release from federal prison is in January, 2025, but he has other pending state charges from the summer of 2020.
The Federal system uses Corrlinks, a system where a prisoner must send a request to connect to someone on the outside before they can exchange emails, so if you’re not already connected to John then you’re best off just sending him a card or a letter.
Birthday: November 11
Address:
John Wade #14762509
FCI Beckley
Federal Correctional Institution
P.O. Box 350
General & Legal Mail
Beaver, WV 25813
Dzmitry Rezanovich
Dzmitry Rezanovich is an anarchist from Gomel. Arrested on the night of 28-29 October 2020 close to Ukrainian border by Belarusian border guards together with Sergey Romanov, Dmitry Rezanovich and Ihar Alinevich. Charged with terrorism and illegal possession of firearms. According to the prosecutor’s office, he and his comrades organized several arson attacks in Soligorsk and Mozyr against state institutions. On 22 December 2021, he was sentenced to 19 years in prison.
Belarusian prisons will usually only accept letters in Belarusian or Russian, so if you don’t speak one of those languages your best bet is to email your message to belarus_abc(AT)riseup.net or use this online form and they should be able to translate your greetings and pass them on.
Indigenous land defender arrested at the South River Music Festival in so-called Atlanta, GA. After spending months inside DeKalb County without bail set or being indicted for a crime, he has now been transferred to an ICE facility where he again sits without bail.
Birthday: November 13
Address:
Victor Puertas
095610252
6B 215B
P.O Box 248
Lumpkin GA 31815 USA
T’Andre Buchanan is a George Floyd Uprising prisoner who was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison after a 3 day trial where he was found guilty of interference with commerce by means of robbery and tampering with evidence.
The Federal system uses Corrlinks, a system where a prisoner must send a request to connect to someone on the outside before they can exchange emails, so if you’re not already connected to T’Andre then you’re best off just sending him a card or a letter.
Birthday: November 22
Address:
T’Andre Buchanan #67637-060
Milan FCI
PO Box 1000
Milan, MI 48160
Missouri now uses Securus, so you can send him a message by creating an account at securustech.online, clicking “emessaging – launch account,” then searching his name while selecting “State: Missouri, Inmate ID: 1282093.”
Birthday: November 24
Address:
Dontrell Baker #1282093
C/O Digital Mail Center-Missouri DOC
PO Box 25678
Tampa, FL 33622-5678
Josh Williams
A staple of the Ferguson rebellion, Josh Williams was sentenced to 8 years in prison for his actions in attempting to light fires near a Quick Trip gas station, which others quickly extinguished, during a protest against the killing of Black 18 year old Antonio Martin by police in Berkeley, Missouri on Christmas Eve 2014. You can learn more about Josh by reading some of his words here.A support site has been set up for Josh, and they reported in May 2021 that “Josh has been held in solitary confinement on 23 hour lockdown since the beginning of the uprisings in June of 2020. He has limited phone privileges and hasn’t been able to go outside.”
Missouri now uses Securus, so you can send him a message by creating an account at securustech.online, clicking “emessaging – launch account,” then searching his name while selecting “State: Missouri, Inmate ID: 01292002.” His tablet access is often restricted.
Birthday: November 25
Address:
Joshua Williams #1292002
C/O Digital Mail Center-Missouri DOC
PO Box 25678
Tampa, FL 33622-5678
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