Archive
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.
BK/NY – Sunday, September 6th – Running Down the Walls 2015!
WHAT: Running Down the Walls – 5k Run/Walk/Jog/Bike
WHEN: 2:00-7:00pm, Sunday, September 6th
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 $2,500. You can donate online by going to gumroad.com/nycabc
This year’s run will take place on Sunday, September 6th 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 $2,500, we need your support.
* 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 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 Family and Friends of Maliki Shakur Latine.
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
Russell Maroon Shoatz
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
Family and Friends of Maliki Shakur Latine:
Maliki Shakur Latine is a political prisoner, held in New York state. A former Black Panther, Maliki directly faced state repression and, after a 1979 incident with NYPD cops, was sentenced to 25 to life. We are raising funds to aid in the campaign to secure parole for this elder. For more information, visit justiceformaliki.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 two laps around what is known as the Inner 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
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…
BK/NY – Tuesday, April 14 – Letter-writing to Seth Hayes and Abdul Majid
WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, April 14th, 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
In the announcements for our every-other-week political prisoner letter-writing dinners, NYC ABC typically tries to draw attention to something not directly tied to our work in supporting political prisoners. Maybe it’s a commentary on something trending in corporate media or the ridiculousness of pop culture. However, with the consistent attack on Black folks by cops, direct or indirect, we are unable to focus on much else. Whether it is a murder and attempted cover up by cops in South Carolina or the attempted murder by medical negligence of our comrade Mumia Abu-Jamal, the system and institutions of white supremacy are as strong now as they were seven years ago, seventy years ago, and since the inception of this country. With that in mind, we are writing to prisoners who resisted white supremacy as it bore down upon them– Robert “Seth” Hayes and Abdul Majid.
You won’t want to miss this letter-writing– we have the Jericho Movement‘s Mogadishu as a guest speaker.
In 1973, following a shootout with police, Seth Hayes was arrested and convicted of the murder of a New York City police officer, and, while maintaining his innocence to this day, sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. Imprisoned for nearly forty years, Seth has long since served his sentence. Seth has ongoing health issues, including diabetes, that continue to be poorly managed by the Department of Corrections.
On April 16th, 1981 a van was pulled over by NYPD. Two occupants exited the van and fired upon the cops—one was killed, the other injured. Despite claims by the police that the van was pulled over for connections to burglaries, the folder of “suspects” circulated by the cops exclusively consisted of former Panthers, not burglary suspects. Abdul Majid and his co-defendant, Bashir Hameed were arrested and tried three times. The first trial ended in a hung jury. The second trial was declared a mistrial by the judge immediately after the jury rendered a decision that acquitted Bashir on the murder charge. At a third trial, the state finally got its way—Abdul was convicted of murder and sentenced to 33 years to life. Abdul is expected to go before the parole board for the first time later this month.
We expect to see you on Tuesday. If you can’t make it, please take the time to write letters (and send books) to the prisoners:
Robert Seth Hayes #74-A-2280
Sullivan Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 116
Fallsburg, New York 12733-0116
Abdul Majid #83-A-0483
Five Points Correctional Facility
6600 State Route 96
Caller Box 119
Romulus, New York 14541
BK/NY – Sunday, December 14th – Send Love Through the Walls 2014
WHAT: Send Love Through The Walls Holiday Card-Writing For Political Prisoners
WHEN: 2:00-6:00pm, Sunday, December 14th, 2014
WHERE: 263 Eastern Parkway, Apartment 5D (Direction Below) phone: 718.783.8141
COST: FREE (Donations to cover the cost of stamps greatly appreciated)
In what many prisoners have told us is their favorite event of the year, Resistance in Brooklyn and NYC Anarchist Black Cross again join forces to bring you the annual holiday card-writing party for U.S. held political prisoners, prisoners of war, and prisoners of conscience. This event is always a lot of fun, the food outstanding, the camaraderie lively, and the handmade cards flat out amazing. This year will be no different. So plan to bring your friends, your creativity, and a healthy appetite. We’ll have updates on the pp/pow campaigns as well as paints, markers, crayons, and envelopes. We will also be holding a raffle to support soon to be released, 87 year old Mohaman Koti.
If you’ve been looking for a place to purchase the “Certain Days: Freedom for Political Prisoners Calendar,” NYC ABC will have them for sale at the event. The calendar is a joint fundraising and educational project between outside organizers in Montreal and Toronto, and three political prisoners being held in maximum-security prisons in New York State: David Gilbert, Robert Seth Hayes and Herman Bell. The proceeds from Certain Days 2015 will be divided among The New York State Task Force on Political Prisoners, Addameer, and 4strugglemag. For more information, be sure to visit certaindays.org
Directions:
Getting to 263 Eastern Parkway is simple:
From the 2/3/4/5 or Franklin Avenue Shuttle:
Franklin Avenue Stop: Walk west on Eastern Parkway (away from Franklin Avenue, toward Classon Avenue). We’re about half a block down on the north side of the street. When you go into the building, take the elevator to your left.
For more information, contact:
Resistance in Brooklyn– resistanceinbrooklyn07 at gmail dot com
NYC Anarchist Black Cross– nycabc at riseup dot net
Campaign to Secure Parole for Robert Seth Hayes
Like many long-term comrades in New York State (NYS), political prisoner Robert Seth Hayes is coming before the parole board this summer. This will be Seth’s tenth appearance before such a board. We are asking that you participate in his freedom campaign per his request in whatever way works for you. While we harbor no false hope in this parole campaign and those of other NYS comrades like Herman Bell, Jalil Muntaquim, and Maliki Shakur Latine, we always respond to calls for solidarity and will continue to push the parole board to let our people come home.
Despite setbacks in the movement to implement a genuine, fair and just parole system in New York (such as this recent court decision), there is resistance to the endless politicizing and denials of the parole system. Groups like RAPP (Release Aging People in Prison)–founded and run in part by former prisoners–are making great strides educating the public and highlighting specific examples of elder prisoners and the need for parole reform. Time will tell whether or not the state of New York will make a significant change in how it implements parole for all prisoners and specifically, the NYS political prisoners.
NYC – Tuesday, January 7th – Letter-Writing Dinner For NYS PPs (Part Two)
WHAT: Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinner
WHEN: 7pm sharp, Tuesday, January 7th, 2014
WHERE: CAGE – 83A Hester Street (UPSTAIRS) New York, New York 10002 (directions below)
COST: Free
We did it, NYC! We survived the storm of the century a regular winter snow storm. And while we skipped our every-other-week political prisoner letter-writing dinner scheduled for December 24th, we’re back and going hard for 2014. Hot on the heels of our New Year’s Eve Noise Demo, we in NYC Anarchist Black Cross want the start of this year to show our commitment to the political prisoners and prisoners of war closest to us. These are comrades who deserve, short of the full freedom we all desire, a minimum of strong solidarity. So we will enter 2014 focusing on those folks held behind New York State walls.
This week we will be writing Robert Seth Hayes, Maliki Shakur Latine, Abdul Majid, and Rev. Joy Powell. We’re very fortunate to have two great guest speakers coming in to discuss these cases– “Tessa Through” from Through the Walls and Anne from New York City Jericho Movement.
If for some insane reason you can’t make it out, but still want to support the prisoners, you can write to them at:
Robert Seth Hayes #74-A-2280
Sullivan Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 116
Fallsburg, New York 12733-0116
Maliki Shakur Latine #81-A-4469
Clinton Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 2000
Dannemora, New York 12929
Abdul Majid #83-A-0483
Elmira Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 500
1879 Davis Street
Elmira, New York 14902-0500
Reverend Joy Powell #07-G-0632
Bedford Hills Correctional Facility
Post Office Box 1000
Bedford Hills, New York 10507-2499
For more information on these comrades, please visit:
jerichony.org
throughthewalls.org @throughwallsny
freejoypowell.org
