The Ex-Worker #50: The History and Future of Prison Strikes and Solidarity
As we build momentum towards the September 9th national prison strike, we want to reflect on lessons learned from past generations of prison rebels, as well as how we can maintain energy on September 10th and beyond. In Episode 50 of the Ex-Worker, solidarity organizer Ben Turk fills us in on some history of prisoner organizing in recent decades, recaps some of the solidarity actions that have taken place leading up to this year’s historic strike, and offers perspective on continuing and deepening our resistance to prison society. We commemorate the death of Jordan MacTaggart, an American anarchist killed on the front lines in battle with the YPG against the Islamic State, and discuss international solidarity and the politics of martyrdom with Rojava Solidarity NYC. The death of John Timoney, former police chief and notorious foe of anarchists, prompts both glee and a somber reflection on the misery he inflicted on us. A member of Revolutionary Anarchist Action (DAF) in Istanbul discusses the background to the recent failed military coup as well as recent waves of anti-anarchist repression. A call for solidarity from la ZAD, news, events, and prisoner birthdays round out this packed episode. {September 7, 2016}
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- Find a demonstration or event about the September 9th prison strike near you, or post it here if you’re organizing one.
- We interview Ben Turk about the struggle against US prisons, including the upcoming September 9th strike and beyond. Wanna read more about some of the prison rebel history he mentioned? Learn more about the Attica uprising, Walpole and Men Against Sexism in Walla Walla, and especially the Lucasville Uprising of 1993, plus more recent upheavals including the Pelican Bay hunger strike against solitary confinement - which we covered as it was happening in Episode 9 - as well as the Georgia prisoner strike, the Free Alabama Movement, the Menard, Illinois hunger strike, the recent Bend the Bars Conference in Columbus, Ohio, and the Dying to Live hunger strike movement in Waupon, WI.
- Repressive cop extraordinaire John Timoney has shuffled off his mortal coil. Check out this commemoration of his miserable life by some anarchist comrades. Good fucking riddance, asshole!
- We discussed the recent death of American anarchist Jordan MacTaggart. Check out the send-off video produced as a tribute by Rojava Solidarity NYC. Also check out this lengthy article written last winter in which Jordan shares stories about his experiences fighting on the front lines. To learn more about the revolution in Rojava, listen to our previous coverage in Episode 36 and Episode 39, and check out Rojava Solidarity NYC’s book “A Small Key Can Open A Large Door: The Rojava Revolution”.
- We shared an excerpt from an interview with Devrimci Anarşist Faaliyet (DAF), or Revolutionary Anarchist Action, an anarchist organization based in Istanbul, Turkey. Thanks to our friends at Crna Luknja in Ljubljana, Slovenia for sharing it with us. Learn more about DAF via their website or their Facebook page.
- The US “Justice” Department recently announced its intention to phase out the use of private prisons. Good news, right? Well… these anarchists don’t necessarily think so. Either way, it’s unquestionable that prison privatization has horrible consequences for the incarcerated; if you weren’t already convinced, check out this massive expose by Mother Jones magazine about the corruption and brutality of private prison industry, written by an undercover reporter who actually got a job as a guard in a CCA prison; it’s fascinating, horrifying reading. But the question is whether this reform will serve to weaken or strengthen mass incarceration in the long run. As Ben Turk mentions in his interview, the so-called “prison reform movement” led by such luminaries as Hillary Clinton and Newt Gingrich exists not to abolish prisons, but to generalize carceral logics across all of society.
- Check out the call for solidarity on October 8th with la ZAD, the anti-airport occupation in western France. Listen to our Episode 14 on squatting for an interview with a resident of la ZAD.
- Other upcoming events include Running Down the Walls, an annual 5 K run that benefits political prisoners and prisoners of war, on September 4th in New York City and on September 11th in Denver, the Fighting Future Prisons tour in Northern England, and the Red Warrior Camp’s global weeks of solidarity to support the indigenous-led movement to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline, from September 3rd to 17th.
- Upcoming prisoner birthdays: Brian Vaillancourt M42889 Robinson Correctional Center 13423 East 1150th Avenue Robinson, Illinois 62454 {September 5th} Alexander Irwin #2016012934 St. Louis County Jail P.O. Box 16060 Clayton, MO 63105 {September 5th} Please note that Alexander is pre-trial. Do not write about illegal activity and assume that any charges from the state are alleged and falsely accused. Leonard Peltier #89637–132 USP Coleman I Post Office Box 1033 Coleman, Florida 33521 {September 12th} Sean Swain #243–205 Warren CI P.O. Box 120 5787 State Route 63 Lebanon, OH 45036 {September 12th} Steven Martin #2015017284 St. Louis County Jail P.O. Box 16060 Clayton, MO 63105 {September 22nd} Please note that Steven is pre-trial. Do not write about illegal activity and assume that any charges from the state are alleged and falsely accused. Greg Curry #213–159 Ohio State Penitentiary 878 Coitsville-Hubbard Rd Youngstown OH 44505–4635 {September 26th} Brian McCarvill #11037967 Snake River CI 777 Stanton Blvd Ontario, OR 97914–8335 {September 27th} Jorge P. Cornell #28152–057 FCI Petersburg Medium P.O. Box 1000 Petersburg, VA 23804 {September 29}