social justice

Prisoners Nationwide Strike, Comparing Conditions to a “War Zone”

Landon Shroder | August 23, 2018

Topics: Call to Action, Incarceration, Inmates, prison, Prison Reform, Prison Strike, social justice, Strike

The US incarcerates more people per capita than any other country in the world and the systematic racism, class-based inequalities, and economic engines which drive these things are well documented – making their continued existence a deeply shameful reminder of how regressive the US still is on crime and punishment.

According to a Prison Policy Initiative report, the break down of incarceration rates per state compared with other countries internationally tells another grim story. Thirty-three states chart higher for incarceration before the first country in comparison registers. That country is is El Salvador. The report observes that, “looking at each state in the global context reveals that, in every region of the country, incarceration is out of step with the rest of the world.”

And earlier this week, inmates in 17 prisons nationwide will be conducting a two-week strike, coinciding with the anniversaries of the death of black activist George Jackson and the Attica Prison riots. Jackson was killed by a guard in 1971 in San Quentin prison and the Attica Prison riots left 40 people dead when police eventually stormed the prison. During the two-week strike, inmates will draw attention to their conditions by going on hunger strikes and sit-ins, as a way to call for reform, access, rehabilitation, fair wages, and ending un-unnecessarily long prison sentences.

Comparisons between prison and slavery are not unfounded either. In states like Alabama, Florida, and Texas, inmates are given no wages for labor, while in states like California, inmates are made to work dangerous jobs like fighting fires – making $2 a day. All of which is justified due to an exemption in the 13th Amendment, which allows states to force inmates to work for negligible wages for the purposes of cheap labor. The storied abolitionist Frederick Douglas wrote about this exemption back in late 1800s, saying, “[States] claim to be too poor to maintain state convicts within prison walls. Hence the convicts are leased out to work for railway contractors, mining companies and those who farm large plantations.” He went on to make another comparison that is reflective of the modern prison-industrial complex, observing that companies use “convicts” and work them as “cheap labor and pay the states a handsome revenue for their labor. Nine-tenths of these convicts are negroes.”

Not much has changed since Douglas wrote those words given black men are incarcerated at a rate five times higher than their white counter-parts and in some states almost 10 times. In a deep-dive report released by the Sentencing Project in 2016, its preamble states clearly, “Growing awareness of America’s failed experiment with mass incarceration has prompted changes at the state and federal level that aim to reduce the scale of imprisonment.”

Those changes, however, have not come quickly enough. The group organizing the strike from South Carolina are known as Jailhouse Lawyers Speak, who released a statement referring to the action as a human right’s issue. “Prisoners understand they are being treated as animals. We know that our conditions are causing physical harm and deaths that could be avoided if prison policy makers actually gave a damn.” Going on to say that prisons throughout the US are a war zone, the statement also claimed, “Everyday prisoners are harmed due to conditions of confinement. For some of us, it’s as if we are already dead. So what do we have to lose?”

In March 2014, the Prison Policy Initiative released figures stating that there are still 2.3 million people incarcerated throughout the US, which includes, “1,719 state prisons, 102 federal prisons, 1,852 juvenile correctional facilities, 3,163 local jails, and 80 Indian Country jails as well as in military prisons, immigration detention facilities, civil commitment centers, state psychiatric hospitals, and prisons in the U.S. territories.”

Amani Sawari, one of the spokeswomen for the strike, on her personal website has voiced her opinions on how we can stop the cycle. “We must call out those corporations who contribute to mass incarceration and reverse this cycle of dehumanization and enslavement for profit in this country.” She went on to echo Douglas’ observation that the exception clause in the 13th Amendment “motivates corporations to incarcerate more people.”

Organizations and human rights groups are planning actions all over the US. Look for the hashtags #August21 and #prisonstrike to find out more information and where to get involved.

ICA’s Cinema Series Highlights Independent Filmmakers, Monuments, Death of Sandra Bland & More

Talya Faggart | June 13, 2018

Topics: film, ICA, monuments, racism, Sandra Bland, social justice

To kick off the summer, VCU’s Institute for Contemporary Art is premiering a free film series to showcase local and national filmmakers in conjunction with their current exhibition, Declaration.

Launching today and running year-round, the ICA Cinema Series will offer free movies at the arts center’s auditorium once a month along with post-screening discussions with the filmmakers. Series film curator Enjoli Moon said all of the films in the summer series, Declaration of INDIEpendence, feature someone making some type of declaration.

“They {ICA} wanted to use the film program as an opportunity to really connect the community and bridge the gap between the institution, academic campus, and the actual Richmond community,” she said. Films will dive deep into subjects ranging from monuments, to the arrest and death of African American activist Sandra Bland, racism, to stories of local residents from all walks of life, with the aim of opening up much-needed discussions and dialogue.

For the premiere on Wed., June 13, the Cinema Series will open with “Richmond Speaks“, a short film showcase which highlights a selection of Richmonders who have made an impact on the city through community involvement, activism, or acts of kindness. The trio of films are made by local filmmakers and after the screenings, the filmmakers, along with the subjects, will talk about the need for spaces for individuals and the roles that institutions like the ICA play in the bigger picture.

The first film, “May It Be So”, will cover the ever-controversial and much-debated topic of the city’s monuments, but also show a side to Richmond history that these statues don’t tell. “Don’t Touch My Hair” will also premiere tonight, which presents the various forms of the black experience via metaphors of black hair expressions, as well as the role that Black women play in today’s social justice movements. Finally, viewers will get to see “Adrian’s Story” a short film about Richmonder Adrian Swearengen, a barber-in-training, who after years of incarceration finds his passion of cutting hair and offers free haircuts in the community for those who can’t afford to go to a shop.

Showing what the institution represents was important to Moon. The goal of the short-film showcase is to make sure that people from all over Richmond are represented, welcomed, and included.

“I wanted to start off with films that were focused on Richmond, really less for cinematic impact and more about laying the foundation,” said Moon.

The highly-anticipated HBO documentary, “Say Her Name: The Life and Death of Sandra Bland” was selected for the July 11 screening in the ICA’s Cinema Series. The film explores the 2015 death of Sandra Bland, an African American woman who, after being arrested during a traffic stop in Prarie View, Texas, was found hanged in her jail cell at the Waller County Jail three days later. Her death was ruled a suicide, but made national news and sparked protests and outrage from the public, disputing the cause of her death and alleged police brutality. The documentary, which is just two days shy of the three-year anniversary of her death, explores the mysterious case and what we can learn from it.

“’Say Her Name’, in it of itself is a declaration to make sure that women, especially women of color, who are victims of police brutality that their voices and their memories are not forgotten,” said Moon.

This documentary holds a lot of weight on Moon as well. “I think it allows us the opportunity to acknowledge some of the work that America still has to do in regards to equity and its treatment of black people and it can be a catalyst for this conversation,” she said.

With permission from HBO, this event is one of few, if not the only, premature showings of the film, which won’t be released on HBO networks until the fall. Bland family members, lawyers, and the directors, Kate Davis and David Heilbroner, will hold a panel discussion following the screening.

On August 8, the ICA will premiere “The (Rebirth) of a Nation” by DJ Spooky, a remix of filmmaker D.W. Griffith’s 1915 film, Birth of a Nation. Originally titled “The Clansman”, the silent film follows the relationship of two families in the Civil War and Reconstruction Era over several years, but sparked major controversy for its depiction of African Americans and its glorification of the Ku Klan Klan.

Multimedia artist Paul Rucker will be part of this panel discussion. Rucker’s “Storm in the Time of Shelter” exhibit was featured in the opening of Declaration, and features a shocking collection of life-size figures wearing the full regalia of the Ku Klux Klan. Instead of the traditional white robes, the figures wear robes and hoods made of silk, satin, Ghanaian Kente cloth, and bold, patterned fabric. Moon said this event gives people an opportunity to ask questions and put his work into context as well.

Finally, in September, New York City-based collective New Negress Film Society, a group of black female filmmakers, will screen their works followed by a discussion.

The ongoing series will be presented every second Wednesday of the month at 6 PM. The movies are free, but the ICA requests that you RSVP.

Activists and Family Take to the Streets to March for Justice in the Police Killing of Marcus Peters

Sarah Honosky | June 2, 2018

Topics: Marcus Peters, Police, Police Accountability, richmond, Richmond police department, social justice, virginia

“Help, not death.” That was the chant that permeated today’s march that ended at the Richmond Police Department (RPD) headquarters, where hundreds of people demanded justice and reformation for Marcus Peters – an unarmed black man in mental distress who was shot and killed by a Richmond police officer on May 14.

“We are here in honor of Marcus-David Peters and other folks who have fallen victim and died at the hands of state-sanctioned violence,” said Jasmine Leeward, a New Virginia Majority representative who was one of the march organizers. “We are trying to band together as a community to show that Marcus’ life mattered, and other victims of state-sanctioned violence, their lives mattered, and to call for justice, accountability, and reformation.” She also acknowledged that there needs to be more clarity and compassion and “less violence” when it comes to people who are in a mental health crisis.

Throughout the march, there was a constant, but impassioned reprise from those who attended: That Peters needed “help, not death”. On the day that Peters was killed, he was having an unidentified episode of mental distress – something which is far too common in the US – especially as police come into contact with people who are having these episodes. According to Chief Alfred Durham in a press conference last week, officers only receive 40 hours of training on how to handle issues surrounding mental health.

Nonetheless, Peters was the 425th person to be fatally shot by a law enforcement officer this year, according to The Washington Post’s Fatal Force database.

Peters’ aunt, Taisha Peters, a mental health worker said that it is crucial for things to be handled differently, especially when it comes to the treatment of those who are mentally ill. “That’s primarily why I’m here, to support reformation for not just my nephew who lost his life, but others who may happen to also. [The RPD is] ill-equipped. They don’t have proper training, they’ve admitted that themselves on the record…That’s no excuse for what they did.”

The march began at VCU’s Siegel Center at 1 pm, before departing on the mile-long trek to the RPD headquarters on Grace Street. For the family and friends of Peters, the march retraced the steps which ultimately culminated in a life cut short; beginning at the place where Peters graduated with honors, past the Jefferson where he worked part-time, eventually ending at RPD headquarters.

“We out here to ensure that justice is served for Marcus David-Peters. Marcus, as has been echoed by his sister Princess many times, deserved to have the opportunity to be helped and should not have been killed in the process,” said marcher Antonio Redd, wearing a burgundy shirt with Peters’ face emblazoned on the front. The march organizers asked attendees to wear burgundy, Peters’ favorite color. “For other people experiencing a mental health crisis, we want to ensure that they receive the proper help that they need in order to survive, opposed to being killed in the process.”

And the crowd that gathered in front of the Siegel Center was flooded with burgundy, along with a sea of signs clamoring for justice and reformation. A giant yellow banner was carried throughout the afternoon asking, “What if Marcus Peters was your son, would his death still be justifiable?”

A cabal of different organizations and individuals joined today’s march, including Democratic Socialists of America, Industrial Workers of the World, Iraq veterans, along with members of various black churches, people committed to social justice, and those who simply thought the death of Peters was an abuse of police power all rallied to support Peters’ family.

Ozzie, an Iraq veteran who chose to only give his first name, said the Richmond Police Department’s actions are out of control. “In the military, we show a lot more restraint. In that situation, we could have detained that person. The police didn’t show the same level of restraint. I think it’s the mindset of a lot of police to escalate the situation instead of de-escalating them.”

Before the march to RPD officially began, speakers including march organizer Rebecca Keel and Pastor of Second Baptist Church, Dr. James Henry Harris took to the podium.

“We are not here by coincidence,” said Keel. “We are here to affirm the dignity of Marcus’ life, the value of his life, the force of his life. We are here to say to this country, to this state, to this city, the police department that we must end the murder and dehumanization of black and brown people.”

VCU community organizers Khudai Tanveer and Taylor Davis also confronted the silence from the university on the death of Peters with an open letter detailing demands to the university and holding the school accountable for their lack of response on one of their alum. “We are allowing for 18 days from the initial receipt of this letter for the release of the stance critical on the use of force. We are generously selecting 18 days when it only took 18 seconds to make a decision that ultimately ended the life of Marcus-David Peters,” said Tanveer.

Next up was Harris, a pastor, who delivered an impassioned speech referring to the police as the new slave master. “None of us are free until all of us are free,” he told the contemplative crowd. “The former capital of the Confederacy has a new day coming.”

As the march snaked through the city on the way to the RPD, it included an unannounced stop at the Jefferson Hotel where march goers drowned the hotel in chants, shouting, “Shame on you, Jefferson,” in reference to the hotel not reaching out to Peters’ family during the incident. Despite this and the muggy 80-degree heat, the crowd rarely slowed, ignited with an energy and mission that pushed well beyond the simple march, making it clear that this is more than just a political statement.

Eventually arriving at RPD headquarters just as it began to rain, more speakers took to the podium right at the front entrance to the main building. No one from the police made an appearance or spoke to the marchers and Durham’s absence was noted by some of the marchers – some saying that it felt like an admittance of guilt.

Princess Blanding, the sister of Peters, read six demands, among them a call for RPD to publicly release what their crisis intervention training looks like so it can be thoroughly assessed for effectiveness. She also called for the creation of a “Marcus Alert,” a way for the community to “call on mental health professionals to respond when community members are clearly in crisis,” as opposed to immediately deferring to the police, which can escalate the encounter.

Princess Blanding Reading Demands in front of RPD

She ended the list of demands on the now familiar phrase, “Again, Marcus needed help, not death.”

On the heels of RPD’s reported excessive force against autistic Chesterfield teen McKhyl Dickerson the week before, reformation is needed now more than ever. The 2017 Police Violence Report shows that while black people are more likely to be unarmed, and less likely to be threatening, they are more likely to be killed by the police. This was a theme in today’s march as the names of black people killed by the police were never far away; names like Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, Sandra Bland, and now Marcus Peters.

Today’s march for justice and reformation for Marcus Peters was also a response to the systematic and institutionalized mistreatment, violence, and over-incarceration against minorities in the US by police. In 2018, questions over accountability and transparency remain more critical than ever, more so when connected to ongoing challenges in how police deal with those who appear to be having a mental health crisis. Instead of vilifying those that are experiencing such an episode, the city needs to look for better mechanisms to help those in need. This is the only way this city will be able to move forward from this incident.

Some of the other photos from today’s march can be found below:

Photos by Landon Shroder