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Political Prisoner Periodicals

The modern movements for prison abolition and against inhumane practices and conditions reached an initial high peak of struggle and mass militancy during the 1970s, with rebellions and protests at many prisons nationwide, the writings and example of George Jackson, and the historic rebellion at Attica State Prison. This collection includes a wide range of publications grown out of this ongoing movement, including  the Anvil, War Behind Walls, Big Mama Rag, The Outlaw, The Struggle Inside, Politics of Crime, and Arm the Spirit.

Documents

Voices On and Of Prisons in the U.S. Voices On and Of Prisons in the U.S.
Date: 1/1/1993Call Number: PM 341Format: Cass A & BProducers: Undercurrents Radio, WMUACollection: Political Prisoner Periodicals
This tape is a series of interviews with [scholarly] activists and former prisoners discussing prisons in the United States. Dr Steve Whitman, from the Committee to End the Marion Lockdown and a top epidemiologist in Chicago, gives an interview titled "Overview on Race, Imprisonment and Control Unit Prisons," which provides a statistical and factual background for the following speakers. Ward Churchill discusses the American Indian Movement and its relationship with the U.S. government, specifically in the late 1960s involving Pine Ridge. Safiya Bukhari-Alston, former member of the Harlem Chapter of the Black Party, discusses political prisoners in the United States and the reasons for black people organized against an oppressive system/country. Akil Al-Jundi, former Attica prisoner, relates the events and conditions leading up to the 1971 Attica Prison riots. He emphasizes the racialized nature of relationships, job opportunities and authority that continued the oppression of black people within the prison system.