Frustrated prisoners demand better conditions, human rights in nationwide strike
Marking two significant anniversaries, prisoners across the nation are set to participate in a work stoppage to demand an end to what they say are abuses within prison walls
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Inmates across the country are fed up with forced labor and poor prison conditions so they are launching a strike that is expected to last for 19 days.
The National Prisoners Strike kicked off in at least 17 states on Tuesday, the 47th anniversary of the death of Black Panther George Jackson; and goes until Sept. 9, the 47th anniversary of the 1971 Attica prison uprising, in which more than 40 people died when police stormed in to take back control of the facility.
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As reported by USA Today, incarcerated Americans say the strike is aimed at ending what they call “modern-day slavery.” Among their list of complaints, low wages for labor.
Heather Ann Thompson, activist, historian and author of Blood in the Water: The Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 and Its Legacy talked to Democracy Now! about the reasons for the strike.
“The repression inside is severe, and everyone will have to make their own choices as to whether or not they can be public about what they’re doing,” she said. “But I think that behind bars right now, in a way that we’re not even aware of, there’s a whole lot of people standing together to let us know that this system is severely broken and we’ve got to change.
Jailhouse Lawyers Speak is leading the effort — which may be the largest prison strike in the nation’s history — during which prisoners plan to hold peaceful sit-in protests, refuse to eat, halt commissary spending and not report to their assigned jobs.
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“Prisoner participation depends on their location and privilege status,” said Amani Sawari, a prison reform activist and spokesperson for the strike. “If inmates are working they can suffocate the prison industrial complex by reducing their spending. In some detention facilities, prisoners may not be working so they might do a sit-in. It all depends.”
Word spread through the efforts of JLS and the Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee within prison walls and among activists on the outside.
Prisoners released a list of 10 demands on the IWOC website that include, in part, updated prison policies, increased prisoner wages, more rehabilitation services and voting rights.
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“If the strike is widespread enough, it could be effective,” said Lea Johnson, Professor of Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law. “These circumstances like poor labor conditions, poor prison conditions, unpaid labor, and lack of access to mental health treatment exist seemingly behind closed doors. By going on a national strike, you pull back the curtain and it can force legislators to act.”
According to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, more than 2 million people are incarcerated in America. U.S. Census figures show that blacks are imprisoned at a rate of five times more than whites.
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