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DECARCERATE PA!
WE
WILL NOT BE SILENCED
CONTINUED FROM FRONT
clear attempt to silence Mumia and other prisoners and formerly
incarcerated people from advocating for their human rights or
participating in movements for social change. The Silencing Act
allows victims, District Attorneys, and the Attorney General to
sue people who have been convicted of personal injury crimes
for speaking out publicly if it causes the victim of the crime
mental anguish. This law is so broadly written that seemingly
any statement, no matter how unrelated, could be construed as
causing mental anguish. And it can apply to any form of public
speech: from a commencement speech to an interview on the
radio to a letter to the editor.
We believe this legislation is not a genuine attempt to help victims, but a cynical move to stop people in prison from speaking
out against an unjust system. The bill was pushed forward by the
Fraternal Order of Police, passed by cowardly legislators more
interested in what is politically expedient than what is right, and
signed into law by an unpopular Governor hoping to mobilize
right-wing voters on Election Day. If this law is allowed to stand,
it will be a huge blow to the movement against mass incarceration. People behind the walls play a leading role in these struggles
and provide analysis, perspectives, and strategies that are essential to this work. Incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people
who speak publicly, write books, contribute to newspapers, or
testify about prison conditions run the risk of being criminalized
simply for sharing their ideas.
Already two lawsuits have been filed in Federal Court to try
and overturn this law on constitutional grounds. One of these
lawsuits, Abu Jamal et al v. Kane et al, was filed by the Abolitionist Law Center, the Amistad Law Project (featured later in this
newsletter) and others. The second lawsuit, filed by the ACLU,
is Prison Legal News et al v. Kane et al. Both legal teams have
filed preliminary injunctions to try and stop the law from being
implemented.
But the fight against this law wont just be waged in the courts.
We also want to send a clear message to Governor Wolf and
the state legislature: For years, politicians have rubber-stamped
repressive legislation like this without any fear for their jobs-but those days are over. Thats why on May 4th, we will stand
on the steps of the capitol and share the words of incarcerated
and formerly incarcerated people for twenty-four straight hours.
Through this public act of civil disobedience, we will defy the
Silencing Act and show that unjust legislation like this will never
hold our movement back. Well also highlight the profound contributions that people who have been and are imprisoned have
made to our culture, our literature, and our social movements.
Finally, we expect to bring nationwide attention to this issue as
we build momentum not just to repeal this law, but to dismantle
mass incarceration altogether.
The protest will begin at 11 AM on May 4th, 2015, and continue all
day and all night. We will read words from people inside Pennsylvanias prisons and hear speeches from formerly incarcerated
individuals who are also targets of this law. Well hear music and
watch plays by and about people in prison, and well read important works from history that could have been suppressed by laws
that silence prisoners: What if Martin Luther King, Jr. could not
have published his Letter from a Birmingham Jail? Or if Henry
David Thoreau had been sued for writing his essay on Civil Disobedience? Or if Angela Davis had been barred by a court order
from publishing her autobiography? When the sun rises on May
5th, well still be there. Well also make sure to visit our legislators while were in town and let them know how we feel about
legislation like the Silencing Act.
Our protest will make clear demands on our political leaders. To
the legislature, we say: Repeal this law! To our new Governor,
we say: Take a stand against this law by asking Attorney General
Kathleen Kane not to defend it in court! And last, but not least, to
the Department of Corrections, we say: Stop all forms of silencing prisoners! Allow the media full access to DOC prisons, stop
mail censorship, dont restrict peoples visitation rights, and cease
all retaliation against individuals who speak out in protest!
The Silencing Act is an especially heinous law, but its only one
of the many ways that the punishment system tries to silence
people. When prisoners are afraid to speak out for fear of retribution, when they must pay exorbitant fees to use the telephone,
or when their mail is censored and tampered with, the state is
working to silence people in prison. When politicians and TV
pundits demonize people who have convictions, they are saying
that people in prison have nothing to teach us. Through stigma,
steel bars, and outrageous legislation like the Silencing Act, the
punishment system tries to deny a voice to people in prison and
people with convictions. Our protest will demonstrate not only
that Pennsylvanias prisoners will not be silenced, but that we all
need to hear what you have to say.
Thats why we are asking for your contributions for this event.
We would like to read your words on the capitol steps and share
them through social media so the whole world can hear you. We
welcome your thoughts on the Silencing Act, your testimony
about Pennsylvanias prison system, and your vision for building strong, safe, healthy communities instead of prisons. Long or
short, funny or sad, poetry or prose--we want to hear from you,
and we would be honored by your participation. (If you submit a
piece to be read, please let us know whether you would like us to
share your name and/or the facility where youre incarcerated, or
if youd like to remain anonymous.)
The politicians who passed the Silencing Act are doomed to fail
because they do not understand that prison walls arent strong
enough to keep the truth locked away. The very fact that they
created this law is a sign that they are frightened of what people
in prison have to say. Together, inside and out, we all must raise
our voices against the rotten system of mass incarceration and
demand real change. From Ferguson to Philadelphia, resistance
is rising against mass incarceration, institutionalized racism, and
police brutality. Change is in the air, and no ones voices are more
critical to hear in this moment than those of incarcerated and
formerly incarcerated people. Our movement cant be contained
by walls or laws--and were going to make sure Harrisburg knows
it. We look forward to hearing from you.
ACTION
STEPS
1. Participate in the
We Will Not Be Silenced Protest:
Every issue of our newsletter we feature one of the many badass organizations that are part of our coalition. So far over 85 organizations have signed
our platform from large NGOs to street level social justice warriors - check
out whos with us at decarceratepa.info/platform !
ORGANIZATION HIGHLIGHT:
3. Send us artwork!
Nikki (ALP), Saleem, Ashley (ALP), and Brett (ALC) on a recent visit to SCI Greene
participating
individuals
to use their
phones, pens,
and all forms
of social media to draw further attention
to the indignities that our imprisoned
loved ones continue to suffer.
BLACK
LIVES MATTER
continued from front
head by a Philadelphia police officer during a traffic stop in the Mayfair section of
Northeast Philly. The PPD claims that the
officers did nothing wrong and has placed
the officers back on active duty, yet has
failed to produce a shred of evidence to
back up that claim. They have refused
requests from Brandons family, the media,
and the public that the names of the officers involved and surveillance video of
the incident be released. Decarcerate PA
is fighting alongside Brandons mother and
members of the Philly Coalition for REAL
Banner created by Lifers at SCI Graterford and carried by DePA members in MLK DARE March
3. A maximum sentencing law that will stop the commonwealth from indefinitely incarcerating individuals.
We are hoping to organize a broad base of people around these
demands, compelling a change in the political climate and forcing
This quarterly newsletter
is intended to be a tool
of communication and
information between
Decarcerate PA members
on the outside and people
inside of Pennsylvania
prisons.
WHO WE ARE
no prison expansions, no
new beds in county jails,
no immigrant detention
facilities, no private prisons.
We also demand changes
in policing, sentencing and
legislation to reduce the
Decarcerate PA is a
prison population. We
coalition of organizations
believe that public money
and individuals seeking an
should instead be spent on
end to mass incarceration
quality public schools, jobs
and the harms it brings
and job training, communityour many communities.
based reentry services,
Decarcerate PA seeks
health care and food access,
mechanisms to establish
and maintain whole, healthy drug and alcohol treatment
programs, stable housing,
communities and believes
that imprisonment exacer restorative forms of justice
and non-punitive programs
bates the problems we
face. We therefore demand that address the root cause
of violence in our communi
an immediate and lasting
ties. The task before us is as
moratorium on all new
large as it is necessary. With
prisons: no new prisons,
no new county or city jails, your help, we can put an end
to mass incarceration.
DECARCERATE PA
Box 40764
Philadelphia, PA 19107
decarceratepa@gmail.com
decarceratepa.info
(267) 217-3372