The Quixote Center is one of over 300 organizations that has endorsed the demands of prisoners around the country who are engaged in various forms of protests that began last week and runs through September 9th.
It is difficult to get confirmation of actions that take place inside prisons, but today’s update from Jailhouse Lawyers Speak included the following items that were confirmed from the last few days:
- 200 ICE detainees at NWDC, Tacoma WA initiate hunger strike and work stoppage
- David Easley and James Ward are on hunger strike in Toledo CI, OH
- 100 prisoners organized rally, displaying banners on the yard at Hyde Correctional Institution
- Work stoppage of all prisoners, except 12-15 prisoners from the “privilege unit,” in McCormick CI, S.Carolina
- ~100 prisoners rallied in yard with banners “Parole,” “Better Food,” “In Solidarity” in North Carolina
- Palestinian political prisoners issued statement of solidarity from their prisons in occupied Palestine
- Revolutionary artist Heriberto Sharky Garcia declares hunger strike at Folsom Prison in Represa, California
- Non-violent protesters at Burnside Jail in Halifax, CA publish their demands in solidarity
There are a number of different ways to get involved, You can review the Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee webpage for more details. Specific items include.
- Call for Labor Day Solidarity
- Phone Zap Prisons
- Write Letters to Prisoners Facing Retaliation
- Donate to the strike fund
- Endorse the Strike
The strike has received a significant amount of press - to review articles you can check out Jailhouse Lawyers Speak here. A few examples:
Democracy Now!- From Attica to South Carolina: Heather Ann Thompson on the Roots of the Nationwide Prison Strike.
The Guardian- US inmates stage nationwide prison labor strike over ‘modern slavery’
BBC- US inmates nationwide strike to protest ‘modern slavery’
The Washington Post- Inmates across the U.S. are staging a prison strike over ‘modern-day slavery’
NPR- Inmates Plan To Hold Weeks-Long Strike At Prisons Across U.S.