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Tag: Texas

Austin Anarchist Black Cross: Solidarity With National Prison Strike (Audio Interview)
Activists hold a banner that reads "End Prison Slavery" while protesting at Texas Correctional Industries' showroom in south Austin, Texas in solidarity with the National Prison Strike. September 9, 2016. (Kit O'Connell)
September 13, 2016
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Austin Anarchist Black Cross: Solidarity With National Prison Strike (Audio Interview)

Posted in Austin, Journalism, and MintPress News

On Friday, I attended a small Austin protest held in solidarity with the national prison strike. This historic event was expected to take place at dozens of facilities around the country and potentially involve hundreds of inmates, and was scheduled to coincide with the 45th anniversary of the Attica Prison riots.

About 15 people protested in South Austin at the showroom of Texas Correctional Industries, a private corporation that sells products made through unpaid prison labor. Although prisoners are not paid for their work, which is mandatory, TCI brought in over $88 million in fiscal year 2014.

I interviewed an anonymous member of the Austin Anarchist Black Cross for my article in The Texas Observer on the protest but, as so often happens in journalism, great quotes get cut because you run out of space. Fortunately, I obtained permission to share the interview on SoundCloud.

Read moreAustin Anarchist Black Cross: Solidarity With National Prison Strike (Audio Interview)
Texas Activists Protest Modern-Day ‘Slavery’ in Prisons
A member of the Austin Anarchist Black Cross, wearing a bandanna on her face, reads the demands of striking prisoners over a bullhorn at the Texas Correctional Industries Showroom. September 9, 2016. (Kit O'Connell)
September 12, 2016
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Texas Activists Protest Modern-Day ‘Slavery’ in Prisons

Posted in Austin, Journalism, and The Texas Observer

While prison inmates launched a nationwide strike last Friday — the 45th anniversary of the Attica prison riots — a small but vocal group of activists gathered in Austin to support their cause.

Hundreds of inmates have joined the Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee(IWOC), a division of the Industrial Workers of the World union and a major motivator of the strike. Inmates at 40 facilities in 24 states were expected to take part, and some Texas prisoners have been engaging in work stoppages since April.

Prisoners say they want their work to count toward time off their sentences, improved living conditions in prisons, better access to attorneys during disputes, and an end to an annual $100 copay on medical services.

Read moreTexas Activists Protest Modern-Day ‘Slavery’ in Prisons
Court Orders Texas To Offer Arsenic-Free Water To Elderly Prisoners Amid Deadly Heat
File: Outside the walls of Huntsville prison. January 26, 2008. (Flickr / Mark)
July 5, 2016
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Court Orders Texas To Offer Arsenic-Free Water To Elderly Prisoners Amid Deadly Heat

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

As summer sun sends temperatures soaring across much of the country, a federal judge has ordered the Lone Star State to stop giving poisonous drinking water to some of its most vulnerable prisoners.

On June 21, U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison gave prison officials 15 days to replace the arsenic-laden water supply at the Wallace Pack Unit, a minimum security facility northwest of Houston that houses mostly elderly and chronically ill inmates. In his decision, Ellison said the tainted water “violates contemporary standards of decency.”

“The Texas Department of Criminal Justice plans to appeal the ruling, according to a spokesman,” The Houston Chronicle reported.

Read moreCourt Orders Texas To Offer Arsenic-Free Water To Elderly Prisoners Amid Deadly Heat
Inside The Fight To Protect Face-To-Face Visitation For Prisoners
In a cartoon image from "(In)securus Technology: An Assault on Prisoner Rights," a woman and child visit with a prisoner through a plexiglass window. (Grassroots Leadership)
May 24, 2016
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Inside The Fight To Protect Face-To-Face Visitation For Prisoners

Posted in Austin, Journalism, and The Establishment

When you’re behind bars, “there’s something psychologically uplifting about knowing someone is coming to visit you,” Jorge Renaud explained.

Renaud is an organizer with Grassroots Leadership and Texas Advocates for Justice who spoke with me by phone from Austin, Texas. He told me that unless you’ve been incarcerated, you can’t understand the emotional impact of a visit from a friend or loved one. His voice vibrated with emotion as he recalled those desperately needed visits, his tone expressing more than words could say.

This crucial connection with the outside world is endangered around the country, as more and more prisons and jails install video visitation systems. While the technology theoretically offers a new way to connect with prisoners—for those who can afford it—jails across the nation are also doing away with in-person visitation entirely, in favor of relying exclusively on these video visitations.

Read moreInside The Fight To Protect Face-To-Face Visitation For Prisoners
Social Media Ban Could Curb Free Speech Behind Bars
Outside the walls of Huntsville prison. January 26, 2008. (Flickr / Mark)
April 20, 2016
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Social Media Ban Could Curb Free Speech Behind Bars

Posted in Journalism, and The Texas Observer

Prison reform activists are concerned that a new state social media policy could be used to infringe on the free speech rights of both incarcerated people and and those who support them by sharing their stories, thoughts and experiences online.

According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice’s (TDCJ) “Offender Orientation Manual,” updated in early April, “Offenders are prohibited from maintaining active social media accounts for the purposes of soliciting, updating, or engaging others, through a third party or otherwise.”

Under the updated manual, prisoners can be penalized for infractions in a number of ways, including by receiving extra work duties or being confined to their cells.

Read moreSocial Media Ban Could Curb Free Speech Behind Bars
Push Your Politicians: A Few More Words From Wendy Davis (SXSW)
Wendy holds a microphone while speaking at a NARAL event on Aug. 15, 2013. (Flickr / Al Garman)
March 24, 2016
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Push Your Politicians: A Few More Words From Wendy Davis (SXSW)

Posted in Journalism, and SXSW

“There shouldn’t be tension between the party and the needs of people. That’s what party is supposed to represent. I think people are more than within their rights push their politicians even if it makes them uncomfortable, to do their jobs and to not shy away from protecting women’s access to abortions, among a host of other issues as well.” — Wendy Davis

Read morePush Your Politicians: A Few More Words From Wendy Davis (SXSW)