A Photo In Prison

by Safear In the era of social media, outdated technology is still a prisoners link to the world. Sometimes that means using a payphone in incremental limits. Other times it means posting a stamp on an envelope then waiting weeks to receive a response. Prisoners exist in the world pre-internet. Likewise, friends of prisoners quickly …

The Currency of Credibility

by Pierre Pinson and Safear Don't mistake elected and appointed officials as the only politicians. Politicians don't always dress in suits or roll in motorcades. Some dress in flannels and chant the latest revolutionary slogans. Unfortunately, there are many of them lurking in revolutionary movements. It's possible there may be a politician in your abolitionist …

The Interview

by komrade underground Versafire-- Words expire… Never! Would you die for the cause, or kill for the better? Defy all the laws, to keep a nation together? Fight for equal rights, So we can day see forever?! Or, would you bow to the man, When the waters get rough?  Forget ‘bout the plan, When the …

Prison Lives Matter: Journal in the Spirit of Nelson Mandela, Vol 1 Spring 2021

plm_1_7june2021-1Download In the Spring we helped our friends at PLM put out this zine to 800 imprisoned comrades. Here's a PDF for reading and distributing! -I https://abolitioniststudy.files.wordpress.com/2021/10/plm_1_7june2021-1.pdf

COVID

While the correctional guards' union is busy arguing that its members should not have to be vaccinated to work behind these walls, one of them has infected a prisoner here who was scheduled to be released. Because that prisoner was housed on my block, I and 46 other prisoners, all deemed high risk by the …

Meditation on Accountability

Abolition is truly a project that requires balance. It is a negative and positive project. It is presence and absence. Often, we lean one way to the detriment of the other way. Inside, we tend to focus on the dismantling, the negative aspect. We are captive in an oppressive system predicated upon anti-Blackness. We are …

Happening

We were in the small block yard. I was talking to another prisoner and suddenly remembered I needed to ask another prison a question. As I walked over to the circle of prisoners he was in, I noticed how animated two of them were. As I reached the circle, one of the two guys turned …

Dear Essex / 4.16.2021

Dear Essex, It is our birthday again. I am sitting here in this tomb of sorrow thinking about your weapons. Since I picked them up, I have been questioning whether I can carry the responsibility you shouldered. You told us that someone would have to answer the mail you leave, the messages on your phone …

In The Belly, Vol 3

Our third issue just reached comrades in PA, through their painfully slow book delivery system. That means we are posting it online now. Here are two PDFs, one is a reader and one is a Booklet, thanks to the comrades who made this beautiful booklet-making tool In The Belly 3, Reader: in-the-belly-vol-3-readerDownload https://abolitioniststudy.files.wordpress.com/2021/02/in-the-belly-vol-3-reader.pdf In The …

You Gotta Learn the History: an Interview with Michael “Safear” Ness

Michael “Safear” Ness is an imprisoned abolitionist organizer at SCI-Fayette in Pennsylvania. IA is an outside friend and comrade.  IA: When and how did you become an abolitionist in your thinking? And in your practice? Safear: I’ve been radical since before abolition was in my vocabulary. Meaning, I was always someone who wanted to understand …