[IMC] Political Prisoner Birthdays and Hunger Strike Solidarity Request

[ppbirthday at riseup.net]

Hello Friends and Comrades,

1) Here is the political prisoner birthday poster for June. As always,
please post this poster publicly and/or use it to start a card writing
night of your own.
https://prisonbookscollective.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/june2014.pdf

2) Seven prisoners at Polk CI in Butner, NC have started a hunger strike
to protest their conditions. According to prisoners in the facility,
additional men have been joining the strike since that first day. The
strike was initiated in part by prisoners who were transferred out of
Central Prison, following a class action lawsuit against the facility for
abuse by guards in various "blind spots" around Unit One. That lawsuit has
already forced the administration's hand in videotaping any cell
extractions by guards.  You can read their demands here:
 http://prisonbooks.info/2014/06/02/prisoner-hunger-strike-hits-polk-correctional

Please support these men by sending mail and making phone calls to:

Frank Perry, Secretary of the Division of Prisons
4201 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC  27699
or Call at
(919) 838-4000

3) June 11th is the international day of solidarity with Eric McDavid,
Marie Mason, and all long-term anarchist prisoners. There's still time to
organize something in your town. You can find more info on organizing an
event and what has happened in previous years here.
http://june11.org

4) You've undoubtedly heard about West Virginia’s water spill back in
January but there are probably some stories you haven’t heard. Inmates at
the South Central Regional Jail were forced to drink contaminated water,
given only between 1-3 8oz bottles of clean water per day, served food
cooked in contaminated water, threatened with medical isolation if they
went to the infirmary and punished with isolation when they demanded clean
water by doing a sit in.

At Stories From South Central West Virginia you can read the stories of
how the south central regional jail poisoned their inmates, dehydrated
them, threw them in solitary, punished them for seeking medical help,
denied their medical needs and have continued their oppression of these
inmates since the water spill in January in a multitude of ways. The
inmates are seeking long-term medical help and legal representation but
most imminently they want their stories heard. Please read the stories of
these inmates, friends and family members. Please spread this website and
get their stories out.
http://storiesfromsouthcentralwv.com

5) Sekou Kambui's’s long-delayed parole hearing has finally been scheduled
for the 18th of June! We are making one last push for letters of support,
petition signatures, and funds to get supporters down to Alabama for the
hearing. In the state of Alabama, parole hearings are held outside of the
prison, and prisoners cannot attend. Supporters, however, can pack these
hearings, and it would be of great help to Sekou to have vocal support
there.

Here is the link to an EverRibbon page set up by a fellow Sekou supporter
in Colorado.
://www.everribbon.com/ribbon/view/16973
And again, please continue to send in letters of support for Sekou’s
release, addressed to:

Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles
301 South Ripley Street
PO Box 302405
Montgomery, Al 36130-2405
Chairman Clifford Walker
Associate Members Robert P. Longshore and William W. Wynne Jr.

Please send copies (and/or originals) of all letters to:
Aaron Schaefer
C/O DABC
P.O. Box 11236
Denver, CO 80211

There is also an online petition for Sekou’s release, found here.
http://www.change.org/petitions/alabama-board-of-pardons-and-paroles-free-political-prisoner-sekou-cinque-t-m-kambui-aka-william-j-turk-113058a

More info and a letter template can be found here:
http://prisonbooks.info/2014/05/23/4800

6) We want to call your attention to an exciting new project that is in
the works by Political Prisoner Tom Manning. Tom, with the help of outside
supporters, is creating a book of his paintings. If you have not seen his
art, we highly recommend you check it out and show solidarity by helping
Tom finish and publish this work. The years of work to produce this
beautiful book and important document are nearing their end and your help
is needed to fund the last phase of production!

All proceeds, after production costs, will be donated to the Rosenberg
Fund for Children.
http://rfc.org
More info on the project and how to donate here:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/for-love-and-liberty

7) New "Prisons Are For Burning" T shirts are still Available. The shirts
come in red with black writing. They’re printed on Tultex brand shirts
that are 100% sweatshop free. They are $20 , but sign up to become a
Prison Books Sustainer and get one for free. To order the shirts donate
twenty dollars or more OR sign up to be a sustainer, then email us at
prisonbooks (at) gmail dot com with your size and the address where you
would like the shirt sent to.

Every single dollar received goes to mailing packages of books to
prisoners. We rely solely on donations for our operating expenses, which
primarily include the cost of postage for mailing packages. We are
currently spending over $200 a week on postage alone, and are in desperate
need of support.
https://www.everribbon.com/prisonbooks

8) Be sure to check out the latest Political Prisoner/Prisoner Of  War
every-other week updateby the  NYC-Anarchist Black Cross. There are lots
of important updates on many political prisoners.
http://nycabc.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/updates-27-may-20141.pdf

Until Every Cage Is Empty,

The Chapel Hill Prison Books Collective
http://prisonbooks.info