In the past couple of weeks we have gotten a more complete picture of the severity of Xinachtli’s medical conditions and the state’s medical abuse. We have learned through newly obtained medical records that he is at a risk of cancer, given his sudden weight loss and lack of proper screening, that he previously suffered from a stroke, has a heart condition, at least one chronic irreversible neurological condition, a hernia, and more.
Xinachtli was NEVER informed of any of these medical issues by TDCJ medical staff. These revelations show us that it is even more critical for us to be pushing for and preparing for his immediate release.
On January 6, 2021, right-wing agitators gathered outside the New York State Capitol in support of the Stop the Steal rally in Washington DC. A handful of counter protesters spoke out against them and a melee broke out after a Proud Boy tased a Black man in the neck.
Alex Stokes was watching from the sidelines and ran to help others. Police did not intervene until the violence had ended, arresting three Black activists. Alex was charged with several felonies. The Proud Boys were not arrested at the scene.
Alex’s family and friends maintain that he was railroaded by the system. He was a journalist under a court-ordered gag-order for over a year. His previous work and experience with dangerous hate groups were inadmissible for his defense, but the prosecution picked apart his social media accounts and portrayed his actions as premeditated. He was found guilty on all charges and sentenced to 20 years in prison, despite the fact that no one died and neither of the victims received life-altering injuries.
Alexander Contompasis 22-B-5028 Upstate Correctional Facility Post Office Box 2001 Malone, New York 12953 Birthday: February 26
To help support Alex and his ongoing fight please consider buying a print of one of his drawings. They are people that have shook, influenced, and inspired Alex on his journey. We are looking to reach a goal of 3000 prints. Each will be numbered and then these editions will be closed.
Political Prisoner Marius Mason’s birthday is tomorrow, January 26th.
Marius Mason is an anarchist, environmental, animal rights activist as well as a loving parent, artist, poet, and musician, currently serving nearly 22 years in federal prison for acts of property damage carried out in defense of the planet.
You can write Marius at the address below. Please address the envelope to Marius’ state name and address the letter to ‘Marius’. He can not receive greeting cards.
Briefly, Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War (PP/POWs) are “those persons incarcerated as a result of political beliefs or actions consciously undertaken and intended to resist exploitation and oppression, and/or hasten the implementation of an egalitarian, sustainable, ethical, classless society, predicated on self-determination and maximization of all people’s freedom” (Bill Dunne).
Prior to being supported by the ABCF, each prisoner’s case is reviewed to determine whether they fit into the definition of Political Prisoners or Prisoner of War set forth by the Special International Tribunal on the Violation of Human Rights of Political Prisoners and Prisoners of War. Prisoners who fit this definition are then typically contacted to get permission to be placed on the following list of people we support in occupied Turtle Island. We also help admin a comprehensive international database of political prisoners.
Mumia Abu-Jamal is a Black revolutionary journalist imprisoned in the United States, a former member of the Black Panther Party, and one of the most internationally recognised figures in debates over justice.
Arrested in 1981, he was convicted of the murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner and sentenced to death after a trial widely criticised for serious procedural flaws and systemic racial bias. In 2001, a federal court overturned his death sentence due to irregularities in the sentencing process, and in 2011 prosecutors formally abandoned their pursuit of execution.
Abu-Jamal remains imprisoned under a life sentence without parole, despite ongoing calls from human rights groups for a new and fair trial. Amnesty International concluded that his trial failed to meet international standards of fairness, citing the exclusion of Black jurors, hostility from the presiding judge, and politically charged rhetoric used to secure the death sentence. For decades, Abu-Jamal has recorded political commentaries from prison through Prison Radio, challenging official narratives from the so-called War on Drugs to US foreign interventions.
His references to journalist Gary Webb and CIA involvement in drug trafficking point to the Iran-Contra scandal, where US officials secretly sold weapons to Iran and used the money to fund Contra forces fighting the Sandinista government in Nicaragua. Later investigations exposed allegations that individuals linked to the Contras trafficked cocaine into US cities, devastating Black and working-class communities. Today, global attention has returned to Venezuela, where the US has illegally assaulted the country and kidnapped President Nicolás Maduro under the false pretext of fighting narco-terrorism. Donald Trump has openly stated his desire to control Venezuela’s oil reserves, threatened its allies, dismissed international law, and revived the Monroe Doctrine to justify renewed US dominance across the Americas.
Write Mumia: Smart Communications/PA DOC Mumia Abu-Jamal #AM8335 SCI Mahanoy PO Box 33028 St Petersburg, FL 33733
One part of NYC ABC‘s every-other-week Political Prisoner Letter-Writing Dinners is presenting updates and announcements. These typically relate to PPs, POWs, or are especially relevant to folks in NYC. Since February 2011, we’ve been printing and mailing hard copies of the updates and announcements to about a dozen imprisoned comrades.
In April 2013, we expanded printing and mailing to include all U.S. held political prisoners and prisoners of war. As of September 2014, that work has diffused over several support crews, collectives, and individuals.
Joseph “Joe-Joe” Bowen is one of the many all-but-forgotten frontline soldiers in the liberation struggle. A native of Philadelphia, Joe-Joe was a young member of the “30th and Norris” street gang before his incarceration politicized him.
Released in 1971, his outside activism was cut short a week following his release when Joe-Joe was confronted by an officer of the notoriously brutal Philadelphia police department. The police officer was killed in the confrontation, and Bowen fled. After his capture and incarceration, Bowen became a Black Liberation Army combatant, defiant to authorities at every turn. In 1973, Joe-Joe and Philadelphia Five prisoner Fred “Muhammad” Burton assassinated Holmesberg prison’s warden and deputy warden as well as wounded the guard commander in retaliation for intense repression against Muslim prisoners in the facility.
In 1981, Bowen led a six-day standoff with authorities when he and six other captives took 39 hostages at Graterford Prison as a freedom attempt and protest of the prison conditions. Much of his time in prison has been spent in and out of control units, solitary confinement, and other means of isolating Joe-Joe from the general prison population.
He is legendary to many prisoners as a revolutionary. “I used to teach the brothers how to turn their rage into energy and understand their situations,” Bowen told the Philadelphia Inquirer in 1981. “I don’t threaten anybody. I don’t talk to pigs. I don’t drink anything I can’t see through and I don’t eat anything off a tray. When the time comes, I’ll be ready.”
Smart Communications/PA DOC Joe-Joe Bowen* #AM4272 SCI Fayette Post Office Box 33028 St Petersburg, Florida 33733 *Address envelope to Joseph Bowen.
Xinachtli has been temporarily moved to TDCJ’s Young medical facility, but he’s still experiencing medical neglect and suffering inside a cell without any working toilet or running water.
It’s up to us to keep up the pressure to meet his demands, primarily to restore his access to water and commissary. TDCJ has begged campaign organizers to stop the onslaught of call, so we must show them that there will be no rest and no peace for them until Xinachtli is FREE!
Sign up for a phone blast slot this week and check out our tips for calling Texas prisons.
