Early in the morning of May 12 an anonymously leaked audio recording of Tarek giving his statement at the sentencing hearing was made public and is now being circulated!

Tarek has been transferred again. Now he is in Manhattan at the MCC New York. We have no idea when he will be moved again. Chances are he will be placed in a federal prison, rather than these detention centers, very soon.

Background on the case: Criminalized for Doing the Right Thing [Chicago IMC] | If Tarek Mehanna is Guilty So Am I [commondreams.org] | Mehanna Verdict Compromises First Amendment, Undermines National Security [ACLU].

The event marked 40 years of solitary confinement for Herman Wallace and Albert Woodfox of the Angola 3, by exploring the expansion and overuse of solitary confinement, mobilizing support for the Amnesty International Petition to remove Wallace and Woodfox from solitary confinement (being hand delivered to LA Governor Bobby Jindal on Tuesday, April 17) and support for the California Hunger Strikers.

The video features solidarity photos from Philadelphia, where the first experiment in solitary confinement in the United States began.

Related: May 5 Launch of Campaign to free RUSSELL MAROON SHOATZ from Solitary Confinement | Call to End the Solitary Confinement Torture of Russell Maroon Shoatz

On March 13, 2012, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) unveiled its new “civil” detention center in Karnes County, Texas, located one hour southeast of San Antonio. By the end of the month the facility will hold male migrants who are either asylum-seekers or have been categorized as “low-risk.” Karnes County contracted with private prison giant the GEO Group to build this detention center, which sits upon 29 acres of land and has 608 beds, with the possibility to expand to 1200 beds. The detention center is heralded by ICE as a model facility that is demonstrative of its efforts to move towards “humane detention.” Despite its shiny exterior and the presence of volleyball courts and soccer fields, the GEO group’s troubled history and record of human rights violations within its facilities are cause for alarm. The promise of “humane detention” itself is an oxymoron that community members should challenge. A gilded cage is still a cage.

Last night a coalition of over sixty organizations and hundreds of individuals gathered to formally launch an ambitious campaign — to end mass incarceration in Pennsylvania. "Decarcerate PA" was initiated by ex-prisoners, prisoners families, and allies who are convinced that mass incarceration does far more harm than good.
Their 3-point platform outlines how state funds should be redirected from new prison and detention center construction into public schools, jobs and job training, critical safety net services, and non-punitive programs to address the root cause of violence. The coalition held an initial rally in August and plans another rally for April 5th.

A "Free Bradley Manning" protest was held in front of the county courthouse in Santa Cruz on February 23 to coincide with Manning's arraignment in military court in Maryland on charges stemming from the accusation that he provided thousands of classified defense department documents to Wikileaks. Approximately two dozen community members participated in the demonstration, which was located at the courthouse general assembly location of Occupy Santa Cruz on Water Street.

In a statement released before the demonstration, community members stated, "Bradley Manning's case should serve as a wake up call for everyone in the USA and, indeed, the world. As a Whistle blower/ Conscientious Objector - Manning allegedly gave information to Wikileaks about War Crimes committed by the USA in the names of the 99%. We must stand up for what is right! Manning has been tortured, denied due process, persecuted, and even deemed "guilty" before a trial by President Obama."

Read more and view photos | Related: Report Back From Bradley Manning’s Arraignment

Russell Maroon Shoatz (#AF-3855), a 68-year-old prisoner held at the State Correctional Institution (SCI) Greene in southwestern Pennsylvania, has been kept in solitary confinement for more than 21 years. The Human Rights Coalition is calling on supporters of Russell Maroon Shoats to join in a petition to have him released from these torturous conditions. HRC is joined this effort by the Center for Constitutional Rights and the National Lawyer's Guild.

"The primary focus is on Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (PA-DOC) Secretary John Wetzel," said Theresa Shoatz, Russell Maroon's daughter. "In 2011, the PA-DOC did an evaluation to release Maroon into general population, and the majority voted in favor. But Superintendent Folino voted no. The bottom line is had Superintendent Folino's voted yes, Maroon would have been transferred into population. We are putting pressure Secretary Wetzel to overturn superintendent Folino's vote." [Video Interview With Theresa Shoatz from Solitary Watch]

Related: An interview with Russell Maroon Shoats on Democracy, Matriarchy, Occupy Wall Street, and Food Security

On January 9, the general assembly at Occupy Oakland passed a resolution calling on occupies across the country to support a National Occupy Day in Support of Prisoners. In the following month, over a dozen communities across the nation followed in planning local prisoner solidarity demonstrations, including those in Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Columbus, Denver, Durham, New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Fresno, Portland, and Washington D.C.

On February 20, hundreds of demonstrators marched to San Quentin Prison where a rally was held in solidarity with the National Occupy Day in Support of Prisoners. San Quentin Prison is the first and oldest prison in the state of California, and the facility's death row is the largest in the country. In 2008, San Quentin held 637 male inmates on its death row, nearly twice as many as those held on the death rows in Florida and Texas.

More F20 Coverage: Washington, DC | Los Angeles & Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Related: Hielo en las Almas / Souls on Ice — Mumia's message to the Feb. 20th Occupy the Prisons Events | Atlanta Wants a Free Town: Pre-Valentine's Day Noise Demonstration 02.12.12

The 20th of February was a national day of action against the prison system and the "new Jim Crow." There were protests outside jails and prisons all over the US, plus protests and organizing inside some of these hellholes. In DC, Occupy DC and a number of community groups showed up ouside the DC Jail. Read More, Audio & Pics | Video

Saturday February 4, 2012 was an international day of solidarity for political prisoner Leonard Peltier. A call was put out for demonstrations in front of federal buildings world-wide. Such an event occurred here in Los Angeles in the proximity of the downtown Federal Building and was well-attended. Leonard Peltier, who has been wrongfully imprisoned for 35 years, has received little exposure in the mainstream media. (However, good documentaries have been made about him.)

"He's been in prison for over 30 years for a crime that he did not commit; his health is extremely bad," said Corine Fairbanks of AIM (American Indian Movement) Southern Cal, who was involved in two of the three events on February 4. "It was wonderful to see people going out of their way to participate in these events. I believe we definitely need to continue to educate people, especially young people, as to who Leonard Peltier is. I think there's a concentrated effort made by various governments for us to forget who he is. When I say educate, I'm saying that people need to be aware of not only who he is and the sacrifice he and his family have made being that he's a prisoner of war, but people also need to put more pressure on President Obama, put more pressure on the U.S. government for his release."

The charges against Peltier have been deemed illegitimate by Nelson Mandela, Mother Teresa, and many others. Peltier has received six Nobel Peace Prize nominations. His activism includes selling his painting, proceeds of which have benefited the Lakota people. Story and photos: International Day of Solidarity with Leonard Peltier: Clemency Now! by RP, photos by Isabel Avila

Related: Protecting Sacred Sites: The Kuruvungna Springs Tribe Thanks Secretary Salazar; Repricussions on Land Dispute

Another crowd of people showed up for a second week to oppose plans for expansion of the Champaign County jail. Several individuals spoke during public comment. Among them were:

Mikhail Lyubansky, who writes and teaches about restorative justice, said, "Jail is just one strategy, not the only one" to public safety and called on the County Board to look into alternatives to incarceration.

Peter Campbell of the GEO Solidarity Committee said, "To argue that we should expand a jail in order to treat prisoners better is perverse: any public official who makes this argument is trading on the lives of the most vulnerable in our community for their own political gain."

Chris Evans spoke about the history of the public safety quarter cent sales tax, passed by voters in 1998. The sales tax ought to be brough back to voters, he said.

SCI Mahanoy, February 2, 2012. Mumia Abu-Jamal celebrates his move off of death row with Heidi Boghosian and Professor Johanna Fernandez. This was Mumia's second contact visit in 30 years. His transfer to general population comes after a federal court ruled that instructions to jurors during his trial influenced them to choose death. A broad people's movement secured this victory, and it can now refocus on the goal of freedom. Join us on April 24, Mumia's birthday, as we Occupy the Justice Department in Washington, DC!

Related: Our Contact Visit With Mumia by Johanna Fernandez | Commentary by Mumia Abu-Jamal: "Why There is No Iran War on the Horizon"

From ThisCantBeHappening.Net: He’s out! Credit ‘people power’ for getting internationally known inmate Mumia Abu-Jamal sprung from his apparently punitive, seven-week placement in ‘The Hole.’ For the first time since receiving a controversial death sentence in 1982 for killing a Philadelphia policeman, the widely acclaimed author-activist finds himself in general population, a prison housing status far less restrictive than the solitary confinement of death row.

Pictured: Public pressure to release Mumia Abu-Jamal from the "Hole" trumped the pressure from those trying to keep torturing him (photo by Linn Washington)

More Coverage: Mumia Abu-Jamal Transferred to General Population, Following Global Campaign | Breaking: Mumia out of Solitary

From russellmaroonshoats.wordpress.com:

Interviewer: How would you define democracy?

Maroon: In it’s broadest sense – to me – democracy is the ability of the individual to exercise self-determination in the core areas of economics, education, entertainment, labor, law, politics, religion, sex, war and peace; taking under consideration the need to both support and guide children until they can responsibly exercise those things on their own... [Read More | Image from the National Jericho Movement]

Last week marked the tenth anniversary of foreign nationals being held at Guantanamo Bay, the US military base in Cuba. On the anniversary, activists organized the largest protest as of yet to demand its closing and and to bring attention to its human rights violations. Largest ever Gitmo protest demands Gitmo be CLOSED | Guantanamo Bay Turns Ten: Former Soldier Discusses the “Detention Camps” | In the Shadow of Indefinite Detention - Guantanamo Year 10.

Last month, following the Philadelphia DA's decision to not hold a new sentencing hearing, Mumia Abu-Jamal was transferred to SCI Mahanoy, in Frackville, PA, where he as since been held in "Administrative Custody." His present conditions are actually worse than they were on death row at SCI Greene. Please join us in our call for Mumia to be immediately transferred into general population.

For more information, please visit prisonradio.org and freemumia.com.

More Coverage: Sadism in the Cell by Linn Washington, Jr., Counterpunch | The Torture of Mumia Abu-Jamal Continues off Death Row by Hans Bennett, Prison Radio