Revolution #264, April 1, 2012
Raising The Fight To Stop Mass Incarceration To A New Level: National Day of Action on April 19, 2012
A statement issued by activists and others, Raising The Fight To Stop Mass Incarceration To A New Level calls out the reality: “More than 2.4 million people, most of them Black or Latino, remain warehoused in prisons across the country; Black and Latino youth are treated like criminals by the police and the criminal justice system, guilty until proven innocent, if they can survive their encounters with police to prove their innocence; former prisoners wear badges of shame and dishonor even after they serve their sentences—discriminated against when applying for jobs, denied access to government assistance, not allowed in public housing, denied the right to vote.” (See the statement, “RAISING THE FIGHT TO STOP MASS INCARCERATION TO A NEW LEVEL.”)
That statement calls for “demonstrations, rallies, teach-ins, and other actions … focusing on bringing out the reality of mass incarceration and calling on people to join the resistance to it in cities across the U.S.”
Convergence 4 p.m. One Police Plaza, NYC. March 5:30 p.m. to Union Square. Watch revcom.us for demonstrations in other cities.
Organizers of the actions around mass incarceration on April 19 told Revolution that plans include outreach to faith-based institutions to have lectures and sermons around Bear Witness, where young people and others from oppressed communities will share their stories and experiences about being confronted the police stop-and-frisk encounters.
There will be high school teach-ins, hoodie days, and planned walkouts. There will be Tumblr and YouTube channels created to document Bear Witness stories. These are ideas that will be implemented.
Revolution newspaper urges all the people who are outraged by the murder of Trayvon Martin and have been out in the streets in protest to also join in the April 19 National Day of Action.
For more information contact: stopmassincarceration@ymail.com
P.O. Box 941 Knickerbocker Station,
New York, New York 10002
866-841-9139 x2670
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