Written in solidarity with the prisoners of Malawi who’s voices carry their stories beyond the walls that imprison them.
I heard the Malawi birds
they were bundled and stacked
buried so deep
but their voices reach so high
does their location
negate the warmth of their tears
we can learn so much from suffering
how long must our education persist
who will finally be the one
to rip the door off the cage
wings were meant to fly
not to die…
These walls
silent as the dark & lost
haunting as a ghost
these walls
will fucking crush us all
if we ever give up hope
these walls
steal inches by the hour
pressing down & smashing joy
these walls
will gladly break us all
if we ever give them the power
these walls
snap shots of decaying minds
cold and without mercy
block out the sun, in case it shines
shocks out the dark in case it’s night
these walls
will kill us all
if we dont have the will to bear it
I refuse to make a habit
of being oppressed or oppressive
to wear chains and pretend
they’re bracelets
nothing orange is stylish
these meals aren’t gifts
and these captors aren’t our pals
don’t give a fuck how their day is
or if they’re breathing
that pepper spray isn’t cologne
these beatings aren’t for show
the fire got put out in our cans
but the power is in our hands
till they rob the air we breathe
i’ll stand on the side of action
lessons learned today
mental weakness overcome today
will make a better me tomorrow
for refusing to be broken
and refusing to make a habit
of being oppressed
or of being oppressive
such will keep me free
no matter what they bring
As folks know, Eric’s mail is being censored and political letters and
literature are being rejected. It is important to keep the pressure on
CCA Leavenworth to stop censoring Eric’s mail.
According to Warden Isaac Johnston, it is up to the guards to use
discretion in deciding which groups can be labeled as hate groups and
have their correspondence rejected. This means that mailroom employees
can use their own political ideology to decide what mail to allow and
what to block.
Unfortunately, due to CCA being a for-profit contractor, they are not
held by the same rules as state and federal prisons. Yet there is a very
short list of regulations that CCA has to follow in regards to mail and
one is that both incoming and outgoing mail must be held for no longer
than 24 hours.
Since being incarcerated, Eric has had both incoming and outgoing mail
held for way longer than is dictated according to the “Performance-Based
Detention Standards.” On September 15th, for example, the mailroom gave
Eric a large batch of mail that had been held for well over 24 hours.
If you write Eric, you can help by taking action in the following ways:
1) When you get mail from Eric, please check both the date the letter
was written and the postmark on the letter. If there is more than a
24-hour difference, please email us at erickingsupportcrew(a)riseup.net
with either a photo or quick note of the date on the letter and the
postmark date. This can help Eric document these violations and allow
him to file grievances for them as they occur.
2) Next, please take a second to let the staff at CCA Leavenworth and
CCA corporate know that they are violating the “Performance-Based
Detention Standards.”
a. Warden Isaac Johnston: 913.680.6801
b. Assistant to the Warden: 913.680.6804
c. Mailroom (ask for the manager of the mailroom): 913.680.6808
d. Call CCA Corporate and let them know what CCA Leavenworth is up to:
1.800.624.2931
Feel free to leave a message if they do not answer. If you feel
comfortable and want to have a conversation, you can even leave a
call-back number.
In your message, state how long Eric’s outgoing letter was held before
being sent to you. Inform them that “Performance-Based Detention
Standard” number (G.3.5) says, “Excluding weekends and holidays or
emergency situations, incoming and outgoing letters are held for no more
than 24-hour hold.”
Help us tell CCA that we won’t stand for Eric’s incoming mail being
censored based on his political ideology or for him to be targeted by
his mail being held for more than 24 hours.
Lastly, we want to remind folks that Eric being pre-trial puts him in an
especially sensitive position. Any piece of literature he receives,
whether it is rejected or not, may be used against him come sentencing.
Love and Solidarity
EK Defense Committee
Urgent update regarding Eric King’s mail being rejected!
The CCA Leavenworth mailroom has been blocking some of Eric’s incoming mail, censoring publications for ridiculous reasons (or for no stated reason at all), and even blocking some of his outgoing mail.
Recently, a book about the Black Panthers was rejected because the prison evidently considers them a “hate group.” Around that same time, rightwing Christian literature with homophobic rhetoric made it through to another prisoner. Eric is clearly being targeted for his political beliefs and interests.
If you have been writing to Eric and have not heard back from him, it is very possible that he has not received your letters or you have not received his. The prison (and the state apparatus of which it is a part) is trying to isolate Eric from his supporters. We can’t let them do this.
Please help by:
* Writing Eric so many letters! Please flood the prison with mail/letters/cards/love. This can serve the dual purpose of overwhelming the prison mailroom and helping Eric remember that he’s not alone. Keep track of what you sent to Eric and when you sent it so you can check with him later or call the prison to inquire about why your mail was blocked.
You can write to him at:
Eric King
27090045
CCA Leavenworth
100 Highway Terrace
Leavenworth, KS 66048
* Checking the support site often. If this harassment continues, we will be taking other measures to ensure this censorship stops immediately. CCA has been sued in the past for censoring mail and violating prisoners’ constitutional rights, so they know as well as we do that what they’re doing is wrong.
Please spread the word and help put the spotlight on CCA’s draconian mailroom practices. Prisons greatly prefer to function outside the public eye where they can torture, abuse, neglect and isolate prisoners without consequences. Don’t let them get away with that this time. Send Eric a letter or card today!
For a world without cages!
Love and Solidarity,
EK Defense Committee
Living in open caskets
breaking down into fractions
if we’re animals
are these our zoos?
if god loves us
are jails the pews?
asleep but i’m awaken
hunger strikes me
the earth is shaken
time is my only consumption
living in broken societies
breaking down into surrogate families
i’m hungry
for anything
So first of all I would love to announce that our primary fundraiser goal has been met thanks to his amazing comrades! We are so excited overwhelmed by everyone’s solidarity be it donating to the fundraiser, making sure Eric stays connected by dropping him a letter or even by sending him a book. We will continue to be taking donations and also “selling” t-shirts on his fundraiser.
https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/0yoZc/ab/a4jVK6
We received an amazing zine that was beautifully put together and sent to us by Causerie Publishing. We wanted to share it with all of Eric’s supporters. Take a second to read it, pass it on, or print it out for tabling. It is a great collection of his poems and writings.
We do want to add that we had a little bit of outdated possible sentence info up and he is actually facing life. Luckily thanks to the group Supporting Vegans in the Prison Sytem Eric never had to go on the hunger strike!
art found here http://apiedimonte.deviantart.com/art/Jail-cell-1of-2-39677420
There’s no more bridges
roses, flowers or gardens
mutual friendship is foreign
a dream like a soft mattress
territorial beast w/out their homes
no take out, just shake downs
felt to be disowned
only madness to look forward to
calender days an abstract time away
by the time they’ve parted the gates
the whole world has changed
Hometown heroes forget we exist within morality
the person shooting up was once someone’s everything
cuddly kids call the president a primate, cause they hate his pigment
not racist if it’s politics just more social biggots
one pump of blood away from being a fleeting memory
once pump and pull away from an unwanted family
villains in our lives aren’t just symbols they’re existing
placing more importance on critical moments
instead of having joy in simply loving
rascal radicals ditching ethics and street battles
rather duplicate love w/bubble gum flavored capsules
loving all life in 8 hour segmants
then rushing off to the bathroom to get in line for seconds
as soon as the crash begins re-up or we’re all dead
every moment sober is a moment to forget
born with so much privilege we’ve forgotten how to live
all our positivity is wrapped with foil in the fridge
road splits to decency but we’ll never cross that bridge
can’t fight the state when our hands shake too much to make a fist
one more bump to get us going + we’ll swear life is bliss
creating all our drama so we created this
to be happy in this moment to recall what love is
Support Eric King T-Shirts are Here!
We’re excited to announce that the Eric King support t-shirts are in!
Show your solidarity by ordering one today! We’re asking for a $20
donation per shirt. All proceeds go to EK’s support, including
commissary and phone calls.
To order a shirt, donate online at https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/0yoZc
and then email us at erickingsupportcrew(A)riseup.net with your shirt
size (S, M, L, XL) and mailing address. You can also email us to get
a mailing address for donations by check or money order.
In other good news, EK is out of solitary confinement! He now has
greater access to recreation, is able to be social once more, and has
been reunited with a friend who is also serving time there. Send him a
letter or card to help him celebrate this change in his conditions and
to let him know he’s not forgotten!
Eric King
#27090045
CCA Leavenworth
100 Highway Terrace
Leavenworth, KS 66048
