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Originally posted to It’s Going Down

Hey everyone! Welcome to the latest edition of Bloc Party.

Last week we discussed Black December extensively, and since then two actions have been claimed in North America: a banner in Minneapolis and a the slashing of a security company’s tire in Montreal. We’d like to republish part of the former communique because it resonates with what we say so often:

We would also like to call on anarchists in the United States and elsewhere if it applies to act for Black December. Too often calls such as the one for Black December go unheeded in the U.S., and become a spectator sport as we watch the riot porn roll in from far away places. The mantra that ‘nothing happens here’ is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Insurrection is always timely!

And don’t forget, after Black December, after the New Year’s Eve noise demos, there’s the January 22nd International Day of Solidarity with Trans Prisoners.

So let’s get to the bad news. Josh was sentenced to 8 years for allegedly lighting a QuikTrip on fire in Berkeley, MO last year after a police shooting there. There was an intense sentencing hearing which you can read about here. Anti-State STL provided the following update, encouraging comrades to write him letters:

Josh was transferred today to the Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Bonne Terre, Missouri. He will be held there for an undetermined amount of time before being transferred to a more long term facility. Josh has expressed that he would like to receive letters, so please take a moment to drop him a line to help him remember he’s not alone and to help him acclimate to his new surroundings. If you would like to donate to Josh’s commissary, please write to him and ask him to send you a deposit slip to send checks or money orders, or make an account at Access Corrections to send money electronically. Write to Josh: Josh Williams #1292002

E.R.D.C.C.

2727 Highway K

Bonne Terre, MO 63628 *As always, please remember that all incoming letters are read by prison staff. Never write to anyone in prison about anything illegal or potentially incriminating.

Federal charges are now being brought against Greg Butler, Jr. accused of slashing a fire hose during the Baltimore Uprising earlier this year. As militants from the past year and a half of rebellions face the state’s repressive fist, we must do our very best to support them along the way.

Mumia Abu-Jamal continued to fight in court for Hepatitis C treatment, although it looks like he has a long fight ahead of him.

Jared Chase of the NATO 3 had a court appearance earlier this month, and their trial has been postponed until April of the coming year. Brent Betterly wrote a report on the hearing which you can read here.

The Kansas City MO Anarchist Black Cross published a letter from long-term anarchist prisoner Casey Brezik, who writes about how he found anarchism:

Currently, I’m serving 12 years for a botched/failed assassination attempt on Governor Jay Nixon’s life. I’ll spare the details for my next post. For now, it’s only relevant that I’m serving 85% of those 12 years and will be eligible for parole in November 2020. Five years from now. Who am I though? I’m an anarchist who doesn’t believe in forcing one’s self on any other, neither physically or ideologically. I don’t believe in coercion as a means to get what you want, but I do believe in self-defense (again, I’ll explain my case in my next post). I’ve identified as an anarchist for 7 years now. I was “radicalized” during my first extended stay (9 days) in jail, where I finally began to open my eyes and became conscientious of the deceptions taking place around me. I still have a scar above my left eye, courtesy of Lt. Scott. (Read the rest here.)

The Which Side podcast recently interviewed Krow who was recently released after imprisoned for anti-mining actions. Listen to it here.

Immigrants in a Miami detention center are currently on hunger strike, who, according to the mainstream media, “expressed discontent with ICE and dissatisfaction with their immigration cases.” They joined immigrants in detention centers across several states who have started hunger strikes late last month.

Liberated Lens published a video about the sleep deprivation torture technique employed at Pelican Bay state prison in California.

On the other side of the country, prisons are using different techniques to torture inmates. Two letters just published by the Atlanta Anarchist Black Cross give an intimate look at the inside of Georgia prisons and the “TIER” program, which even drove an inmate to suicide: