Submission
Figured we should mention some contributions we made toward our bingo card:
Money and letters were sent to some friends that are locked up, ran off with a couple of american flags, a couple more ring cameras were disposed of, helped a friend begin living inside a newly established squat, and a cart full of groceries was expropriated from the amazon overlords. I know that last one isn’t necessarily looting, but I’ve heard that another crew counted something to that effect. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
From Twitter
image description: banner over 95 reads
“No More Death By Incarceration
Free Bomani
FREE THEM ALL”
#bomanishakur #freethemall #freeourpeople #philadelphia #philly #abolitionist #deathbyincarceration #deathrow #freedomfighter #lucasvilleuprising #fttp
Submission
Who knew this anarchist would be so excited to stumble upon a luxury car?! The other night I took a walk to a rich part of town. There I went hunting for luxury vehicles, and punctured 1-4 tires on 13 cars. Tons of Mercedes, BMWS and a brand new Range Rover (heart eyes). Cover up, use an awl for quiet flattening, and make sure to scan the surrounding cars, as people like to hang out in their cars these days.
Until next time,
Bingo Baller
Submission
…fighting for their lives. Not just the ‘innocent’ or ‘vulnerable’. Until all prisons are empty and destroyed!
Submission
Did you know that school is mandatory in the United States of America? wtf right? School here has a really nasty history if you think colonialism totally sucks. That’s why two school police cars got their tires slashed and their windows scratched. Also an under construction condo had its windows scratched up and a doorbell camera was scratched up too. If you don’t have super sharp claws you can use a drill bit, compass, piece of flint, tungsten pen, or sandpaper to scratch glass and plastic. It’s more quiet than rocks and hammers.
Bingo Bandits
from Philly ABC
Support for political prisoners doesn’t stop during a pandemic; in fact it only intensifies as prisoners are in extremely dangerous conditions without the ability to socially distance or access to protective supplies. On top of that, staff members have been deliberately defying CDC guidelines endangering prisoners by coughing without covering their mouth, etc. Please join us this Monday April 27th for our monthly letter-writing event at 6:30pm. Due to COVID-19, this event will be held online using the secure open source video conferencing platform, Jitsi. Privacy is encouraged – no one is expected to share their camera. We’ll update this post with the meet link, and announce it on social media the day of the event.
This month we are writing to Joy Powell. Unfortunately, but not surprisingly, Joy has contracted COVID-19 inside Bedford Hills Prison. She is in quarantine, fighting the virus, but we are concerned because she has the underlying conditions of both asthma and diabetes. Prior to testing positive for the virus, she wrote a letter to Governor Cuomo asking him for clemency due to her age and preexisting conditions making her more vulnerable to complications.
Background:
As a pastor and a consistent activist against police brutality, violence and oppression in her community, Rev. Joy Powell was warned by the Rochester Police department that she was a target because of her speaking out against corruption. On many occasions Rev. Joy had held rallies and spoke out against the police brutality and “police justifications” in Rochester NY through her organization ‘Equality and Justice for All.’ Later, Rev. Joy was accused and convicted of 1st Degree Burglary and Assault and subjected to an unfair trial.
An all white jury tried her; the state provided no evidence and no eyewitnesses. Rev. Joy was not allowed to discuss her activism or say that she was a pastor. The person that testified for her was not allowed to tell the court that he knew Rev. Joy through their activist work and through the church. Furthermore, judge Francis Affronti promised he was going to give her a harsh sentence because he did not like her. She was sentenced to 16 years and seven years concurrent. After this conviction, herself and others were charged with a cold murder case. After her codefendent was acquitted, Joy was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. She maintains her innocence and has appealed the conviction because evidence has been withheld from her defense team to this day.
If you are unable to join us on Jitsi, please send Joy a letter anyways:
Rev. Joy Powell #07-g-0632
Bedford Hills Correctional Facility
P.O. Box 1000
Bedford Hills, NY 10507-2499
from It’s Going Down
On Friday 5/1, thousands of Philadelphians will participate in a rent strike, either in solidarity with other tenants or because they cannot afford to pay rent. Over 1.3 million Pennsylvanians have filed for unemployment, meaning 1 in 5 workers in the state are jobless. A recent study found that Pennsylvania’s unemployment trust fund will run out of money in 11 weeks, a timeline far shorter than most other states.
The Philadelphia Tenants Union has published an official call for a citywide rent strike to take place on May 1st. The guidelines for the strike are laid out in an official statement on their website. The guidelines include filling out a form so that the organization can connect tenants with each other who share the same landlord to draft collective demands for reduced or cancelled rents. If landlords refuse to provide relief for tenants who cannot pay, then that is when the tenants officially join the rent strike. It is imperative that the largest Real Estate Firms in Philadelphia – with the most political influence – feel the organized power of their tenants, and Philadelphia Tenants Union is working hard to build those unions.
The strike’s demands are directed towards Pa.’s Governor Tom Wolf, State Senators and State Representatives to:
Cancel rent and mortgage payments for 6 months, with no debt accrued.
Enforce rent and mortgage forgiveness for any missed payments dating back to March, 2020.
Demands are also directed towards Philadelphia’s Mayor Kenney and City Council members to:
Make all evictions, eviction filing, and foreclosures illegal for at least 6 months
Freeze rent rates at the current level for a year beyond the end of the crisis
Enforce comprehensive rent control
Take immediate action to provide housing for the houseless
Build city-funded public housing that will meet the city’s need
The Philadelphia Tenants Union will also be offering support in three forms. The first is with an “Emergency Anti-Eviction Task Force” that will use legislative methods and direct action to disrupt and prevent evictions. The second is a “Rent Strike Fund” which will provide monetary funds for legal support for collectives of tenants on strike. Thirdly, is “Organizing Support”, providing resources and guidance to tenants as they prepare for May 1st.
The Rent Strike is a preventative measure for combating displacement and potential homelessness in the city and state, and is a direct action to pressure state legislators to provide immediate assistance to the impending economic recession. The official statement and rent strike guide can be found on Philadelphia Tenants Union’s website.
Submission
Recently I gifted one OCF Realty van: four punctured tires…PLUS a bonus of two tires on a Comcast van.
Those spearheading gentrification make our lives increasingly unliveable, and will always be an enemy. Comcast has a contract with ICE; and they contribute to technological infrastructure and its web of surveillance, policing, ecological destruction and alienation. All things that continue to shape our daily lives into a suffocating prison of a world.
NOT being masked is suspicious these days, and I maintained 6ft of distance from another human the whole time! As what is ‘normal’ is changing rapidly, it’s important to think about how power will use our fear to keep us subdued. Shelter-in-place or not, are our lives really that free?
From It’s Going Down
[This post only contains information relevant to Philadelphia and the surrounding area, to read the entire articles follow the above links.]
Twitter researcher Thirteen Roses documented the presence of Philadelphia Proud Boys and Three Percenters in several Pennsylvania Facebook groups associated with the [anti-quarantine] protests, including a Philadelphia Police Department Officer related to Zach Rehl, a leader in the Philadelphia Proud Boys.
The Facebook pages for the Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine, Minnesotans Against Excessive Quarantine, and Ohioans Against Excessive Quarantine also appear to be run by the Dorr brothers, who have a history of direct mail fundraising for conservative causes – gun rights, the pro-life movement, etc. – and then funneling the money back to direct mail services owned by the brothers. The brothers also appear to own a series of domain names for “ReOpen” protests in seven different states.
In the past week, the far-Right has taken to a new tactic – public demonstrations against public health guidelines. As detailed above, the protests have often taken the form of blocking hospitals, which the far-Right believes is either responsible for new restrictions on gatherings, or else engaged in a massive conspiracy to restrict Constitutional freedoms.
While the classic Points of Unity long held by antifascist groups such as Anti-Racist Action demand that we confront the far-Right wherever they organize, we can’t ethically demand that our comrades gather to confront these rallies in-person. Any mass antifascist gathering would mean infection.
In the United States, the death rate of known cases hovers around 4.3%, but those numbers may be higher or lower, depending on access to medical care. Statistically, any mass gathering in sufficient numbers would mean that someone would die. Fascism has always been a death cult, and the public gatherings make that evident. The organizers of these protests – some true believers, some grifters – are more than happy to throw their followers on the corpse-fire of their quest for power.
But we can still disrupt their organizing. The protests center around social media pages, usually on Facebook. This week, we can disrupt far-Right organizing by mass reporting the Facebook pages spreading COVID-19 misinformation and putting our communities at risk by organizing live events.
Below is a list of the most active COVID-19 protest groups on Facebook, listed in alphabetical order by name of state. Find your state and report the groups active there, then share this list with friends and ask them to do the same. Though Facebook has yet to offer an official tool to report COVID-19 misinformation, the company’s VP of Integrity issued a blog post on Thursday, claiming that the company is tracking the potentially dangerous posts.
from Solecast
In today’s episode of the Solecast we have an in-depth discussion of anarchic black radicalism with comrades from Ram Philly & Afrofuturist Abolitionists of the Americas. Anarchic Black Radicalism draws on the history of Black Panthers, early abolitionists, Black Nationalism/Liberation Movements and more to synthesize a distinct form of black anarchism. We talk about how recent social movements have radicalized a new generation of black youth and how anarchist ideas have gained traction in their wake. We talk about the importance of centering trans and disabled people and what steps people of color can take to build their own spaces for organizing that aren’t centered around white activists. We go over about some of the theoretical bases that form their analysis and some of the writers and texts that have informed this direction.
For more information follow Afrofuturist Abolitionists of the Americas or Ram Philly .
Anarchy of Colored Girls Assembled a Riotous Manner
Between Infoshops and Insurrection
from It’s Going Down
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Welcome, to This Is America, April 18th, 2020.
In this episode, first we talk with people on rent strike in Philadelphia. We discuss how the rent strike came about, the process of getting organized, and so far, how the strike is going.
We then feature an interview from the folks at Perilous Chronicle with an inmate in ICE detention about their participation in a protest and hunger strike against the spread of COVID-19.
Finally, we switch to our discussion where we address Trump’s recent push to “re-open” the economy.
from Facebook
Register in advance for this meeting:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/vpQqfu-srz4ialODhzYKwGX2z8r7zFBKtw
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
We will be reading and discussing selected pieces by Bomani Shakur.
Background:
“In 1995, I was sentenced to death on charges related to the 1993 prison uprising at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility in Lucasville, Ohio, even though there was no physical or forensic evidence linking me to the murders that occurred during the uprising. In fact, prosecutors actually withheld critical evidence (confessions, indictments, etc.) in the case that could have proven that I was innocent of the charges brought against me.
I recently wrote a book titled, Condemned, that gives my account of what happened during and after the Lucasville Uprising: http://www.amazon.com/Condemned-whole-story-Keith-LaMar/dp/1483961710/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1390788087&sr=8-1&keywords=condemned%3A+the+whole+story
Here is a website that helps to explain my situation: http://keithlamar.org/”
[April 24 at 6:30 PM]
from Unicorn Riot
Philadelphia, PA – For the second time in a week, protesters have converged on city hall. They are demanding that Mayor Jim Kenney and judges in the First Judicial District move to immediately release prisoners from Philadelphia jails to avoid COVID–19 outbreaks. Several prisoners in the Philadelphia area have tested positive for the coronavirus.
Today, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that one Philly judicial official, Common Pleas Court Judge Marie Coyle, has denied every single request from inmates seeking to be released during the COVID–19 crisis.
On Friday, April 10, a similar protest saw people gathering outside city hall via their cars and bikes to demand Mayor Kenney and Philly judges speed up mass releases to prevent COVID–19 outbreaks in the city jails. See Unicorn Riot’s live coverage from Friday’s protest here.
After protesting at city hall, many protesters got back into their cars and took the caravan up State Road to Philadelphia’s House of Corrections, where they honked their horns to show solidarity with those locked up inside.
Protesters have also continued to gather lately outside the Riverside Correctional Facility, where several female prisoners have tested positive for coronavirus.
Documents show that Philadelphia judges apparently lied about their choices to delay assessing prisoners for release. On April 3, the First Judicial District claimed it had not received a list of inmates eligible for release, when Krasner’s office had in fact provided them with a list.
On March 13, a prison employee just outside outside Philadelphia in Delaware County tested positive for COVID–19.
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner has also called for the release of “thousands if not tens of thousands of people in prisons across Pennsylvania who frankly should not be there“. Krasner and the Pennsylvania ACLU have both petitioned the state’s Supreme Court “to exercise its authority to the fullest extent in order to reduce jail and prison populations to prevent COVID–19 outbreaks…”
According to Philadelphia Department of Prisons Commissioner Blanche Carney, “As of April 14, there are 54 current cases of COVID–19 among inmates.”
Pennsylvania prison officials last month refused to release Walter Ogrod, a death row inmate believed to be innocent, despite a court order for his release. The Department of Corrections is also refusing to test Ogrod for COVID–19, despite what his lawyers say are symptoms consistent with the coronavirus.
On April 8, a 67-year-old man from Philadelphia died from the coronavirus at SCI Phoenix, a state prison in Montgomery County. State prison officials declined to identify the name of the first loss of life to COVID–19 in their custody.
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has floated using his executive clemency powers to temporarily release large segments of the state’s prison population, although PA Republicans are pressuring him not to do so.
Unless officials move swiftly to release prisoners, many Philadelphians fear their loved ones could be next.
from Facebook
Wednesdays @ 7PM, cinéSPEAK hosts an online watch party, featuring incredible cinematic works from around the world to raise $ for organizations doing vital work in our region and beyond.
THIS WEEK: HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE (2016) –a brilliantly comedic coming-of-age x buddy adventure film from Kiwi writer-director Taika Waititi
**now streaming on Kanopy — see below for instructions**
THIS WEEK’S FEATURED ORG: Food Not Bombs Solidarity they ‘cook for, serve/share food, work with and support homeless or hungry people; save and use food that the capitalist system regards only as a commodity; food that would be otherwise discarded.’
—
LOGISTICS:
DATE: WEDNESDAY APRIL 15, 2020
ZOOM PARTY LIVE @ 7PM **must register to receive link**
FILM BEGINS @ 7:30PM
POST-FILM ZOOM HANG to-follow
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ADMISSION: FREE!
**As you’re able, PLEASE $UPPORT by DONATING directly to Food Not Bombs Solidarity–>
CashApp: $FNBSolidarity
PayPal: FNBSolidarity@protonmail.com
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TO PARTICIPATE:
You will need to:
1. Activate your Kanopy account–>
**FREE** with Philadelphia Free Library card https://freelibrary.kanopy.com
**Don’t have your physical library card? Look it up here–> https://catalog.freelibrary.org/MyResearch/ForgotCard
2. Decide how you will watch–>
**If you’re watching from your computer, follow this URL–> https://freelibrary.kanopy.com/video/hunt-wilderpeople-0
**If you’re watching on Apple tv, Roku, Amazon Fire Stick or other mobile device, search for and download the Kanopy app.
3. Register for the event–> via ticket link on this page
4. Grab your movie snacks/drinks + come hang!
We will:
1. Email the Zoom link to all registered guests @ 6:15PM
2. Start the Zoom party @ 7PM
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ABOUT THE FILM:
Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
Written & Directed by: Taika Waititi
Running Time: 1hr 41 min
A boy (Julian Dennison) and his foster father (Sam Neill) become the subjects of a manhunt after they get stranded in the New Zealand wilderness.
WATCH THE TRAILER HERE: www.youtube.com/watch?v=tICv8QH3oM0
**CONTENT WARNING: fatphobic humor, animal death (with graphic images of blood), grief around parental death and a joke with pedophilic innuendo
