Political Prisoners and Prison Rebel Birthdays for November

  • November 6, 2020 1:12 am

from It’s Going Down

[This post only contains information relevant to Philadelphia and the surrounding area, to read the entire article follow the above link.]

Inspired by the spirit of the Political Prisoners Birthday crew, here’s a short listing of some rebel prisoners who have upcoming birthdays in November. For an an introduction on how to write to prisoners and some things to do and not to do, go here. If you have the time, please also check IWOC’s listing of prisoners facing retaliation for prison strike-related organizing.

Congratulations to Jalil Muntaqim and David Campbell, who were both finally released in October. You can donate to David’s post-release fund here. Wishing a happy birthday to former antifascist prisoner Jock Palfreeman, who was released from the Bulgarian prison system over a year ago but is still barred from leaving the country and going home. November 1st marks the first anniversary of antifascist prisoner Gage Halupowski’s incarceration, so Portland ABC are suggesting people write to him to keep his spirits up, and Trans Day of Remembrance is on November 2020, so you may want to do something for that, which could include showing solidarity with trans prisoners.

Everyone should support the defendants facing charges related to their alleged participation in the George Floyd uprising – this list of our imprisoned comrades needs to be getting shorter, not longer. The status of pre-trial defendants changes frequently, but to the best of my knowledge they currently include:

Lore-Elisabeth Blumenthal #70002-066
FDC Philadelphia
P.O. Box 562
Philadelphia, PA 19105

David Elmakayes #77782-066
FDC Philadelphia,
PO Box 562,
Philadelphia, PA 19105

Shawn Collins #69989-066
FDC Philadelphia,
PO Box 562,
Philadelphia, PA 19105

Steven Pennycooke #69988-066
FDC Philadelphia,
PO Box 562,
Philadelphia, PA 19105

Please do not write anything to pre-trial defendants that could in any way have a negative impact on their trial, and keep an eye out for changes in their status.

You may also wish to check out the fundraiser for Trey Quinn, a defendant facing heavy charges in Colorado. Beyond that, if you have any money to spare, consider checking out Eric King’s defence fund, or the Fire Ant shirts being sold as a fundraiser for him, the ongoing fundraiser for Sundiata Acoli’s parole bid, Greg Curry’s fundraiser masks, and the fundraiser for the Bay View, a vital piece of prison movement infrastructure that also serves as Comrade Malik’s welcome home fund.

Much as I hate to see even more of our lives and communications being enclosed by tech companies, it seems inescapable at the moment, so for anyone who doesn’t want to leave their house to buy stamps/cards/envelopes or to send mail, a reminder that many prisoners can be contacted electronically, via Jpay or similar services.

Dwayne Staats

One of the two Vaughn 17 defendants to be convicted for taking part in the Vaughn prison uprising of early 2017. Dwayne and his co-defendant Jarreau “Ruk” Ayers bravely admitted to their own parts in the uprising, and then, free to testify openly without fear of incriminating themselves any further, tore holes in the prosecution’s attempts to convict anyone else – as he put it, “we’d accept being stabbed in the chest to present others from getting stabbed in the back”. To learn more about Dwayne in his own words, you can read his account of the whole case here, check his writings on the Vaughn 17 site, his recent letter to the Kentucky Attorney General, or his contribution to the Vaughn zine, “Live from the Trenches”.

Pennsylvania uses Connect Network/GTL, so you can contact him online by going to connectnetwork.com, selecting “Add a facility”, choosing “State: Pennsylvania, Facility: Pennsylvania Department of Corrections”, going into the “messaging” service, and then adding him as a contact by searching his name or “NT0000”.

Birthday: November 10

Address:

Smart Communications/PADOC
Dwayne Staats, NT0000
SCI Albion
PO Box 33028
St Petersburg, FL 33733

Anarchists prisoned in Belarus

  • November 6, 2020 1:11 am

Submission

Hello, dear comrades!

Anarchists Dmitry Dubovsky, Igor Olinevich, Sergei Romanov and Dmitry Rezanovich were detained at the Belarusian border. Firearms, ammunition, grenades and pepper spray were found in their belongings. Everyone is accused of art. 289 (terrorism) and art. 295 (illegal arms trafficking) of the Criminal Code. The punishment under article 289 is up to the death penalty.

Now everybody is in a KGB jail in Minsk. They are accused of attacks on regime facilities in Soligorsk and Mozyr.

You can support them financially via ABC-Belarus – https://abc-belarus.org/?page_id=8661&lang=en

You can write letters of support via our online form – https://abc-belarus.org/?page_id=8682&lang=en

____________________________________________________________________________________

What’s happened?

On October 22 in Soligorsk (Belarus) administrative building of State committee of forensic examination was attacked and cars were set on fire at the parking lot of Soligorsk district prosecutor’s office. On the night of October 28 the building of traffic police department of Mozyr district police department was set on fire. Soon a group of anarchists-revolutionaries: Ihar Alinevich, Dmitry Dubovsky, Dmitry Rezanovich and Sergey Romanov were detained by a mobile group of Mozyr border detachment near the Ukrainian border in Zabozye village of Yelsky raion (Belarus). The detainees are currently held in a KGB remand prison in Minsk. They were charged under part 3 of article 289 of the Criminal Code (act of terrorism committed by an organized group).

Anarchist Revolutionaries

Each of the detainees had been an opponent of the fascist state for many years and had regularly experienced its repressions.

Ihar Alinevich – an anarchist from Minsk, former political prisoner of the Belarus regime. In November 2010 he was captured by the special services in Moscow and in May 2011 was sentenced to 8 years in a reinforced regime colony under Art. 218.3 (intentional destruction of property) and Art. 339.2 (hooliganism by a group of persons). He was pardoned by presidential decree on 22 August 2015. In prison he wrote a book “Going to Magadan”, which was translated into several languages. In 2013, the book was awarded by Belarus PEN Centre with the Frantishk Alekhnovich Award for the best work written in prison. In 2016 Ihar was awarded the Victor Ivashkevich Prize. After his release, Ihar lived abroad and participated in the anarchist movement.

Dzmitry Dubouvski – an anarchist from Soligorsk. In 2010, he was put on the wanted list in connection with the “case of Belarus anarchists. In November of the same year, Dubovsky managed to escape in Moscow when the FSB tried to detain him and Ihar. For 10 years, Dima was hiding in Russia and Ukraine, published diaries of his travels and participated in the anarchist movement.

Dzmitry Rezanovich is an anarchist from Gomel. He was detained on March 16, 2014 after crossing the Ukrainian-Russian border in Kursk. He had his brother’s documents with him. He was detained on suspicion of committing sabotage on Russian territory. The FSB failed to find sufficient evidence for this version and opened a criminal case under Article 332 part 1 of the Russian Criminal Code (crossing the state border of the Russian Federation without valid documents for the right to enter the Russian Federation). He was kept in a deportation center in Kursk region. On July 3 the court ordered to deport Dmitry from Russia and also sentenced him to pay a fine in the amount of 15,000 roubles. On 25 July Dmitry was deported to Belarus. He remained an active participant in the anarchist movement.

Sergey Romanov is an anarchist from Gomel. In 2013 he was sentenced to two years in prison with a suspended sentence for keeping 14 grams of gunpowder at home. (Article 295.2 of the Criminal Code). In 2014 he was sentenced to 6 years in prison, after complaints they reduced the sentence to five years. (Art. 295.3 of the Criminal Code). He was released in July 2019 and was sentenced to preventive surveillance restrictions, such as a ban to leave the city and change his place of residence, a ban to visit bars, restaurants, stores and other places where they sell alcohol, a ban to leave the place of residence between 22:00 and 6:00 without a valid reason, the obligation to visit the inspection once a week.

All the four are mature individuals with strong moral principles and well-established views. Each of them is a convinced anarchist, each of them is an idea-oriented and worthy person. Each of them is a fighter for a new, free Belarus, where there is no place for brutality of police and paramilitary units and other law enforcement agencies, where there is no place for violation of freedom in all its manifestations.

Report from a march into University City

  • November 5, 2020 1:43 am

Submission

Here’s a report back on one march that took place Monday, October 26. This march didn’t get much attention so I want to share my experience of it because it pushed the envelope in terms of what a medium sized group of people can accomplish. This report back is a snapshot of one moment that night, so much more happened that night and the next one, and there are so many things worth discussing that I don’t touch on. Hopefully this is only one of many reports and conversations on the Walter Wallace Jr uprising.

A buzz of the phone let me know that the police had shot a man in West Philly. Then word spread that the man who had been shot had died at the hospital, and that unsurprisingly he was black. A call was circulating for a demonstration at Malcolm X Park.

A group of a couple hundred of us marched out of the park toward the 18th Precinct where the cops who killed the man were from. Multiple approaches to the building were foiled by barricades and cops with helmets and riot shields lined up behind them. After a few attempts at getting to the building we turned around and went east instead, back toward the park. Photographers’ and journalists’ cameras were blocked as we went toward 52nd St. Once we were one 52nd St a few people tried to throw rocks at an unmarked police car ahead of the march, were told off, and after a strikingly short conversation had convinced their critics, some of whom joined them and also proved to have better aim.

We stopped at the corner of the park and some people began to tell a camera person to stop filming. As they left a news van parked at the corner was vandalized, sides tagged, tires pierced, and the windshield smashed. The marching was buzzing and joyful as people chanted “what did you see? I didn’t see shit!” People discussed and quickly decided to head towards the police stations in University City where they would likely be less guarded. On the way people learned the man who had been killed was named Walter Wallace and we shouted it, and it was written upon available walls alongside anti-police graffiti.

With only a couple blocks between us and the police stations the march stopped and a heated argument ensued. The argument was between some people who felt the march should be going toward the unguarded University City precincts and some people who wanted the march to return to the 18th Precinct to support the family of Walter Wallace Jr. The argument was unnecessarily heated, the two approaches — support and attack — are both important, it’s a strength that we can find more than one way to confront the situation. The argument split the march; some headed back West towards the 18th Precinct while others continued to the University City ones. I was with the latter march.

University City is policed by the Philly Police Department, Drexel Police, the University of Pennsylvania Police, and University City District Safety Ambassadors. As we approached the back of the UPenn police station a line of maybe four cops blocked the street with bicycles. We took the sidewalk, went around them, and people smashed and tagged the back of the building. At the end of the block we turned north onto 40th where a UPenn police car sat idling, as we passed it someone smashed some of its windows before it drove away. Turning another corner east onto Chestnut St we found ourselves with almost no cops around in front of a PPD substation and the UCD office, both of which lost most of their windows. Having visited the police stations like we’d wanted, we decided to head back toward the 18th Precinct to see what was happening there. The march back was unusually calm considering what had just happened. We had police cars and a police bus following us that we kept at bay by repeatedly barricading the street with dumpsters and other materials. We made it to the 18th Precinct with no arrests and joined the larger crowd there.

It’s still unbelievable to me that a group of people that wasn’t that big was able to attack two police stations and the UCD office, while the police were there, and walk away! It sets a new precedent for what is possible.

RIP Walter Wallace Jr
Much love to everyone who took their rage and sorrow into the street
Freedom for everyone arrested during the uprising
Forever fuck the police

banner drop!

  • November 5, 2020 1:33 am

from Instagram

banner drop! #everybodyout #election2020 #electionrebellion

Thomas J. Louden, Bucks County Civilian Defense Force Militia Leader of Pekasie, PA

  • November 3, 2020 1:31 am

from It’s Going Down

AntiFash Gordon has identified Thomas Louden, a volunteer firefighter and director of managed care at Jefferson Health in Philadelphia. He also serves as Batallion Chief of the Sellersville Fire Department and Deputy Emergency Management Coordinator of Hilltown Township, Pennsylvania. This summer, Louden posted about looking to join a militia and hinted that the right should be prepared to violently defend itself from socialists. By September he was head of the Bucks County Civillian Defense Force Militia, posting about recruiting a sniper. Since then, his violent rhetoric has only escalated and he frequently encourages armed responses to leftist activity. Louden is heavily armed, trains multiple times a week, and should be considered a danger to the community. See the full thread below:

from Twitter

Meet Thomas J. Louden of Pekasie, PA.

He’s a volunteer firefighter and Director of Managed Care at @TJUHospital in Philadelphia.

But as “Fireeagle,” he’s the head of the Bucks County Civilian Defense Force militia, and spreads violent, racist, and antisemtic conspiracies. ImageImageImageImage

He’s also the Battalion Chief of the @SellersvilleFd and the Deputy Emergency Management Coordinator of Hilltown Township, Pennsylvania.

You can email them at info@hilltown.org. Image

He’s also becoming increasingly radicalized in response to the upcoming election.

On June 30 of this year, he started looking for a militia to join, and hinting that he wants to kill anti-racist protesters. ImageImage

By August 28, he was openly calling for the murder of Black Lives Matter activists.

By September, he was talking about “cannon fodder” and “those behind the scenes” who “really need to be stopped,” and invoking the antisemitic “Soros” conspiracy theory. ImageImageImage

And simultaneously, he became the head of a newly formed unit of the Civilian Defense Force, a far-right militia, where he goes by “Commander Fireeagle.” ImageImage
And just days later, he began attempting to recruit a sniper for his militia. Image
This was right around when he stopped using his real name on the militia forum he joined.

Btw, those links are live and resolve to the profile of “Fireeagle.” Image

In June, he was trying to convince the other members of his militia forum that an armed response was needed to a satirical announcement of an antifa-sponsored flag burning. ImageImage
He’s also increasingly active on the Civilian Defense Force forums, where he’s adding contacts at an alarming rate. ImageImage
He’s been training to act on his violent fantasies, too.

He claims to be “hitting the range 4 times a week and flying at least 100 rounds each session.” Image

And he’s well-stocked on guns, too.

He claims to concealed carry a Sig Sauer P320x, and keeps a Beretta 92F at the ready. He also owns an Armalite AR, but doesn’t specify which kind. (Pictured is an Armalite AR-10.) ImageImageImageImage

So how’d we find his real identity?

On the Civilian Defense Force forums, he notes that he’s in Bucks County, PA, and that he’s a volunteer firefighter. And the Deputy EMC for his township.

But that still doesn’t tell us *which* town he lives in. Image

A quick Google search of “fireeagle” and “Pennsylvania” brought me to a Corvette stingray forum, where a user with that screen name (who also claimed to be a volunteer firefighter) posted a picture with a house number visible, but no town. Image
On the same forum, a picture of his car won the December 2019 photo contest.

Do you see what I saw? Image

Hacker voice: Computer, enhance.

We see a sign for a cross street. The top sign is illegible, but the bottom reads “VICTORIA LN.” Image

So I went to the Bucks County property records site, to see exactly how many Victoria Lanes there were in the district.

Three towns have a Victoria Lane– Chalfont, Levittown, and Perkasie.

A quick look on showed me the Victoria Lanes, so I checked for any intersecting streets that have the same number referenced in the photo from tweet 13 in this thread.

(I can’t give it out on Twitter– that’s a violation of Twitter’s policies.)

I compared the photo he posted with the Google Street View image of the house matching that number.

Huh.

Same garage, outdoor lighting, porch pillars, and bush. ImageImage

So then I checked the property records and saw that it’s owned by a Thomas J. Louden of Pekasie, Pennsylvania, and his wife.
On his militia forum, “Fireeagle” gives his location as Hilltown Township, PA, just five miles from Perkasie, PA.

(The latitude/longitude is not his home, just the location of the town center.) Image

And remember, he introduced himself as the “Deputy EMC for my township for over 15 years.” Image
On his LinkedIn profile, he kindly lists that he’s the Deputy Emergency Management Coordinator for Hilltown Township, PA. ImageImage
Anyway, @TJUHospital, your Director of Managed Care, Thomas Louden, is leading a far-right militia chapter and spreading rumors about “ANTIFA” who had been “trained by radical Islam” who planned on “killing as many Trump supporters and whites as possible!!” Image
Maybe I shouldn’t be surprised that @TJUHospital has the leader of a far-right militia working as their Director of Managed Care, given that they tried to deport one of their own patients, as @aurabogado reported in June.

So @TJUHospital, think about whether or not you want to have a heavily armed wingnut like Thomas J. Louden, aka “Commander Fireeagle” of the Citizens Defense Force in your offices, as he’s recruiting snipers for his militia.

Police Departments in Philadelphia

  • November 2, 2020 1:14 am

Submission

Guerrilla Mail no longer working to send content

  • November 2, 2020 1:06 am

It has come to our attention that Guerrilla Mail no longer sends email to Riseup email addresses. If you have sent us content via Guerrilla Mail recently please send it again via another email service or through the comment section on our Contact & Submissions page.

Tempr.email is a similar service that currently works with our email setup. Any email service that does not require verified personal information can be used to create a temporary or throwaway email account.

Sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused.

-Philly Anti-Capitalist

Federal Agents Arrest Outspoken Philadelphia Activist Amid Rising Repression of the Black Lives Matter Movement

  • October 30, 2020 1:17 am

from Instagram

No image description available.No image description available.No image description available.
For Immediate Release
***Contact Info***
Phone: 267-566-7671
Email: phillyforrealjustice@gmail.com
Facebook: PhillyforREALjustice
Twitter: @PHLRealJustice
Federal Agents Arrest Outspoken Philadelphia Activist Amid Rising Repression of the Black Lives Matter Movement
Philadelphia, PA (October 28, 2020)Early Wednesday morning, federal agents raided the West Philadelphia home of Anthony Smith, an outspoken community activist and a leader in the movement for Black lives in Philadelphia. Smith, 29, was arrested and is being held on multiple Federal charges several hours away from his home at the Allenwood Jail as he and his community struggle to pull together his legal defense. Smith’s arrest comes after nights of community uprising in West Philadelphia after the police killing of Walter Wallace Jr. There have yet to be any charges brought against the officers involved in the shooting and as of yet the community has not even been told the names of the officers.

“After two nights of mass arrests and police brutality against community members calling for justice for Walter Wallace, seeing Federal charges brought against a movement leader like Anthony is sickening,” said longtime friend James Miles. “All this makes you wonder, ‘Is the Federal government arresting and charging movement leaders to try to scare the rest of us?”

Anthony Smith has been the victim of police brutality on multiple occasions throughout his life. His first encounter with police violence was being stopped and frisked by Philadelphia Police officers at the age of 10. Over the years, as he became more outspoken about the injustices Black people face at the hands of police, he has become an explicit target at protests. Earlier this summer, Smith was arrested while peacefully protesting in West Philadelphia in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd. He was held without charges and threatened with violence from the police before being released hours later and forced to walk 3 hours home in the middle of the night.

“We’re tired of Black Philadelphians being targeted and held on trumped up charges for having the audacity to stand up for their community, ” said Philly for REAL Justice steering committee member Kamau Mshale. “Whether it’s Mumia 40 years ago, or Anthony Smith last night, Black people are being thrown in prison for speaking truth to power.”

Smith is a beloved social studies teacher at YouthBuild Charter School, where he is known for the genuine connections he builds with his students inside and outside of the classroom. In his free time, he is an organizer and volunteer with multiple organizations throughout Philadelphia. He is a fixture at 60th and Market each Friday, where he serves free food to the community with Food not Bombs Solidarity. In addition to being a valuable asset to his workplace and a standout organizer, Smith is a beloved community member with a passion for making sure that everyone around him is protected at all times.

“Anthony is one of the most selfless people I know,” says college classmate Dr. Jasmine Peake. “Anything that he’s ever done has been in defense of his community. It really hurts to see him ripped from his family and friends in the middle of the night and thrown in jail.”

For years, Smith has organized with Philly for REAL (Racial Economic and Legal) Justice, an organization which just been recognized as being at the forefront of the movement to take #RizzoDown, has called for an end to stop and frisk policies in Philadelphia, and has supported the families of victims of police murder in calling for accountability for their loved ones. Philly for REAL Justice is also one of the convening organizations of the Black Philly Radical Collective which has released 13 demands calling for an “End to the War on Black People.” Smith’s arrest comes on the heels of mass arrests across Philadelphia over the last few nights and in the wake of federal charges being brought against Black Lives Matter movement leaders across the country.

We demand that these baseless, politically-motivated charges be dropped,” said fellow REAL Justice steering committee member Felicia Teter. “We demand the immediate release of Anthony Smith and all others who have been arrested for their participation in the Black Lives Matter movement We will not let Anthony become yet another political prisoner at the hands of this fascist government”
Up Against the Law Legal Collective is supporting Anthony Smith and all those on the streets protesting against Walter Wallace’s murder.

If law enforcement, federal or otherwise, approach you on the street, come to your home, or contact you in any way, do not speak to them without a lawyer present. You have the right to remain silent, exercise that right.

#FreeAnt

  • October 30, 2020 1:14 am

from Instagram

#FreeAnt !!! Tomorrow!! Community Gathers to Call for the Immediate Release of Beloved Organizer Anthony Smith WHAT: Philly for REAL Justice is holding a Press Conference to speak out about federal agents using Gestapo-like tactics to raid the home of Anthony Smith, his blatantly unconstitutional treatment in Federal custody, and to call for his immediate release. WHEN: Friday, October 30 at 9:30am WHERE: Malcolm X Park, 5150 Pine St, Philadelphia, PA 19143 WHO: Philly for REAL (Racial, Economic and Legal) Justice, Human Rights Coalition of PA, and the family, friends, co-workers, and supporters of long time organizer, educator and community advocate Anthony Smith. WHY: Anthony Smith was targeted, arrested and imprisoned for exercising his protected First Amendment rights to peacefully protest. The federal government is trying to assassinate Smith’s character and pin baseless charges on him because he is an outspoken community advocate. He is being held for weeks without the chance to post bail or have access to his lawyer. This is an attempt to paint him as a criminal, threatening his job and livelihood while taking away his fundamental right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The Irvine Vandalized

  • October 29, 2020 1:00 am

Submission

Last night while the cops were busy protecting their precincts, we took advantage of the moment to go after a different target. We ended up taking out several windows of The Irvine (on 52nd St near Baltimore Ave) around the back of the building, while some of its yuppie residents panicked on the patio. This was a small first step for us towards moving beyond just attending mass protests when they kick off – we’re also trying to think about how we can aim our actions in ways that help spread or sustain mass resistance and our side in this war against police and property.

We have seen firsthand how gentrification projects like The Irvine have increased the cops’ presence and racist violence in this neighborhood. We don’t want developers to feel safe here. We hope this action is just one of many future attacks against The Irvine!

Gentrification is death. Revolt is life! <3

Justice for Walter Wallace

  • October 27, 2020 1:41 pm

from Twitter

from Instagram

from Instagram

[10/27, 7pm, Malcolm X Park]

Legal Update from Up Against The Law

  • October 27, 2020 1:37 pm

from Instagram

Community update: If you have a friend who you think was arrested last night and needs support, please CALL or EMAIL us. DMs on this account are NOT regularly monitored. Also, if you plan to be out tonight, bring some quarters in case you get arrested and need to make a call from the precinct pay phone. #otgwestphilly #justiceforwalterwallacejr #wekeepussafe

Unrest in Philly After Cops Shoot and Kill 27-Year-Old

  • October 27, 2020 2:48 am

from Unicorn Riot

Philadelphia, PA – West Philly saw a quickly escalating situation develop on 4 p.m. Monday afternoon and dragging into the evening and overnight. In a graphic and disturbing video circulating on social media, two white Philadelphia Police (PPD) officers are seen repeatedly shooting a Black man in front of his mother from several feet away as he walked while holding a knife. Neither of the two officers in the video seemed to attempt to use their taser, and they appeared to have fired around ten bullets while they were several arms lengths away from the man they shot.

The man struck down dead by the two PPD officers was identified as 27-year-old Walter Wallace, Jr.

His father, Walter Wallace Sr., told the Philadelphia Inquirer that his son was dealing with mental illness, was on medication, and “his mother was trying to diffuse the situation” when police came and shot him.

Many witnesses were present for Wallace’s death and his family, friends and neighbors quickly reacted with grief and rage to the sight of him being gunned down dead in the street.

Video of the scene taken by Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Ellie Rushing shows that police had placed evidence markers indicating as many as 13 shell casings.

The scene of the deadly shooting of Walter Wallace, Jr. by two Philadelphia Police officers. Screenshot taken from Twitter video by Ellie Rushing

Both of the white officers involved in the shooting death of Walter Wallace, Jr. have reportedly been suspended pending an investigation. If common police practices for “officer-involved shootings” are being followed, they are both presumably now on paid leave.

In an official city statement, Philly Mayor Jim Kenney said, “I have watched the video of this tragic incident and it presents difficult questions that must be answered.” Kenney promised “a speedy and transparent resolution” but the only specific detail he offered was that the “Officer Involved Shooting Investigation Unit of PPD will conduct a full investigation.”

Philly District Attorney Larry Krasner’s statement about the shooting avoided any specifics but also promised an investigation.

Police called in reinforcements to clear the mourning neighbors from the street and reportedly dispersed the crowd at the shooting scene by 6:30 p.m., according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. Around 7 p.m. on Monday night, a crowd of several hundred protesters began to gather at Malcolm X Park.

Protesters marched throughout the area, taking the streets and followed by supporting honking vehicles. They also congregated for a time outside a nearby police precinct.

At some point outside the precinct, objects such as rocks and bricks reportedly began to be thrown at officers.

Police with riot gear and shields then pushed the crowd away from the police building, charging people through the street as trash cans and various other projectiles were pelted at them by an increasingly militant local crowd.

Police appeared unable to contain the community’s furious response to their having shot a Black man to death in the middle of the street in the middle of the day. Crowds went on to smash into several area businesses and take commercial goods, smash and burn police vehicles, launch fireworks, and reportedly commandeered at least one construction vehicle.

In one photo captured by Inquirer journalist Samantha Melamed (who was arrested by PPD while reporting on a protest in June) a police cruiser can be seen burning in front of a billboard reading “the power of justice”:

Image
Image

As of early Tuesday morning, protesters remained out in the streets of West Philly. Police made several arrests, with the Major Crimes Unit reportedly having been deployed.

Around 12:45 a.m., police were using batons and charging tactics to encourage the remaining crowd to disperse.

According to Philly journalist Jason Peters, some arrested protesters are being held at PPD’s 18th precinct.

Philadelphia’s lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police, which supported officers involved in brutalizing protesters earlier this year, has indicated it will defend the cops who ended Walter Wallace, Jr.’s life while his family watched.

Fatal police shooting of Walter Wallace Jr. prompts heated overnight protests in West Philly

  • October 27, 2020 2:40 am

from Mainstream Media

Fatal police shooting of Walter Wallace Jr. prompts heated overnight protests in West Philly

Police officers fatally shot a 27-year-old Black man armed with a knife during a confrontation Monday afternoon in West Philadelphia, an incident that quickly raised tensions in the neighborhood and sparked a standoff that lasted deep into the night.

Late Monday into early Tuesday, police struggled to respond to vandalism and looting along the commercial corridor of 52nd Street, an area that was the scene of clashes between police and protestors earlier this summer. At least one police vehicle was set on fire Monday night and destroyed, and several police officers were injured by bricks or other objects hurled from the crowd. One officer was hospitalized after getting run over by a speeding truck.

The episode began shortly before 4 p.m., police said, when two officers responded to the 6100 block of Locust Street after a report of a man with a knife. Family members identified him as Walter Wallace Jr.

A video posted on social media showed Wallace walking toward the officers and police backing away. The video swings briefly out of view at the moment the gunfire erupts but he appeared to be multiple feet from them when they fired numerous shots.

Police spokesperson Sgt. Eric Gripp said the officers had ordered Wallace to drop the weapon, and he “advanced towards the officers.” Gripp said investigators are reviewing footage of what happened. Both officers were wearing body cameras.

He said both officers fired “several times.” After the man was shot, he fell to the ground, and Gripp said one of the officers drove him to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, where he died.

Walter Wallace Sr., the man’s father, said his son appeared to have been shot 10 times.

“Why didn’t they use a Taser?” the senior Wallace asked outside a family residence on the block. “His mother was trying to defuse the situation.”

He said his son struggled with mental health issues and was on medication. “He has mental issues,” Wallace said. “Why you have to gun him down?”

Walter Wallace Sr, the father of Walter Wallace Jr., talks about the shooting of his son, on the 6100 block of Locust St. Oct. 26. 2020.

One witness, Maurice Holloway, said he was on the street talking to his aunt when he saw police arrive. Wallace had a knife and was standing on the porch of his home, Holloway said, and officers immediately drew their guns.

Wallace’s mother chased after him as he walked down the steps of his porch, still holding the knife, according to Holloway. His mother tried to shield Wallace and tell police he was her son.

“I’m yelling, ‘Put down the gun, put down the gun,’ and everyone is saying, ‘Don’t shoot him, he’s gonna put it down, we know him,’” said Holloway, 35.

Wallace brushed off his mother and walked behind a car before emerging again, Holloway said.

“He turns and then you hear the shots,” Holloway said. “They were too far from him; it was so many shots.”

Gripp said it was unclear how many times the man was shot or where he was struck. The officers fired possibly a dozen or more times, according to an account by witnesses and family members. Police marked the crime scene with at least 13 evidence markers.

Both officers, who were not publicly identified, were taken off street duty pending an investigation.

Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw arrived at the scene shortly after the incident as a crowd of neighbors yelled at police and questioned the use of force. By 6:30 p.m. police reopened the street and the crowd had largely dispersed.

Protest in response to the police shooting of Walter Wallace Jr. on Monday after police officers fatally shot the 27-year-old Black man in West Philadelphia.

But dozens of protesters then gathered at Malcolm X Park at 51st and Pine Streets, chanting “Black Lives Matter.” They marched to the police station at 55th and Pine Streets as they chanted, “Say his name: Walter Wallace.”

For hours, protesters confronted officers who stood in a line with riot shields behind metal barricades at the station. People in the crowd could be seen throwing objects at the officers. A group also marched into University City, at least one TV news vehicle was vandalized, and police reported that windows had been broken on Chestnut Street.

Between 100 and 200 people then moved to the 52nd Street commercial district and caused considerable property damage from Market to Spruce Streets. Shortly before 1 a.m., a speeding black truck ran over an officer at 52nd and Walnut Street. The incident was captured on an Instagram livestream. The condition of the officer was not immediately known.

The 52nd Street corridor was the scene of unrest on May 31 and early June as nationwide protests erupted over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Protesters clashed with Philadelphia officers and set police vehicles on fire; police responded with rubber bullets and tear gas on residential streets. Since then, the police department has forbidden the use of tear gas.

At times Monday, the scene threatened to repeat. Just before midnight, someone set fire to a police vehicle on the street. Ultimately, more officers in riot gear arrived and flooded the neighborhood, dispersing the crowd.

Monday October 26th: Letter-writing for Jamil Al-Amin

  • October 23, 2020 1:10 am

from Philly ABC

imam-jamil-al-amin.jpg

Join us on Monday, October 26th, 5:30 pm at the picnic bench just north of the playground at Clark Park. We’ll be writing letters to Imam Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin (formerly H. Rap Brown).

Jamil became known as a Black liberation leader as the chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and Justice Minister of the Black Panther Party. In the early ’70s, he did five years as a political prisoner before being paroled in 1976. Upon his release, he moved to Atlanta, GA and led one of the nation’s largest Muslim groups, Al-Ummah. He is known to have greatly improved social services to the West End community in Atlanta.

From 1992 to 1997, the FBI and Atlanta police investigated Imam Jamil in connection with everything from domestic terrorism to gunrunning to 14 homicides in Atlanta’s West End, according to police investigators’ reports, FBI documents and interviews. On March 16th, 2000, Fulton County Deputy Sheriff Ricky Kinchen is shot and later dies, while another deputy Aldranon English is wounded after being shot by a man outside Imam Jamil’s store. English identified the shooter in the March 16th incident as Imam Jamil, yet testified that he shot the assailant — who “had grey eyes” — in the exchange of gunfire. Imam Al-Amin’s eyes are brown, and he had no gunshot injury when he was captured just four days later.

Now that Fulton County has a Convictions Integrity Unit, there is a good chance that Imam Jamil’s case will be reopened due to the known incongruities. This is doubly important because he has medical challenges — symptoms of Sjogren’s syndrome and smoldering myeloma (a form of blood cancer) as well as untreated cataracts. Due to his eyesight, write letters to him in large print if you are participating remotely.

Snacks and all the letter-writing supplies one could wish for will be provided. We will also sign birthday cards for political prisoners with birthdays in November: Ed Poindexter (the 1st), Joe Dibee (the 10th), and Josh Williams (the 25th).