Prisoner Demands to Abolish Torture at Pelican Bay Security Housing Unit (SHU)

Open Letter to Governor Brown and To the Citizens of California
by Lee Wood,
Committee to Abolish Prison Slavery (CAPS)
First Issued: August 16, 2011
Second Issued: October 28, 2011

To: Jerry Brown, Governor of the State of California
Attn: Scheduling Office
The Capitol
Sacramento, CA. 95814

Re: Prisoner Demands to Abolish Torture at Pelican Bay Security Housing Unit (SHU) (1)

Governor Brown,
In 1849 California was admitted to the Union as a Free State with the following State
Constitutional Article 1, Section 18:

“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, UNLESS FOR THE PUNISHMENT OF CRIMES, shall ever be tolerated in this State.” (caps added)

One hundred and sixty-two (162) years ago, this Amendment successfully halted the expansion of Southern ‘chattel slave territory’ to California, it certified California as a new FREE STATE, and it provided FOR BOTH “Slavery” and “Involuntary Servitude… FOR THE PUNISHMENT OF CRIMES…” (2)

Between 1973/1975, a California Prisoner study collective successfully struggled and lobbied via inside/outside family and community members to have California’s then 124 year slavery proviso abolished and replaced with

Article 1, Section 6, Declaration of Rights (1974/75):

“Slavery is prohibited. Involuntary Servitude is prohibited

EXCEPT TO PUNISH CRIME.” (3)

Thirty–six (36) years ago you were the new Governor of California when Article 1, Section 6 was placed in the State Constitution. This change commands that “…slavery… for the punishment of crimes” “is prohibited”.

After all these years, after slavery was declared Unconstitutional, in an overwhelming California citizen vote, it not only continues to exist, but negative material slave conditions have radically expanded.

Since 1975, California guard unions (and other related businesses), under the cover and protection of this Article, have massively expanded from approximately:

30,000+ prisoners (@ $9,143 per year each) to
130,000+ prisoners today (@ between $45,000 to $85,000 per year each).

More prisoners, more taxes, more money per prisoner, more prison slave territory expansion, more corrupt cumulative Slavocracy profits - all at the cost of a morally dysfunctional State that Unconstitutionally enslaves California Citizens.

The practice of slavery, “for the punishment of crimes”, continues without the return of
Citizenship, Labor, Human, Economic, Civil, and day-to-day material rights to prisoners and to their family members, including not being Tortured anywhere within California, under any circumstances whatsoever, NOT EVEN AS A PUNISHMENT FOR CRIME.

The intent of the 1975 Amendment was to advance prisoners’ rights immediately after its passage. Why has the spirit and ‘will’ of the people been so grotesquely violated?

Thirty-six (36) years of Unconstitutional, cumulative negative slave conditions have been inflicted against both inside and outside communities by the California Government, and against the wishes of California’s voting citizens. It is, of course, Criminal and shameful that this corruption has occurred, and continues at this very minute. California citizens voted to provide more rights than existed on both the
State and Federal levels, not less, but more, and yet they got less!

These rights should have been advanced beyond the 6/10ths human/citizen designation of a slave, not Decreased to 0/10ths. These negative conditions (of slavery to punish crime), including Torture at Pelican Bay SHU, must be halted and reversed immediately, with ALL rights restored to 10/10ths of a citizen. (4)

In conclusion, I request a meeting with you, with Pelican Bay SHU Prisoners Representatives, their Legal Representatives, Family Members, and Advocate Organizations to discuss these matters in greater detail.

Toward Abolition of All Slavery,
Lee Wood
prisonslavery [at] yahoo.com


NOTES:
1. At the time of this writing, the Pelican Bay Security Housing Unit (SHU) Hunger Strike had temporarily halted with negotiations between prisoners, their legal representatives, and CDCR.
“The demands of the strikers seem relatively tame, which gives us some insight into the level of oppression. The five core demands are:
1. Individual instead of group responsibility for institutional infractions.
2. Abolition of the Gang Debriefing Policy, which endangers both those who debrief as well as family members on the outside;
3. An end to long term solitary confinement;
4. Adequate food, and
5. Constructive programs like art, phone privileges, and the like.
A sub demand (under Constructive Programs section) is adequate, natural sunlight.”
“SUNLIGHT!” (copy right by Mumia Abu Jamal, 2011)

2. Sixteen years after California’s 1848 Amendment, the similar Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified and certified:
Thirteenth Amendment (1865):

Section 1. “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, EXCEPT AS A PUNISHMENT FOR CRIME WHEREOF THE PARTY SHALL

HAVE BEEN DULY CONVICTED, shall exist within the United

States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”

Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this Article by appropriate legislation.

3. Article 1, Section 6 wording in the California State Constitution is actually the Third proposed alternative:

The First proposal was:


“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall ever be

tolerated in this state.”

The Second proposal:

“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, NOT EVEN AS

A PUNISHMENT FOR CRIME, shall ever be tolerated in this state.”

The Third proposal was:
“Slavery is prohibited. Involuntary Servitude is prohibited

EXCEPT TO PUNISH CRIME.”

4. A few self serving Statutes were put in place, while the vast majority, were ignored.
(Including and not limited to: the return of ALL Citizenship, Labor, Human, Economic, and Civil rights, including but not limited to:
Abolition of prisoner over-crowding,
Abolition of Draconian torture programs as those practiced in Pelican Bay SHU;
Freedom from cruel and unusual punishments,
Freedoms of speech, due process, equal protection, Freedom of the Press; Nutritional/healthful and adequate Food, Clothing, Shelter, Health,
Education;
The abolition of all negative material slave conditions;
Death Penalty Abolition,
The Franchise (Right to Vote);
Full participation in society,
Right to Union Scale Wages,
Release of ALL Political Prisoners, etc.)