Anarchy Live!

In the past few months, some of Michael’s writings have appeared in some amazing publications. We will be adding a page to the toolbar for publications with Michael’s writings.

What is Prisoner Support?
A collection of letters from prisoners about support and solidarity.

Wildfire, No. 1
An anarchist prison newsletter with writings from many US anarchist prisoners.

Sean Swain, an anarchist being held captive by the state of Ohio has started a hunger strike and refusing all medications in protest to the state’s blocking of his ability of communication. One of the tactics of the state/prisons is to control the flow of information and the extent of one’s ability of communication as a form of isolation and mental torture of prison rebels. Sean is a fierce warrior against the state and authority. We should be inspired by this comrade’s indomitable spirit of resistance and ability to carry on the fight despite being in the lion’s den. Imagine! All the power of the state aimed at one individual who’s already in their clutches, but refusing to give them one day of respite. Wow! We must stand in solidarity without doubt. How can we do anything less?

For more info: seanswain.org

The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was founded in 1966 by Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton in response to police violence and the oppression of Black people in the USA. In a poll by Jet magazine in 1970, 70% of Black people agreed with the programs and methods of the BPP. The BPP established patrols to monitor the police in the Black community, sickle cell anemia testing, liberation schools, buses to prisons for visits, free clothing, free clinics, free breakfast for children, free groceries, political/history classes, etc. as part of their “Serve the People” program. Huey P. Newton explained the programs as survival programs pending revolution; that the programs were not solutions to the problems of Black people.

In a speech, Fred Hampton, the 21-year-old Chairman of the Chicago BPP chapter, spoke of the role of the children’s breakfast program. He spoke of it as strategy of observation and participation, that Black women who were financially distressed saw the BPP feeding the children and started volunteering in the program by cooking and serving the children. And of course, when the pigs approached Black women and attempted to turn them against the BPP by slandering the BPP and denouncing them as communists, the women said that they don’t know nothing about communism, but that they had better not fuck with the breakfast program because it fed their children. Safiya Bukhari mentioned in a writing that she and her sorority sisters volunteered with the BPP breakfast program in NYC and that’s what got her involved with the BPP. The same with Assata Shakur. They all started out on the Breakfast program and the involvement evolved from there. The children’s breakfast program was so popular in the Black community that the FBI waged a war against the program to discredit it. There’s no wonder that the BPP grew to 33 chapters in two years of its founding.

In spite of the BPP being an authoritarian, Marxist-Leninist organization, no one can deny the contributions they made to revolutionary organizing in the USA. I think it would be instructive if anarchists today would adopt some of the programs the BPP started, without the hierarchical structure.

All Power to the People!

Comrades, I hope you all are doing well and continuing to resist the excesses of this rapacious system of slavery, exploitation, and oppression. I’m doing great, although I’ve had some rough times lately. But I’m alive and in resistance and find solace in that, along with all that’s happening out there.

Comrades, from all the info I’ve been able to get my hands on there seems to be a heightened level of struggle and movement building in the Black colonies throughout the USA against police violence, racism, white supremacy, and it hasn’t taken long for this movement in infancy to make the connection between the above mentioned ills of US capitalist society and the mass incarceration of Black and Brown people. One participant of a new formation of various organizations/collectives called Third World Resistance (TWR) made the following statement during the #ReclaimMLK demo in Oakland in January: “It is really empowering to see our communities rising up against the violent policing of Black people. But we must also be just as enraged at the violence that is harder to see, the violence of our people disappearing into cages. This country, which locks up more people than any other, plays a hand in locking up even more beyond its borders by exporting and sharing tactics and models of repression with oppressive governments, from Israel to Haiti and the Philippines.”

Connections, the whole matrix between the prison-industrial complex, white supremacy, business, domination, control, and exploitation, etc. That’s what we’re looking for and need to explain in a clear, no bullshit language. This is the point of attack. From all that’s taking place out there I’m really beginning to believe that we just may get to witness the destruction of Leviathan and dance in the ruins of civilization in our lifetime. And it’s having its presence felt in the prisons. Will it translate into action? Who can say? But the slaves are getting restless in here. Bolder. The drugs, TV, sports, gangs, etc. can’t keep up distracted forever. People can’t be so repressed that they can’t fight back in some way. And you all should know that prisoners are really ingenious. I’m taking heart in the rebellions taking place throughout the world, not just in the USA. The only freedom today, now, is in struggle and aggressive free action.

Relentlessly,
Michael

For the last few months I’ve been reading and analyzing the rapidly building movement since the rebellions in Ferguson and Oakland, and other places where anti-police demos have been popping off. I don’t claim to have all the answers but I simply want people to accept this as a contribution to the development of anarchist strategy. I think all the old models of bring about revolution is obsolete to a large degree and that the informal organization that appears to be developing is the correct strategy, but I would point out that we need to be setting some specific goals, long-term and short-term. Our long-term goal is of course, the smashing of the state, so we can begin the struggle of building new social relationships, without a hierarchical, capitalist society.

Our long-term goals do not excuse us from doing just that now in the midst of struggle. As a matter of fact, that’s exactly what we should be doing right now as the fires of collective anger burns. Altho we say we don’t know what change is going to look like. Of course we don’t. We’re not soothsayers, but the idea is to make it look the way we desire. Nothing is guaranteed but can we afford to continue to allow others to develop the change they desire. If not, then part of our social strategy should be the projection of our vision of change we desire.

As the fires of rebellion continue, many rebels will find themselves behind the walls or on the run. Remember, revolution is outlawed, illegal. So, the care and safety of comrades who find themselves in these situations should be part of our short-term goals (finances for bail, safe-houses, etc.) along with our narrative of what’s going on and how change is possible, and what that change can possibly look like.

“I believe in human beings’ ability to live without control and exploitation, but we have an entire social order to destroy, and lifetimes of socialization to undo. Our ways of fighting, our ways of being together, can carry our ideal world in them, but that’s about all we have right now. I’ve spent enough time on anarchy as a daydream, the point seems to be to create it wherever we can.”

This not only meets the need and care of comrades who find themselves behind the walls but shows unity and solidarity not only to the comrades but to others who are watching how we deal with each other. Believe me, they are watching. So, we need to come up with an economic strategy to raise the cash that’s needed for such a project. Concerts, nightclubs, restaurants, expropriations, etc. are some of the ideas that come to mind.

I’m lumping economic, social, and political strategy together since they will overlap. Cash is also needed for other projects like purchasing land, agriculture, events, clinics, etc. Part of this strategy should be the raising of, let’s say, $1000 from each anarchist group/collective, etc. I’m sure we can get 30 anarchist groups throughout the US alone to raise $1000 a year. That’s $30,000 and we can replicate this year after year. Also, many prisoners have skills/talents such as craftmaking, leathercraft, etc. that can contribute to the economic strategy.

Another aspect of our political/social strategy should be establishing projects to feed the hungry, clothing, etc. Not as solutions but as examples of mutual aid and to point out the contradictions of the state. And as one avenue of subverting the state’s institutions.