πŸ¦„ Prison

“Running Down the Walls” Event Highlights Prisoner Support

Philadelphia, PA – An annual 5K run/walk/roll benefit called “Running Down the Walls” aims to amplify “the voices of our comrades behind bars, lifting them up in their struggles,” and provide material support, according to Philadelphia Anarchist Black Cross, the host of today’s event in…

πŸ¦„ Prison, Protest & Direct Action

Prison Abolitionists Target Architectural Firm

St. Louis Park, MN – Red paint and posters reading “No new jails” were plastered on the door of architectural firm Klein McCarthy at the beginning of the work day on September 9. Responding to a nationwide call-out for #ShutEmDown2021 actions on the anniversary of…

πŸ¦„ Prison

Anti-Prison Protest Raises Ruckus At Philly Youth Jail

Philadelphia, PA – On the evening of Thursday, September 9, several dozen anarchists gathered in West Philly for a noise demonstration to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1971 Attica prison uprising. After marching in the street for several blocks, the unannounced protest arrived at…

πŸ¦„ Community, Prison

Open Carry March for Teenager Killed in Downtown Indy

Indianapolis, IN – Led by the family of Dorian Murrell, a teenager who was killed during George Floyd protests, an open carry march snaked through downtown Indianapolis demanding justice for Murrell and calling for Black unity. Murrell was 18 years old and unarmed when he…

πŸ¦„ Eco, Prison, Protest & Direct Action

Line 3 Opponent Sentenced to Thirty Days in Jail

Hubbard County, MN – On August 4, 2021, in the first trial prosecuting water protectors since active construction of the Line 3 pipeline in the state, one defendant was acquitted, and the other was found guilty by a jury on two misdemeanorsβ€”public nuisance and unlawful…

πŸ¦„ Community, Prison

Midwest Connections: A Regional Fight For Abolition

A wave of prison abolition actions and demands have swept the United States every August since 1979 from inside the walls to outside. New groups in the Midwest such as Abolition Is a Practice and Community Not Cages (CNC) are carrying on the Black August…

πŸ¦„ Prison

Arthur “Cetewayo” Johnson Ordered Released After 51 Years in Prison

Philadelphia, PA – Longtime Pennsylvania prisoner Arthur “Cetewayo” Johnson, age 69, was ordered released today after five decades in prison, 37 years of which he spent in solitary confinement. Johnson had been convicted in the 1970 murder of Jerome Wayfield, when he was just 18. The…

πŸ¦„ Community, Prison

Surviving Sexual Assault and Seeking Accountability

St. Paul, MN – Around the world there are millions of survivors of sexual assault and sexual violence, and for many of them, their stories go unheard and are rarely believed. In the U.S., nearly 1 in 5 women have been raped or have gone…

πŸ¦„ Police, Prison

Ex-Cop Derek Chauvin Sentenced to 22.5 Years for George Floyd Murder

Minneapolis, MN – In a landmark ruling, Minnesota Fourth District Judge Peter Cahill sentenced convicted murderer and former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin to over 22 years in prison for the killing of George Floyd. This is now the longest sentence ever given to a…

πŸ¦„ Prison

Demanding the Passage of the Hardel Sherrell Act

Saint Paul, MN – Nearly three years after Hardel Sherrell’s harrowing death in Beltrami County Jail, a legislative act named after him aims to stop the dozens of deaths in Minnesota jail cells. After losing her only son at the young age of 27, Del…

πŸ¦„ COVID-19, Prison
Barbed wire fence surrounds Faribault prison in MN

COVID-19 Deaths in Minnesota Prisons Continue to Rise

Faribault, MN – At least eleven people in Minnesota state prisons have died from COVID-19 as of February 17, 2021. Nearly 4,000 inmates, or two out of every five prisoners, have tested positive for the coronavirus. Families and advocates of prisoners have consistently staged protests,…

πŸ¦„ Prison

Prison Abolition Advocates Rally Outside Federal Prison on NYE

Lakewood, CO β€” As 2020 comes to an end, prison abolition advocates around the world will be continuing an annual tradition of demonstrating outside of prisons on New Year’s Eve.

A call for New Year’s Eve prison solidarity demonstrations was circulated earlier in December by…

πŸ¦„ Prison

Myon Burrell Released Following 18 Years in Jail

St. Paul, MN – The Minnesota Board of Pardons announced Tuesday evening Myon Burrell’s life sentence will be commuted to 20 years and that he should be released immediately from the Stillwater Prison. Burrell was convicted as a teenager for the murder of 11-year-old Tyesha…

πŸ¦„ Police, Prison
Warren Burger Federal Courthouse in Saint Paul

Feds Leverage Civil Disorder Charge Against George Floyd Protester

Saint Paul, MN – Charges against an Illinois man facing federal felonies from this summer’s uprising in Minneapolis showcase the tactics, techniques and procedures applied by the U.S. government against some of the more enthusiastic participants in the George Floyd rebellion.

Repressive responses by the…

πŸ¦„ Police, Prison
protesters gather outside Minneapolis courthouse for pretrial hearing in the George Floyd case

Chauvin Has 3rd Degree Murder Charge Dropped, 2nd Degree Charges Upheld

Minneapolis, MN – Unintentional second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter charges have been upheld on Derek Chauvin while the third-degree murder charges were dropped in a pretrial ruling made by Judge Cahill on Thursday, October 21.

Responding to motions and orders filed in the run-up to…

πŸ¦„ Prison
Hardel Sherrell Nurse Whistleblower Cover Image

Whistleblowing RN Complaint Revealed Two Years After Death of Inmate

Sartell, MN – Complaints from a nurse surfaced during a recent investigation into Hardel Sherrell’s 2018 death in the Beltrami County Jail. The whistleblowing complaints of medical neglect, further findings, and a new Kare 11 investigation has led to the director of the Minnesota’s Department…

πŸ¦„ Borders & Migration, Prison

Reports of Forced Sterilizations in ICE Facility Spark Protest

Minneapolis, MN – Nearly a hundred people gathered in South Minneapolis to protest recent revelations of non-consensual hysterectomies sterilizing detained immigrant women in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody in Georgia.

Unicorn Riot was live for most of the protest at the Emiliano Zapata…

πŸ¦„ Police, Prison

Two Years Later: Protest at MN-BCA Seeks Justice for Hardel Sherrell

ST. PAUL, MN – 27-year-old Hardel Sherrell died in a cell in Minnesota’s Beltrami County Jail on Sept. 2, 2018. He died a tortuous death of medical neglect, suffering from an undiagnosed case of Guillain-Barre Syndrome, a rare condition that attacks the nervous system.

Family…

πŸ¦„ Prison

Racial Justice Teach-in at Abolish ICE Camp in Aurora CO

AURORA, CO – The encampment at the GEO Group’s ICE facility in Aurora, Colorado, is hosting a teach-in about reparations and racial justice. The Black Hammer will be leading the event. Yesterday was the end of week three for the encampment which is demanding the…