Read about Lexington from An American RadicalĪll rights reserved. part of the sophisticated torture system created by the federal government to punish Puerto Rican Prisoners of War and other political prisoners that support Puerto Rican independence.” José Torres, husband of Puerto Rican political prisoner Alejandrina Torres, spoke of the Lexington Control “as a living tomb. All four speakers spoke of the unimaginable conditions their loved ones were enduring, and also their bittersweet experiences as visiting family members. And they bring that spirit here with them today.” There was great pain and many tears during this segment. The family members here today are just the opposite they have been energized by the spirit of their loved ones and by the need to act. Often families are so staggered by the brutality directed at their loved ones that they become immobilized. Steve explained (pg 15 of transcript) that “No one feels the pain of the imprisoned as much as their family members. The first group was made up of family members. We then listened to the testimony of 17 witnesses. José López presented the indictment of the wardens of Marion and Lexington, the director of the BOP, Attorney General Edwin Meese, and the FBI. I wonder how they managed to gather those signatures under lockdown conditions.Īt 3 pm we moved up to the church Sanctuary where we welcomed everyone on behalf of the sponsoring organizations and moderated the afternoon session. Handwritten by prisoner Bill Dunne, the signatures were each handwritten as well and were contained on a smaller piece of paper taped down at the bottom of the letter. One letter had about 16 signatures of Marion prisoners. Statements from prisoners at both Marion and Lexington were distributed. The Lexington Women's Control Unit p.1 from Freedom Archives on Vimeo.Īlso see parts 2 and 3 in previous chapterĭuring the next two hours we showed a video about the Lexington Control Unit, a slideshow that described the Stanford University prison experiment in which college students were locked in a model prison in a basement for a weekend and forced to adopt roles as either guards or prisoners, and our very own Marion slide show. Those who stepped inside were deeply impressed by its starkness. The 300 people in attendance were first offered a tour of a full-size model of a Control Unit cell built to specifications by CEML members. The schedule suggests the ambitious nature of the day, typical of CEML activities. On October 19, 1987, the Tribunal opened with great energy at our friendly Wellington Avenue Church. We were excited to bring Mort to the Chicago area as an outspoken critic of government repression directed at political activists and an advocate of human rights for prisoners. Most recently Morton had been arrested in an act of civil disobedience, protesting U.S. He traveled to Vietnam to offer his technical assistance in developing an inexpensive, easily-constructed hearing aid, hoping especially to assist those whose hearing was impacted by the U.S. He had come out of prison ready to contribute to the fight for social justice and worked tirelessly to support the Attica Brothers. The reader may recall that Morton, co-defendant of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, served 19 years in federal prison, including five at Alcatraz. We brought our dear friend Morton Sobell to the Midwest for a speaking tour to help build for the Tribunal. Their testimony would be heard by a panel of judges who would then render their verdict. It would be a grand event beginning with the reading of an indictment, then testimony from lawyers, ex-prisoners, family members of prisoners, and representatives of different communities in Chicago. Over the summer we planned a “People’s Tribunal” for our big fall event. Hidden table caption inserted for accessibility: Images, text and links for OUT OF CONTROL A 15-YEAR BATTLE AGAINST CONTROL UNIT PRISONS by Nancy Kurshan.
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