Watch your BACK!
On Jan. 9th, anarchists Rob Thaxton and Brian McCarvill were sanctioned
with 120 days in the Disciplary Segregation Unit at Oregon State
Penitentiary. The offence listed on their Misconduct Reports is
"Unauthorized Organiztion I", but the hearings officer told me that she
found me "guilty of continuing to be involved with the anarchist movement."
The Oregon Department of Corrections, and OSP in particular, have taken it
upon themselves to act as thought police and punish people for their
political views. The act which inspired this punishment is so petty as to
be laughable: we had asked people to send us mail. When people responded by
the dozens, the prisoncrats took offense and sent us to the hole. One day,
I'll look back at this time and laugh. Right now, though, this isn't very
funny- sitting here without my guitar, books, magazines, income from my job
in the prison infirmary, almost no chance for visits, listening to idiotic
conversations between people shouting from one cell emblazened with
swastikas to another. This whole episode revolves around symbols and their
power, though apparently OSP staff have fewer worries about swastikas than
they do about circle-a's, the "anarchy" symbol.
It's the little things.
Since I was first incarcerated here at OSP, the prison authorities have
been overly concerned with my politics. I am routinely denied materials
they think crosses some vague boundary of unacceptability. UK literature
proffessor, the late John Moore's book examining anarchist tendencies in
"primitive" societies was forbidden. Canadian art professor Allan Antliff's
book on anarchist influence in modern art was allowed.
It was evident to me from the beginning that this was a bit arbitrary, and
I tried to challenge their designation of anarchists as a Security Threat
Group, and the circle-a symbol as an STG symbol. What this has come down to
over the ensuing years is that I can receive anything, even if it has the
word "Anarchy" splashed across the pages in 4-inch letters, but I can't
have anything that contains a circle-a symbol. This has been used to deny
me publications which featured photos of demonstrations, where a circle-a
symbol on a patch on the pants of one of the participants was clearly
visible. Other, similar violations were give because circle-a symbols could
be seen among the graffiti in the background of some photographs. And,
since most anarchist publications usually exhibit a circle-a in some manner
or another, this gives the prisoncrats an excuse to prohibit them. In
short, I am being cut off from contact with other anarchists and to a large
extent, any mention of anarchist activities, or even activities in which
anarchists participate - such as mass demonstrations against economic
summit meetings and the war in Iraq. The prisoncrats even made it forbidden
for people to mark or cut out such offensive circle-a's in order to make
their publication palatable for the prisoncrats.
I could challenge this in court, and have contemplated doing so, but - for
one thing - the case would likely drag of for years and still not be
resolved before I'm released in Oct. '06. Also, with my experience with
courtrooms in the past, I know there is little hope for much sympathy, much
less a fair hearing. Courts tend to back up prisoncrats' dictatorships.
Lately, though, I've become more and more angry as fewer people write or
send literature to me, due to prisoncratic interference. With less mail
making it in, each Mail Violation Notice I receive angers and frustrates me
all the more. The Oregon Department of Corrections does not have the right
to limit my communications with people who hold similar political views. I
am being isolated, at a time when the actions of the Bush Junta, and his
family's dreams of a New World Order, demand that everyone who cherishes
life and cares about their fellow humans' well-being speak out and take
action against him and the NWO.
I'm in prison for being involved in a street battle with the Eugene Police
Department, as part of one of the many "anti-globalization" days-of-action
that rocked the world from '99-'01. Of all the people arrested around the
world during these actions, as far as I know, I'm the only one still in
prison. Like I mentioned above, the prisoncrats have been concerned about
having someone with more that 20 years of activist experience, much of it
as an organizer. Those two words together, added to the fact that I'm an
anarchist, spells out "Riot" to the prisoncrats - one of the charges I was
convicted of, by the way. While incarcerated, I've tried to remain active,
writing letters, sending contributions to anarchist publications and
encouraging anarchists to be more involved in supporting prisoners.
The prisoncrats and I have been going back and forth over the mail issue
for years now. What it comes down to is their arbitrary use of authority.
There is no rational reason for them to deny anything entering their
facilities just because there is a circle-a somewhere in its pages. Their
entire argument is "Because we say so."
So, rather than go to the courts, rather that waste my time arguing with
them, I did what I tend to do - I organized an anarchist protest. I asked
people outside to send postcards with a circle-a and the caption: "This is
not a gang symbol." Then, I forgot about it.
A little while later, since the holiday season was upon us, the prisoners
here were allowed - as we are every year- to make 15 minute videos to send
to our families and friends. From what I've heard since then, there are a
number of people upset over my video. Not the message - it was just me
reading poetry and playing my guitar. No, the Authorities were angry
because they didn't review the tape before it went out. Who knows what
diabolical instructions were sent on that tape - and to whom? The OSP
activites crew don't keep such records, to ensure the privacy and safety of
the recipients. Someone is very angry about that.
On, Jan. 2 ('03) Benny Ward, the STG manager for ODOC, came to visit me. He
wanted me to move out of my cell, which I share with Brian McCarvill. Brian
is involved in a lawsuit against ODOC/OSP over using the circle-a symbol as
a reason to deny mail into their institutions. He implied that there would
be consequences if I didn't move. Brian and I discussed this and decided it
wasn't necessary for us to move.
Five days later, we were given Misconduct Reports, concerning 52 items of
mail sent to us, and charged with being part of an unauthorized
organization. Suddenly, Mr. Wards' visit began to make a little more sense.
ODOC is being pressured from above to do something about us bad ol'
anarchists. Our lawsuits are costing them money, and the feds (rightly)
think ODOC are fools who can't keep track of persons of interest within
their institutions. To illustrate what great fools they are, it is illegal
for prisons to retaliate, or even threaten to retaliate, against prisoners
for bringing lawsuits against them. They peeled that banana, threw the skin
on the floor and slipped on it themselves.
Two days later, Brian and I were sanctioned to spend 4 months in the hole,
apiece. We are being singled out for repression because of our political
views and because we stand up for our rights as human beings.
[For more info about Rob Thaxton, check out http://www.breakthechains.net
or write directly to Rob at: Robert Thaxton # 12112716 OSP 2605 State St.
Salem, OR 97310]
http://www.infoshop.org/inews/stories.php?story=03/01/19/4690154
