Chicano Mexicano Prison Project:
Tired of blindly throwing blows against the enemies of our people (as some within our movimiento continue do), during the 1980s Unión del Barrio, along with other movement formations (i.e. La Raza Unida Party, Movimiento de Liberación Nacional, and others), did some serious and deep soul searching (analysis) in regards as to what were the fundamental factors that led to the decline and defeat of the Chicano Power Movement (of the 1960s and 70s) by hands of U.S. Capitalist-Colonial forces. With the objective of identifying and coming to terms with these factors, we held several study sessions, pláticas, and encuentros, with elements who had survived the defeat of our movement and still upheld nationalist and pro-self-determination politics.
MASSIVE IMPRISONMENT WAS A TOOL USED TO DESTROY THE MOVIMIENTO
This analytical process, which took place over a period of two to three years (1981-83), included the examination of the experiences of other national liberation movements, as well as conversations with those who were active participants of those movements. Out of this analytical process, we came to the conclusion that what came down upon the Chicano Power Movement was a massive and vicious counter offensive that the U.S. Government launched against the liberation movements of that period and which it called the Counter Intelligence Program (COINTEL).
In her discussion on the “Counterinsurgency: War Against Oppressed Peoples”, Penny Hess (chairwoman of the African People’s Solidarity Committee), clearly sums-up the nature of the counter offensive against Mexicans and other oppressed peoples:
“The methods the United States uses against subjected peoples everywhere are strikingly similar: police containment, chemical warfare, massive imprisonment, economic embargo, deepening exploitation and criminalization. Genocide.” (read Overturning The Culture Of Violence, by Penny Hess).
With the realization that the criminalization and imprisonment of nuestra Raza formed a major component of the U.S. Capitalist-Colonialist war against Mexicanos, we began to actively work around the question of prisons and prisoner rights. It was to put into practice this work, which gave birth to the Chicano Mexicano Prison Project (CMPP).
THE CHICANO MEXICANO PRISON PROJECT WAS FOUNDED IN 1993
The CMPP was founded by Union del Barrio in 1993 and functions under three general basic objectives:
(1) To raise the social and political consciousness of Raza prisoners. We believe that Raza prisoners with a social and political understanding of our historical and present realities will struggle to fight for the liberation of nuestra Raza, instead of engaging in activities that are detrimental to themselves or the Mexican community.
Working under these objectives, the CMPP has become one of the most active Mexicano prison rights organization. During a brief 12 month period (June 99 to June 2000), the CMPP has organized several mass educational act ivies (barrio leafleting), mailed several issues of Las Calles Y La Torcida (newsletter of the CMPP) to hundreds of prisoners, organized and spoke in dozens of workshops, and its members have participated in rallies in front of several prisons in California.
For example:
°On January 8, 2000, members of the CMPP attended a demonstration organized by the Barrio Defense Committee (based in San Jose), which was held in front of the state capitol building (in Sacramento). The objective of the demonstration was to demand an end to the continuing inhumane mistreatment of Raza prisoners, many who are locked down in isolation and are under constant harassment from prison guards, and to support dozens of Raza prisoners who had gone on a hunger strike in their struggle for humane treatment of Mexicano prisoners.
CMPP DOES CRITICISM, SELF-CRITICISM AS A WAY OF ASSESSING ITS WORK
On May 27, 2000, the CMPP held its annual retreat. The retreats are where the CMPP does criticism-self-criticism as a way of assessing its strengths and weaknesses of its work, and according to this assessment, we plan our future activities. Also, brief presentations were given by Cathy Espitia and Ernesto Bustillos.
Compañero Ernesto Bustillos, a founding member of the CMPP, outlined a brief history of the CMPP which included an analysis of both its past successes and failures, bringing up the question of prisons to the current situation in which our movimiento and the great majority of nuestra Raza exist. He pointed to the fact that a large sector of our community still did not understand the nature of the prison system and therefore often responds negatively to the concerns of prisoners; that our movement has not committed itself to placing importance on this particular struggle; and that to the great majority of Raza college students and professors, the question of prisons and the thousands of Mexicanos who find themselves behind bars --is not even an issue.
Compañera Cathy Espitia, the current coordinator of the CMPP, gave a brief summation of the activities of the past year of the CMPP. Compañera Cathy pointed to the successful work that the CMPP had done during the past 12 months, but also explained that the CMPP was facing several contradictions; for example, that in order to be able to carry out the objectives of the organization, the CMPP needed more resources and membership, She specifically pointed to the fact that prisoners are constantly asking for copies of Las Calles and educational materials related to the cultural and historical experiences of our people, and that to send this material, a lot more funds were necessary.
After several hours of round table discussion and criticism, self-criticism, several important objectives were proposed and excepted as ways of dealing with the contradictions facing the CMPP and to make our work more effective. These included:
(1) the need to organized regular “trainings” in order to make the members of the CMPP more effective organizers;
LIBERTAD PARA TODA NUESTRA RAZA: NO MORE PRISONS!
On June 24, 2000, under the theme of “Libertad Para Toda Nuestra Raza: No More Prisons!, the Chicano Mexicano Prison Project (CMPP) organized its fourth annual “Conference On Raza Prisoners And Colonialism”. The conference, held at the Malcolm X Library, in Barrio Market, San Diego, Califaztlán, was attended by over 50 prison rights activists, and community gente.
As we have stating before, the CMPP understands that the prison system is a important part of the U.S. economy and a strategic component of its program to keep Mexicans and other nationalities in state of subjugation and oppression. This understanding was outline in the conference program as:
“Thousands upon thousands of Raza -men, women, and children- are locked-up in prisons throughout the United States. Most of these prisoners suffer from the worst inhumane conditions: racism, guard brutality, wide spread administration of psychological altering drugs (as a method of prisoner control), denial of medical assistance, rape, prison instigated inmate violence, restrictions on education/reading material and access to law libraries, punishment without due process, restrictions on visitations, lack of recreational or vocational education, and so forth.
“Currently, the United States has the largest prison population than any country in the world. International organizations such as America’s Watch and Amnesty International, have condemned the conditions in which many United States prisoners exist and have cited the United States for human rights violations. Yet, because of racism and profits to be made from the prison industry, more prisoners are being built and more people incarcerated.
“In an effort to end the terrible and inhumane conditions faced by Raza prisoners and those from other oppressed nationalities and to expose the profit-making prison industry, on June 24, 2000, the Chicano Mexicano Prison Project (CMPP) will organize its 4th Annual Conference On Raza Prisoners and Colonialism.” (see conference program, June 24, 2000)
The conference had has its objectives the following four points:
(1) Share critical information as to the role that prisons play in the oppression of La Raza and in the enrichment of those who rule the United States.
The keynote speaker of conference was Raul Salinas. Compa Raul is an ex-pinto who did over 15 years in various U.S. federal prisons, a former member of AIM (American Indian Movement), he has dedicated much of his life to winning the self-determination of the Chicano Mexicano and other Indigenous people. Raul continues to be active in the Austin, Tejas area and is one of the most well know Chicano poets of our time.
The conference was divided into to key panel discussions. Speaking on the panel titled “The Question On Mexicano Liberation and Prisons As A Tool Of Oppression”, were Ernesto Bustillos (Unión del Barrio -San Diego), Bobby Castillo (former federal prisoner and currently a leading member of the Leonard Peltier National Defense Committee), Serena Enrique (former member of Union del Barrio), and Luis Talamantez (one of the “Soledad Brothers” at San Quentin, who since his release from prison over 20 years ago, has been struggling vigorously for the rights of prisons and currently works with the Pelican Bay Prison Project -San Francisco). The second panel, tilted “In Defense Of The Rights Of Prisoners: Testimonies, Strategies, and Tactics”, the panelist were: Tina Camarrillo (recently released from prison and a member of the Chicano Park Steering Committee), Cathy Espitia (Coordinator, Chicano Mexicano Prison Project), David Rico (Brown Berets de Aztlán -San Diego), Enrique “Kiko” Salazar (from the Committee To Free Ramses Muñiz, Los Angeles), and David Rico, Jr. (recently released from prison and a member of the Brown Berets de Aztlán). The conference facilitator was Victor Marrero (member of the CMPP).
THE CONFERENCE CONTRIBUTED TO BUILDING THE CULTURE OF RESISTANCE THAT IS NECESSARY TO WINNING OUR LIBERATION
The panelists spoke about the terrible conditions in which Raza and other prisoners exist. How more and more women are being sent to prison. They summed up the “sadistic guard instigated” violence between Raza and Africa prisoners, and its impact on our youth both within and outside the prison walls. They described how thousands of people, mostly white, are becoming rich out of the prison industry (wardens, lawyers, prison psychologists, guards, construction companies, and so forth), and how in fact, whole towns “live off” the business generated from prisons.
Furthermore, it was pointed out how the so-called “justice system” uses prisons as a way of keeping people (many them potential luchadores de la causa) out of political struggle, enabling the colonial existence of a great majority of our people. The question of Raza political prisoners was raised, specifically the cases of Leonard Peltier (member of AIM), Ramses Muñiz (former leading member of La Raza Unida Party), and Luis Rodriguez (who was “convicted” for killing two Highway Patrolmen), and the need to struggle for those who have been “set-up” by the so-called criminal justice system.
The presentations exposed, in a real and concrete fashion, how the criminalization and incarceration of hundreds of thousands of Mexicanos is nothing but a form of genocide, as prisons destroy families and lock-up young Mexicanos and Mexicanas, thereby controlling the population growth of our nation. Moreover, by exposing the collaboration of the petty bourgeois Hispanic vendidos (prison officials, D.A.s, etc.) within the prison-colonial system, the conference challenged the strategy of “neo-colonialism”; a strategy which attempts to confuse the people by allowing a few “brown faces” to rule on behalf the rich gringo-capitalists.
To Union del Barrio, the conference was a great success. The conference was able to connect police brutality, mass incarceration, the “three strikes” law and Prop 21 (a law which gives the D.A. the power to try as adults, youth as young as 14 years-old), the death penalty, and the question of political prisoners, as a component of the over all strategy to “contain” the resistance of Mexicanos in their struggle for self-determination and liberation. It exposed the role prisons play in colonization and genocide of our people, challenged neo-colonialism, and contributed to the building the culture of resistance that is necessary to winning our liberation.
Libertad Para Todo Nuestro Pueblo! No More Prisons!
“At home and abroad, the U.S. is trying to put the genie back into the bottle, to re-enchain the mass of humanity, to stomp oppressed peoples into submission --to recreate the days of easy imperialist peace. Internationally, U.S. war generally takes the place against the so-called “Third World” of Africa, Asia and Latin America. Inside the United States, the domestic policy targets the same victims: Africans, Mexican, Indigenous and Puerto Rican peoples.
(2) To expose the role prisons play in maintaining capitalism, imperialism, and colonialism. We understand that billions of dollars are made by the prison industrial complex and that literally thousands of potential freedom fighters are locked in prisons throughout occupied America (United States).
(3) To advocate for the human and civil rights of all prisoners. We believe that all prisoners should be treated as humans --and not tortured or treated as animals.
°As part of our work to raise the political and social consciousness of nuestra gente (barrio-community-prison) we published two issues of Las Calles (550 copies each issue), a 24-page booklet which included presentations from speakers of the CMPP conference held June 1999, as well as several pamphlets explaining (in Spanish and English) how the prison system is used to oppressed the Mexicano community
°During this period (June 1999 to June 2000), we held three fund raisers to support the work of the CMPP
°On July 15, two members of the CMPP participated in a “National Day of Prisoner Protest” rally held at Fontana Women’s Prison in Chino, California. Cathy Espitia, coordinator of the CMPP spoke at the rally.
°Two very important events organized by the CMPP during these period of time were the CMPP’s annual retreat (May 27, 2000) and the fourth “National Conference On Raza Prisoners And Colonialism” (June 24, 2000).
(2) the necessity for placing more efforts into fund raising and building an economic based;
(3) to continuing the “networking” with other prison rights activists and organizations, as well as to continue in our efforts to place the prison question as an issue of importance within the movimiento;
(4) to make extra efforts to recruit more members, specially more women, into the CMPP and our prison mailing list;
(5) since our strength lies within the masses of our pueblo, that we intensify our outreach into the barrios with more leafleting and community-based foros;
(6) and, recognizing that it is our number one ideological weapon, that we insure that Las Calles Y La Torcida is published and mailed-out on a regular basis.
(2) From testimonies of Raza prisoners, get first hand information as to the current conditions inside the prisons.
(3) Share strategies and tactics on organizing prisoner rights campaigns and community/grass roots education.
(4) Continue to build the network of individuals and organizations doing work around prisoner rights.