On December 5, 2003, former political prisoner and former South African President Nelson Mandela—affectionately referred to as “Madiba” (Father) by the South African people—has made his transition to the other side to be with our ancestral spirits. Madiba Nelson Mandela was 95 year of age when he passed away.
To the worlds’ people, Nelson Mandela and the South African peoples’ liberation struggle was an inspiration for their continued resistance to military occupations, neo-colonial economic policies, Racism, wars of aggression, and domestic tyranny and oppression.
For prisoners in America, like myself, Nelson Mandela was a great hero to us because he was prisoner like us. He was our beloved comrade in the world-wide struggle of the oppressed versus the oppressor. So to all of us prisoners confined in America’s racist prison systems in the 1980s and early 1990s, Nelson Mandela—identical to political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal at present—was our living symbol of a freedom fighter par excellence, of resistance, of freedom, of hope, and of truth (good) triumphing over falsehood (evil). Nelson Mandela was one of our Lions of Judah, our Christ Jesus whom comes to bring the sword!
Not a prison protest or rebellion went by that you didn’t hear a fellow prisoner yell out “Free Mandela”, “Down with American Apartheid”, “Long Live Mandela” and chants of “Amandla!” (Freedom!) in the faces of sadistic, armed, racist prison guards.
We, prisoners in America, identified with Nelson Mandela as a political prisoner sentenced to hard labor at the infamous Robben’s Island prison because, likewise, we too were being subjected to the same racism, brutality, cruel anti-human treatment and conditions, and terror by Nazi-like prison guards on American soil.
To throw our support behind Nelson Mandela and the South African Peoples’ Liberation struggle we learned all we could of Nelson Mandela, we analyzed his political ideals, we studied the South African peoples’ struggle and apartheid and connected it to our struggles in America, and at every turn we sought to inform others about Nelson Mandela’s 27 years of imprisonment and the racist Afrikaaner Apartheid regime in Azania (South Africa) that were oppressing African and Indian peoples.
So not only was Nelson Mandela the “SON of Africa”, as he was reverently called, but to prisoners here in America he was our “Beloved Brother of Africa”. Today, Nelson Mandela has ascended to “Madiba of the World”! So much so, that the United Nations has established July 18th as International Nelson Mandela Day!
Some things may seem impossible until it’s done. The Struggle continues
Madiba, we love you! Amandla!
Long live the spirit of Nelson Mandela!!!
From the Belly of the Beast, this is Shakaboona.
Thank you for listening.
![Prison Radio is sharing an abbreviated version of a press release covering recent racist incidents at SCI Rockview in PA and the organizing to demand accountability. We are reaching out to people incarcerated at Rockview as well as recently transferred folks, inviting them to call, in hopes of hearing commentaries from them.
Benner Township, PA.-
On November 24th, 2023, imprisoned people at SCI Rockview found two nooses hanging in the CO’s office, displayed visibly for many prisoners to see. When the prisoners asked the staff why the nooses were hung, they were told it was a joke.
By December 4th, prisoners filed a grievance to document what they saw, noting that the hanging of the nooses was “unethical, racially motivated, hateful, [a] deliberate debasement of black inmates" and “unsafe for inmates, staff, [and] the whole prison in general.” In the grievance, they demanded that Sgt. Mosser and CO Richard be fired and investigated for a hate crime, and for CO Kirchner to get therapy. Captain Andrews, the head of security, denied the grievance.
The sergeant and COs are still working in the prison to this day, with no repercussions...
As of March 10th, prisoners have reached out to Pennsylvania officials at the Dept. of Corrections in a letter campaign, sending 100 copies of the grievance. Copies of the letter also were mailed to Governor Shapiro, Senator Fetterman, Senator Street, and various advocacy groups. The demands for relief in the original grievance have now become the platform of demands for this campaign. About 20 of the 100 letters were withheld by the prison.
Activists on the outside are joining forces with prisoners to elevate their demands, flooding the phone lines of DOC offices, assisting with outreach to media, and circulating the stories of prisoners who have found unity in opposition to the facility's virulent institutional racism.
In any other workplace, hanging a noose would be grounds for immediate termination. However, Nicki Paul, the superintendent's assistant and "grievance coordinator" informed the public that they self-investigated their staff and found they did nothing wrong.
Read the full article at i
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