In my last commentary, I asked the question: where are all you so-called raise the age and juvenile justice advocates while I’m fighting in the trenches against biased judges and shady assistant attorney generals to establish a constitutional right to rehabilitation for juvenile and youthful offenders. I am forced to pay over $1,000 in court fees to make this argument by myself in court. I had to prepare a petition to the United States Supreme Court with no help, because the Second Circuit Court of Appeals didn’t even want to hear my argument.
People on the outside act like they care so much about juvenile justice and prison reform, but where are you at when these kids are being railroaded by the system? Governor Cuomo had ordered that all 16 and 17 year-old offenders within DOC be separated from older offenders and placed in these juvenile units, where correction officers abuse them. Where are you at when correction officers kill prisoners you don’t hear about? Let’s not talk about North Korea. What about right here in Comstock, New York? Correction officers reportedly killed two prisoners here in the last 90 days, but local media hasn’t said a word. Where are you all at when I put myself in harm’s way to get young prisoners safely out of gangs? Where are you all at when I must fight DOC just to save young prisoners from graduating deeper into criminality because DOC doesn’t support my work? Talk is cheap. I’m fighting for my own life. 22 years in prison, over half my life incarcerated, and none of you are here fighting for me like I’m fighting for myself and these young prisoners around me. We are living, breathing, human beings. Where the hell are you all at as this system keeps burying us, as it keeps setting us up for failure, destroying our lives?
I don’t just talk. I fight every day, like how I’m fighting to get Shetaut Neter to establish here at Great Meadow. Shetaut Neter is a Kemetic—meaning ancient Egyptian—religion that teaches self-discovery and self-mastery, and requires us to walk the earth as giants doing great deeds. I have several young boys wanting to join Shetaut Neter to change their lives, and these people here are putting up all these unnecessary obstacles to stop them. But where are you all at? All I’m saying is this: There are those of us behind these walls putting in the work to bring about change and betterment, who are fighting for justice, but who get no recognition or help. For us, this is real life. When we speak up in protest, we might end up in solitary confinement or with broken bones. The facility administration here won’t even allow me to serve on the inmate liaison committee or the inmate grievance resolution committee to represent the prison population because they dislike the fact I dare to speak up and that I’m persistent.
They handicap me in any way that they can, but I’m still here, pressing on with minimum support and little recognition. If you’re an advocate for juvenile justice and prison reform, you can’t speak for us if you don’t know us enough to tell our stories, or if you don’t seek our advice and counsel, especially those of us on this side of the wall who are knee deep in the fight. We want to be heard and deserve to be heard. For us, this is no hobby. It’s real life. This is Dontie S. Mitchell, better known as Mfalme Sikivu, reporting to you from Great Meadow Correctional Facility in Comstock, New York. Follow me on Facebook at Free Dontie Mitchell. Thank you for listening, and God bless.
These commentaries are recorded by Noel Hanrahan of Prison Radio.
