The 2016 Republican National Convention, under the ponderous pressure of Donald Trump, was, in many ways, an escape back in time – to the 1950s, and ‘60s – an era when Barry Goldwater, Richard Nixon, and Eisenhower were big figures in the Party, and advocates of exclusion, racist fear, and dread of the Other.
Back then, the Big Fear was of Communism.
Today, its foreigners – and, of course, the permanent alien: Black people.
Half a century ago, it was fear, fear, fear.
Today: it’s still fear, fear, fear – and more fear.
Fear: the real mothers milk of politics.
That – and nostalgia for the 1950s.
Except for a few puppets, this was the whitest presidential convention in decades.
Mostly white on stage: whiter still in the stands.
And in case they didn’t get the message, along came Rudy (aka ‘Adolph’) Giuliani, shrieking about Black Lives Matter, which he compared (I kid you not) to the Black Panthers.
Seriously.
The central message of the Convention? Be afraid. Be Very Afraid.
‘Only Trump Can Save Us!’
Seriously.
The GOP Convention was ‘Back to the Future’.
It wasn’t ‘Make America Great Again!’
It was ‘Make America WHITE Again!’
And again.
And again.
![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
https://conta.cc/4ayDxlB](https://www.prisonradio.org/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)