“The rise that couldn’t be.”
In 1952, a political scientist named Richard Hofstadter published a book that would become a classic, The Paranoid Style in American Politics.
In the preface, former U.S. president Dwight Eisenhower is quoted for privately criticizing the far-right as stupid. He also predicted that if that small percentage of the Republican party ever prevailed, it would spell the end of that party.
Hofstadter recounts the history of American political paranoia from early enmity against Catholics, then to Jews, then to other late immigrants to America. It’s been over 60 years since his and Eisenhower’s prediction, and today’s GOP is about as far-right as it gets. The president has driven it further to the right, and it seems to get more aggressive than ever.
We may be seeing the beginning of the demise of a Republican or the rise of a Trumpian party. History, it seems, just as always agreed to predicting of the past, for history, unlike science, doesn’t move in a straight line. History gives new life to old ideas, moves in circles, or sometimes gets trapped in cul-de-sac.
No one really knows what tomorrow may bring. History sometimes surprises us.
From imprisoned nation, this is Mumia Abu-Jamal.
These commentaries are recorded by Noelle Hanrahan of Prison Radio.
![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)