Florence, CO – In the mountains of Colorado, 35 spirited protesters marched down Highway 67 to the guardhouse of the U.S. federal supermax prison in Florence on Sept. 21. In the lead were two Colombian American women, with banners reading, “Free Simon Trinidad! Peace for Colombia!” and “Libertad para Simon Trinidad! Paz por Colombia!”

“I’m here to support the Colombian peace process. I’m here to protest the U.S. prison system that is holding Simon Trinidad, and to denounce his being tortured in solitary confinement,” said Lilli Ana Castrillon.

Currently there are peace negotiations taking place in Havana between the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the Colombian government. With the peace process moving forward, the FARC is asking for Simon Trinidad to be released to help finish the negotiations.

“We are here to inform President Obama that Simon Trinidad is the key to the peace process in Colombia. Simon Trinidad has been in solitary confinement for 11 years now here in the U.S. He is needed at the peace table to finish the negotiations,” said Mark Burton, the lawyer representing Trinidad in the U.S.

Upon arriving at the Florence supermax guardhouse, the protesters crossed the highway to face the prison. With prison guards watching through binoculars and armed men a few hundred yards further up the highway towards the five visible supermax prison towers, the activists held up hand made signs saying, “President Obama, release Simon Trinidad.”

RCN, the main television network of Colombia, reported and interviewed a few of the people. Protesters chanted loudly so prisoners could hear inside the maximum-security prisons, “Free, free Simon! Peace for Colombia!” and “Libertad, libertad para Simon Trinidad”

“We are here from nine cities to demand President Obama free political prisoner Simon Trinidad from this underground supermax dungeon. Nobody deserves the torture of solitary confinement. It is a violation of their human rights,” said Tom Burke of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera (Simon Trinidad) as he spoke to the crowd.

Burke continued, “The U.S. war in Colombia is a failure and we need to support the Colombian people as they seek peace. Let’s take this bold action outside the ‘Guantanamo of the Rockies’ back home and spread the word, ‘Free, free Simon! Peace for Colombia!’”

The protesters then marched back up the highway chanting, “Brick by brick, wall by wall, free Simon, free them all!” They also sang The Internationale before arriving back in the town of Florence.

Burke said, “This was a tremendous set of events for the anti-war and Colombia solidarity movements. We had a packed house last night in Denver, hosted by Al Frente de Lucha, then a spirited action today! Our next step will likely take us to the White House to demand freedom for Simon Trinidad.”

Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), El Frente de Lucha of Denver, the Utah Anti-War Committee, Alliance for Global Justice from Tucson, and other groups built for the protest with the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera (Simon Trinidad).

#FlorenceCO #InJusticeSystem #FARCEP #Colombia #PoliticalPrisoners #SimónTrinidad #SupermaxPrison #PoliticalRepression #Americas

The notorious Pelican Bay prison is a ‘supermax’, meaning it is a super maximum security prison explicitly designed to keep the prisoners that California’s alleges to be the ‘worst of the worst’ in long-term or permanent solitary confinement, under conditions of extreme sensory deprivation that many consider torture. Political prisoners are often sent to supermax prisons to isolate them and their ideas from the rest of the prison population.

The prisoners at Pelican Bay have sworn to refuse food until conditions are improved in Pelican Bay’s Security Housing Unit. Built in 1989, Pelican Bay is one of the most notorious supermax prisons in the country for its abysmal and repressive conditions. It is also dramatically overcrowded – it was built to house 2280 prisoners but it currently holds over 3100.

The hunger strikers have developed five core demands (read explanations here):

1. End Group Punishment & Administrative Abuse
2. Abolish the Debriefing Policy, and Modify Active/Inactive Gang Status Criteria
3. Comply with the US Commission on Safety and Abuse in America’s Prisons 2006 Recommendations Regarding an End to Long-Term Solitary Confinement
4. Provide Adequate and Nutritious Food
5. Expand and Provide Constructive Programming and Privileges for Indefinite SHU Status Inmates.

The prison system in the U.S. is the most expansive and sophisticated prison system in world history, with over 2 million people currently locked up. This is a higher rate than any other country in the world. Large scale protests by U.S. prisoners against their extreme treatment are becoming more common in recent years. Just last December, Georgia saw one of the largest prisoner work stoppage protests in history.

Video: Support the Pelican Bay Hunger Strike

Click here to sign an online petition to support the hunger strike:

http://www.change.org/petitions/support-prisoners-on-hunger-strike-at-pelican-bay-state-prison

Click here for more info on the hunger strike:

http://prisonerhungerstrikesolidarity.wordpress.com/

#DelNorteCountyCA #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #Prisons #HungerStrike #SupermaxPrison #PelicanBay #controlUnit

March 24, 2009

The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera is calling on people everywhere to stand for human rights and social justice in opposition to the cruel and unusual treatment of Ricardo Palmera, a negotiator for the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), now a Colombian political prisoner of the U.S. empire. He is being held in the Florence Colorado Supermax Prison. Professor Palmera is being held in 23-hour solitary lock-down with no access to the outside world.

Members and supporters of the National Committee have attempted to write to Ricardo Palmera on more than one occasion, in English and in Spanish, inquiring as to his health and asking him about his psychological well-being. These letters have been returned by the Federal Bureau of Prisons with the following notice: “Your correspondence to the above named inmate is being returned. This correspondence was not delivered to the inmate because he is not authorized to correspond with you.”

The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera sees this as a gross violation of Professor Palmera’s most basic human rights. It is a harsh and uncalled for punishment to deny someone such a simple thing as the exchange of letters with well-wishers and supporters.

Ricardo Palmera deserves to receive letters and anyone who writes him makes a declaration condemning the practice of denying him this right. As well, according to the ‘Returned Correspondence’ letters we have received, Palmera is being notified that the letters are being returned. This means that he is told he is receiving mail whether he can see it or not. In the solitude of his incarceration we believe that this simple statement will give him hope and in itself expresses solidarity.

The National Committee is therefore calling on people of conscience here and around the world to write to Ricardo Palmera, at:

Inmate: Juvenal Ovidio Palmera Pineda #27896-016

USP Florence ADMAX

US Penitentiary

PO Box 8500

Florence, CO 81226

#UnitedStates #AntiwarMovement #Colombia #RicardoPalmera #NationalCommitteeToFreeRicardoPalmera #Statement #PoliticalPrisoners #SupermaxPrison