Voices of the Incarcerated - "Abolition Cannot Wait"

In September 2020, Lacino Hamilton was exonerated for the murder of his foster mother, Willa B. Bias, and released after 26 years in prison. Convicted at the age of 19, the only pieces of evidence linking Hamilton to Bias’ death were a confession police forced from Hamilton, and the statement of a jailhouse informant. Through his decades in prison, Hamilton educated himself on the nature of the prison system and how to fight back, thanks to the help of existing prisoners' organizations. Hamilton wrote thousands of letters to journalists and lawyers seeking support with his case, and also became a contributor to Truthout, where he shared his firsthand experience and analysis of the prison system.

Hamilton has recently published a collection of letters he wrote during his time in prison, In Spite of the Consequences: Prison Letters on Exoneration, Abolition, and Freedom. Below is an excerpt from chapter 2 of Hamilton's book, a letter addressed to a professor in Riverside, California, who became Hamilton’s pen pal while he was incarcerated.

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Dear Professor James A.,

Since there is no constitutional right for prisoners to criticize or bring public attention to policies and practices that harm us, the prison has taken action against me. I called into an Ohio radio station and articulated the need to create more educational and employment programs for gang members: transformation through education. The prison labeled me a gang member. They followed that up with designating me a member of a security threat group (STG). Transferred me to a maximum security prison. And no telling how long I will be in solitary confinement.

You are right, I can take this to court, but courts have held that when prisoners “claim” retaliation we must prove that but for the retaliation, the adverse action would not have occurred. So first I will have to prove I’m not a gang member? Just how do I do that? Ask gang members to go on record and say they have nothing to do with me? That’s the first burden I’d have to overcome. The prison is aware of that. That’s why I was labeled STG first.

I cannot think of why a stricter standard of proof of causation should apply for us than for prison staff. Prison staff put on their pants one leg at a time like the rest of us. And they lie like anyone else. We have less freedom of speech than a free person, but less should not mean zero. When we are victims of retaliation for the exercises of what free speech we do have, we should have the same right to a remedy as our free counterparts.

I’m not giving up (many have). I still believe that if people were aware of what is being done in the name of justice, in their name, they wouldn’t sit or stand for it. I believe they’d roll out with us. Will you help me share this with others? I really do believe in the power of people and the politics people address.

Lacino

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You can read an interview with Hamilton and Lisa Kloskin, Hamilton's editor at Broadleaf Books, at the Truthout website. Truthout is a nonprofit news organization dedicated to providing independent reporting and commentary on a diverse range of social justice issues. Since their founding in 2001, Truthout has anchored their work in principles of accuracy, transparency, and independence from the influence of corporate and political forces.