BY FRANK FORRESTAL
FORT MADISON, Iowa - In a January 15 interview with socialist and union activist Mark Curtis in the Iowa State Penitentiary here, he described the many messages he has received since the decision last November of the state parole board granting him release. Curtis is awaiting the approval of corrections authorities in Illinois, where he has requested to be paroled, before he will actually be released from the prison. He and his supporters have waged an eight-year fight to win his freedom since he was framed up and imprisoned in 1988.
"I have received numerous expressions of congratulations, handshakes and back slaps since the parole board voted to release me," Curtis said. "A number of inmates have exchanged addresses with me so that I can keep in touch when I'm on the outside. Others have told me that they see my victory as a victory for everyone behind bars."
Curtis continues to participate in political activities while waiting for his release. Illinois authorities have informed Curtis's attorney, Jed Stone, that they expect to reach a conclusion on his application by the end of January.
"I just received a letter from an inmate who is in lock- up," Curtis said. "This prisoner, who is interested in socialist ideas, is reading a copy of Lenin's Final Fight, a recent publication from Pathfinder Press."
Curtis also reported on a recent incident in the prison which demonstrated the power of solidarity.
"In early January, George Goff, a prisoner and `jailhouse lawyer' known and respected for his defense of prisoners' rights, learned that his mother had died in Des Moines," Curtis said. "Under prison regulations, inmates are permitted to leave the prison to attend the funeral of a direct family member, provided the inmate pays the cost of transportation in a state vehicle and pays for prison guards required to travel along."
"However, the prison authorities told George that he would not be allowed to leave the prison to attend his mother's funeral. They said he was being denied permission because he is currently being held in lock-up," Curtis said.
"George immediately filed a legal objection to this discriminatory action and won an injunction overruling the prison authorities and upholding his right to go to the funeral," he stated. "Then prison officials told him that he still would not be allowed to go, claiming he did not have the $600 needed to finance the trip in his prison account.
"In response, inmates organized an immediate collection drive and raised over the $600 needed to cover George's travel expenses. Around 100 inmates participated in raising the funds. As a result, George was allowed to attend his mother's funeral."
Curtis, who was one of those who contributed to the effort to collect the money, said, "inmates saw this as an act of solidarity with George and were real proud of what they had accomplished."
"It was seen as a victory over mean spiritedness and dehumanizing treatment by the prison authorities. The victory we won also raised our morale," Curtis noted.
He also described another recent development inside the prison. The Department of Corrections imposed an arbitrary December 18 deadline banning smoking in all the prison cell houses.
"Inmates responded by congregating in the exercise yard," Curtis said. "Some 100 or so participated in the action. A delegation from the group went in to meet with the prison authorities to express their opposition to this latest attack on prisoners' rights. They presented a letter asking that the policy be rescinded. Since then, the authorities have not victimized anyone for smoking."
While no word about the protest action was covered by the media, the Des Moines Register did report that prison authorities at Fort Madison had decided to allow a period of "adjustment" to the new smoking ban policy.
The Mark Curtis Defense Committee, which has campaigned since 1988 to win his freedom, is in the process of moving from Des Moines to Chicago. It has just gotten a new address there.
When Curtis is freed and moves to Chicago to begin working and engaging in politics outside prison walls again, he will face new challenges and attacks on his rights. He will face parole restrictions, a new set of "sexual predator" laws on the books in Illinois which make inroads against the rights of those who have served time in prison on sex-related offenses, and an $80,000 civil judgment against him held by the parents of the young woman he was framed on charges of attacking.
The defense committee is organizing to be in Chicago by February 1. To help complete the move, the committee is asking for contributions, which can be sent to the MCDC at the address listed below.
MCDC new address:
P.O. Box 477419, Chicago, Illinois 60647-7419. The new phone number is: (312) 829-2950, fax: (312) 829-2950. The committee can be reached by e-mail via CompuServe at "75543,1440".