Vol. 81/No. 32      August 28, 2017

 

Florida prison censors article on prison censorship

 
On July 6 the Florida prisons system’s Literature Review Committee overturned two decisions by local prison authorities barring copies of the Militant to subscribers behind bars that reported on the socialist paper’s fight against prison censorship. Then on July 25 authorities at Florida State Prison in Raiford impounded the July 17 issue, saying it “presents a threat to the security, good order, or discipline of the correctional system or the safety of any person.”

What was the article that so threatened their institution? “Defend ‘Militant’ Against Florida Prison Censorship,” the headline read.

The article reported how the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, Pen America and Stop Prison Abuse Now had sent statements protesting the previous impoundments.

“Rejection of these issues violates the free speech rights of both the author and the inmate recipients,” wrote Benjamin Stevenson in a letter from the ACLU quoted in the article. “This amounts to censorship of reports of censorship that could not possibly present a concrete risk to the safe operations of the prison.”

And so does the latest impoundment.

The Militant currently has 40 subscribers in prisons across Florida. The prisoner who informed the paper about this new censorship had helped the Militant overturn the previous impoundments, filing a successful grievance. It said that the Militant “has been allowed for years now” and “is purely political, insightful, and educative for those inmates with different ideals and who enjoy such reading.”

“I’ve got the right to have my own ideals and the Constitution itself gives me the right to freedom of thought,” he told prison authorities, “and to deny me this Militant publication is similar to dictating to us what we should read and believe.”

Despite winning the grievance and the Militant winning its challenge, the prisoner’s July 28th letter to the paper says the prison has not returned that issue.

The Militant’s lawyer, David Goldstein, wrote to the Literature Review Committee Aug. 9, noting that the committee had just overturned the impoundment of two issues of the paper for similar articles against censorship. Even though the Militant has not yet received official notice from the prison that the July 17 issue has been impounded, he said he plans to file an appeal if the seizure is not rescinded.

“Workers behind bars remain part of the working class, discussing and debating how we can come together to politically defend ourselves from the bosses, their government, their cops and courts,” said John Studer, editor of the Militant. “The Militant will not stop defending both our right to get our ideas into the hands of our subscribers and their right to read literature of their choosing.”

Send statements of support and contributions to support the fight against prison censorship to the Militant, 306 W. 37th St., 13th floor, New York, NY 10018.  
 
 
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