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George Jackson at San Quentin Prison and the Attica Rebellion
12023-05-24T00:29:15+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49131970s Focused Researchgallery2023-09-20T21:55:41+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49*Select the content pages below for more on information on the images above included in the media gallery.
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1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.45.17 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T21:46:49+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Vacant yard after state troopers stormed Attica1The vacant prison yard strewn with debris at the Attica State Correctional Facility in Attica, New York, on September 14, 1971. What survivors hoped to see was insider information about the retaking of Attica. Finally getting to read volumes two and three of this report might mean, for example, that surviving hostage Michael Smith could finally find out who had riddled his lower abdomen with bullets, almost killing him and causing him years of agony. These volumes might also allow Traycee Barkley, the younger sister of slain 21-year-old prisoner L.D. Barkley to learn who had shot her brother to death and perhaps also to learn whether in fact, as various prisoners as well as respected state assemblyman observer Arthur Eve kept insisting back in 1971, he was shot to death after the retaking was complete. Or possibly the family of Attica prisoner Kenny Malloy might finally learn the name of the trooper who not only shot him to death, but also then proceeded to shoot out his eyes. Maybe the family of correction officer John Monteleone could finally learn how he ended up bleeding to death from a bullet wound to his chest.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.45.17 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T21:46:49+00:00September 14, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 3.24.07 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T22:25:14+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: State troopers prepare to retake Attica 31Armed officers walk by the entrance to the Attica Correctional Facility, in Attica, NY, in the aftermath of the riot at the prison, September 1971. It was really a law enforcement riot. Over 500 law enforcement agents, state troopers and ex-prison guards, whatever, stormed the prison with rifles, shotguns. And they were up on the catwalks and first tear gas was shot down on [the prisoners]. So it was all smoky and [law enforcement] really couldn't see anything. They were just firing down randomly at the prisoners. Again, I want to reiterate that they couldn't see what they were doing, so they just fired over and over again. There's one New York state surveillance tape of the riot, and it's unbelievable how long they were firing. It's about nine minutes of straight shooting down into the yard.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 3.24.07 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T22:25:14+00:00September, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.37.54 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T21:38:59+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: State troopers prepare to retake Attica 21Armed officers walk by the entrance to the Attica Correctional Facility, in Attica, NY, in the aftermath of the riot at the prison, September 1971. Negotiations were led by a group of journalists, politicians and prison reformers, including the radical civil rights attorney William Kunstler and the New York Times columnist Tom Wicker. Shuttling between prisoners in the yard and state authorities gathered outside, the negotiators worked heroically toward a settlement. But Rockefeller was uncompromising, and after refusing to go to Attica to join the negotiations himself, he abandoned talks and ordered state troopers to “retake” the prison.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.37.54 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T21:38:59+00:00September, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.35.44 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T21:36:50+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: State troopers prepare to retake Attica1State troopers prepare to retake Attica Prison, Attica, New York. September 1971 . Prison leaders quickly sought to negotiate with Gov. Nelson Rockefeller and other state officials, conditioning their surrender on the granting of 33 demands. These included better education, less mail censorship, more religious freedom, fairer disciplinary and parole processes and, most controversially, amnesty for crimes committed in the course of the riot itself.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.35.44 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T21:36:50+00:00September, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 3.21.40 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T22:22:24+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Prisoners with makeshift amor in a hallway1Inmates at Attica Correctional Facility during the 1971 uprising that ended with 39 people fatally shot when armed state troopers stormed the prison. Many reforms promised in the wake of the revolt have yet to materialize. Overcrowding contributed to the poor conditions, as in recent years the prison population had increased from the 1,200 prisoners for which it was designed to 2,243.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 3.21.40 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T22:22:24+00:00September, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.47.21 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T21:48:56+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Prisoners stripped naked after state troopers stormed Attica1Prisoners with their hands on their heads and stripped of all clothes are lined up after guards regained control following the Attica prison riot in Attica, New York, Sept. 1971. The most sadistic crimes took place after state officials had full control of the prison. Prisoners were forced to strip naked and run through a gantlet of 30 to 40 corrections officers who took turns beating them with batons. One National Guardsman described seeing a gravely injured black man being attacked by a corrections officer. “They forced him to his knees, and at that point, the correction sergeant backed up a short distance and then ran forward and kicked the man in the face…He immediately went limp and his head was hanging down, he was bleeding.” Another Guardsman recalled watching medical staff join in the abuse. He saw a doctor “speaking to the inmates and saying: ‘You say you’re hurt? You’re not hurt. We’ll see if you’re hurt.’ ” Instead of attending to their wounds, the doctor began kicking and hitting them.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.47.21 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T21:48:56+00:00September, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.14.20 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T21:18:11+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Prisoners raise fists during negotiations1Rebellious inmates at the Attica Correctional Facility giving the black power salute during negotiations of the takeover. Manifesto of Demands: We, the men of Attica Prison, have been committed to the New York State Department of Corrections by the people of society for the purpose of correcting what has been deemed as social errors in behaviour. Errors which have classified us as socially unacceptable until reprogrammed with new values and more thorough understanding as to our values and responsibilities as members of the outside community. The Attica Prison program in its structure and conditions have been enslaved on the pages of this Manifesto of Demands with the blood, sweat, and tears of the inmates of this prison. The program which we are submitted to under the façade of rehabilitation are relative to the ancient stupidity of pouring water on a drowning man, inasmuch as we are treated for our hostilities by our program administrators with their hostility as medication. In our efforts to comprehend on a feeling level an existence contrary to violence, we are confronted by our captors with what is fair and just, we are victimized by the exploitation and the denial of the celebrated due process of law. In our peaceful efforts to assemble in dissent as provided under this nation’s U.S. Constitution, we are in turn murdered, brutalized, and framed on various criminal charges because we seek the rights and privileges of all American People.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.14.20 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T21:18:11+00:00September, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.13.34 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T21:14:04+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Prisoners Raise Fists1Attica prisoners raise fists in support of demands made during prison uprising, Sept. 10, 1971. “The most direct effect of the George Jackson murder was the rebellion at Attica prison — a rebellion that came from long, deep grievance, 54% of the inmates were black; 100% of the guards were white. Prisoners spent 14 to 16 hours a day in their cells, their mail was read, their reading material restricted, their visits from families conducted through a mesh screen, their medical care disgraceful, their parole system inequitable, racism everywhere.” - Howard Zinn.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.13.34 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T21:14:04+00:00September 10, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.26.23 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T21:27:23+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Prisoners negotiate1Inmates of the Attica Correctional Facility negotiating with Russell G. Oswald, the state prisons commissioner, in September 1971. Puerto Rican prisoners suffered special discrimination; prisoner mail was censored, and since corrections officers couldn’t read Spanish, they simply tossed those letters in the trash. Black prisoners had it worst of all, as they were relegated to the lowest-paid jobs and racially harassed by the prison’s almost all-white staff.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.26.23 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T21:27:23+00:00September, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.33.52 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T21:35:13+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Prisoners meeting1Inmates at Attica prison during the 1971 uprising. Drawing strength from the civil rights activism of the era, Attica’s prisoners lobbied to improve their living conditions. But all they got were vague, unfulfilled promises. After months of mounting tensions, on Sept. 9, 1971, a group of prisoners saw a chance to overpower an officer. The Attica riot was underway.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.33.52 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T21:35:13+00:00September, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 3.27.48 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T22:28:53+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Prisoners crawl on the ground after take-over1Inmates of the Attica State Prison lie on the ground or are walked with their hands above their heads as authorities retake control of the facility, September 1971. Nelson: There was a scene of hundreds of dead and wounded lying on the ground, and the law enforcement had completely taken over the prison. But it didn't stop there. Then it just was a scene of various tortures. L.D. Barkley, who was one of the leaders, was sought out and murdered. The prisoners were made to crawl through the latrines that they had dug, through human waste. They were told that if they lifted their heads, they would be killed.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 3.27.48 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T22:28:53+00:00September, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.43.34 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T21:45:09+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Prison retaken, prisoners and corpses on the ground1Inmates in Attica’s D yard shortly after state troopers regained control of the prison, September 13, 1971. The savagery that followed the decision to retake the prison was both predictable and avoidable. The prisoners had no guns themselves, yet the troopers — untrained, unsupervised and out for vengeance — began shooting wildly upon entering. Among the first to die were corrections officers held as hostages, as well as the prisoners who had been guarding them. Thirty-nine people — 29 prisoners and 10 hostages — would be killed.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 2.43.34 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T21:45:09+00:00September 13, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 3.23.21 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T22:23:43+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Close-up of prisoners with raised fists1Inmates of Attica state prison in upstate New York raise their fists to show solidarity in their demands during a negotiation session with state prisons Commissioner Russell Oswald, in this Sept. 10, 1971. Isolated in the far western corner of New York State (Attica is closer to Detroit than to New York City, where almost half of its prisoners come from), the prison in 1971 housed nearly 2,300 men who were permitted only one shower a week and provided a single roll of toilet paper each month (“one sheet per day,” went the saying). Men regularly went to bed hungry, as the state spent just 63 cents per prisoner per day for food.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 3.23.21 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T22:23:43+00:00September 10, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49
1media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 3.25.33 PM_thumb.png2023-03-20T22:27:18+00:00Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a491971 Attica Rebellion: Army helicopter over Attica1An Army helicopter makes a low pass over the Attica Correctional Facility on September 13, 1971. Troops fired tear gas shells into the prison D Yard. Nelson: The helicopter kept broadcasting over and over again, "Surrender with your hands up. You will not be harmed. Surrender and you will not be harmed." But there was nowhere to surrender to. Again, they were up on the catwalks, just firing down. So no, there was no way to surrender, because there was nobody to surrender to.media/Screen Shot 2023-03-20 at 3.25.33 PM.pngplain2023-03-20T22:27:18+00:00September 13, 1971Gina Leonf0ac362b4453e23ee8a94b1a49fbeeafde2a0a49