We’re sharing our episode a few days early this week and it contains two segments. Jay Ward Hunger Strike First up, a recent interview with James “Jay” Ward. Jay was featured in a show about a year ago: he went into prison at 15 years old in Ohio and has been in for 19 years at this point. He participated in the 2018 Nationwide Prisoner Strike as well as other self-advocacy protests since and is trying to raise funds with his outside supporters to pay for a lawyer to help him win his release as his mandatory minimum date comes up next year. When this was recorded, Jay was 11 days into a hunger strike demanding a return of his personal items and a transfer to a space where he won’t be targeted for violence by gangs, alongside a couple of other requests listed in his letter at the end of this post. You can hear how tired he is from subsisting only on water for the last week and a half, struggling to keep focus and concentrate on the conversation throughout our chat. You can find his gofundme for updates and ways to donate. If you want to support his hunger strike, his supporters are requesting people call between 9am and 5pm central time (Mon-Fri) the following numbers to voice concern for the safety and conditions of James Ward A517461 on hunger strike : Mansfield Correctional Institution at 419-525-4455 and ask to talk to Warden Harold May the Central ODRC office at 614-387-0588 At the bottom of our show notes you can find Jay’s public announcement of his circumstances and requests. You can also email your concerns to drc.manci@odrc.state.ohio.us as well as to the ODRC Director Annette Chambers-Smith (via annette.chambers-smith@odrc.state.ohio.us ). Jay is wanting people to reach out to contact him via his mailing address (below) or JPay.com (using the info in his mailing address): James Ward A517461 Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction Mail Processing Center (OMPC) 884 Coitsville-Hubbard Road Youngstown, Ohio 44505 Antifascist Voices in Europe Then you’ll hear an interview conducted by our comrades at crna luknja in Ljubljana, Slovenia with antifascists countering neonazi demonstrations in Budapest, Hungary, and Sofia, Bulgaria. This was featured in the latest episode of B(A)D News from the A-Radio Network, a monthly podcast from a network that we affiliate with and worth checking out for “angry voices from around the world”. Finally, you’ll hear Sean Swain’s promise for a brighter, goldener era for the USA (and subsequently the world) Announcements Malik Muhammad Phone Zap There's a phone zap currently on to move 2020 "Palestinian pansexual Muslim... anarchist antifascist, anti-racist abolitionist" prisoner Malik Muhammad out of solitary confinement at Snake River Correctional in Oregon. Call Snake River Correctional with the following demands weekdays between 9am and 5pm pacific time: Return Malik to general inmate population; Restore communications rights and mail; Return all books and possessions immediately; End the persecution now! Master Control: 541-881-5018 Superintendent: 541-881-5002 Inspector: 541-881-5081 Chaplains: 541-881-4624, 541-881-4625, 541-881-4626, 541-881-4686 General Line: 541-881-5000 Please write to Malik and let him know you stand with him! Malik Muhammad #23935744 Snake River Correctional Institution 777 Stanton Blvd Ontario, OR 97914-8335 *Note*: Please include page numbers and return addresses on each page because the prison typically does not give inmates the envelopes. Update on Fund Raising and supporting TFSR A quick update to the patreon request we made in recent episodes: We’re back where we were a month ago, covering the basic costs. Big thanks to those who stepped up to help! We have other costs beyond that (printing and mailing our small contribution to prisoner zines per month, replenishing our stickers, equipment upgrades) that we could also use support in if you have a few bucks a month. We have that patreon with it’s early audio releases and other thank-yous, or anonymized payments via liberapay that can be one-time or recurring. We also have a big cartel store with some merch and can take payments via venmo and paypal. These are linked at https://thefinalstrawradio.noblogs.org/donate If you appreciate the work we do but don’t have the extra money, the best way to contribute is to get involved in face to face organizing where you are, integrating movements against oppression and capitalism into your life and brings others along with you since we can’t get there without each other. If you want to support the podcast without money, you can spread word about the podcast by getting in touch, offering up graphic skills, helping us proof our transcripts, talking about us to friends, incorporating our zines or episodes into a discussion group, sending zines to prisoners, rating us on google and apple podcasts or spreading word on social media. We also take audio submissions and if you’re interested in getting involved, the production and interviews don’t get us paid but they open up avenues to talk to authors about their ideas as well as raise awareness and involvement in social struggles and pick up the skills along the way. And if you live in a place with a community radio station, public radio station or college radio station and want to hear us on the airwaves, get a few friends together and reach out to suggest our free, weekly radio show and hopefully some of the ideas will filter out to your neighbors. More info at our Radio tab. Thanks for listening! Statement from Jay on his conditions This is Jay’s letter to the head of the Ohio DRC: Dear Annette chambers-smith This is James Ward from ManCI. The last time I wrote to you I had explained a lot to you that has been going on here concerning my safety. And after that letter the administration got mad at me for going to you because they have not been trying to do anything to really ensure my safety here at Mansfield. And I'm writing you again because I don't know who else to go to with my recent situation and concerns, because nobody has been helpful. And currently, my safety is back at risk. About 7 months ago right before the admin got the letter I sent you, UMC Henry got me placed in unit 4B (the faith based block here), mainly for my safety concerns. Every block that I've been put in since I been here, I've became a victim to gangs and have also got a hit put on me, which UMC Henry and the rest other admin doesn't want to believe although they seen and heard proof. So it makes it to where I have to go on PC invest, suicide watch or hunger strike to ensure my safety. But I honestly don't like being in the hole unless I legitimately did something wrong. So my current situation is that I am on hunger strike to ensure my safety, but also for other reasons that I will explain. When I got put in 4B, its an inmate that the unit refers to as frank (4B/128 bottom) and they basically let him control the operation of the block. How? He's been in that block for a long time and manages the faith base programs, etc. But due to the reputation he has built up with the unit staff, Sgt Knowlton and others believes everything he tells them. So when I first got moved over their, I was honestly selling food to people that didn't have any. But frank went to the unit and told them that I was selling drugs to try and get me moved out of the block. The unit called me over and talked to me about it and I stopped selling food for awhile. I was do in everything I was required to do and haven't got no ticket. Recently, I was trying to organize a group meal for people that really didn't have much. And an inmate named Green wanted to be involved. But when I told Green that a prisoner support group was going to do a fundraiser to raise the money for the meal he backed out. He then went to inmate frank and told frank that I was trying to scam people and get them outside cases. Franks celly told me that frank said this and was going to put a stop to what I was doing. Next thing you know I'm on the list to move out of the block ( I was sent to 2B). I then sent a kite to Sgt. Knowlton and basically asked him why I got moved and also told him things that frank and others are doing in that block, but he disregarded everything I told him and only told me "you were doing too much, use your imagination". So I then kited UMC Henry and told him what happened and he said he'd look into it. But before Henry could let me know anything, my Cally told me that someone wanted him to take the hit on me. I then went on suicide watch to ensure my safety. Because PC invest has not gotten me anything and they put you in a cell with someone else that can have their family look you up. That's what people do here (sneak thru your stuff to find your ID number and have their family look you up). And I also started my hunger strike because I know that the admin won't do anything to help me. Recently, henry talked to me and said that he will investigate what happened in 4B, but that a hunger strike isn't how I will get moved back. But for me to go to a regular block while he investigates. And I get it that a hunger strike is not the way to get moved back, but I refuse to go to a regular block where my safety will be at risk. Henry wanting me to go to a regular block while he investigates is like saying go get jumped on while I look into this. 4C is the only block here that I will be safe in, because its the intake block (all of the new people that don't know anything about e hit on me goes to that block), but Henry will not put me there. During the time that I was on PC invest before I got moved to 4B, I found out that property of mine came up missing from the TPU vault. While I was in TPU I was writing complaints on LT. Brooks and Sgt. Risner for not allowing me to do my 2.4. The end result was that the active AIIS at the time (B. Lower) and the IIS D. Blankenship falsified a modified
