36th Anniversary of Attica Prison Uprising

By Jeralyn, Section Inmates and Prisons
Posted on Thu Sep 13, 2007 at 10:50:52 PM EST
Tags: (all tags)

Share This: Digg!

September 13, 1971 is the date the infamous New York Attica Prison Uprising ended. It began four days earlier when inmates took over the prison to demand better prison conditions. On the 13th, Gov. Nelson Rockefeller ordered authorities to retake the prison, a bloody assault ensued and in all, 43 people were killed.

At 9:46 A.M. on Monday, September 13, 1971 tear gas was dropped into the yard and State Troopers opened fire. By the time the facility was retaken, ten hostages and twenty-nine inmates had been killed. The final death toll from the riot also included the officer fatally injured at the start of the riot and four inmates killed when "inmate justice" was administered. All ten hostages died from gunfire by state troopers and guards.

The New York State Special Commission on Attica wrote, "With the exception of Indian massacres in the late 19th century, the State Police assault which ended the four-day prison uprising was the bloodiest one-day encounter between Americans since the Civil War."

Much more is available at this PBS site.

These were the prisoner's demands:

"The Fifteen Practical Proposals"
1. Apply the New York State minimum wage law to all state institutions. STOP SLAVE LABOR.

2. Allow all New York State prisoners to be politically active, without intimidation or reprisals.

3. Give us true religious freedom.

4. End all censorship of newspapers, magazines, letters and other publications coming from the publisher.

5. Allow all inmates, at their own expense, to communicate with anyone they please.

6. When an inmate reaches conditional release date, give him a full release without parole.

7. Cease administrative resentencing of inmates returned for parole violations.

8. Institute realistic rehabilitation programs for all inmates according to their offense and personal needs.

9. Educate all correctional officers to the needs of the inmates, i.e., understanding rather than punishment.

10. Give us a healthy diet, stop feeding us so much pork, and give us some fresh fruit daily.

11. Modernize the inmate educational system.

12. Give us a doctor that will examine and treat all inmates that request treatment.

13. Have an institutional delegation comprised of one inmate from each company authorized to speak to the institution administration concerning grievances (QUARTERLY).

14. Give us less cell time and more recreation with better recreational equipment and facilities.
15. Remove inside walls, making one open yard, and no more segregation or punishment.

I was just starting law school that week. Is anyone else here old enough to remember Attica?

It sure doesn't seem like we've made much progress in prison reform in the last 36 years. When you factor in that there are still people doing obscenely long sentences under the Rockefeller drug laws, it's pretty pathetic.

[Hat tip to Prison Legal News].

< Bush's Iraq Speech: Open Thread | Sestak Caves On Iraq >

Legal

Nothing on this site should be construed as legal advice. TalkLeft does not give legal advice.

TalkLeft is not responsible for and often disagrees with material posted in the comments section. Read at your own risk.

36th Anniversary of Attica Prison Uprising | 6 comments (6 topical)

Readers Must Login or Create an Account to Comment

Well ... (none / 0) (#1)
by chemoelectric on Fri Sep 14, 2007 at 12:50:44 AM EST

I was ten years old and despite the youngness certainly aware, I suppose especially since I lived in central New Jersey and most (as in, practically all) of the TV news was New York City or State-related.

We're overdue.... (none / 0) (#2)
by kdog on Fri Sep 14, 2007 at 08:52:23 AM EST

for another big uprising, considering the prison population has increased approx. 400% since then.

"demands" (none / 0) (#3)
by diogenes on Fri Sep 14, 2007 at 11:34:34 AM EST

A bunch of criminals, many of whom are sociopathic, take people hostage and murder inmates in "inmate justice". Yet the evil party in this is not the terrorist hostagetaker but the state of New York.
Stockholm Synmdrome?

: Try backing any mammal.... (none / 0) (#5)
by kdog on Fri Sep 14, 2007 at 12:57:45 PM EST

into a corner and see what happens.

Or call their mothers.... (none / 0) (#6)
by kdog on Fri Sep 14, 2007 at 12:58:48 PM EST

without the phone companies with prison contracts running moms over the coals with obscene collect call rates.

We have learned a lot about prison (none / 0) (#7)
by JSN on Sat Sep 15, 2007 at 04:47:21 PM EST

riots and how to prevent them but they still occur. When they do
occur the are people who know how to bring them under control with a minimum number of casualties.

Overcrowding and the attitude that measures that were put in place to reduce tension are coddling the prisoners increase the risk of a riot. There are no "country club prisons" no warden would let a prisoner touch a golf club.

About 95% of the prisoners will eventually be released and it is poor public policy to produce people in prison who will be an increased threat to public safety when they leave prison. The prisoners who are supported by their families have the best chance of making it outside so it is good policy to facilitate frequent communication between the prisoner and their family.