February 20, 1995
As a person who has been involved in political struggle all of my life, primarily the African liberation struggle (I am now 55 years old), I can sincerely respect and appreciate all, and any, effort in behalf of the universal struggle for human rights and human dignity, and especially efforts in behalf of those who are in prison. I have been incarcerated 24 years out of my life's 55 years.
It is impossible for anyone who has never been in prison to comprehend the horrors and realities of life within prison. Prison is a very negative environment. There is nothing good that can be said about prisons. Prisons can not be reformed (made better). Prison takes a toll on everyone regardless of how physically strong or mentally tough a prisoner might be. Prison effects different people in different ways, but the dehumanizing and destructive nature of prisons will have a profound and everlasting effect on all who enter prison. Nobody remains the same in prison or after prison. Prison is truly the test of a person's strength, character and resourcefulness. The strong is not always strong in prison. Paradoxically, the strong upon entering prison will often become weak and the weak often becomes strong. So many prisoners who are supposed to be strong and good people are broken in prison and become agents for the state inside and outside of prison. Political people should be careful about ex- prisoners being accepted among their ranks based solely upon their character and reputation before they went to prison. The state does excellent recruitment from within the prisons/jails and the military. Especially among prisoners with past good reputations. Personally, I distrust anyone who prison custodians trust and speak well of - and regardless of what that prisoner might be. Political prisoners of any degree of integrity and intelligence will not allow themselves to be played like that. Political activists/organizers/ revolutionaries should guard their integrity/ credibility with a passion because it is the most important thing they have.
One of the fundamental weaknesses of the prison struggle is that it is so fragmented by elitism, regionalism, egoism, etc. There is no real attempt among enough people to solidify the prison struggle. There is a serious lack of political maturity and political principles within the prison struggle. How can we save Mumia, free Gary Tyler, Pratt, Sundiata and all the other political prisoners and prisoners of war without the pressure and mobilization of the masses? This will take a massive undertaking. No individual or small group of individuals will be able to make it happen. The primary function of revolutionaries is to mobilize the masses. Unfortunately, some of the so-called revolutionary elements within the prison struggle do the most to retard the prison smuggle and undermine any real attempts to solidify the prison struggle. In fact, a lot of so- called revolutionary groups are no more than "elite social clubs" or "regional cults." It is a shame that there are so many political individuals and groups out there who have allegedly been doing political studying for decades and still don't understand a damn thing about political principles and political organizing. It is our ineptness that gives the system its aura of invincibility. The system ain't shit.
There are hundreds of prisoner support groups throughout the country but very few have working relationships with each other - or even know about each other.
Political prisoners and prisoners of war have a vested interest in encouraging their families, their defense committees and their supporters to bond together with other political prisoners' and prisoners' of war families, defense committees and supporters in order to more effectively work for the common good. They should also encourage them to work with other reputable political groups regardless of what the primary focus of the group/individual might be.
We all have a common enemy and it's about time we all start acting like it. The struggle is not about who we like personally. We are.not engaged in a personal struggle or a popularity struggle! We are engaged in a political struggle... A revolutionary struggle!
In Solidarity,
Mafundi Lake