When was the last time you wrote a letter to a prisoner? From animal rights and eco struggle to anti-racist, anarchist and anti-fascist prisoners, many folks are locked up due to their political fight.
Sending dissenting activists to prison is a fairly common tactic by governments, not only in an attempt to silence those taking action but also to inflict fear and doubt in others who might consider doing the same.
For that reason, supporting political prisoners is not only a necessary act of solidarity with those incarcerated, it also is a way of ensuring that those who are not being targeted by the state feel that if the time ever comes they will also be supported.
Today, grab yourself some paper and write a letter to a prisoner. Write to someone you’ve written before, or write to a stranger, that does not matter! But ensure you write a letter to a prisoner and open a new window within their concrete walls.
If you don’t know what to say or you’ve never written to someone incarcerated, simply tell them about your day, or about the last time you went for a walk in nature or a moment in your life that made you very happy. It doesn’t matter, simply talk to them about anything and everything except for maybe their case (especially if they are awaiting trial) or anything that could be understood as illegal.
Every prison (and sometimes just some prisoners) have mail restrictions. These vary vastly but for the most part if they are allowed to receive mail the safest way to send it is on white paper and using black ink. You can check on specific prisoner support groups to know if the person you’re writing to has restrictions. If they don’t, colourful postcards, news clippings and photos will always be a wonderful addition to your letters!
You can find a handful of prisoners to write to here:
www.unoffensiveanimal.is/prisoner-support
If you want more addresses, we find Brighton ABC to have a very up to date list:
https://www.brightonabc.org.uk/prisoners.html
NewYork ABC also has very good lists on prisoners:
If by any chance you feel the need to understand why we stand against prisons, against judges and against the police, we cannot recommend this read any more effusively:
Solidarity is our biggest weapon. Use it!
