UN 10/10 March

UN 10/10 March

By Sundiata Acoli

Greetings Sisters, Brothers and Comrades,

sundiata pictureMy name is Sundiata Acoli, and i’m a 71 year-old New Afrikan PP/POW who’s been down for the last 35 years in maximum security prisons. A few months ago i was transferred to FCI Otisville, New York (a medium security prison) and I’m coming up for parole again in 2010.

That’s the update on my case. It’s not that different from many other New Afrikan PP/POWs or exiles, some who have been down just as long or longer than i have: Ruchell Magee, Hugo Yogi Pinell, Romaine Chip Fitzgerald, D.C. Cox, Russell Maroon Shoatz, Jalil Muntaqim, Herman Bell, Assata Shakur, Nihandi Abisodun and others. The one thing we all have in common is that we’re Black and no Black u.s. PP/POW has ever been granted amnesty or a pardon. So we still have a lot of work to do as a u.s. PP/POW movement.

But it can be done: the Puerto Rican movement has shown us how to do it, and the anti-imperialist movement did too, to a lesser extent. i’d like to congratulate Ashanti, Paulette, Kazi and the rest of the crew for the great job they’ve done in re-invigorating Jericho and moving it in a direction it needs to go.

As for what’s happening today? i think the PP/POW movement is in a transition stage. By that i mean Bush woke a lot of people up. He was the wolf, arrogantly riding roughshod over people of color and the poor at home and abroad. Our people and movement suffered setbacks but Bush’s arrogance, bluster and blunders brought the imperialist many military, political and economic setbacks too (except for “Big Oil” corporations) so generally it’s “Good riddance, Bush!” and “Hello, Obama!”

Frankly, should Obama win, most revolutionaries won’t expect anything to change other than the Black masses finally realizing their long-held dream of a “Black President” and various sectors using that fact to declare the race issue solved. But i do think an Obama tenure would leave people of color and the poor with a more realistic interpretation of how “color doesn’t really matter,” how racism and exploitation are embedded in the system and how the only way the masses will ever get a break is the revolution.

Just as Bush’s harshness, arrogance and blunders intensified the struggle from the right, i think Barack’s non-change would do the same from the left. Our job is to organize in a manner to take advantage of the non-change that’s sure to come. i thank you.

Sundiata Acoli (C. Squire) #39794-066
USP Otisville
P.O. Box 1000
Otisville, NY 10963 USA