July 6, 1974

## Overview

In July 6, 1974, Prisoners' rights were of particular interest. The Supreme Court passed cruel legislation into law, a new prison was nearing completion with the mission of brainwashing its inmates, and in Rhodesia, Ian Smith wants a "whites only" election. Assassinations also run rampant, as Marcus Foster, William Hurst, and MLK's mother were all and killed. Finally, many members of the community were working in Social Activism at the time, Rev. Bobby Hardwick was imprisoned for his activism under false pretenses, Picketers protest the firing of Black Oakland Construction Company, and Somalian High School students prepare to fight against illiteracy.

## Government Corruption

### Supreme Court Attacks Prisoners' Rights

The Supreme Court strips prisoners' rights to have lawyers or to cross-examine during disciplinary. Newsmen are also no longer allowed to demand interviews with inmates, and inmates have no right to request an interview. The Supreme Court also ruled that ex-felons who have served their time have no right to vote. The courts feebly tried to hide this denial of prisoners' rights by claiming they had a right to a written notice to the charges brought against them only 24 hours before their hearing, and that they would allowed to call witnesses "when permitting [them] to do so will not be unduly hazardous to institutional safety or correctional goals. Adding insult to injury, this case was brought forth by inmates who felt that their constitutional rights to due process was being violated. This horrific result was a consequence of the Nixon administration.

### New Federal Prison for "Behavior Modification" to Open

The Federal Center for Correctional Research announces that it is nearing completion for its "prison without bars." The prison consists of 7 one-story buildings all surrounding a "community green," complete with cafeteria, barber shop, chapel, recreational building, theater, and classroom space. Though at first glance, this seems like a massive step forward for prison reforms, in reality, the prison is designed to brainwash each and every one of its 340 inmates. The purpose of the prison is to research new methods of tranquilizing activist and rebellious prisoners. They will be test subjects for experiments and studies involving "psychiatric gameplay," massive drugging, electroshock therapy, and psychosurgery. American prisoners have rebelled, protested, sued, and even committed suicide to avoid "behavior modification" programs.

### Rhodesia to Hold "Whites Only" Election

Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Smith has announced plans for nationwide elections at the end of the month in an attempt to maintain a mandate from the 6 million Rhodesians who are permitted to vote. Smith is apparently worried that when Mozambique gains its independence from Portugal's new regime, his country will invaded by black guerrilla forces in Mozambique. Smith's landlocked Rhodesia is heavily dependent on Mozambique's ports for its imports and exports. Smith's call for general elections on June 30 came on the heels of another breakdown in negotiations with Rhodesian Blacks. Smith only engages in these talks in order to find better ways of segregating and oppressing black people in the country.

## Assassinations

### Foster Murdered by Right-Wing Extremists?

Many people in Oakland's black community don't feel Marcus Foster was assassinated by the same people who kidnapped Patty Hearst. At first glance, there is no similarity between the events. In this city, where 65 percent of the school district are black, the Foster assassination continues to stir incredulity and concern. Interviews with a wide spectrum of people in Oakland's Black Community show a wide range of emotions (and suspicions) over the Foster killing. These people share a conviction that Foster was a particular target of particular power interest for particular reasons, only vaguely understood, and not the reasons given by the SLA. The national media have by and large the SLA's first communique at face value, depicting the assassination as the work of a paramilitary leftist group.

### The Only White Leavenworth Brother Murdered?

The Leavenworth Brothers Legal Offense/Defense Committee (LBO/DC) opened an independent investigation into the death of one of the Leavenworth Brothers. William Hurst, the only white defendant in the Brothers' case, was found found hanging from a rope in his jail cell. The LBO/DC received money from several of Hurst's friends who believe that he did not commit suicide despite what the prison staff claims. The committee will use perform an independent autopsy using the money it was given in hopes of finding the real cause of death. There are many reasons to believe that Hurst did not commit suicide, including that he was suicidal previously, but by all appearances, he had overcome that part of his life. However, if he did, in fact, commit suicide, it was because of the abusive nature of the prison in which he was being held.

### Why the Mother of Martin Luther King?

The nation is in shock after the death of Martin Luther King's mother, Mrs. Alberta King. People in the black community are all asking the same question "Why the mother of Martin Luther King?" The Black Panther Newsletter asked members of the community for their thoughts on the matter. One person said, "I want to know the whole story about why the mother of Martin Luther King was murdered. I don't want to have to wait five years from to start finding out..." The newsletter tries to convey the emotional impact of the assassination Mrs. King.

## Social Activism

### Black Minister-Activist Fights Imprisonment

THE BLACK PANTHER just learned of the unjust imprisonment of Rev. Bobby Hardwick, who was falsely accused of bank robbery and assaulting a policeman in 1969, but he was really imprisoned for his political activism. In a letter to the Black Panther Newsletter, Rev. Hardwick explains that he had long been "a target of the racist officials" of Austria, Georgia who had been harassing him for involvement in the civil rights movement. Rev. Hardwick has led and participated in several sit-ins during his life. As soon as he returned home, he was harassed by the "racist officials." One police officer tried to trick Rev. Hardwick into selling whiskey on Sundays so that they would have reason to arrest him. A man who Rev. Hardwick trusted used his car and shortly after Rev. Hardwick was arrested. During the trial, his lawyer openly refused to defend him, and Rev. Hardwick was sentenced to 10 years in prison. In a second trial, the state did everything it could to make sure he stayed in jail.

### Picketers Protest Firing of Black Oakland Construction Company

Picketing began last week outside the abandoned Stonehurst Elementary led by a black subcontracting firm after being ousted out of $1.7 million. At the center of the controversy is the Black-owned Foxx-Lynn Corp., which was fired last week by the Oakland School Board on a multimillion project. The owner, Al Lynn, claims that the firm is being victimized by the School Board and Roberts Construction.

## Links and Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychosurgery

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electroconvulsive\_therapy

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian\_Smith

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autopsy

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin\_Luther\_King\_Jr.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picketing