#RUCHELL CINQUE MAGEE

[movementlike4river]

Black August: Rest in Power Ruchell Magee 🖤

a year ago ruchell magee was released from prison, he died months after on oct 17th 2023. this is his story:

"Ruchell Magee was born an only child on March 17, 1939 in the small town of Franklinton, Louisiana. Across the Deep South, Jim Crow laws, white supremacist lynchings, KKK terror, segregation, and legal bias against Black people were common. In 1955, at the young age of 16, Ruchell was accused of aggravated attempted rape due to his relationship with a white girl in KKK territory. For context, Emmett Till was lynched, mutilated, and murdered in August 1955 for allegedly whistling at a white woman. Magee was given a completely bogus trial with an all-white jury who sentenced him to eight hard years in the notorious Angola State Prison, a former plantation. In 1962, the state deprived him of his inherited property and ordered that he leave Louisiana and go to Los Angeles.

Ruchell was finally allowed to leave Louisiana’s dungeons in 1963, so he headed to Los Angeles for a fresh start. Only six months later, Ruchell and his cousin Leroy were arrested as they sat with a man named Ben Brown in Brown’s car. Brown told police a far-fetched tale that Ruchell and his cousin had kidnapped him in a dispute over a $10 bag of weed, even though the cousins didn’t even have the car keys.

As the police arrested him, they beat him so badly that he had to be hospitalized for three days, but the injustices were only beginning. The racist Superior Court of Los Angeles County railroaded him with the trumped-up charge of kidnapping to commit robbery. There was extreme malpractice from both the prosecutor and the defense attorney, which came to a head with Magee’s lawyer pleading him guilty without his consent. Ruchell was unjustly imprisoned with a seven-years-to-life charge for this alleged crime. 

Ruchell strived to develop his mind in prison, where he learned the rich traditions of African history and liberation struggles. He took on the name “Cinque” because he felt a connection with the African freedom fighter Cinqué, who led a rebellion on the slave ship La Amistad. Magee won himself a second trial by pointing out that his indictment was improperly joined with his cousin’s case (among other improper acts). In 1965, Magee unfortunately faced the same judge that bound and gagged him in the first trial for making lawful objections. In Ruchell’s own words, the second trial “used fraud to hide fraud”, upholding the conviction and shooting his trial down.

Magee had gained a reputation in the prison system as a people’s lawyer by doing work like filing a lawsuit for the wrongful death of prisoner Fred Billingsley, who was beaten and tear-gassed to death in his cell in the San Quentin prison in February 1970. Ruchell’s work helped lead to a large settlement for the Billingsley family.

After seven years of torture in California’s prison system, he took an opportunity for freedom when it came to him. On August 7, 1970, Ruchell Magee and William Christmas were among the witnesses for the trial of James McClain, who was on trial for assaulting a guard after the brutal Billingsley murder. Jonathan Jackson, the younger brother of prisoner and Black Panther Party Field Marshal George Jackson, attempted to free his brother and the rest of the Soledad Brothers by taking control of the courtroom in Marin County Courthouse. Jonathan announced that he was taking over and offered weapons to Magee, Christmas, and McClain. Even though he wasn’t aware of the plan at its start, he knew that this could be his last chance to escape slavery and get the world’s attention on his unjust conviction. The prison guards opened fire on the group as they left the building, killing Jackson, Christmas, McClain, and a judge and critically wounding Ruchell and a prosecutor.

Ruchell fought for his liberation while simultaneously fighting to expose the corrupt judicial system. He would have never been in the Marin County Courthouse courtroom if he received a fair trial in his 1963 case. Even throughout decades of abuses and injustices, Ruchell continuously offered his support as a people’s lawyer for other prisoners.

Ruchell urgently needs public support in 2023, especially because of his factual innocence, his age of 84 years old, and the risk of COVID-19 in California’s wretched prisons. He currently has two motions in the legal system - a request to Governor Gavin Newsom for commutation in California and a hearing in the Supreme Court. Ruchell is scheduled for a parole suitability hearing in July 2021, where he has the possibility of getting parole. 

In Ruchell’s own words, “Slavery 400 years ago, slavery today. It’s the same but with a new name.” Whether it was Africans fighting captivity in Africa, or Africans fighting captivity in California, oppressed people have the right to rebel! Free Ruchell “Cinque” Magee!

Freed Political Prisoner"

[the-final-straw-blog]

Revolutionary Arts with Signal Journal + Abolition with Mwalimu Shakur

Josh MacPhee & Alec Dunn on Signal 08

First up, Ian interviews Josh MacPhee and Alec Dunn, co-editors of Signal, about the recently published eighth volume of the Journal of International Political Graphics and Culture. They discuss their motivations and experiences producing Signal for over a decade, designing print media in the digital age, and their work as part of Justseeds Artists' Cooperative, long-running, geographically dispersed artist collective dedicated to the production of radical art for grassroots movements. [ 00:05:33 - 00:44:37]

Transcript

PDF (Unimposed)

Zine (Imposed PDF)

Mwalimu Shakur on Abolition, Organizing and Education

Then, you’ll hear most of a conversation with imprisoned New Afrikan revolutionary socialist, Mwalimu Shakur currently incarcerated in Corcoran Prison in CA, about abolition, political education and the hunger strikes of 2013 in which he participated. [00:45:14 - 01:12:37]

Transcript

Mwalimu PDF (Unimposed)

Mwalimu Zine (Imposed PDF)

Mwalimu's Instagram

Past interview with Mwalimu

Mwalimu's writing on KnockLA and SFBayView (1, 2)

Interviews about CA Hunger Strikes in 2013 with Ed Mead of CA Prison Focus (1, 2)

You can get in touch with Mwalimu:

Terrence White #AG8738 CSP Corcoran PO Box 3461 Corcoran, CA 93212

Sean Swain

Sean's segment [01:12:40 - 01:20:01]

Announcements

BRABC Letter Writing

Join Blue Ridge ABC on the first Sunday of each month, next up being August 6th from 3-5pm at the NEW Firestorm spot at 1022 Haywood Road, in West Asheville. And swing by our table at the ACABookfair August 12-13 at Different Wrld to get involved, get a poster for the upcoming International Week of Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners and check out the other awesome stuff.

ACABookfair

If you're nearby, consider a visit to the 3 days of event around the Another Carolina Anarchist Bookfair in Asheville from August 11-13 with tons of speakers, publishers, music and more. https://acabookfair.noblogs.org

Dr. Mutulu Shakur, ¡Presenté!

New Afrikan revolutionary elder, accupuncturist and revolutionary Dr. Mutulu Shakur joined the ancestors at the age of 72. He was released by the state after 36 years in prison, organizing, healing, educating and inspiring despite having developed a virulent bone cancer. Dr. Shakur spent the last year on this planet continuing his work, speaking and attending events, surrounded by loved ones. Rest in power.

Ruchell "Cinque" Magee Will Be free!

Politicized prisoner and jailhouse lawyer, Ruchell “Cinque” Magee, is slated to be released after 67 years in the California prison system. Cinque is 84 years old, arrested on an indeterminate sentence around a marijuana charge from 1963, he joined the attempted jailbreak during the Marin County Courthouse shootout in which Jonathan Jackson attempted to free William A. Christmas and James McClain. Ruchell was the sole survivor and was a co-defendant of Angela Davis until their cases were split. There is a fundraiser to support Cinque’s post-release needs as an elder: https://fundrazr.com/82E6S2

Rashid's Treatment Resumes, Thanks To Support!

As an update to past announcements from Kevin “Rashid” Johnson of the Revolutionary Intercommunal Black Panther Party, the public pressure from calls & emails apparently had the desired results and as of a few days ago he was receiving the medical treatment he needs for his prostate cancer, though he hasn’t received all of his papers so he can continue to pursue his lawsuits against the Virginia DOC since they were confiscated by prisoncrats, but he’s super thankful for public engagement to defend his health. More updates on his case can be found at rashidmod.com

. ... . ..

Featured Tracks:

Don't Play Around (Instrumental) by DJ Nu-Mark from Broken Sunlight Series 6

Black Hole by The Bulletproof Space Travelers from Urban Revolutions - The Future Primitive Sound Collective

Check out this episode!

[dialecticalmadness]

[prisonbookscollective]

Political Prisoner Birthday Poster For March 2017 Is Now Available

Political Prisoner Birthday Poster For March 2017 Is Now Available

Hello Friends and Comrades, Here is the political prisoner birthday poster for March.(11″x17″ PDF, 430KB) Also available in color here, and as a shareable PNG here (imgur link). Print it out and plaster your community, both in commemoration of these freedom fighters and to advertise locally for a political prisoner letter writing night. Get together with some friends in your town to send birthday…

[workingclasshistory]

On this day, 7 August 1970, the Marin County courthouse incident took place when 17-year-old Jonathan Jackson attempted gain the freedom of the Soledad Brothers, three Black prisoners charged with the murder of a prison guard. George Jackson, Jonathan's brother, John Clutchette and Fleeta Drumgo were accused of killing a white guard in retaliation for the prior killing of three Black prisoners by another white guard. Jonathan Jackson brought three guns into the courtroom, armed the defendants, including Black Panther Ruchell Cinque Magee and took the judge, prosecutor and three jurors hostage. The aim was then to demand the freedom of the Soledad Brothers. But as the group drove away, a firefight broke out in which four people were killed, including Jackson, all of the defendants except one, and the judge. The guns used by Jackson were registered to Angela Davis, who was arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping and murder, and was later acquitted of all charges. The only surviving defendant, Magee, was subsequently imprisoned for life, where he remains today. Davis later penned a collection of writings about her imprisonment and the US criminal justice system, available here: https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/products/if-they-come-in-the-morning-angela-davis https://www.facebook.com/workingclasshistory/photos/a.296224173896073/2052575461594260/?type=3

[fuckyeahmarxismleninism]

58 years of unjust imprisonment – Free Ruchell Magee!

By Struggle-La Lucha Los Angeles bureau

The Free Ruchell Magee Coalition held a rally on Dec. 18 in front of the CNN building in Los Angeles. They demanded that the powers that be – including the governor and corporate media – stop ignoring the case of extreme racism in sentencing and denial of human rights to Ruchell “Cinque” Magee.

Magee, who is now 82 and under medical care, has suffered incarceration for 58 years. He was given a life sentence for an alleged $10 robbery. Later in 1970, Magee was involved with Jonathan Jackson in the attempt to free political prisoner George Jackson, after eight years of not being allowed parole or any acknowledgement of the racist sentencing and trial.

[therebelwrites]

We commemorate Black August in a time of collective grief, clarity, rage, and rebellion. Mighty waves of popular uprising against the ravages of white supremacy and anti-Black racism are flooding the streets, rising within and outside of prison walls, and reverberating through communities and institutions. Upon centuries of enslavement and subjugation exists an intolerable present, where the state continues to wield violent force against Black people in the form of mass criminalization and incarceration, repression and militarized police brutality, and willful neglect and discrimination, only amplified in the face of a deadly pandemic. And so, Black people resist. First, to survive. And, like generations of ancestors before, to fundamentally alter our collective condition and make freedom real. This is the legacy of Black August.

Black August began in the 1970s to mark the assassination of the imprisoned Black Panther, author, and revolutionary George Jackson during a prison rebellion in California. It is a time of reverence to honor political prisoners, freedom fighters, and martyrs of the Black freedom struggle. This month, we celebrate all the political prisoners who have helped us understand that prison is political and that our collective freedom depends on abolishing the state’s capacity, through incarceration, policing, and surveillance, to disrupt communities and diminish principled struggle against the unjust status quo. The month of August is also rich with the history of Black resistance outside, from the Haitian Revolution to the Watts rebellion and the Ferguson uprising. Black August is a reminder of power in unity, and a mandate to continue joint struggle.

For over fifty years, the Center for Constitutional Rights has worked together with people inside, from Attica to Pelican Bay, with freedom fighters, and with survivors, to protect Black resistance and eliminate the power of the state to inflict harm on our communities. Today, we continue working to decarcerate prisons, jails, and detention centers, to end death-by-incarceration sentences, and to push back against the state’s violent repression of those demanding a transformed society. As the Black freedom struggle continues, so too does our commitment. Join us this Black August to reflect, to learn and to unlearn, and to advance the righteous rebellion towards Black liberation. Together, we will honor the faith that past resistance has taught us and lean into the hope that the present fight for liberation has brought us.

For more information about currently held political prisoners, you can check these websites to learn their stories and offer support:

Dr. Mutulu Shakur Rev. Joy Powell Mumia Abu-Jamal Sundiata Acoli Jalil Muntaqim Russell “Maroon” Shoatz Veronza Bowers Ruchell “Cinque” Magee

[serious2020]

Slave Rebel or Citizen? - Joy James & Kalonji Changa - Inquest

The Case of RUCHELL CINQUE MAGEE is on of the most egregious cases of human rights violation & the deliberate enslavement of an Afrikan Man via U.S. Constitutional decree in global history. Please 🙏🏿 share often & widely. FREE RUCHELL CINQUE MAGEE Slave Rebel or Citizen? – Joy James & Kalonji Changa – Inquest — Read on inquest.org/slave-rebel-or-citizen/

[garadinervi]

A Political Biography, The National United Committee to Free Angela Davis, November 1970; in If They Come in the Morning: Voices of Resistance, by Angela Y. Davis, Ruchell [“Cinque”] Magee, the Soledad Brothers, and Other Political Prisoners, With a Foreword by Julian Bond, Signet, New York, NY, 1971, pp. 183-188

[therealafrikantruth]

Ruchell (Cinque) Magee #A92051 B3-138 California Men's Colony P.O.Box 8103 San Luis Obispo, CA 93409 https://www.instagram.com/p/Bz10vVrDwke/?igshid=hk3icg2p606y

[ao3author93]

Fighters for freedom and justice united on March 19 for a virtual webinar to wish Ruchell “Cinque” Magee 83rd birthday greetings and to demand his immediate release from California Medical Facility in Vacaville, CA. Ruchell Magee is the longest held political... #antiracism #politicalprisoners

[kullmack]

W.E. A.L.L. B.E.: Remembering George Jackson, Jonathan Jackson & Ruchell Cinque Magee: 40th Anniversary - Marin Courthouse Rebellion

[workingclasshistory]

On this day, 7 August 1970, the Marin County courthouse incident took place when 17-year-old Jonathan Jackson attempted gain the freedom of the Soledad Brothers, three Black prisoners charged with the murder of a prison guard. George Jackson, Jonathan's brother, John Clutchette and Fleeta Drumgo were accused of killing a white guard in retaliation for the prior killing of three Black prisoners by another white guard. Jonathan Jackson brought three guns into the courtroom, armed the defendants, including Black Panther Ruchell Cinque Magee and took the judge, prosecutor and three jurors hostage. The aim was then to demand the freedom of the Soledad Brothers. But as the group drove away, a firefight broke out in which four people were killed, including Jackson, all of the defendants except one, and the judge. The guns used by Jackson were registered to Angela Davis, who was arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping and murder, and was later acquitted of all charges. The only surviving defendant, Magee, was subsequently imprisoned for life, where he remains today. Davis later penned a collection of writings about her imprisonment and the US criminal justice system, available here: https://shop.workingclasshistory.com/products/if-they-come-in-the-morning-angela-davis https://www.facebook.com/workingclasshistory/photos/a.296224173896073/1779118325606643/?type=3