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A Write-up for Writing

ON JUNE 3, 1995, one day after being served with a death warrant, I was served with a “write-up,” a misconduct report for “engaging actively in a business or profession,” i.e., as a journalist. So strongly does the state object to me writing what you are now reading that they have begun to punish me, while I’m in the most punitive section that the system allows, for daring to speak and write the truth.

The institutional offense? My book, Live from Death Row. It paints an uncomplimentary picture of a prison system that calls itself “correctional” but does little more than corrupt human souls; a system that eats hundreds of millions of dollars a year to torture, maim, and mutilate tens of thousands of men and women; a system that teaches bitterness and hones hatred.

Clearly, what the government wants is not just death, but silence. A “correct” inmate is a silent one. One who speaks, writes, and exposes horror for what it is, is given a “misconduct.” Is that a correct system? A system of corrections? In this department of state government, the First Amendment is a nullity. It doesn’t apply.

No one—not a cop, nor a guard—can find one lie in Live from Death Row; indeed, it is precisely because of its truth that it is a target of the state and its minions—a truth they don’t want you to see.

Consider: Why haven’t you seen, heard, or read anything like this on TV, radio, or in the papers? Newspapers, radio, and TV are increasingly the property of multinational corporations or wealthy individuals and therefore reflect the perspective of the rich and the established, not the poor and powerless.

In Live from Death Row, you hear the voices of the many, the oppressed, the damned, and the bombed. I paid a high price to bring it to you, and I will pay more; but, I tell you, I would do it a thousand times, no matter what the cost, because it is right! To quote John Africa:

“When you are committed to doing what is right, the power of righteousness will never betray you. . . .” It was right to write Live from Death Row, and it’s right for you to read it, no matter what cop, guard, prisoncrat, politician, or media mouthpiece tells you otherwise.

Every day of your life, no doubt, you’ve heard of “freedom of speech” and “freedom of the press.” But what can such “freedom” mean without the freedom to read, or to hear, what you want?

As you read this, know that I am being punished by the government for writing Live from Death Row, and for writing these very words. Indeed, I’ve been punished by the United States government for my writings since I was fifteen years of age—but I’ve kept right on writing. You keep right on reading!