Sparky
06-21-2007, 02:05 PM
As the mainstream gay rights movement gets in bed with the prison
industrial complex to push forward hate crimes legislation that
includes sexual orientation and gender identity, we often forget about
the damage caused by our racist, sexist, and queerphobic `justice' system.
Rather than working with the US government to throw people in jail
longer, we need to focus on helping dismantle the institutions that
criminalize people of color, the poor, queers, and trans folk.
One of the most powerful tools of the prison industrial complex is its
ability to dehumanize the individual, but there is a way to fight
that! Thousands of queer/trans identified prisoners are locked in US
jails today, and they have little access to information, resources,
and companionship. We desperately need pen pals for these queer and
trans prisoners!
Violence of the Prison System against Queer/Trans Prisoners:
* Trans and genderqueer prisoners who have not yet undergone
sexual reassignment surgery are locked in prisons according to their
birth gender. This leaves many prisoners, especially those who are
MTF, in great sexual, physical, and emotional danger.
* Access to hormones and other health services for those
transitioning are either limited or non-existent. Many times you need
a prescription for a drug before entering prison in order to get it –
which disproportionately hurts poor and homeless queers who didn't
have access to healthcare in the free world.
* HIV/AIDS in US Prisons is spread at a high rate by tattooing,
drug use, sexual assault, and consensual sex without a condom. Many
states, like Texas, still consider condoms in prison to be contraband.
* In order to `protect' queer and trans prisoners, they are often
placed in isolation away from the rest of the population. I received
one letter from a gay man who spends 23 hours a day alone in his cell.
His story is not unique. Additionally, many queer and trans prisoners
don't have the family connections that can provide a link to the free
world.
* Queer and Trans prisoners are at high risk for sexual and
physical assault by prison guards and inmates alike.
The Gender Mutiny Collective started as a pen-pal service in North
Carolina for Queer/Trans prisoners. Unfortunately, just as requests
for pen-pals started pouring in by the hundreds from prisons around
the country, the group fell apart and members moved away. Now there
are 300+ unopened letters from Queer/Trans prisoners that have been
sitting in a box for months. Can you imagine sitting in a cell for 23
hours waiting for a letter of queer support that will never come?
The last remaining member of the Gender Mutiny Collective now lives in
DC and has been holding onto a box full of unopened letters. If you
are interested in becoming a pen-pal to one of these prisoners, please
email me ( nick_stinson@hotmail.com ) and I will forward you a letter.
The greatest number of requests comes from prisoners looking for gay
male, bisexual male, or transgender people to correspond with. If you
identify as such -- your support is desperately needed! I can't stress
enough how important this work is. These letters are a lifeline for
many prisoners!
Love,
Nick
industrial complex to push forward hate crimes legislation that
includes sexual orientation and gender identity, we often forget about
the damage caused by our racist, sexist, and queerphobic `justice' system.
Rather than working with the US government to throw people in jail
longer, we need to focus on helping dismantle the institutions that
criminalize people of color, the poor, queers, and trans folk.
One of the most powerful tools of the prison industrial complex is its
ability to dehumanize the individual, but there is a way to fight
that! Thousands of queer/trans identified prisoners are locked in US
jails today, and they have little access to information, resources,
and companionship. We desperately need pen pals for these queer and
trans prisoners!
Violence of the Prison System against Queer/Trans Prisoners:
* Trans and genderqueer prisoners who have not yet undergone
sexual reassignment surgery are locked in prisons according to their
birth gender. This leaves many prisoners, especially those who are
MTF, in great sexual, physical, and emotional danger.
* Access to hormones and other health services for those
transitioning are either limited or non-existent. Many times you need
a prescription for a drug before entering prison in order to get it –
which disproportionately hurts poor and homeless queers who didn't
have access to healthcare in the free world.
* HIV/AIDS in US Prisons is spread at a high rate by tattooing,
drug use, sexual assault, and consensual sex without a condom. Many
states, like Texas, still consider condoms in prison to be contraband.
* In order to `protect' queer and trans prisoners, they are often
placed in isolation away from the rest of the population. I received
one letter from a gay man who spends 23 hours a day alone in his cell.
His story is not unique. Additionally, many queer and trans prisoners
don't have the family connections that can provide a link to the free
world.
* Queer and Trans prisoners are at high risk for sexual and
physical assault by prison guards and inmates alike.
The Gender Mutiny Collective started as a pen-pal service in North
Carolina for Queer/Trans prisoners. Unfortunately, just as requests
for pen-pals started pouring in by the hundreds from prisons around
the country, the group fell apart and members moved away. Now there
are 300+ unopened letters from Queer/Trans prisoners that have been
sitting in a box for months. Can you imagine sitting in a cell for 23
hours waiting for a letter of queer support that will never come?
The last remaining member of the Gender Mutiny Collective now lives in
DC and has been holding onto a box full of unopened letters. If you
are interested in becoming a pen-pal to one of these prisoners, please
email me ( nick_stinson@hotmail.com ) and I will forward you a letter.
The greatest number of requests comes from prisoners looking for gay
male, bisexual male, or transgender people to correspond with. If you
identify as such -- your support is desperately needed! I can't stress
enough how important this work is. These letters are a lifeline for
many prisoners!
Love,
Nick