Free Askari!

My brother, comrade, and fellow member of Virginia Prisoner of Conscience (VAPOC) was wrongfully accused and convicted in a kangaroo court (disciplinary hearing) of attempting to organize a group demonstration at Sussex 1 State Prison. I know that this was not the case. As a prisoner of conscience our mission is to spark the consciousness of the prison population wherever we may be towards the reform and improvement of the prison conditions on the inside, and criminal justice reform from the outside in. We are often demonized and targeted for trying to peacefully awaken the men and women who are incarcerated to their place in the struggle for human rights. Yes, we were all convicted of crimes (some unjustly), and we all received sentences, but that sentence is the punishment. None of us where sentenced to be held in cruel and unusual conditions, and as human beings we have the right to be free from such. Unfortunately there is a demographic of the population who believe that prisoners are unredeemable and aren't deserving of the chance to become productive citizens. The truth is that the majority of prisoners will be released one day, and whether they like it or not, society has to face that fact. VAPOC strives to show prisoners that they don't have to allow their circumstance to define their reality and that they can be great contributors to the communities that many of them left in disarray, but it starts right now where they are... in prison. So please support VAPOC in our mission of prison and criminal justice reform. To end mass incarceration and the domino effect of cruel and unusual punishment that it has caused we need you. We cannot do it alone, for when we lift our voices against the injustices that we face, it does absolutely no good if there is no one there to listen. - Hassan Shabazz #Free Askari

#HassanShabazz #AugustaCorrectionalCenter #AskariDanso #VAPOC