o ers 0 jec I 0 limi s
AACP progra
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For the past 8 years thi
Branch has spon ored nd
ere ted African Americ n
Program fo the prisoner
opulation here at the State
. n of Southern Michigan.
ach program has been a
tremendous success and en­
lightenment to the· population
nd guest ho attend d as ell.
Several month ago, the
Branch put together African
American Program to pre ent
to t population t this prison.
Upon submitting the propo als
to the current administration, at
that time it w approved as
proposed nd written. Sudden­
lyon 1-30-90 we were in­
formed th t numerous program
change and restrictions were
now placed upon the program
which we felt were dis­
criminatory, unwarr nted, ar­
bitrarily and capriclously made
to diminish, deprive, reduce the
effectiveness and purpo e of
the program for the prisoners at
thi prison. We are gainst th
limit tions hich are below.
On January 30, 1990, we
ere informed that the African
American History Program
aw.u be held in the Chapel in­
stead of the Auditorium as it
h in the previous years. The
Chapel has capacity of 150
people, and the auditorium
hold pproxim tely 1,500.
There was no reason given for
the abrupt ch nge. It is our
belief nd contention the
change and restriction was ar­
bitrarily placed to reduce and
curtail the number of prisoners
trending this program. In the
p st years, approximately 450
to 800 prisoners would attend
the program in the auditorium.
To further limit and restrict
'prisoners panicipation and at­
tendance in this program, the
in
a
Alarmed that the u.s. is not
the educational juggernaut it
ce w that edacadon is net
the highest priorities of
the educational attainment of
our students, Representative
ug IUS F. Hawkins (D-CA)
I unched a three-pronged effort
to lift education to the status
Deeded to keep it a the peak our
nations pn' orities. .
. �
Suggesting far too much at-
tention is being paid to the
wrong means of deficit reduc­
ti not enough to student
m nt, Hawkins, Chair­
man of the House Committee on
Education and Labor and a
member of the Congressional
BI caucus, says the Bush ad­
ministrati n is using a "smoke
• and mirro " approach to educa­
tion funding.
Haw ins n ed that, unless
America offers quality edu -
tion to today's stud nts and to
tho e not yet in school, our
economic tiny may be con-
administration limited the par­
ticipation of prisoners attend­
ing the program to 100
pri oners per show, with two
shows lasting 60 minutes each
Saturday afternoon between
the hours of 1:00 and 3:00 p.m.
The prisoner population at
SPSM consists of 2,422
prisoners, with 82% being
African American or on­
White.
Every prisoner wishing to
attend this program outside the
quota mentioned above will be
effectively discriminated
against and denied the oppor­
tunity to attend this program
being ponsored for the
, prisoner communi ty.
We were also informed any
pr is er- speaking to the
audience ould 'have to supply
a typewritten copy to the ad­
ministration for censorship
purpo e and approval. After
expre ing our disagreement to
this, the administration stated
that there wHI be no' resident
speakers at this program beside
of the Master of Ceremony.
The time limitation given to the
Master of Ceremony would be
limited to five minutes and this
allotment of time only covers
the opening and closing of the
show. No inmates arc allowed
to participate actively in the,
program which they de igned
and ere d. .
We were then informed that
every resident attending this
show would have to have a pass
to attend. The problems we en­
counter on having passes is the
officers and staff that prepare
the passes on the computer sy -
tern here never prepare them
properly and docs not include
everyon that do s sign up -
which effectively denies access
to whatever activity applies to.
Coupled with the fact that we
have never had to sign up for
passes to attend programs such
as this one before, substantiates
our contentions that dis­
crimination is being applied
towards our organization and
the pri oner communi ties'
right to participate and attend
this program.
Because of the arbitrary and
capricious demands made upon
us reg rding thi program, and
the fact that the program has
been' taken completely out of
the hand of the prisoners who
created it, this Branch is not
upporting, sponsoring or par­
ticipating in this ceremony and
program. The di crimination
and deliberate actions by the,
dministration to effectively
discriminate and deny acce to
tbe very people the program
wa designed for cannot be
sanctioned or overlooked by
thi branch. Because of this, we
ask that you support us in can­
cel ing your appearance nd
participation in this program.
The whole purpo e and con­
cept of African Americ n
Month is being circumvented
and denied by the adrninistra­
lion at thi prison ba ed on ra­
cial discrimination and
pr.ejudices which the NAACP
Buchanon Branch will not ac­
cept, upport or be a part 0 in
regards to this event. Beca e
of the above, we will not spon­
sor, contribute to', participate in
or support the program being
put on by the officials and staff
at this prison this year.
With Unity, Understanding
and Respect for All.
. Buchanon Branch NAACP
Alfredo A. Robinson,
#136864
President '
pushes education
trolled by other industrial na­
tions."
His new initiatives include: .
- 'A $24 billion budget
proposal to fund proven suc­
cessful education programs.
Added to current spending
levels, this figure doubles the
federal ed cation budget. Haw­
kins says this increase can be
achieved by re-programming
current budget priorties and
withou any new taxes.
- New legislation to require
states to equalize per-pupil
spending in all areas of a state to
continue to be eligible for
federal funds. Hawkins points
out that several states currently
face law suits because spending
among school districts i often
dr tically uneven .
- A directive requiring the
Department of Education to
determine if the "non-teaching"
burd ns on teachers and ad-
, ministrators are caused by state
or federal regulations.
During a recent tour of
Korean and Japanese school
systems, Hawkins observed that
education permeated the society
and that ample money for educa­
tion is never an issue. "Whatever
was needed to make education
successful, these m tions did
Similar examples prevail in
other western industrialized na­
tions," Hawkins said.
Citing an Economic Policy
Institute study that finds u.s.
spending on education lags be­
hind other western industial n -
tions, Hawkins predicted that
other countries will continue to
buy major real estate properties
and to acquire American busi­
n ses of our commitment to
education continues to falter.
said better educated societies
are more productive and will
carry big ba " in the gl al
economic community.
s
are th most reeen fataliti of
the ravages of hom les ness:
Sam Harvey 58, Alonzo Manier
63, who w denied shelter for
the night because he h d no
referral to stay t the mission.
The two children, Jeirell and
Jemell Alexander' lives, Pippin
aid, ere claimed in a fire in an
abandoned hou e where the
family squatted He said the
parents wren able to have the
utilities connected. TIt y there­
fore were forced to use a
kerosene heater, resulting in the
fire.
I Pippin said WHU and other
temporary shelters place the
blame for th e unfortunate in­
ci nts directly on the doorsteps
of Tom Lewis, director of th
Housing Departm nt, and
eman Young, whom Lewi
t hi rde Ir m.
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