Robert King of the Angola 3 Speaks @ TESC: Buried Alive

(a work in progress)

Olympia, WA @ TESC (4-8-14) — Mr. King had uncommon grace, poise, insight and confidence for a man who has struggled to survive, let alone one who spent decades in solitary confinement being tortured with sensory deprivation and unspeakable conditions by Louisiana, courtesy of the Angola State Prison. He came to accept he was IN prison over the years, but vowed never to let prison IN him! Still, he acknowledged he’d been scarred. As he observed, “You can’t be dipped in a cesspool without smelling after you get out.”

When: Tuesday, April 8 at 5:00pm — 7:00pm

Where: Lecture Hall 1 @ The Evergreen State College

What: Robert H. King is a freed member of the Angola 3. Along with his comrades Albert Woodfox and Herman Wallace (who has recently passed away), they were targeted for their activism as members of the Black Panther Party inside Angola prison in the 1970s.

After 31 years in Angola prison in Louisiana, 29 spent years in solitary confinement, Robert King was released on February 2001 after proving his innocence.Since his release, Robert H. King has spoken across the country demanding the release of Albert Woodfox along with the end of solitary confinement.

King will speak about his own experience in Angola Prison as a Black Panther, the case of the Angola 3, and will explain how the prison system refuses to free Albert Woodfox even after his conviction has been overturned three times!

History of the Angola 3:41 years ago, deep in rural Louisiana, three young black men were silenced for trying to expose continued segregation, systematic corruption, and horrific abuse in the biggest prison in the US, an 18,000 acre former slave plantation called Angola.

Peaceful, non-violent protest in the form of hunger and work strikes organized by inmates caught the attention of Louisiana’s elected leaders and local media in the early 1970s. They soon called for investigations into a host of unconstitutional and extraordinarily inhumane practices commonplace in what was then the “bloodiest prison in the South.”  Eager to put an end to outside scrutiny, prison officials began punishing inmates they saw as troublemakers.

At the height of this unprecedented institutional chaos, Albert Woodfox, Herman Wallace, and Robert King were charged with murders they did not commit and thrown into 6×9 foot solitary cells. Albert Woodfox’s murder conviction was overturned for a 3rd time in February of last year, and for a third time, the State of Louisiana appealed. As Woodfox, now 67, prepares to enter his 42nd year in solitary confinement, he continues to maintain his innocence.

The third member of the Angola 3, Herman Wallace, was released last October from 41 years of solitary confinement after his conviction was overturned, but died 3 days later of advanced liver cancer at the age of 72. A group of U.S. Congressmen saw fit to mark his passing by entering a tribute to Wallace into the Congressional record, describing him as a “champion for justice and human rights.”

This event is a part of RETHINKING PRISONS MONTH — APRIL 2014! Robert King spent 29 years in solitary confinement in a maximum security unit, the Supermax of the Angola prison in Louisiana. Now 71, the former Black Panthers activist has come to Paris for the first time to tell his story during a meeting organized by Amnesty International on Tuesday, April 30th. He condemns the private prison system, as well as the racial discriminations and humiliations that happen there. He also speaks about his campaign to free the other two members of the “Angola Three”, Herman Wallace and Albert Woodfox.

1/5

2/5

3/5

4/5

5/5

"White Supremacist's" wife w/Robert King, a freed prisoner from Angola, founder of its Black Panther Party, and surviving member of the Angola 3

Pia w/Robert King, a freed prisoner from Angola, founder of its Black Panther Party, and surviving member of the Angola 3

About admin

Opposed to politicians who equivocate about air quality & BioMassacre
This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.