No to Silencing Prisoners' Speech Rootsaction.Org Over 10,000 Signatures in First Day, October 2014
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No to Silencing Prisoners' Speech RootsAction.org Over 10,000 signatures in first day, October 2014 We stand against the passage, in Pennsylvania, of the so-called "Revictimization Relief Act," which affords virtually unlimited discretion to District Attorneys and the state Attorney General to silence prisoner speech, by claiming that such speech causes victims' families "mental anguish." Politicians are claiming a power that if granted to them will be difficult if not impossible for citizens to check. In seeking to silence the legally protected speech of prisoners, the state also damages citizens' right and freedom to know -- in this case, to better understand an area of U.S. life physically removed from public scrutiny. This legislation emerged following the failure of the Fraternal Order of Police and its allies to stop prisoner and radio Journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal from delivering an October 5, 2014, commencement address. This bill sacrifices the rights of all prisoners in Pennsylvania in order to silence Abu-Jamal -- an unethical deployment of collective punishment by those in power. Victim relief is not served by denying fundamental rights to those convicted, especially because prisoner freedom of speech is crucial for redressing wrongful convictions and the current crisis of harsh sentencing that is often disproportionate to alleged crimes. Our society is currently engaged in a full-scale debate on the problems of mass incarceration that could not have developed without prisoners' voices. Lawrence Fine NY This is an ill-conceived bill. Lester Bourdon PA Christopher Scerbo ME Democracy is never served by silence. Jennifer Zielinski PA Joseph Bieliunas PA Holly bishop CA Bryn Fillers CA Bill Vincent ot Michael McGill ot Thomas Askjellerud NY Lisa Simeone MD joyce Miller NY Robert Post NJ The only proper answer to bad speech is good speech! Gabriel Alkon NY Matt Hunziker NY Jon Drucker PA Kimberly Shaub NJ Jay Tee NY Charlie Rohrer PA Brooke Bates NY Barb Schade CT Anne Picker NJ mike mcdonald MD Ellen Kirshbaum NY Why does speech frighten these corrupt politicians? Let all prisoners SPEAK! george green NY Elaine Frech PA Andrew Conrad NJ Paul Barnett NJ Colleen Hamilton NY No to Silencing Prisoners' Speech RootsAction.org Over 10,000 signatures in first day, October 2014 Jennifer Seggio NY Gail McGinnis MD Jenefer Ellingston DC Why is our local or national gov't afraid of Free Speech? bernadette onyenaka MD Liz Reisman NJ Suhas Malghan MD Rochelle Rubin NY Marcia Bookoff MD Peter Budka NY Wade Lance NY steven goldman NY Mary Helen Pombo NY Lorraine Klein NY Marco Accattatis NJ Ron Shansby MD Ryan Beebe PA John and Debby Hanrahan DC Kathleen Stilwell MD Allan Carlson NJ This is a FASCIST law. It represents that antithesis of the intent of the Founding Fathers who penned the U.S. Constitution. Sylvia Moritz NY Jacob Halper NY Peter Kraniotakis NY Juevonaso Grande FL Lillian G Brown NY David Lipfert NY samuel Newman MD Leigh Smith NY Janet Riley MD Andrew Sequeira PA Dusty Burchnall DE Leo Brown NJ Anne Hiltner NJ Dan Allard PA C. Giffuni NY Anton Daniel ot John Jonik PA Averlon Hill NY Pete Klosterman NY Patricia Fiedler PA Sara Lerner NJ Ray Wolfson NJ Jamie Burks PA Mary Sapno MD Thomas Wensing NY Antonio Fernandez NY No to Silencing Prisoners' Speech RootsAction.org Over 10,000 signatures in first day, October 2014 Jesse Reyes NJ This bill only makes sense if it is known, beyond all shadow of doubt, that the incarcerated person is actually "guilty." The Innocence Project and several other high profile cases ("The Central Park Jogger" case) has proven that far too many incarcerated people are not guilty of the crimes they were sent to prison for. I would not want to deny anyone their rights on that basis alone. This bill is wrong and should not be signed by anyone who actually cares about our Constitution and our Bill of Rights. Paul Buckley NJ Michael Southwell NJ john wetherhold NY john wetherhold NY Joan Agro NY Peter Stellato NJ Jean-Luc Mercier NY T Bollweg NY Michael Balsai PA Paul D'Amato CT Tom Hocking PA Randy Gyory PA Evelyn Gomez NJ Ellen Bardo PA Betti Sachs NY Karen Branan DC Thomas Artin NY Jay Bert NY Arthur Brina NY David Swanson VA Jan Clausen NY This bill threatens to make Pennsylvania a poster child for the unconstitutional curtailment of the free speech rights that are known around the world as one of the great strengths of U.S. system. Pennsylvanians and all U.S. citizens need to wake up and soundly reject this ill-conceived measure that threatens the freedoms of all. Larry Kamerman NY john pollard NY Elias Vlanton MD Kay Reinfried PA Bob Hamburg PA Gail Anderson MD Dallas C. Galvin NY Censorship for the state that promotes itself as the site of the U.S. Constitution and home of Benjamin Franklin and William Penn? Deeply troubling behavior. Rethink, then reject. Mr. Jamal (let's be clear about motivation here) has been able to show the corruption and disingenuousness of the D.A., the state senate, and police. Clean up your own acts, then you need no longer fear free and unfettered speech. TROYA TISEO NY Eleanor Lange NY David Drukaroff NJ I have tried to win exoneration for a wrongfully convicted inmate for the last 25 years. People have a right to know how this inmate feels. Jean Barker PA No to Silencing Prisoners' Speech RootsAction.org Over 10,000 signatures in first day, October 2014 William Edelman PA Don't make a bad situation even worse. Edward Montgomery NY David Swanson VA daniel rüegg ot It's absurd: the U.S. Claim to be a democratic state. But it has the highest rate of incarcerated citizens worldwide and is the most desolidarized of all western societies. Alice Brody NY Martin Konrad NJ George Kormendi NY Augie Pennino PA Bryan Chasney MD DAVID RUFFNER MD Linda Howard NY Pricilla Delaney PA kellie huynh NY Theodore Lundgren FL Mollie Schierman MN Chad Sell PA Does anyone care about the constitution anymore? Gene Cahill NJ Susan Scorzelli MI Richard Secrist NV Katharine Rylaarsdam MD Public officials are servants of the law, not demigods who should be granted unlimited arbitrary power. Alan Townsend CA Roy Murphy NY Mark Dorsten AZ Todd Clark IN Iwp Chi IL Workers of the World, Unite! Put the real criminals behind bars - the racist, genocidalist US capitalist class! molly brewer WI hi Lesley Woodward OH Scot Coahran CA William Geoghegan NM Margaret Needham NJ Lacey Kammerer CA carol myers CO Vafa Ansarifar MA Sandra Garcia NJ Lynn Loyd NY Hannah Banks MA Chris Drumright TN Jane Nydorf CA Dianne Bragg MI Courtney Childs OR Burt Kopito NY Lisa Annecone CA brandon van vliet MN No to Silencing Prisoners' Speech RootsAction.org Over 10,000 signatures in first day, October 2014 Laila Atallah MD amy dingman NM Sierra Warrick CA Jonathan Petrovsky CA Jared Howe WA Stephen Orefice NY Thomas D Hendrickson WA Caryn Graves CA Ronald Warren CA Lindsay Beron IN Michael Webb OH joseph Dangelo NY David Collins KY William Dawley CA William Dawley CA Thom Matthews PA Carol Greer NY Michael Rowe VT connie bolzan TX Gillian Kinney PA Jenny Boone RI Ariel Feuz NY Siamak Fooladi OR Jeffrey Vogel NY William Tait IL Martin Elsbach CA Rick Redfield WI Susan Williams CO Back off of this. It is so clearly unconstitutional that it's practically flushing taxpayer money down the john. William Cuff NJ Timothy Lippert GA victor wallis MA Sara Paulson NY David Mitchell WA William C. Maxwell MO Grace Burson NH Randal Mutter FL Max Barack IL Jeff Keyes KY Ryan Hampton NE Steve Bryant MS MARK GROTZKE IL Kevin Vaught TN EM schleifer MA William Neill IL F. Robert Wesley NY No to Silencing Prisoners' Speech RootsAction.org Over 10,000 signatures in first day, October 2014 Dorie Green MT Kathe Garbrick KS Moby Moby TX stephanie granada GA Mark Schmidt PA Robert Beverly TX Dave skogley IL Aaron Dunbrack MA Sandra Turner NY Cheryn English CA Sherrie Tucker KS Julimar Castro MN Wrongful and disproportionate convictions exist. To prevent these people from speaking is outrageous. I suspect those proposing this law care more about silencing convicts and preventing them from telling the truth regarding the system, than about the families themselves. Camille Chavez NM Carla Skuce NC Steve Clemens MN W B CA Terry Schwartz MN Al Krause NY James Hill NY Keith Hailey TX Kimberly Seger PA Terrence Willitts FL Megan Hoffman MT Deborah Richards WY Edward Costello CA This is outrageous. Chelsea Clifford NC Christian Armitage UT Patricia Lasek NY Priscilla Herrington MA Daniel Krainas FL Cathleen McGuire NY Barb Smith CO Thomas Lemberg MA Maria Jaunakais NM Max Stahl MA Stephen Parker NC Bartley Lawson OH Renee Milkie WA Kate McShane PA d carr NH L Alison D Carter WV Scott Cottrill NM shaun murphy NC Kevin Kurtz NY No to Silencing Prisoners' Speech RootsAction.org Over 10,000 signatures in first day, October 2014 r marcley NY PA has become Kansas! Benjamin Caldwell LA Kathleen Broderick NY Christopher Devereux NM Ron Jacobs VT Lynne Posner MA ireri bravo NV Konstantin Goranovic MA James Ashcraft CA Daniel Kelso TN Giovanna Tonelli PA Mike Gawdun CO T TODARO OH Deborah Spencer MA Michael Klausing WV Thomas McCoy MA Is Putin in charge down thre Deborah Scott NY David Burkett MI Leslie Patrick PA Richard Johnson WA Bonnie Reukauf ID Shiu Hung FL Joan Arnold IN Mike Cass CA Davis Swinney CO Deborah Friend NH jerry nachison NM Susanna Askins OR Pat Chambers ID Daniel Kammerer NE Cheryl Young TN Chris Madden PA HAROLDO NUNES OH Mickey Youmans GA Freedom of speech is a constitutional right even for prisoners Marianne Nee IL lancen musser MT Lorraine Schwartz NM Dr.