Midwest Books to Prisoners

Book Bannings Targeting Black Authors and Perspectives Are Skyrocketing Books by Black authors are being disproportionately banned at an alarming rate.

Black stories are unfairly targeted in recent book bans. In the last six years, the book banning movement has increased significantly.

A substantial amount of the ire is directed at Black authors and works highlighting Black stories.

Chicago Latina Shot by Border Patrol Survives, Lawyers Up “La Maggie” Martinez survived a federal shooting in Chicago. Now her attorney says body-cam footage shows the agents provoked it. The public deserves to see the tape.

Attorney says video shows 'CBP agent taunting her—“Do something, bitch” before "steering unmarked vehicle into hers and opening fire."

"“La Maggie” Martinez survived a federal shooting in #Chicago, [h]er attorney says body-cam footage shows agents provoked it." migrantinsider.com/p/chicago-la...

"Though history shows that Black people have always been the target of police and federal activity, Guillory said, Black people believing they would be safe from Trump’s immigration enforcement is a result of propaganda promoting divisiveness between oppressed communities."

New York’s Biggest ICE Detention Center Bans Book Deliveries Rejected books include a Spanish-English dictionary, a Spanish translation of a George R.R. Martin novel, and "The Seven Principles for Making Marriage…

nysfocus.com/2025/10/08/b... #bannedbooksweek

Exonerations Grind to a Halt Under Chicago’s New Prosecutor - Bolts Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke has weakened her office’s already broken system for freeing the innocent, even as allegations of coercion mount against a former Chicago detective.

A group of Chicago cops have been accused of bullying witnesses into falsely implicating suspects, & threatening to separate people from children if they didn’t provide favorable testimony.

But prosecutors are failing to take a meaningful look back at people convicted bc of their testimonies:

Trump Is Releasing the Full Force of Federal Police on Chicago Trump is normalizing attacks on blue cities because he intends to overpower hubs of democratic resistance.

Trump is normalizing attacks on blue cities because he intends to overpower hubs of democratic resistance.

“We have not been able to speak to him or even enter the hospital per ICE request. We do know that he will be sent to federal jail downtown until he awaits a judge over a case where he did NOT fight back”

www.gofundme.com/f/stand-with...

ICE's Broadview facility has become a de facto detention center, minus the rules and oversight ICE regularly held immigrants far beyond the hours they set for the Broadview processing center, data through July shows. Immigrants held there say there are no beds, limited food, and toilets are out...

Broadview was never designed to be a detention facility, but the administration of President Donald Trump is now using it as a de facto one. As a “service processing center” it’s intended to hold up people picked up by immigration authorities for up to 12 hours. chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...

California Officials Defend Right to Read Banned Books — Unless You’re in Prison Books are heavily restricted behind bars, including some of the books that officials have fought for students to access.

"California Department of Corrections decided to ban my book."

"I've never held it."

"As we fight the increasing suppression of material in our schools, libraries, and historical records, we must not forget the people living through incarceration."
#California #USA #Incarceration

Holy shit man. DHS couldn’t care less that they killed a man. Instead of the loss of human life giving them pause, ICE agents have only gotten more aggressive and emboldened.

Detained father calls daughters from Broadview ICE facility, says he's held in room with 150 men Rosalio Pelayo Salgado was detained on Sept. 10. His daughter said he described being called slurs and having his anxiety medication taken away.

“Pelayo said her dad described being held in a room with at least 150 other men as ICE officers constantly yell at them and call them slurs. He also told his daughters detainees are only given food and water based on good behavior.”

These are the conditions at the site of yesterday’s protest.

Family of Mexican father fatally shot by ICE near Chicago 'wants justice to be done' With law enforcement releasing little information about the death of Silverio Villegas González, one advocate said they "have to stitch this together ourselves."

Family of Mexican father fatally shot by ICE near Chicago 'wants justice to be done'

NLG Chicago Denounces Violent Federal Law Enforcement Response to Protest in Broadview, IL (1/2)

On Friday, federal agents significantly escalated their attacks on speech and people protesting at the now notorious ICE detention facility in suburban Broadview, IL.

19 ICE detainees at the new Angola camp are on a hunger strike, advocacy group says The strike was reported by the National Immigration Project on Saturday. The group says the detainees have not been eating for the past four days.

19 ICE detainees on hunger strike at Angola.

Today makes it Day 5.

www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/...

And then came the tear gas: Federal agents use excessive force against protestors outside Broadview ICE facility • The TRiiBE During a Friday protest outside the ICE processing facility in a Chicago suburb, federal agents deployed tear gas and pepper balls against protestors, press and elected officials.

Federal agents did this in front of the news cameras and helicopters.

They did this in front of elected officials and political hopefuls.

They did this in a tucked-off industrial park in Broadview, an otherwise quiet suburb just 12 miles west of Chicago.

thetriibe.com/2025/09/and-...

Operation Midway Blitz, Cook County's New Chief Judge, and Mexican Independence Day by City Cast Chicago

🎧 Reporter Kelly Garcia is a guest on the latest episode of City Cast Chicago, discussing her investigation of the head of Cook County’s juvenile detention center and the results of Cook County’s chief judge election. buff.ly/Rixw9wX

From Web to Work: How a Tech Ed Program Helps People Prepare to Leave Prison MIT and University of Massachusetts Lowell recently published a study on the effects of teaching HTML and JavaScript to inside students.

MIT and University of Massachusetts Lowell published a study on the positive effects of teaching HTML and JavaScript to incarcerated students.

Page 1 of a rejection letter from Florida Department of Corrections, addressed to Books to Prisoners Seattle. Dated May 2025.

Page 2 of a rejection letter from Florida Department of Corrections, addressed to Books to Prisoners Seattle. Dated May 2025.

"How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way". A book deemed so harmful by the Florida DOC that even a review committee upheld the ban on the grounds that learning to draw comics somehow presents a threat to the safety of the prison. Even worse, per policy (p. 2), books banned like this are often destroyed.

‘Trump’s private army’: inside the push to recruit 10,000 immigration officers As Ice expands and standards are lowered, advocates and former US officials warn that misconduct may increase

In a desperate attempt to recruit ICE agents, DHS is offering massive signing bonuses, lowering age requirements, and shortening training periods.

We've seen these exact recruitment strategies play out in U.S. prisons & jails – and they always fail 🧵

Under Emergency Rule, Illinois Prisons Plan to Withhold Physical Mail in Favor of Electronic Scanning The change comes after debate over the safety of physical mail. IDOC states that these emergency rules are intended to prevent the smuggling of contraband and hazardous substances into correctional fa...

Under an emergency rule, the Illinois Department of Corrections is moving to allow prisons across the state to electronically scan and distribute mail.

IDOC states this is to prevent the smuggling of contraband and hazardous substances.

to.wttw.com/4p7zzs2

We are organizing to stop this egregious "emergency" attempt to censor and repress our comrades already doing hard time

Politicians and prison guard unions are lying so they can implement mail scanning services from profiteering communication monopolies

midwestbookstoprisoners.org/midwest-pris...

To us, censorship and repression are not abstract policies they are daily tactics used to isolate, silence, and break our organizing efforts. When a legal challenge is needed, the process is slow, resources are scarce, and communication is intentionally broken

🚨CALLING ALL CHICAGO! Join us in the streets to say "NO TRUMP, NO TROOPS!" this Saturday September 6th at Ida B. Wells and Michigan Ave at 5PM.

In Contempt #56: DFW Support Committee on Resisting Repression, Casey Goonan Launches Hunger Strike, Reports of Uprising at Alligator Alcatraz In this column, we present our monthly roundup of political prisoner, prison rebel, and repression news, happenings, announcements, action and analysis. Packed in as always are updates, fundraisers, a...

Latest "In Contempt" article dropped on @igd.bsky.social, updates on political prisoners, anti-ICE actions, and other news from the front lines against prison society

itsgoingdown.org/in-contempt-...

'Reckless and dangerous': County board member to introduce resolution opposing ICE, National Guard in Lake County A county board member is calling for an emergency meeting to introduce a resolution opposing Trump's "dangerous" deployment of National Guard troops and ICE agents at a Lake County naval base.

While Chicago's festivals will go on, looks like organizers in Waukegan are canceling their Sept 14th Mexican Independence Parade. They fear gathering will be too dangerous with so many ICE agents in the area:

How Chicagoans Can Get Help and Help Others During ICE Raids — City Bureau Local community groups are providing hotlines, trainings, legal support, community canvassing and other resources to keep people informed.

Officials warn that ICE raids could begin in Chicago as soon as this weekend. We created a resource list with support hotlines, links to legal services, & multilingual Know Your Rights materials to help inform our communities. Access the guide in English: www.citybureau.org/newswire/202...

An anti-ICE flyer hanging in the window of the bookstore.

Attn all ICE agents! Here’s an announcement from our front window: Chicago hates you, and you are not welcome here!

Thank you to everyone in Illinois who stood up to ICE mercenaries today. This is what it will take—to put our own bodies and freedom on the line in order to make every action they take as difficult as possible.

crimethinc.com/zines/seven-...

It is, in fact, our own freedom on the line.

Prisoner solidarity virtual phone bank 9/2-9/5 @ 12-2pm CST Mumia Abu-Jamal T Hoxha Xinachtli Casey Goonan Our political prisoners urgently need our support to ensure their health, safety, and survival. Join us for a virtual phone bank where we'll share campaign updates, scripts, and toolkits to take action. Join at: bit.ly/phonebank25

TOMORROW September 3, 1-3pm EST/12-2pm CST, join us for a phone banking session for T HOXHA, CASEY GOONAN, XINACHTLI and MUMIA ABU JAMAL.

Join at bit.ly/phonebank25

We will be making calls and emails to ensure our political prisoners' lives and well-being are protected.

Contrary to what you may have seen in the Shawshank Redemption, its incredibly hard for prisoners in the United States to get access to books. I volunteered for a project like this in North Carolina and they are a real lifeline for very isolated people in terrible conditions.