[Ppnews] AntiFacist prisoners in Ohio

Thu May 11 08:53:45 EDT 2006

 From the current issue of Turning the Tide. If you go to the 
web-site, you can get contact info for the Books4Prisoners project 
that is working around the cases. ARA chapters in the midwest are 
also trying to build and provide support

Free the Toledo Rebels
by
Steve, Books 4 Prisoners Crew, www.freewebs.com/books4prisoners

Many of you remember the nazi rally last October in Toledo, 
OH.  Community members became enraged when police protected a group 
of nazis who were shouting racist taunts and slogans. That rage 
turned to open rebellion towards the nazis and police. There were 
over 120 arrests. Most support efforts have focused on the out of 
town activists who were arrested in Toledo. Little has been said or 
done for the mostly poor, mostly black members of the local community 
who are facing the most serious charges from the State for their open 
resistance. In early March the first of many cases came down, with 
the first community member being sentenced to five years in prison. A 
second member of the community, Olajidai Crenshaw, a 17-year-old, was 
sentenced to a prison term of 8 years on April 19. His sister Oshai 
was convicted that same day and faces sentencing in May.

Please show support and solidarity for these rebels. You can not send 
stamps or money to Ohio prisoners but you can send embossed 
envelopes. Books and zines must come from a bookstore or publisher 
and while not required should include a receipt. All personal 
correspondence must have a return address on the envelope. If you are 
planning or are already doing support for the Toledo Rebels please 
get in touch as I would like to share info and better coordinate our efforts.

LASANDRA BURWELL W063658
Ohio Reformatory for Women
1479 Collins Avenue
Marysville, Ohio 43040

Olajidai Crenshaw
Pleaded no contest to one count each of aggravated riot, robbery, and 
aggravated burglary. Judge Jack Zouhary accepted the teenager's pleas 
and found him guilty of the felony offenses. Investigators said 
Crenshaw shot the lock off a door at Jim & Lou's bar, a known haven 
for  racist police, which allowed him and other rioters into the 
tavern. Jim & Lou's was looted of its contents and set ablaze. The 
North Toledo bar, which had been a gathering spot for white police 
officers and  politicians, was nearly destroyed in the blaze.

At 10:42 AM 5/8/2006, Jericho Boston wrote:
Peace.

Does anyone have more info on these prisoners?

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

from Earth Liberation Prisoners Support Network:
An American woman, Lasandra Burwell, has been sentenced to 5 years 
imprisonment for 2nd Degree Felony Assault, 1st Degree Felony 
Assault, and Fourth Degree Aggravated Riot for throwing bricks at 
police cars and police officers during the anti-fascist riot in 
Toledo, OH last October. She welcomes books and letters of support.

Her address is:

      Lasandra Burwell W063658
      Ohio Reformatory for Women
      1479 Collins Ave. Marysville,
      OH 43040
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Also, Olajidai Crenshaw, a 17-year-old, entered into a plea agreement 
last March in Lucas County Common Pleas Court.

See:
<http://libcom.org/news/article.php/toledo-ara-conviction-160306>http://libcom.org/news/article.php/toledo-ara-conviction-160306

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
background from Wikipedia:

On October 15, 2005, visiting members of the National Socialist 
Movement, a Neo-Nazi group, planned to rally and march in Toledo to 
protest what the group claimed was the mistreatment of "whites" by 
"black" gangs. As approximately two dozen neo-Nazis taunted 
protesters with racial epithets in a North Toledo neighborhood, a 
racially diverse poverty-stricken area, protesters began launching 
rocks at police and the neo-Nazis. The neo-Nazis were escorted out of 
the area by police just as the protesters began to riot. The 
resulting mob overturned a car, threw rocks at police vehicles, 
looted storefronts in the area, and also looted and set ablaze a 
local bar that was despised by the black community. 
Counter-demonstrators contended that the bar had a history of 
discriminating against minorities (this allegation has not been proven).

Members and supporters of the National Socialist Movement left the 
city as the riot began. Mayor Jack Ford, who had tried to neutralize 
the Nazi rally by calling the date a "Day of Peace," condemned the 
riots as "just what the Nazis wanted", set an 8 PM curfew and 
declared a state of emergency. By December 1, 2005, 120-160 
protesters had been arrested.

The National Socialist Movement returned to Toledo on December 10, 
2005. They rallied at the Government Center in downtown Toledo, where 
26 protesters were arrested, though there was little violence during the rally.

See: 
<http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051201/NEWS16/512010393>http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051201/NEWS16/512010393

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1220242

The Freedom Archives
522 Valencia Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
(415) 863-9977
www.freedomarchives.org 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://freedomarchives.org/pipermail/ppnews_freedomarchives.org/attachments/20060511/eea577f9/attachment.htm>