Join Albert Woodfox and Robert King at "Cruel and Unusual" Screenings in NYC May 26 and CA June 2

Join Albert Woodfox and Robert King for a Q & A and screening of the new documentary film about the Angola 3, entitled "Cruel and Unusual," premiering in New York City on May 26 and in Santa Monica, CA on June 2. See flyers for more information.

A3 Newsletter: "Freedom Is A State Of Mind"

(PHOTO:  Albert at the Innocence Project's Network Conference in San Diego this last month, alongside Valerie Jarret, a Chicago lawyer and former top adviser to President Barack Obama.)

A3 Newsletter, April 17, 2017: Taking on the Clarion Call - "Free 'em all!"

"Freedom is a state of mind" Albert said at the presentation that he and King gave at Harvard last month. That may be how Albert stayed sane for over four decades in solitary but now that he's out, he's beginning to see that freedom can be a lot of work and even more travel!!

Along with King, Albert has been on the road somewhere different every week; Thunder Bay, San Francisco, Montreal, Cambridge, New York, San Diego, in the last 4 weeks alone. All of this traveling and talking and giving interviews is in an effort that both men are committed to - to raising awareness of the unbelievable misery and injustice that goes on in jails, detention centers and prisons, nation wide. Albert is carrying on along the path of Robert and others exonerees, logging miles ever since his release advocating for the freedom of others.

Now that Albert and Robert are both free, they've become a powerful team, calling for and supporting efforts for the release of many fellow wrongfully convicted political prisoners; Leonard Peltier, Ruchell Magee, Chip Fitzgerald, Herman Bell, Mumia Abu Jamal and so many others that still suffer in the same oppressive, abusive conditions that they once endured.

After a long public campaign and court battle to provide Mumia treatment for Hepatitis C, the court ultimately forced the Pennsylvania DOC to begin treatment. Thankfully that treatment has now begun and we also wish Mumia well with his upcoming court hearing scheduled on his 63rd birthday, on April 24. This hearing could lead to a new trial, and is a response to a recent 5-3 US Supreme Court ruling.

With the rise of the new national regime, the struggle continues and Albert and Robert are committed to remaining at the forefront of every effort to correct the inequality in the USA's justice system. We hope you'll have a chance to view the Harvard presentation, listen to the audio interview from Thunder Bay and read the transcript of Amnesty International's new interview with Albert.

Albert and King head to Denmark and Sweden in a couple of weeks to speak at their Annual General Meetings and have every intention of continuing their work on behalf of the eradication of solitary and their support of freedom for so many other prisoners.

In His Own Words: Albert Woodfox interviewed by Amnesty International UK

Amnesty International UK has released a new interview with Albert Woodfox of the Angola 3. Listen to the podcast here.

Accompanying the podcast interview is a post on Amnesty UK's blog that features an extended statement by Albert Woodfox, entitled: It's a human right to agitate the 'injustice' system. Albert's full statement is featured below:

A year ago on 19 February 2016 I walked out of a Louisiana prison a free man after serving 44 years in solitary confinement.

At that moment I became 'famous' as the longest serving person in solitary confinement in the world, as well as being the last member of the Angola 3 to be free.

For over 44 years - along with fellow Black Panthers Herman Wallace and Robert King - we turned our death chambers into classrooms and courts of law from which we educated fellow inmates and stood up against a violent, racist and brutal prison system which targeted us for our activism.

Albert Woodfox and Robert King in Canada: Thunder Bay 3/2 and Montreal 3/17

WATCH:  Part one of Albert and Robert's talk at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario  II  Albert and Robert in Montreal (listen to audio here)




IN THE NEWS:  Chronicle Journal, Thunder Bay  II  CBC Radio-Canada interviews Albert and Robert  II  The Argus reports on Lakehead University event 

(ABOVE PHOTOS: Robert King and Albert Woodfox join filmmaker Ron Harpelle on CBC Radio-Canada)

March 2, Thunder Bay, Ontario: Albert Woodfox and Robert King of the Angola 3 in Ontario, Canada for panel and screening of the film "Hard Time" about Robert King, made by Ron Harpelle. Event at 7pm, Trinity Hall, 310 Park Ave. Read our 2014 interview with Ron Harpelle.

In the context of the Week Against Police Brutality (https://cobp.resist.ca/), a discussion on incarceration and political repression with Albert Woodfox et Robert H. King will take place Friday March 17th at 6:00 pm at the Alumni Auditorium room H-110 of the Henry F. Hall Building (1455 de Maisonneuve West) of the Concordia University.

***English follows***

Dans le cadre de la semaine contre la Brutalité Policière (https://cobp.resist.ca/) se tiendra une discussion sur l'incarcération et la répression politique avec Albert Woodfox et Robert H. King le vendredi 17 mars, à 18h à l’auditorium H-110 du 1455, de Maisonneuve Ouest (édifice Henry F. Hall de l’université Concordia) à Montréal.

Albert Woodfox and Robert King of the Angola 3 to speak at Harvard on March 8

 Watch the full length video of Albert and Robert's talk at Harvard here.



RELATED:  Jean Troustine writes "What I Learned From Albert Woodfox and Robert King" (about Harvard event)

At 5:30 pm on Wednesday, March 8, the Angola 3's Robert King and Albert Woodfox will be speaking together at Harvard University it Cambridge, MA. Please check back here and at the Facebook event page for more information.

The Harvard Crimson has released a new article in advance of next month's event, entitled "Buried Alive: Solitary Confinement in a Louisiana Prison."  Featured below is an excerpt. Read the full article here.

Albert Woodfox and Robert King are coming to Harvard on March 8th. They have dedicated their post-incarceration lives to fighting for “the abolishment of solitary confinement and freedom for political prisoners.” “I choose to use my anger as a means for changing things,” Woodfox said after his release.

“Everybody has fear,” Woodfox continued. “Fear is the soul telling the body that it’s in danger. Some people overcome that fear. I overcame it by having a cause.”

We hope you will join us.

A3 Newsletter: Reflections on Freedom (includes new Albert Woodfox video interview: A Voice for the Voiceless)

(PHOTO: Albert Woodfox and Robert King at an event hosted by The Guardian in London, England during the recent European Tour.)

A3 Newsletter, January 30, 2017: Reflections on Freedom

It's been a few months since we've sent out a newsletter - taking a bit of a break in December after the wild and wonderful year that unfolded after Albert's release in February, almost one year ago! 

2016 was a busy year and 2017 looks like it will be eventful as Albert and Robert actively continue campaigning for the human rights of all prisoners. During the successful European tour last October, they visited some of the cities that had supported the campaign over the last decade. They met supporters, NGO activists and spoke throughout England, from London to Liverpool and then in Paris, France. Featured below is a round up of the tour.

In December, Robert took a trip to Washington D.C. to join in the effort to bring attention to Leonard Peltier's request for clemency, joining artist and Angola 3 supporter Rigo 23 at the installation of his 9-foot-tall statue of Leonard at American University. Sadly, not only was Leonard not granted clemency, but the FBI demanded that the sculpture be removed from the museum grounds, and astoundingly, the museum complied without any apparent concern for freedom of expression. A legal suit is being filed against this action. As to Leonard, this would be a good time to reach out to him and let him know that the struggle continues and that he has many supporters out here that will continue fighting on his behalf.

There was good international media coverage in the UK and France resulting from the European tour and in the US, the New Yorker released their extended piece on Albert, written by Rachel Aviv.

Both Albert and King remain committed to speaking out in support of political prisoners, against the use of solitary and the criminal injustice system in the USA. Next month King will travel to San Francisco to attend a symposium at The Exploratorium on February 16, entitled In My Solitude: The Detrimental Effects of Solitary Confinement on the Brain and to speak on a panel the very next day at an event jointly hosted by UCSF Medical School and UC Hastings Law School, entitled Solitary: On Law and Policy in California. King will then be returning to Austin, Texas for a screening of the film "Cruel and Unusual" and book-signing on February 23.

March is a busy month with trips to Toronto and Montreal in Canada and a speaking engagement at Harvard. Stay tuned for more information about those events.

2016 European Tour 

Angola 3's UK and French supporters were excited to welcome Robert with Albert for the first time. Albert got the opportunity to meet many of the UK and French supporters who have been campaigning on his and Herman's case. The visit took place during the USA presidential election and there was much discussion about how little has changed with the issues of race and injustice, which are as urgent today as they were in the 1970's when Woodfox and King were campaigning from behind prison walls.

The visit started in London with Albert and Robert launching Amnesty UK's Write for Rights Campaign, followed by sold out events at John Moores University in Liverpool, Manchester Metropolitan University, Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge and an event with The Guardian newspaper. In Paris, Amnesty France hosted one of their largest attended events ever with over 800 people coming to hear Albert and Robert. This remarkable evening was made all the more poignant with a beautiful performance by Louisiana based supporter and artist Sarah Quintana who sang a song she wrote for and dedicated to Herman, entitled "Almost Free."

Albert and Robert thank everyone who made this visit possible and welcomed them with such warmth.

A Voice for the Voiceless: Watch the New Segment of Our Interview With Albert Woodfox


In this newly released excerpt from the A3 Coalition's interview with Albert in May 2016, Albert explains:

"Since we've been released, King and I have had many long nights of discussion asking 'How can we remain relevant to the struggle in this country and in the world?'

Watch the full video here.

The New Yorker's In-Depth Article on Albert Woodfox's Life After Release

Be sure to read this long New Yorker article reporting on Albert's recent travels and life experiences,  as well as examining the months leading up to his release, nearly one year ago. An excerpt is featured below.

Read the full article here.

By summer, Woodfox felt that he was getting his “street legs,” as he called them. A sly sense of humor surfaced. But he was also increasingly exhausted. He spoke at panels about prisoners’ rights in Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Baton Rouge. “I feel an obligation, because when I was in the position of the guys in prison I used to wonder why nobody spoke for us,” he told me. His friend Kenny Whitmore, who is still at Angola, told me that when Woodfox was freed “he took a part of me with him.” Whitmore said, “That old man is going full speed ahead.”

In early August, Woodfox flew to New York City to receive an award from the National Lawyers Guild, an association of progressive lawyers and activists, at the organization’s annual conference. He wore a gray blazer over a T-shirt that said “I Am Herman Wallace.” At the podium, he announced that he wanted to honor “my comrade and good friend.” He extended his palm toward King, who was in the third row of the auditorium, but became too choked up to say his name. Woodfox pressed his lips together and paused, regaining his composure. “I hope that my being here tonight is a testament to the strength and determination of the human spirit,” he said.

After the speech, Woodfox and King headed to a lounge on the second floor of the law school, where people were selling buttons, T-shirts, and posters that said “Free All the Angola 3.” Woodfox signed a dozen posters, writing in steady, capital letters, “I AM FREE! ALBERT WOODFOX.” People kept approaching him to ask if they could take selfies. “It’s amazing to be in the room with you,” one person told him. “Talk about moving and inspiring!” another said. “O.K.,” Woodfox said in response to most compliments.

UK Guardian interviews Albert Woodfox on eve of UK Tour: ‘I choose to use my anger as a means for changing things’

RELATED:  Albert Woodfox and Robert King's European Tour in November  II  View photos and updates from the Euro Tour at our Facebook page

(PHOTO:  Albert and Robert in conversation with Samantha Roddick at the Amnesty UK event on November 1)

OTHER MEDIA COVERAGE:  Albert Woodfox and Robert King interviewed by Democracy Now! about Black Panther political prisoners  II  Albert interviewed by ITV  II  Albert interviewed by BBC News Hour 

(PHOTO: Albert Woodfox and Robert King on Democracy Now, Oct, 26, 2016)

A new UK Guardian article written by Rowan Moore features an interview with Albert Woodfox, where he reflects upon life after release, among other things. An excerpt is featured below, but you can read the full article here.

It was, he says, “so disappointing when I got out to find that conditions when I left 45 years ago are still here. With the first black president, everyone thought we had reached a milestone, but it just looked different.” If, he continues “America has nothing else to thank Donald Trump for, it is to show that racism is very much alive. He didn’t come out of nowhere. I thought the battle would be economic, not sick-assed philosophy about racism 45 years later.”

And so he is travelling and speaking, jetting from one American city to another to speak of his experiences and to fight, along with Robert King, for “the abolishment of solitary confinement and freedom for political prisoners” – and political prisoners is what he believes many of those incarcerated in America to be – “who remain victims of the criminal injustice system in the USA.” Apart from his fugitive trip to New York, he had never been out of Louisiana until this year, but now he travels from coast to coast and north to south, and is coming to Britain next month for a multi-city tour. All this from a man who came out of jail with hepatitis C, diabetes, renal failure and hypertension. His health has improved dramatically in the months of his freedom, partly due to receiving treatments denied him inside.

Albert Woodfox & Robert King's European Freedom Tour in November

Announcing Albert Woodfox & Robert King's European Freedom Tour Events - November 2016

The International Angola 3 Coalition is delighted to announce the first European visit from Albert Woodfox in November 2016.  Albert Woodfox (the last remaining member of the Angola 3 to be freed from prison in Louisiana, USA in February this year after 43 years in solitary confinement) and Robert King (released 15 years ago after 29 years in solitary falsely accused of the same crime) will visit the UK and France to meet supporters and to continue their campaign to call for the abolition of solitary confinement and freedom for political prisoners who remain victims of the criminal (in)justice system in the USA.

The visit will take place during the USA presidential election and comes at a time when questions of race and injustice in the USA are as relevant today as they were in the 1970’s when Woodfox and King were members of the Black Panther Party whilst in prison campaigning for human and civil rights. 

The visit will start in London with Albert and Robert launching Amnesty UK’s Write for Rights Campaign on Tuesday 1 November followed by the below UK public events:

NOLA October 1: Solitary Gardens Unveiling with Albert Woodfox and others

RELATED:  Albert Woodfox at Southern University Law Center in Baton Rouge, LA on October 3

Solitary Gardens Unveiling
Plant the future. Honor the past.

WHEN:​  Saturday, October 1st 5-6:30pm

WHAT: ​ Please join Albert Woodfox, Malik Rahim, Nana Sula, Vaku and jackie sumell for the 3-year commemoration of Herman Wallace’s freedom after 41-years of unjust captivity.
Project unveiling, tree planting ceremony, special guest speakers and presentations.

Albert Woodfox speaking in Chicago IL on Sept. 18 and 21

LISTEN:  Albert interviewed on Chicago's WBEZ Radio

(PHOTO:  Albert & the Chicago support crew that organized his Chicago tour- led by Melinda Power who also helped organize his August NLG talk.)

Sunday, Sept. 18 at 2pm at Trinity United Church of Christ, 400 West 95th Street, Chicago, Wright Chapel

Wednesday, Sept, 21 at 6pm, at Gallery 400, at 400 S. Peoria Street. For more information, see flyer above and visit the event's Facebook and Eventbrite pages.

Albert Woodfox in San Francisco on Sept. 7

MEDIA COVERAGE:  SFBV Newspaper  II  Liberation Newspaper

September 7:  Albert is speaking in San Francisco, California on Wed. Sept. 7, 7pm at 2969 Mission St. For more information, please visit the ANSWER Coalition website.

VIDEO: Albert Woodfox recieves Arthur Kinoy Award from National Lawyers Guild

2016 #Law4thePeople Convention Keynote Address (8/4/16) from National Lawyers Guild on Vimeo.

On August 4, Albert Woodfox received the Arthur Kinoy Award from the National Lawyers Guild at the organization's convention in NYC.

In this video, Albert is introduced at 26:00 and then comes onto the stage to receive the award and begins to speak at approximately 33:00

October 3: Albert Woodfox to speak at Southern University Law Center in Baton Rouge, LA

On Monday, October 3, as part of Southern University Law Center's 2016-2017 Speakers Series, Albert Woodfox of the Angola 3 will be speaking about: "Use of International Laws and Coalitions in Justice Movements / Prison Reform."

The event will be held from 12-1 pm in 129 A.A. Lenoir Hall at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It is free and open to the public.

Albert Woodfox and Robert King in New York City, August 4-8; Albert to Receive NLG's Arthur Kinoy Award

This weekend, Albert Woodfox and Robert King will be at the Law For The People Convention in New York City, organized by the National Lawyers Guild.

On the evening of Thursday, August 4, Albert will be honored by the National Lawyers Guild with the Arthur Kinoy award. The evening begins with a reception at 6pm. At 7pm the convention's keynote address will be given, to be followed by the award ceremony.

On Sunday, August 7, Albert and King will be speaking at the National Lawyers Guild conference's Solitary Confinement: How to Build a Movement to End the Torture of Solitary Confinement workshop from 1-2:30 pm.

Then on Monday, August 8, Albert and King will appear at a book signing, from 6-9 PM at the Martin Luther King Jr. Labor Center, 310 West 43rd Street, in NYC.

A3 Newsletter: Solitary Under Attack as 2016 Begins

(PHOTO: Tabling at the Amnesty Art for Rights event in New Orleans, December 2015)

We want to send thanks from Albert and Robert to Amnesty activists for December's Write for Rights campaign. Albert enjoyed receiving the thousands of letters and postcards which were delivered to him in sacks! We kept him up to date with photos of the country activities including his "cut out" in front of London's landmarks, the first screening of the documentary Cruel and Unusual in the Louvre Paris and the art event in New Orleans.

On the legal front, Albert's legal teams have filed their appeal of the overturning of Judge Brady's unconditional Writ with the U.S. Supreme Court. They continue to prepare for Albert's retrial, though no date has been set. The civil trial is still scheduled to begin June 27th of this year.

In St. Francisville, still behind solitary walls, Albert awaits the status of a slate of appeals of rulings pending in Louisiana's 1st Circuit Court of Appeal from September that began to set up the legal and procedural landscape for the retrial.

Unfortunately, the first of these decisions came a few days ago and served to overturn Judge Carmichael's decision requiring Albert's retrial jury to be unanimous. Despite the fact that he was afforded a unanimous jury in both of his first two trials, only 10 of 12 jurors will be required to convict or acquit him in the third. Louisiana is one of only two states that allow non-unanimous juries to hand down life sentences. Many think eventually the law will be declared unconstitutional, but not in time for Albert. His legal team is appealing this decision to the Louisiana Supreme Court.

Photos and Reportback from Dec. 12 Amnesty USA Art for Rights event in New Orleans for Albert Woodfox and other political prisoners

Read the Amnesty USA press release here.

Read a report from the day by the Times-Picayune here.

The following six photos, including the first two of Usher, were taken by Patrick Melon.

Never Silenced, Herman Wallace's Spirit is Smiling --An interview with filmmaker Angad Singh Bhalla

Never Silenced, Herman Wallace's Spirit is Smiling  
--An interview with filmmaker Angad Singh Bhalla

By Angola 3 News

Canadian filmmaker Angad Singh Bhalla has never shied away from examining politically controversial topics. Nor does he play down his own artistic goal of using media to foster political change. Bhalla's first independent work, entitled U.A.I.L. Go Back amplified the voices of Indian villagers resisting an alumina project backed by the Canadian company Alcan. The film became an important organizing tool used to pressure Alcan into ending its involvement in the project.

Bhalla has since co-founded Time of Day Media.and while working as a community organizer for immigrant rights, he produced videos for the Service Employees International Union, Working America, the Center for Constitutional Rights and other groups. His award-winning short on the lives of Indian street artists, Writings on the Wall, was broadcast on Canada’s Bravo! and Al Jazeera English.

Bhalla's debut feature documentary was the 2012 film Herman’s House, about Herman Wallace of the Angola 3 and the collaborative project Wallace worked on with artist Jackie Sumell, entitled The House That Herman Built. The film screened at more than 40 festivals, was distributed theatrically in the US and Canada, and won an Emmy Award for its 2013 POV broadcast on PBS.

The newly released, interactive website-based documentary film made by Bhalla, entitled The Deeper They Bury Me: A Call from Herman Wallace, builds upon Herman's House by further examining Herman Wallace's life, following Wallace's death from liver cancer on October 4, 2013, just three days after being released from prison. This latest film has already been well received. Along with a recent screening at the 28th annual International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, The Deeper They Bury Me has also been selected by Favourite Website Awards as the "Site of the Day" for December 14, where it is being displayed on the website's front page for the full day.

In this interview, filmmaker Angad Singh Bhalla discusses his latest film, The Deeper They Bury Me, while also reflecting upon his 2012 film Herman's House, his personal relationship with Wallace and more. Bhalla concludes the interview with a focus on the call by Amnesty International and the International Coalition to Free the Angola 3 for the immediate release of Albert Woodfox, who is the last of the Angola 3 behind bars. Despite three overturned convictions, Woodfox remains in prison and in solitary confinement, where he was first placed over 43 years ago.


(VIDEO: Coverage of the panel discussion following a recent screening of The Deeper They Bury Me at the 53rd New York Film Festival. Photos from this event by Lindsey Seide/NFB are featured below alongside still images taken from the film itself.)

New Orleans, Dec. 12: Art for Rights / Write for Rights, Amnesty Intl. event with Robert King and BMike

Join Amnesty International USA in New Orleans on December 12, from 10am to 6pm, to celebrate art, human rights and international solidarity. As part of the organization’s annual “Write for Rights” campaign, Amnesty International USA is partnering with New Orleans native, Brandan “BMike” Odums to host an “Art for Rights” pop-up exhibition at Studio Be, 2925-2999 Royal Street in New Orleans. Attendees will not only have the opportunity to write letters on behalf of prisoners and human rights defenders from around the world, they will witness the creation of 12 different murals honoring the struggles and activism of individuals on whose behalf Amnesty works.

Art can be a cultural tool during times of unrest to expose truths, helping to humanize social struggle and actualize grievances and fears. Often, it is what inspires us to action.

Amnesty has chosen to hold the inaugural event in New Orleans where Albert Woodfox, one of the 12 cases featured in this year’s Write for Rights campaign, has been held in solitary confinement for over 40 years.

Robert King, the first freed member of the Angola 3, will be joining BMike as the keynote speaker.

Art For Rights
Saturday, December 12th, 2015
10am – 6pm
StudioBe
2925-2999 Royal Street
New Orleans, LA

MORE INFORMATION: 

A3 Newsletter: From the Louvre to Louisiana

While the National and International community rally to the support of Albert Woodfox, time seems to have stood still in Louisiana where the long struggle to achieve freedom for Albert Woodfox after four decades in solitary confinement for a crime he did not commit drags on nearly three years after a federal judge once again overturned Albert's conviction.

In France, the newly released " Cruel and Unusual" updates "In the Land of the Free" and digs more deeply into the arcane mode of punishment that reaches new levels of abuse in the United States- decades of solitary confinement and the results there of.

Meanwhile, Amnesty chapters both nationally and internationally urge their members to Write for the Rights of political prisoners with a special focus on twelve prisoners world-wide, including Albert Woodfox.  There will be kick off events globally and Robert King will be urging letter writers on via Skyped interviews with student sections in Holland and the U.S.

As the year draws to a close, a year we were certain we would see Albert released- we pray for many things- world peace, homes for the dispossessed everywhere and freedom from fear, racism and hatred at home and abroad and finally, finally, finally.... freedom for Albert Woodfox and the too many political and economic prisoners held in gulags around the country.