Prisoner Correspondence Project – a support project for gay, queer, and trans prisoners

Discussion and short film screening about HIV and imprisonment
ACCM Drop-In Centre (contact info below)
Monday October 5th
7-9PM (Dinner served beforehand at 6PM)
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The Prisoner Correspondence Project will be facilitating a discussion at ACCM (AIDS Community Care Montreal) drop-in about the intersection of HIV and imprisonment, incarceration of HIV+ communities, as well as the work we do around AIDS and gay and trans prisoner support.

Following a discussion will be a screening of ACTING UP FOR PRISONERS, about a California-based ACT-UP chapter confronting medical neglect and segregation of HIV+ prisoners at a California state prison.

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This workshop/film-screening is open to all HIV+ people and ACCM members. Please note that the event, as well as the film, will be in English. For details about where the ACCM drop-in centre is located, or if you are interested in attending, please contact Marcelle at centre@accmontreal.org or at  (514) 529-9462.

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ACCM is the oldest AIDS service organization in Montreal, working to support communities living with HIV/AIDS, reduce stigma associated with HIV and to enhance the quality of life for directly affected communities.

For more information about ACCM visit www.accmontreal.org

Laura Whitehorn & Susie Day

Radical Movements from the Weather Underground to Prisons to Palestine

On May 16, 2009, Laura Whitehorn, ex-political prisoner and former member of the Weather Underground, and Susie Day, writer and activist, spoke to a jam-packed audience at Concordia University’s de Seve cinema as part of the 10^th Annual Montreal Anarchist Bookfair. The event, “Reflections on Revolution,” gave insightful perspectives, both historical and contemporary, on issues ranging from justice for political prisoners, to Palestine solidarity, to queer liberation.

Laura offered interesting commentary on the importance of viewing armed struggle as a tactic rather than a political framework in and of itself especially when doing solidarity work for anti-imperialist struggles. She also stressed the urgency for all groups on the left to include in their mandate a demand for the freedom of all political prisoners, a point which was driven home by the poignant story Susie told of visiting their friend, Herman Bell, in prison on his birthday. Susie also spoke of the heart-wrenching experience of supporting a partner and lover who is behind bars, something which was she and Laura’s reality for almost fourteen years. Other themes of the talk included the connections between queer organizing, prisoner justice and HIV/AIDS activism, and some history of leftist organizing in North America around solidarity for Palestine, a theme which was also taken up at length during the question and answer period. For a complete audio recording of this event, please visit: http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/program/33591

“Reflections on Revolution” was collaboratively presented by members of Certain Days Freedom for Political Prisoners Calendar, the Prisoner Correspondence Project, Project 10, Q-Team, and Tadamon!, with the support of QPIRG McGill, QPIRG Concordia, the 2110 Centre for Gender Advocacy and Open Door Books.

- A workshop and discussion with Sadie and Elijah from the DC Trans Coalition (click here for recording).

Recently, the Department of Corrections in Washington, DC became one of a small handful of jurisdictions in the world to issue a policy on transgender people who are incarcerated. The new policy forbids discrimination, permits access to hormones, limits the use of strip searches and mandatory protective custody and creates the possibility of housing trans inmates by gender identity. The changes came after over a year of intense community organizing, legal battles, negotiation and political pressure from the trans community – and the fight is far from over, as questions of implementation and unanswered demands remain.

Sadie and Elijah discussed how mass imprisonment, criminalization and police brutality affect trans people, the relevance of social, racial and economic justice to trans liberation and strategies for resisting State-sanctioned violence against our communities. By sharing their experiences with DCTC’s campaign, their victories and defeats, they hoped to have a critical conversation about the role of community organizing in prisoner solidarity, centering those most directly targeted by oppression and possibilities for coalitional organizing on intersecting struggles for gender self-determination and broader human rights.

This event was organized by the 2110 Centre for Gender Advocacy (Montreal, QC) in April 2009.

Film screening and discussion on policing and queer imprisonment.

(As part of Radical Queer Semaine, taking place in Montreal from March 6 – 15 2009)

Friday, March 13 @ 5pm – Le chat des artistes, 2250 rue Parthenais,
metro frontenac.

From the takeover of the International AIDS Conference in 1989, to the Sex Garage riots in 1991, to queer and HIV+ prisoner support in the late 1980s, Montreal queer communities have forged a long tradition of organizing against policing, criminalization and imprisonment. This film screening & discussion will feature archival films of these sites of local queer struggle, and a discussion about the barriers and obstacles we face today in our work in a Quebec context as a Montreal-based queer and trans prisoner support collective.

***The Prisoner Correspondence Project coordinates a penpal program for incarcerated LGBT folks and queers in prison. We also coordinate a resource library on queer and trans survival inside prisons.

*** This workshop will be presented in both french and english; translation will be provided both ways

***We regret that this venue is not wheelchair accessible.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 5th, 2009  at 7pm

At QPIRG CONCORDIA — 500 De Maisonneuve O., Suite 204
This venue is wheelchair accessible and a scent-free space.

a panel discussion exploring the HIV/AIDS pandemic, community responses and activism. Through these speakers, we hope to bring light to all of the hidden and silenced histories of the pandemic, illuminating a variety of tactics used to combat oppression, stigma  and  invisibility.

Guest speakers include:

Anna-Louise Crago-

Anna-Louise has been a sex worker activist and HIV activist, in Montreal and internationally for over a decade. In 2006, she and the other team members at Stella, Montreal’s center by and for sex workers, received the “Aids Action Award” from Human Rights Watch and the Canadian HIV Legal Network, for their work fighting HIV. Anna-Louise currently works with  sex workers organizing for the recognition of their rights in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. She has just finished co-authoring an investigation into human & labour rights violations against  sex workers of all genders in Botswana, Namibia and South Africa, including around access to HIV prevention and treatment. In 2008, she had the honour of being chosen to co-author one of the plenary speeches at the World Aids Conference in Mexico City.

Mikiki from Toronto-

Mikiki is a queer multi-disciplinary artist working mostly in video and performance. Mikiki was the programming director of Eastern Edge Gallery in St. John’s and Truck Gallery in Calgary before their own art-practice and political interests then informed a career shift into sexual health education. Mikiki worked as a Sexuality Educator with CBCA in Calgary, Canada before moving to Ottawa to work with ACO as Gay Men’s Prevention Coordinator. Mikiki worked last year at ACCM in Montréal as their HIV Educator before running away to Toronto where they’ve been for the last nine months.

Doug McColeman from AIDS Community Care Montreal-

Doug McColeman was born and bred in “Canada’s Largest City.” A social activist since the early 1980’s, he escaped to Montréal in 1990 and founded Queer Nation Montréal. Worked 12 years for an international NGO representing the interests of the world’s airlines.  In 2005 decided that his talents and conscience would be better served representing the interests of his own community. For the past 3 years Doug has been in charge of developing Directions Montréal a project aimed at promoting the health of gay men in Montréal regardless of their sero-status, focussing on the Anglophone community.

Farah from Solidarity across Borders-

Je m’appelle Farah. Travailleuse du sexe, je milite depuis longtemps dans differentes causes sociales. Je suis également vih+ depuis bientôt 16 ans et je suis por ainsi dire trés préocupé par la banalisation du sida, et surtout par nos jeunes. C’est d’autant plus grave que les gouvernements et les médias en parlent de moins en moins. Sans dramatiser cette réalité, je trouve cela trés inquiètant. Alors j’ai tenue à assister à cette discution pour donner ainsi un visage et peut-être une voie de plus parmis vous tous.

co sponsored by:

The Prisoner Correspondence Project, which coordinates a letter-writing program for LGBT folks and queers in prison across the US and Canada. We’re always looking for similarly-identified people on the outside to support the project, or act as penpals!
&
the 2110 Centre for Gender Advocacy, a volunteer and collectively run organization, committed to fighting gender oppression, especially as it relates to communities of color, First Nations and Indigenous people, transsexual, transgendered and/or intersex people, deaf people, LGB, Queer and Questioning people, people who experience sizeism, sex workers, low income people and/or people with disabilities and other marginalized communities.

www.prisonercorrespondenceproject.com

www.centre2110.org

organizing in prison/organizing on campus

a round table on promoting dialogue & solidarity between students & prisoners

Thursday January 15th, 6:30pm
At the Concordia Community Solidarity Co-op Bookstore
2150 Bishop Street, metro Guy-Concordia
(see map at www.co-opbookstore.ca)

With speakers from:
Certain Days political prisoner calendar project
Open Door Books
Prisoner Correspondence Project
ReCon

Project descriptions:

Certain Days Political Prisoner Calendar Project

The Certain Days political prisoner calendar project We work to support, educate about and fundraise for political prisoners through the production of a yearly calendar. The calendar is a project produced by organizers in Montreal and Toronto, with the support of 3 political prisoners in upstate New York. We work with an anti-imperialist, anti-racist, feminist, queer and trans positive perspective to help free our movement’s political prisoners.

Open Door Books

We have been sending books to prisons across the US and Canada for over fifteen years. We regularly send to youth detention centres, immigration detention centres, and federal and provincial prisons throughout Quebec and Ontario. Open Door Books relies entirely on donations of books provided by folks living in Montreal. We seek to support and work in solidarity with incarcerated communities. We believe books can be a life-changing resource and a distraction from the grind of prison life. We believe all prisoners have the right to access quality books and reading material of their choice.

Prisoner Correspondence Project

We coordinate a direct-correspondence program for gay, lesbian, transsexual, transgender, gendervariant, two-spirit, intersex, bisexual and queer inmates in Canada, linking these inmates with people a part of these same communities outside of prison. The project also coordinates a resource library of information regarding harm reduction practice (safer sex, safer drug-use, clean needle care), HIV and HEPC prevention, homophobia, transphobia, coming out, etc.

ReCon

Re-Con is a prisoner initiated re-integration program, created in 1999, for lifers and long-term prisoners pending release at the Federal Training Center in Quebec. The motivation behind its inception was to establish a connection between the prisoner and the outside community, after a long period of incarceration. It is Re-Con’s main goal to establish links with the community, especially regarding the community resources that may aid in the reintegration process and in diminishing the effects of long-term incarceration (institutionalization).

Presented by the above working groups of QPIRG Concordia as well as the Concordia Community Solidarity Co-op Bookstore

Free childcare is available for this event, with 48 hours advance notice. Please contact workinggroups@qpirgconcordia.ca or 514-848-7585 to request childcare or for general info

www.qpirgconcordia.org
www.co-opbookstore.ca

How Queer Prisoners are Written Out of Mainstream Pride Movements

A panel & discussion about prisons and pride
Friday August 1st 6.30 PM
Le Cagibi – 5490 Saint-Laurent

THE PRISONER CORRESPONDENCE PROJECT brings you IMPRISONED PRIDE, a panel discussing questions of incarceration & queer communities. What meaning does “Pride” have for queer and trans prisoners in Canada? What do community & visibility signify when you’re isolated and kept from view?

IMPRISONED PRIDE will feature a series of audio recordings of currently incarcerated queer prisoners, speaking to their experiences behind bars and their thoughts on Pride. The event will bring together participants in the PRISONER CORRESPONDENCE PROJECT, currently and formerly incarcerated people, as well as outside supporters organizing against against criminalization of queer communities, and medical negligence behind bars.

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Le Cagibi is wheelchair accessible. Whisper translation & free childcare available / Le Cagibi est accessible aux fauteuils-roulantes. Traduction chuchotement & service de garde pour enfants disponible.

This event is organized by the PRISONER CORRESPONDENCE PROJECT. The PRISONER CORRESPONDENCE PROJECT coordinates a penpal program linking queer people behind bars with queer people on the outside.

This event is part of broader PERVERS/CITé programming, promoting a radical queer alternative to mainstream Prideevents. For more information about other Pervers/cité events, visit www.perverscite.org