We speak with organizers Monifa Bandele and Kali Akuno about the history and purpose of Black August. Black August originated in the concentration camps (prisons) of California in 1979 and its’ roots come from that history of resistance by Black/New African/African brothers in those prisons. It’s original and unchanging purpose is to: Honor and commemorate the … Continued


Donald Trump infamously targeted immigrants — and many rejoiced when he left office.  But, as historian Elliott Young points out, the criminalization of immigrants has been a bipartisan affair, going back 140 years.  He discusses the intersection of mass incarceration and the detention of immigrants. Resources: Elliott Young, Forever Prisoners: How the United States Made … Continued


What do college athletes, prison laborers, welfare recipients, and graduate students in the sciences have in common? According to sociologist Erin Hatton, they’re all workers who face a particular form of coercion. She discusses what these workers’ circumstances tell us about work under contemporary capitalism. She’ll also consider the situation of prisoners pressured into dangerous … Continued


Hard Knock Radio

Inmates, Protest Forced Slave Labor Conditions in US Prisons

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Prisoners are on the front lines of wage slavery, where refusal to work while in prison results in inhumane retaliation and participating in slave labor contributes to the mechanisms of exploitation. Nation-wide prison pay for inmates starts at 15cents an hour. Which is $1.20 a day. Inmates throughout the country are being economically exploited for … Continued