JOURNEY FOR JUSTICE - THE LAW MADE YOU A CRIMINAL

Reflections on the First Stop

We were moved quickly here and there in the Detroit and Ann Arbor
areas, to great events and media interviews, but accompanied by a
variety of organizers and able to spend quality 'commuter time' with
some; long urban walks with others.

Shared meals, parking lot discussions, and event preparation periods
gave us time to get to know local organizers beyond email or phone
exchanges of the past. Chuck's and my deepest appreciation is extended
to those organizers in both directions of this Journey path-for all
the work you have done to prepare for our arrival.

At the vigil near Milan, an African American man slowed down and in
response to our banner message: There is no justice in the war on
drugs, he shouted out to us, "I hope you didn't just figure that out!"

Chuck drummed up contacts for informal "camp meetings" by asking the
kids in the hotel pool if they were visiting their daddies at the
prison. "We are here to talk with people about ending drug war injustice."

One boy jumped out of the pool and said, "What do we gotta do? We're
here with our auntie." We met with her late in the evening; elderly
with a bad cold, she brought children of the family from Chicago to
visit her son, "Doing 20 years for 2 grams of crack. Had we known you
were going to be here, we'd have been outside at that vigil with you,"
she promised.

At breakfast next morning, the cashier asked where we were from. We
told her, and added why we'd come to Milan, Michigan. Chuck went to
the men's room and the cashier whispered, "I was a junkie and they
sent me to prison. I got this job, and a few of us gals that work here
have done time on drugs. I'm a criminal, I know, but...."

"You have a treatable medical condition - the law made you a
criminal," I told her.

She grabbed my hand for a moment, and said, "Thanks for telling me
that - I'll tell the others. Do you have any information you could
give us?" We do! We left it with her to share with others; and I take
with me the look in her eyes when I explained to her that sometimes
laws are more culprit than those who break it. There was a look of
relief in her eyes that will stay with me.

The Journey for Justice is in great part due to our extreme need for
relief from the injustice of the drug war. Our learning, by meeting
the war's victims, reveals the ubiquity of it. The war's casualties
are all around us.

I urged those at the UU event in Detroit to look inside the prisons
that are hidden in the cornfields. After meeting the recovering addict
cashier, I would add - look inside the souls of this war's victims.
They need relief!

We have online instructions for the vigil at the Federal Medical
Facility in Devens (http://www.journeyforjustice.org/events.html#anchor2404092)
- - just Northwest of Boston about 35-40 miles. This prison facility
houses many sick prisoners; many with HIV/AIDS, who are nonviolent, no
threat, under-treated; and should be released under present
'compassionate release' that our laws provide for, but our prison
officials won't press for. To understand the nature of this terrible
agony on prisoners and their loved ones, please visit the story of
Isidro Aviles, on the Wall portion of our web site:

http://www.november.org/thewall/cases/aviles-i/aviles-i.html

Aerial photos of the prison, and graphics and other photos were
provided by the Massachusetts State Patrol that are working with us to
make the vigil 'successful and safe'. There are a lot of truckers that
use the highway through that area we were told.

Ray Brook Federal Correctional facility is our next event - a vigil
and 'camp meeting'. This time we know how to find the relatives -
visit motel pools and cafes. November Coalition member Shirley Kessel
told us while meeting at Milan that we needed to go to the cheaper
strip motels to find our members.

Our strategy at Ray Brook will be to visit every area hotel/motel and
ask to place our brochure and meeting place and time on their
counters. We meet tomorrow with families to vigil and hold a 'camp
meeting'. Ray Brook prison is the only federal prison in the country
that has not one November Coalition member. The associate warden wants
to meet with us before the vigil with his questions - we have some
questions to ask as well.

One message we are driving home to our members is this: Sending annual
dues to have "Nora 'n Chuck" end the drug war isn't the way to think -
not now or ever. Hell will freeze over before that would happen. More
and more of us working together, building a movement of active people,
will result in reform. Dues help us do the work of leadership, but
thinking you are paying us to do the work - .... nope, get that out of
your heads. Take one or more projects, or organizing ideas we put out
to you, and work with us. We are in this - together. Network with
others in your community, become an active member in the movement to
end the war on drugs.

Visit http://www.JourneyForJustice.org - photos of Michigan events are
being posted and labeled now (see link [above]). Upcoming event details
for the northeastern portion of the journey can be found there.

We hope to find you on the Journey!

In Struggle, Nora Callahan, nora@november.org Executive Director,
November Coalition http://www.november.org