#CagingCOVID: Stopping the Spread Behind Bars

While the world is trying to flatten the curve of a pandemic without end in sight, U.S. prisons and detention centers continue to be COVID-19 hotspots, warehousing millions and failing to make the substantial populations reductions needed to create conditions of social distance.

#CagingCOVID is a campaign to shine a light on mass incarceration in a time of a public health crisis, and apply pressure to use parole, clemency and decarceration at local and federal levels to stop the spread of the virus behind bars.

Use this form to report Covid related conditions inside

 

Call our 24 hour hotline to tell us your story about Covid-19 and incarceration at 910-604-6519

JOIN THE CAMPAIGN

Feb 1st #NationalFreedomDay Organizing and Media Toolkit 

Jan 13, 2021 | by Nation Inside team

[This is a working document. Email info@NationInside.org for suggestions.]

CLICK HERE FOR THE NEWER, UPDATED TOOLKIT

The primary FB event page for news and updates is here.

Please start engagement by inviting your contacts into this event so that they are getting updates and notifications as they come in.

Sample messages for texts and emails:

A solid first step is to take a couple hours to send individual messages to friends and family asking for their support. Here’s a sample of what to personalize and send:

Hey [name], how’s it going? I’m supporting this caravan to DC on Feb 1st, “National Freedom Day,” to build pressure for a mass clemency campaign and looking for some help. Can you offer 10 – 15 mins?

First is circulating the petition. We’re aiming to have 10K names and 200 orgs signed on by Feb 1st.

After you’ve signed it (or if you already did previously), can you send a personal request to 10 other people?

Here’s the petition for individuals to sign

Next, if you are part of an organization, church, business etc, that would sign on as a supporter, let me know and I’ll add them. You can see the list so far if you click the “about us” tab in that link.

Here’s are details on the Feb 1st COVID Clemency Caravan

Let me know if you have any questions. I know it’s a tall order, but we have a lot of momentum right now, especially since we seem past the Trump coup attempt, and we want to make the most of it to start undoing the system of mass incarceration once and for all.

 

Sample posts for social media

 

Joining the Caravan 

We plan to meet at the DOJ office 1pm February 1st, and are trying to coordinate people driving from various locations to meet up en route. For example, cars driving from South Florida on Jan 31 will post announcements on their departure time so others to the north can plan to meet them. Even just a couple cars driving together with signs in the windows will leave an impression for others on the road, hopefully creating a social media trail (especially if the cars/signs are picture worthy.)

Sign ideas for cars windows:

  • Honk for clemency 
  • Stop COVID death sentences 
  • Free Em All!
  • Celebrate National Freedom Day with Mass Clemency 
  • Slavery Ended in 1865, but the Prison System Keeps it Alive
  • Solidarity with Prisoners
  • Prisoners Rights = Human Rights

 

Suggested hashtags for social media posts and signs:

#CagingCOVID #ClemencyWorks #NationInside #FightToxicPrisons #AbolitionNow #FreeEmAll #NationalFreedomDay

This an MP3 audio file of a radio commercial created for the campaign by WJRK, FlaHipHopRadio.com, which can be used so long as they are also credited: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Swq5yKIaFgndvmMWzbBZkiCnDfb1qOqs/view?usp=sharing 

 

Here are posters for social media circulation or printing, and source links for them:

https://nationinside.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/CagingCOVID-poster-Feb-1-NFD.jpg

https://nationinside.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/FEB-1st-call-to-action-decentralized.gif