January 29, 2018

Julie L. Jones,
Secretary, Florida Department of Correction
501 South Calhoun Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399-2500

Dear Julie L. Jones,

Defending Rights & Dissent is national civil liberties organization dedicated to fulfilling the
promise of the Bill of Rights, with a special emphasis on the right to political expression. We
concerned by reports that Florida Department of Corrections had engaged in retaliatory
measures against those involved in political organizing within the prison system, as well as
attempting to impose a media blackout around prison organizing.1

Florida prisoners had announced that they would mark Martin Luther King Day by undertaking a
month long work stoppage called “Operation PUSH.” This strike was meant to protest a number
of grievances, including unpaid prison labor, high cost at the prison canteen, and parole
incentives.

Given that this strike had made international news, the Florida Department of Corrections has
faced a number of inquiries from press and civil society alike about its status. Your department
has routinely denied that any work stoppages associated with Operation PUSH are taking place.

However, civil society groups in contact with prisoners under your jurisdiction have challenged
this. They have claimed that your department is engaged in the deliberate dissemination of
misinformation and has attempted to restrict communications. This had led to two interrelated
concerns. First, that you are imposing a communications blackout on the prisons. Second, that

1
Dan Berger, “Are Florida prisons suppressing an inmate strike or just lying about it?” ​Washington Post​,
(Jan. 24, 2018). Available at
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/made-by-history/wp/2018/01/24/are-florida-prisons-suppressing-a
n-inmate-strike-or-just-lying-about-it/?utm_term=.6ff003375b89
you are actively attempting to silence Operation PUSH activists and thus prevent them from
engaging in concerted political action.

Documented attempts to silence Operation PUSH or impose a communications blackout

include:

● On January 9 organizer Kevin “Rashid” Johnson published an article on the upcoming

strike. The article stressed the non-violent nature of the proposed protest and outlined
the grievances leading to the strike. The very next day Johnson was given a disciplinary
infraction for “inciting a riot.”
● On January 19, Johnson wrote a letter explaining that has been moved into a cell that
lacks a working toilet, lacks heat, and has a window that will not close all the way.
Temperatures in the cell are below freezing. He was not even allowed to consult with his
attorneys until January 26, at which time he reported his conditions had improved.
● A spokesperson for the Florida Department of Corrections told the ​Miami New Times
that anyone promoting a strike could receive a disciplinary infraction.
● On January 15 visitations were cancelled at Blackwater Correctional Institution,
Everglades Correctional Institution and the Reception and Medical Center (RMC).
● On January 16, the Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee of the Industrial
Workers of the World, which supports Operation PUSH, reported that they had lost
communications with individuals inside the prisons. They also report that at least two
contacts had been placed in solitary confinement without cause and that dozens of
suspected participants had been placed in solitary confinement in the run up to the
strike.
● Supporting Prisoners and Real Change (SPARC) has alleged that more and more
prisoners have been placed in solitary confinement, prison officials are investigating
individuals for receiving mail from civil society groups supportive of Operation PUSH,
and they have been threatened with even further retaliation for communicating with
outside civil society groups.

Prisoners are not devoid of human rights. This includes the right to engage in political
expression. Operation PUSH is an attempt by the prisoners engage in concerted political action
to remedy to win important human rights. Instead of repressing such actions, the Florida
Department of Corrections should be actively negotiating with Florida inmates about their
demands.

Defending Rights & Dissent calls on the Florida Department of Corrections to issue an
immediate, forthcoming, and truthful statement to the media about the current status of
Operation PUSH. We also call for the prison to end any and all retaliation against inmates who
participated in Operation PUSH. Finally, the Florida Department of Corrections must allow
inmates the ability to communicate with attorneys, family, and civil society groups.

Sincerely,
Defending Rights & Dissent