Intro To Black August by Yaiyr Carter
Peace comrades, and welcome to the ITB Black August special edition. Each year we commemorate those who stood/stand against white supremacy, leaving courageous examples to inspire us.
Some took action, courage in one hand, assault rifle in the other: Jonathan Jackson took control of a courthouse freeing William Christmas, James McClain and Ruchell "Cinque" Magee, only to be ambushed by pigs that were tipped off by a rat on August 7, 1970. Jonathan took a judge and a DA hostage with the hope of negotiating for the freedom of his brother George L. Jackson.
George, a well known imprisoned revolut¡onary, would be gunned down a year later on August 21, 1971 after a battle with prison guards that left four of them dead. The "San Quentin 6" would be charged for those deaths. Witnesses later stated that George Jackson sacrificed himself, saving the lives of his fellow prisoners.
During this month we recognize revolut¡onaries like Assata Shakur, Marcus Garvey and Safiya Bukhari, to name a few. And we memorialize events like the founding of the Underground Railroad and the town of San Lorenzo de los Negros, as well as uprisings against the whitesupremacist power structure like the Watts revolt, Nat Turner's rebellion and the Haitian revolut¡on.
This tradition began in the 1970's in California after the death of Black Freedom Fighter Jeffery "Khatari" Gualden at the hands of the administrators of the San Quentin death camp. To quote Doc Holiday, a comrade of George Jackson's, "Black August is a reflection and commemoration of history; of those partisans and leaders that realistically made it possible for us to survive and advance to our present level of liberation struggle." Over the decades, Black August has grown in popularity among people outside of prisons who love and support those who are locked down and living in direct conflict with the whitesupremacist state.
Though we acknowledge historical facts, our tradition is not another Black History Month. We are not celebrating notable firsts, like the first Black person to do X, Y and Z and was therefore accepted by white amerika. It's not about those whose talents or ingenuity brought them closer to their oppressors. There is another month for that, if you care to celebrate peanut butter, or the supreme court, or baseball stats. In that (shorter) month people celebrate the contributions Black people made to a country that rarely compensated them and continues to treat most of them as disposable. In Black August we celebrate those who stood against amerika and sacrificed for future generations.
Black August is about the kinds of resistance to white supremacy that is not limited by the bounds set by the ruling class and its collaborators. The terms and actions in revolut¡onary struggle are set by those in active contradiction with the enemy, and they resist as they see fit. As their courage allows. As their dissatisfaction dictates.
In this issue of In The Belly we have included articles written by our readers that highlight the spirit of Black August. The list of notable facts is always growing as we continue to develop in our struggle, so it's impossible to expound on every worthy mention. We hope that in coming years our readers (you) will continue to write to us and share your reflections which will add to the archive of education and inspiration for future generations in the struggle. We hope our annual Black August issue can grow into a study guide and a manual for those moving in revolut¡onary spirit.
Traditionally, Black August is recognized by groups in solidarity, studying, fasting and doing physical exercise together. Anyone can participate just as anyone can resist racism and struggle against whitesupremacy. You don't have to be Black to be a revolut¡onary fighting on the right side of history.
