"Asians for Jericho" banner in Washington, DC

"Asians for Jericho" banner in Washington, DC

Taken at the Jericho demonstration on March 27, 1998, this photograph shows members and allies of CAAAV who joined the widely coalitional Washington, DC march to protest the incarceration of political prisoners and prisoners of war in the United States and demand their amnesty and freedom. [1] The CAAAV members pictured pose near the Capitol Building in Lafayette Park with a colorful banner decorated with the image of a dragon which reads, “Asians for Jericho: When the Prison Gates Open, The Real Dragons Fly Out.” To the right, one protester holds a sign on which bold lettering spells out “Free All U.S. Political Prisoners,” at the bottom stamped “Jericho ‘98.” The former references a quote by Ho Chi Minh, whose words express a vision of prison gates opening to release the radical and oppressed who have been incarcerated for their dissidence. In this vision, their release ushers in a renewed surge of resistance that will burn down the exploitative and oppressive system that imprisons us all.

The mass demonstration, during which protesters from all over the United States marched from Malcolm X Park to Lafayette Park, manifested a collective effort by over 50 organizations, defense committees, and activist groups. As part of the larger Jericho Movement, the march was intended to force the US government to acknowledge the existence of political prisoners within its borders. Protesters held high giant photos of Mumia Abu-Jamal, Leonard Peltier, Sundiata Acoli, the MOVE 9, and the Puerto Rican independistas, bringing attention to the hundreds of people incarcerated as a result of their radical and grassroots work against oppressive conditions in housing, medical care, education, employment, and policing. [2] CAAAV’s presence at the march brings attention to the relevance of these issues for Asian-American communities, and reflects its investment in intersectional modes of resistance. Marching with the David Wong Support Committee as “Asians for Jericho,” CAAAV members helped highlight the broad and specific racialized underpinnings of imprisonment and the fact that “most political prisoners are radical people of color.” [3]

Operating on local, regional, and national levels, the Jericho Movement engages intersections of race, class, gender, immigration, and nationality to highlight the harm, silencing, and violence systemically and systematically imposed on marginalized peoples by centering the stories of “brothers and sisters” imprisoned for their liberatory actions. [4] Active still, the Jericho Movement has organizing committees in Albuquerque, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, Portland, and Richmond, as well as regional committees working nationally. Jericho works with local defense committees to bring the cases of political prisoners to the public, reaching across organizational lines to build a strong network of resources and support for those it serves.

[1] Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence, “Jericho 1998 Calls for Release of Political Prisoners,” CAAAV Voice Newsletter, Spring 1998, 8-9, https://caaav.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Voice_Spring_1998.pdf.

[2] “About: Jericho Movement,” National Jericho Movement, https://www.thejerichomovement.com/about (accessed March 18 2021).

[3] Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence, “Jericho 1998 Calls for Release of Political Prisoners,” 9.

[4] Jericho ‘98 Organizing Committee, “Jericho ‘98 - Amnesty and Freedom for All Political Prisoners,” (flier, New York, 1998), 1-2, https://freedomarchives.org/Documents/Finder/DOC510_scans/New_Afrikan_Prisoners/510.flier.jericho.98.pdf.

March 27, 1998

Clara CleBlanc

This post was completed as coursework for Archiving Asian America, taught by Vivian Truong, in the Asian and American Studies programs at Vassar College.

Copyright is held by CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities

Photograph

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