Attica Revolt 50th Anniversary

Fifty years ago, in September 1971, incarcerated men in Attica, a maximum security prison in western New York, held an uprising to demand an end to the dehumanizing conditions they were held in.

After four days of rebellions, 39 people, including 10 hostages, were killed by state police and guards. A state commission into Attica concluded that with the exception of Indian massacres in the late 19th century, the State Police assault was the bloodiest one-day encounter between Americans since the Civil War. After the massacre, the prisoners were subject to systematic torture and brutality by authorities. Attica paved the way for the modern anti-prison movement.

On the fiftieth anniversary of the Attica Uprising, we are joined by Tyrone Larkins, one of the Attica survivors, and Soffiyah Elijah, Executive Director of Alliance of Families for Justice, a group that is working to change the landscape of injustice in American courts and prisons.

Alliance of Families for Justice Attica Just Solutons New York Prison Rebellion Revolt Soffiyah Elijah Tyrone Larkins Uprising