My first Black August

by Jonelle

“We must accept the eventuality of bringing the USA to its knees; accept the closing off of critical sections of the city with barbed wire, armored pig carriers crisscrossing the streets, soldiers everywhere, tommy guns pointed at stomach level, smoke curling black against the daylight sky, the smell of cordite, house-to-house searches, doors being kicked in, the commonness of death.” – George L. Jackson, “Blood in My Eye”

Peace, my brothas and sistas. My name is Jonelle, and I’m a member of Guerrilla Mainframe, which is a grassroots organization based in Dallas, Texas. Guerrilla Mainframe’s purpose is to help Black oppressed people and poor people on a national and international basis through political education, self defense, martial arts and various other programs. I joined the organization in 2015, and during that time I was introduced to the Black August Memorial and the history of the prison movement.

I learned that the Black August Memorial was created to commemorate eight revolutionaries who were assassinated by the amerikkkan white supremacist capitalist pigs; their names are Khatari Gaulden, George L. Jackson, Jonathan Jackson, William Christmas, James McClain, W.L. Nolan, Cleveland Edwards and Alvin “Jug” Miller.

I believe that Black August is more than just a time for Black conscious folks to celebrate by having parties and concerts. It symbolizes a time that we should be putting in work for our organizations and showing our support to brothas and sistas in the prison industrial complex who are sacrificing their lives every day for the liberation of Afrikan people.

With police terrorism being an everyday occurrence, our main concern should be to organize as a people. We are and we have always been at war with the state, so our main objective should be to promote unity in the Black/Afrikan community, armed resistance, political education, physical training and hard work.

Black August is the real “Black History Month.” This is a time to not only educate ourselves about Black revolutionaries inside the prison movement but to also learn about those who are involved in the Black Liberation movement as well.

I believe that Black August symbolizes a time that we should be putting in work for our organizations and showing our support to brothas and sistas in the prison industrial complex who are sacrificing their lives every day for the liberation of Afrikan people.

Last year was my first year getting involved with Black August, and I learned a lot about the resistance of the prison movement. Since I am a determined person, I had no problem following the Black August regimen: fasting, no radio, no TV, physical training, political education, group economics and hard work.

I dedicated my time to George Jackson University by offering my administrative skills to the organization. One of the most challenging things for me to do last year was fasting from sun-up till sun-down. That was my first time fasting for an entire month, and it definitely made me appreciate the luxury of eating on my own time.

Black August is a time to not only educate ourselves about Black revolutionaries inside the prison movement but to also learn about those who are involved in the Black Liberation movement as well.

One of my most memorable moments during Black August was when me and my comrades watched documentaries about Cointelpro and the Black Panther Party; we also had productive discussions about the Black Power movement during the 1960s.

Black August has been a little different for me this year, since I haven’t been as disciplined when following the fasting requirements. Furthermore, Guerrilla Mainframe, my organization, promotes the fundamentals of Black August all year around, so we honor the spirit of all our great revolutionaries through hard work, self-determination, self-defense, group economics and Black unity.

Contact Jonelle at Guerrilla Mainframe, 214-514-9464, [email protected] or on Facebook, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/566237560104839/.