By Stanley Howard
After meticulously ransacking the cell – going through absolutely everything, and leaving it looking like it took a direct hit from a category-five hurricane, two of my cellies were handcuffed and taken to segregation for reasons unknown to us. It took the remaining three of us hours to sort through everything and to make the cell suitable for prison living again, but seeing the cell flipped and tossed in such a manner was yet another sad reminder that our personal possessions (legal documents, family photos, clothing, commissary, etc.) are meaningless and worthless in their eyes.
Two days later, an officer approached and whispered to me: “You have a cell pass.”
“Why are you being so secretive?” I asked, not understanding why he was whispering. “You got a pass to go to Internal Affairs,” he said in a lower tone. Unconcerned and not 
having anything to hide or worry about, I told the guy I was playing chess with that I was going to Internal Affairs and should be right back.
“How long have you been a member of Black Lives Matter?” was one of the first questions asked as soon as I entered the room. “I’m not a member,” I said. “But I’ve been Black all my life and support the movement wholeheartedly.” When I asked why did they call me over, I was told it was because of a “BLM” sign they found in my property during the shakedown.
I’m a Chicago Police torture victim who was severely beaten and suffocated with a plastic bag into signing a confession to a murder I did not commit, and watching Officer Derek Chauvin slowly and methodically constrict the life out of George Floyd had broken me down to tears. Outraged by George Floyd’s murder, I decided to join the millions upon millions of people I had seen protesting around the world. So, I took a black marker and wrote “BLM” on a piece of cardboard and began proudly waving it from my cell window whenever someone walked by – especially the yard line and chow lines. I always got favorable responses from the other prisoners. They would either raise their fist or start chanting “Black Lives Matter” or both.
I told everyone who would listen that I had predicted the uprising in my book Tortured by Blue: The Chicago Police Torture Story (see p. 175).
“What’s wrong with having a BLM sign?” I asked without even realizing that the sign was missing. “Black Lives Matter has been flagged,” I was told. Stunned by the revelation, I explained that I couldn’t understand why it would be flagged when I have seen Black, White, Brown, and all in between, marching and chanting “Black Lives Matter” all over the planet after George Floyd was killed.
“Are The Proud Boys or The Oath Keepers being flagged by the IDOC?” I asked.
“Who are they?” “Now that’s a real problem,” I said while trying to disguise my anger.
Black Lives Matter was flagged, but they were totally unfamiliar with two of the White Extremist hate groups involved in the January 6th insurrection on the U.S. Capitol.
“We did an investigation and discovered a speech of yours on the Black Lives Matter website.” I didn’t know which one of my speeches he was referring to because I’ve done many during my long incarceration – speaking out against the racist and broken criminal justice system, the death penalty, police torture, corruption, abuse, and much more. However, I felt an enormous sense of pride and said that I was honored BLM would put one of my speeches on their site.
“Who gave you consent?” I was asked. “Consent for what?” Consent to give the speech?” I responded by saying I didn’t need consent when I have a First Amendment Right to speak out against injustices, whether on this side of the wall or the other.
I understand that people are getting more hypersensitive and more divided in a seemingly already divided nation (especially under Trumpism). But we cannot allow hate to send us into a downward spiral to where we cannot even agree that Black Lives Matter as well. Yes, it’s unquestionably frustrating to know that after George Floyd was killed and the continued universal push to end racial biases and systemic discrimination that possessing a BLM sign is somehow wrong and cause for an investigation.
The admonishment was a really stressful pill for me to swallow and digest. I didn’t know what to do, but the activist that lives in me and yearns to breathe freely would never allow me to stop getting into Good Trouble and fighting the Good Fight. Black Lives Matter shouldn’t be flagged. It should be acknowledged, proclaimed, and celebrated by everyone who believes that All Lives Matter.
Like I said in my book Tortured By Blue: “There’s no disagreement with the widely known and well-respected fact that White Lives, Blue Lives, and All Lives Matter. But in America, time and time again dating back hundreds of years, America has to be reminded that Black Lives Matter too.” (pg. 289)
