The "break people out of jail" lottery!

games
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Some of the comments of a topic I started expressed some concerns about contemporary activism being something of a minefield. That anything direct and not-only-symbolic likely leads to jail.

So, how about something more pro-active? I propose a lottery where resources are donated and then distributed on the basis of one demonstrably having either liberated a person or person’s from US custody, or otherwise engaging in acts which actually disrupt the US prison/industrial complex. Break a friend or family member out of prison. Better yet, break a complete stranger out of prison. Sabotage a private prison company. Tase a cop and spring somebody from the squad car.

Score some loot! Put it on your CV as performance art! If it gets popular enough, maybe it could be a full-time job for the disenfranchised.

The goal is basically to overcome the smug feeling in the US that they can put away anybody they choose. Well - no you can’t. If you aren’t a trusted party, then you don’t get to be in custody of people. Sorry, better luck next time.

Obviously, it would be unlawful if this lottery was run from within US jurisdiction. So I suggest somebody do it from the Cayman Islands, or some such place.

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I respectfully suggest we return to the ideas phase until we can make a shared project with an equitably distributed amount of risk that let’s us substitute a sufficiently durable we for an imaginary somebody.

And I think we need to condition the award on non-violent action. No one gets hurt or no win. That’s more interesting anyway.

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The Weathermyn who helped Tim Leary did it nonviolently, right? So they’d win the prize … except they were underground so probably couldn’t easily show up to claim it.

…
With revolutionary positions characterized by black power and opposition to the Vietnam War,[2] the group conducted a campaign … and took part in actions such as the jailbreak of Dr. Timothy Leary…

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Okay, one more follow up issue is whether the lottery could be claimed after liberating an incarcerated person with a credible history of violence? I’d suggest, generally, no.

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