B. Cayenne Bird
|
Our red headed Heroine Cayenne
"Prisons aren't hospitals and prison goons aren't nurses"
"If people would get off their yuppie treadmills and take ACTION by voting, marching in the streets and writing letters to the editor, things couldn't be this bad."
"Everybody thinks someone else is doing it and then nobody does it. Apathy is a bigger enemy to reform than anything else. Get off the sidelines! Vote! Write! Show up! Recruit"
"I am always amazed that people will give their last dime to an attorney but won't give a cent to organize themselves into a group which outnumbers those voting groups oppressing them, attorneys can't help. We must change the laws by voting the bums out of office."
"Writing is fighting! Demonstrating is liberating!"
"My commitment as a journalist for the past 32 years is to give voice to the voiceless. There are also people inside the prisons who are victims of crime. Their families are certainly innocent victims. Writing about the suffering and dying of people is more important than politics."
An emphasis on personal responsibility has been the hallmark of Cayenne's leadership in criminal justice reform. Prison guards have attacked her, other groups from the radical left have attacked her, but like a "bop-up" doll, she comes right back up in their faces. That is why she is the leader of the UNION, unsinkable fighting spirit which is contagious to those who thought they couldn't make a difference.
"Sally Havice, all of these people filling this hearing room have come to object to your disgraceful bill AB369 to ban televisions and impose more visiting restrictions on prisoners."
Cayenne stood up and made this statement as Sally Havice entered a packed hearing room for the vote on her bill. She had promised Sally that UNION members would show up to object if she continued forward with AB369. The baliff almost threw Cayenne out of the hearing room for making the announcement, although the hearing was not yet in session. Cayenne told the baliff "something is wrong when legislators attempt to enact unreasonable punishments on prisoners and the people cannot voice their objection." AB369 was killed that day by the Assembly Public Safety Committee.
"My life's goal is to pee on the cornerstone of the Capitol. Since standing up is a problem, I can only do this through my writing to expose the horrible things the legislators do to people. Why do we keep electing rich attorneys who are so out of touch with the needs of the "unwashed" masses?"
Cayenne gives this answer whenever radio show hosts ask her about her life's goal. You know immediately that there are only one or two politicians that she respects, even though over the course of her 32 year career she has known and interviewed hundreds of them.
"If the people of California knew what was going on inside our prisons, they would never stand for it. Animals in the zoo are treated better than prisoners. The prison guards are running the drug rings, the cops are running the gun rings. The criminals are wearing the badges."
Cayenne testified at the Senate Rules Committee Warden Confirmation Hearing and presented complaints from families at three prisons. She said this during the course of her testimony with hundreds of CCPOA officials and guards and Senators present on Statewide television. The Orange County Register gave coverage the next day to the admission of the Tehachapi Prison Warden that prison guards had been caught bringing drugs into prisoners. Cayenne got him to admit it during his job review hearing. A legislative representative was appointed to the UNION to handle member complaints. January 6, 1999.
"One day Nielsen will learn what it is like to stand in judgment and beg for mercy. I hope he is greeted with the same welcome as he dealt out on Earth for years and made to crawl up a flight of 1,000 stairs on his belly, then aptly treated as subhuman at the top"
Published in an opinion article written by Cayenne, Sacramento Bee when Nielsen lost his position as Chairman of the Parole Board. He had been forcing crippled prisoners to crawl up the stairs to ask for parole. She called the members of the UNION to send onions and messages in a bottle to Governor Davis so that he could see a mainstream voting lobby does exist that objects to injustice. 457 boxes were sent with messages marked on the onions such as "end the Three Strikes Law", "end the parole board", "end the death penalty", etc.
"Pay now or pay later, the taxpayers are going to pay for the unbearable incompetence of government. We are spending millions in lawsuit payouts for medical abuse and neglect. Why not just do the job properly up front and avoid all this human destruction?"
This was on the first draft of a byline commentary written by Cayenne which appeared in the Los Angeles Times September 29, 2000 "Imprisonment Should Not be Revenge." This same commentary was the Featured Article of the day 9/29/00 by the Common Dreams National News Service.
"We are not in opposition to Crime Victim's groups. We, too, are innocent victims of crime often perpetrated by men sitting behind desks as lawmakers in Sacramento. There are better solutions to crime than locking people in cages. We are releasing our mostly young people back into the communities sicker than before they were incarcerated. It's just wrong."
Cayenne has voiced this during multiple legislative hearings, in her newsletters and articles, and during public speaking appearances.
Cayenne, your loyal web helper Janice has updated many
of your articles so that everyone can see how much writing you've done
for us these past two years. It took her hours and hours to do it. Happy
Birthday Cayenne from Janice."Published
articles by B. Cayenne Bird"
Your friend Jerry Baker has been looking for a grant for the UNION and may have found one, he will be sending you an exciting email for your birthday. We will all back you up with the grant application. One is for funds to run our group and the other is $47,000 just for your living expenses. You deserve to be supported by the people you dedicate your time to advocating. This is very exciting and Jerry has spent many days on this project. Happy Birthday Cayenne!!!
To Cayenne: The most successful, dedicated agent for change in the
criminal justice system in the country. WIth love and appreciation.
bill
William J. Chambliss, Professor
Co-Director, Institute on Crime, Justice, and Corrections
George Washington University
Ph: 202 237 1499
Fax: 202 237 1498
3121 33rd Pl Nw
Washington, DC 20008
Cayenne's work as volunteer director for the UNION (United for No Injustice, Oppression or Neglect)is detailed here.
http://www.geocities.com/capitolhill/parliament/2398/home.html
Click here to go to page 2. Many messages from Cayenne's friends, families and supporters are posted here