The Most Deadly Prison Riot In America Happened In New York

New York State has the notorious distinction of being the home of the deadliest prison riot in U.S. history. The 53rd anniversary of the tragedy is coming up in about a month and a half. The Attica Prison Riot, also known as the Attica Prison Rebellion, began on September 9, and ended on September 13, 1971, at the Attica Correctional Facility in Attica, New York. Attica is located at 639 Exchange Street in Wyoming County.

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There were 43 victims of the riot - 33 inmates and 10 correctional officers and employees. Of the 43, 40 were killed by law enforcement officers when they retook the prison. The riot began after prisoners were fed up with overcrowding and poor treatment. The prison was designed to house 1,200 prisoners but the population had risen to 2,243. Race also played a part in the riot. The majority of prisoners were black, but all of the guards, except one, were white. According to Wikipedia,

"Within the prison population, 54% of the incarcerated men were African American, 9% of them were Puerto Rican, and 37% of them were white. All of the guards or all but one of the guards (depending on the source) were white."

Guards threw out the letters to prisoners written in Spanish. They also made black inmates work in the lowest-paying jobs.

Credit: NBC News via Youtube

The day before the riot, some prisoners had gotten into it with corrections officers. The incident incited violence the next day, as the inmates were still upset. By noon on September 9, prisoners had control of half of the prison. A young prisoner, 21-year-old Elliott James "L.D." Barkley became the face of the prisoners during negotiations. He said,

"We are men! We are not beasts and we do not intend to be beaten or driven as such. The entire prison populace, that means every one of us here, has set forth to change forever the ruthless brutalization and disregard for the lives of the prisoners here and throughout the United States. What has happened here is but the sound before the fury of those who are oppressed. We will not compromise on any terms except those terms that are agreeable to us. We've called upon all the conscientious citizens of America to assist us in putting an end to this situation that threatens the lives of not only us but of every one of you, as well."

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Barkley, who would have been released soon, was killed during the retaking of the prison. Many prisoners said that law enforcement intentionally sought out leaders of the riot and killed them, even if they were surrendering. Also, all but 3 of the 43 who died in the riot were killed by police taking control of the prison.

Inmates made demands of the Commissioner of Corrections Russell Oswald, who agreed to 28 of them, but would not give amnesty to the prisoners involved and wouldn't fire the warden, Vincent R. Mancusi.

Credit: BBC News via Youtube

Prisoners said that guards turned up the violence and abuse after the prison had been reclaimed. You can read more about the Attica Prison Riot here.

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