Judith Alice Clark: Difference between revisions

Content deleted Content added

Inline

Revision as of 21:40, 17 August 2005

Judy Clark was a 1960s American radical activist against the Vietnam War and racism. She is currently in prison for her participation in 1981 in a failed robbery of a Brinks truck in which a guard and 2 police officers were killed.

Clark joined the Students for a Democratic Society in New York City in 1965. Shortly thereafter, she joined the staff of the SDS official organ, the New Left Notes. In late 1960s, the SDS divided into several factions and the Weathermen (later called the Weather Underground) was born. Clark was a member of the Weathermen and took part in the 1969 "Days of Rage" in Chicago and the preceding organizational actions, for which she was arrested in December, 1970 and convicted. She served seven months in prison. After her release she continued to work as an above ground ally of the movement.

Subsequently, Clark, together with David Gilbert and Kathy Boudin, formed the May 19 Communist Organization (M-19), which joined forces with the remnants of the Black Liberation Army (BLA), an extremely radical and violent group that was an offshoot of the Black Panthers. On October 20, 1981, a group alternately identified as the BLA, M-19 or Revolutionary Task Force, staged a robbery of a Brink's truck at a shopping center in Nyack, New York. During the course of the robbery, a guard was shot and killed. The group escaped from the scene with $1.6 million, but an alert citizen saw the armed men, with their guns and bags of money, change cars in a nearby parking lot. She notified the police who stopped the van carrying several of the men. In the ensuing gun battle, two police officers were killed. Clark, Gilbert and Boudin were among those arrested at the scene.

At their trial, Clark and Gilbert took the position that they were anti-imperialists, fighting in solidarity with the Black Liberation struggle. They claimed that U.S. imperialism is a criminal and anti-human system, and would not accept the legitimacy of its courts. Both were convicted and sentenced to 3 consecutive 25 year sentences.

Clark is currently serving her sentence at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women in northern Westchester County, New York. While in prison, Clark and Boudin (who was released in 2003) formed AIDS Counseling and Education (ACE), a program to counsel inmates trying to cope with AIDS. Clark and Boudin were among the inmates at Bedford Hills featured in a 2003 documentary What I Want My Words To Do To You about a writing workshop in the prison led by playwright and activist Eve Ensler, author of The Vagina Monologues.

Because of the fact that her actions were motivated by her political views, some people consider Clark to be a political prisoner.

External links

Jacobs, Ron. The Way The Wind Blew - A History Of The Weather Underground. Verso, 1997 (ISBN 1859841678)
What I Want My Words To Do To You, PBS, premeried December 16, 2003
Cruel and Unusual Punishment for Jailed Revolutionary Judy Clark, Maoist International Movement

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 '''Judy Clark''' was a [[1960s]] American [[Revolutionary|radical activist]] against the [[Vietnam  War]] and [[racism]]. She is currently in prison for her participation in 1981 in a failed robbery of a Brinks truck in which a guard and 2 police officers were killed.
 Clark joined the [[Students for a Democratic Society]] in [[New York City]] in 1965. Shortly thereafter, she joined the staff of the SDS official organ, the ''New Left Notes''. In late 1960s, the SDS divided into several factions and the [[Weathermen]] (later called the Weather Underground) was born.  Clark was a member of the Weathermen and took part in the 1969 "Days of Rage" in [[Chicago]] and the preceding organizational actions, for which she was arrested in December, 1970 and convicted.  She served seven months in prison.  After her release she continued to work as an above ground ally of the movement.
-Subsequently, Clark, together with [[David Gilbert]] and [[Kathy Boudin]], formed the May 19 Communist Organization (M-19), which joined forces with the remnants of the [[Black Liberation Army]] (BLA), an extremely radical and violent group that was an offshoot of the [[Black Panthers]].  On [[October 20]], [[1981]], a group alternately identified as the BLA, M-19 or Revolutionary Task Force, staged a robbery of a Brinks truck at a shopping center in [[Nyack, New York]].  During the course of the robbery, a guard was shot and killed.  The group escaped from the scene with $1.6 million, but an alert citizen saw the armed men, with their guns and bags of money, change cars in a nearby parking lot.  She notified the police who stopped the van carrying several of the men.  In the ensuing gun battle, two police officers were killed.  Clark, Gilbert and Boudin were among those arrested at the scene.
+Subsequently, Clark, together with [[David Gilbert]] and [[Kathy Boudin]], formed the May 19 Communist Organization (M-19), which joined forces with the remnants of the [[Black Liberation Army]] (BLA), an extremely radical and violent group that was an offshoot of the [[Black Panthers]].  On [[October 20]], [[1981]], a group alternately identified as the BLA, M-19 or Revolutionary Task Force, staged a robbery of a [[The Brink's Company|Brink's]] truck at a shopping center in [[Nyack, New York]].  During the course of the robbery, a guard was shot and killed.  The group escaped from the scene with $1.6 million, but an alert citizen saw the armed men, with their guns and bags of money, change cars in a nearby parking lot.  She notified the police who stopped the van carrying several of the men.  In the ensuing gun battle, two police officers were killed.  Clark, Gilbert and Boudin were among those arrested at the scene.
 At their trial, Clark and Gilbert took the position that they were [[Anti-imperialism|anti-imperialists]], fighting in solidarity with the Black Liberation struggle. They claimed that U.S. [[imperialism]] is a criminal and anti-human system, and would not accept the legitimacy of its courts. Both were convicted and sentenced to 3 consecutive 25 year sentences.