In this Rattling the Cages panel talk, Eric King speaks with family members of political prisoners about how the repression and violence of incarceration impacts more than just those imprisoned. Sharon Shoatz (daughter of former political prisoner Russell “Maroon” Shoatz), susie day (partner of former political prisoner Laura Whitehorn), and Rochelle Bricker (partner of former political prisoner Eric King) speak to the familial harm of prison repression and the unswerving love and solidarity that keeps hope alive.

Published by AK Press, Rattling the Cages: Oral Histories of North American Political Prisoners is a project of abolitionists Josh Davidson and Eric King. The book is filled with the experience and wisdom of over thirty current and former North American political prisoners. It provides first-hand details of prison life and the political commitments that continue to lead prisoners into direct confrontation with state authorities and institutions.

If you missed the previous panel discussions you can watch the recordings here.

Sharon Shoatz is the daughter of Russell “Maroon” Shoatz and is a retired NYC public school educator, active member within the Panther Cubs, and an advocate for the release and freedom of all political prisoners. Learn more about Russell “Maroon” Shoatz in the books Maroon the Implacable: The Collected Writings of Russell Maroon Shoatz and I Am Maroon: The True Story of an American Political Prisoner.

susie day is a journalist who showed up at the Washington, DC Jail in 1988 to interview four of the defendants in the Resistance Conspiracy case, charged with a string of anti-imperialist bombings. She ended up falling in love with the most nefarious of the lot, Laura Whitehorn. She and Laura now live together in New York City, where Laura works with Release Aging People in Prison (RAPP) and susie covers prison, policing, political activism — and sometimes writes satire. susie is the author of The Brother You Choose: Paul Coates and Eddie Conway Talk About Life, Politics, and The Revolution.

Rochell Bricker is a long time community and labor organizer, focusing on unions and class solidarity. Rochelle has an extensive history in prisoner support and in supporting the family members and partners of those incarcerated. She started and maintained the Eric King support team through Eric's entire incarceration. Rochelle is a multi-form artist and a parent of two, as well as the longtime partner of former political prisoner Eric King.

Eric King is a father, poet, author, and activist. In December 2023 he was released from the supermax ADX prison after spending nearly ten years as a political prisoner for an act of protest over the police murder of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. He was held in solitary confinement for years and was met with violence by guards throughout his incarceration. Eric has published three zines: Battle Tested (2015), Antifa in Prison (2019), and Pacing in My Cell (2019). His sentencing statement is included in the book Defiance: Anarchist Statements Before Judge and Jury (2019). Eric now works as a paralegal for the Bread and Roses Legal Center.