The murder follows weeks of wildcat strikes that have abandoned inmates to abominable conditions.
In response to the recent slaying of Messiah Nantwi by correctional officers at Midstate Correctional Facility in Utica, Citizen Action of New York joins the Utica community in mourning, expressing anger, and demanding justice for Messiah Nantwi and all victims of police brutality.
Citizen Action’s Central New York Lead Organizer, Senya Bekui, released the following statement:
“The prison systems in Central NY are cesspits of abuse, terror, and extrajudicial killings carried out by prison officers. Prisoners have reported that, unlike the killing of Robert Brooks, no video footage has been made available because Corrections Officers turned off their cameras or stood with their backs to Messiah as he was beaten to death.
“This brutal event happened despite the presence of National Guardsmen who were called to the prison by Governor Hochul as a result of the illegal wildcat strike NYS Corrections Officers are currently engaged in. All of this follows the revelations in December of widespread physical and sexual abuse of over 30 inmates at MidState.
“Messiah Nantwi’s murder reinforces that the entire model of for-profit private prisons should be on trial. His name joins the list of people killed while in our state’s prison system, like Robert Brooks, Edward Sholtz, James Barton, and countless more. The repeated and ruthless crimes committed with regularity by NYSCOBA should result in their contract termination, as they are entirely unfit to deal with prisoners humanely. We are sick of this culture of cruelty and impunity. All humans deserve dignity.”