Prisoners sentenced before 1978 are called C#'s. There are 430 C#'s left in the Illinois Department of Corrections, 65% of whom are African-American. These prisoners range in age from 40 to 80+ years old.

During decades of imprisonment many C#s have become model prisoners. They have earned clean prison records and have obtained their GED's, college degrees, and/or vocational training skills.

Each year C# prisoners come up for parole before the Prison Review Board. Unfortunately, the Board only releases between 1% and 4%. If we do not come to their aid, many of these men and women will die in jail, even though persons convicted for the same crimes under the new law are being released at least ten years sooner.

The families and friends of these prisoners have begun a campaign on their behalf. We are trying to pass legislation to set a standard by which C#s will receive justice and fairness in the parole process. Currently there are no standards for parole, and the Prisoner Review Board can do what it wants.

We want to bring the issue of C#'s to the community. We need your help! To support the brothers and sisters inside, or for more information, please call:

Campaign In Support of C# Prisoners
661 E. 79th Street
Chicago, IL 60619
773-874-7390


Directions to the picnic site, Dan Ryan Woods, Grove 10: Enter parking lot
on Western Avenue at 85th. Go straight east to the far end of the parking
area and you'll see Grove 10. You can also enter the parking lot on 83rd
Street. If you come in off 83rd Street, make a left in the parking lot
after you enter and follow the path south until you come to Grove 10.