Attica Prison riots
Overview
The Attica Prison riot occurred at the Attica Correctional Facility
in Attica, New York
, United States
in 1971. The riot was based in part upon prisoners' demands for better living conditions. On September 9, 1971, responding, in part, to the death of prisoner George Jackson
, a black radical activist prisoner who had been shot to death by corrections officers in California's San Quentin Prison on August 21, about 1,000 of the Attica prison's approximately 2,200 inmates rebelled and seized control of the prison, taking 33 staff hostage.
Attica Correctional Facility
The Attica Correctional Facility is a maximum penitentiary in the town of Attica, New York, operated by the New York State Department of Correctional Services. After it was constructed in the 1930s, it held many of the most dangerous criminals of the time. A tear gas system is installed in the mess...
in Attica, New York
Attica (town), New York
Attica is a town in Wyoming County, New York, United States. The population was 6,028 at the 2000 census .The town is named after a region in Greece....
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1971. The riot was based in part upon prisoners' demands for better living conditions. On September 9, 1971, responding, in part, to the death of prisoner George Jackson
George Jackson (Black Panther)
George Lester Jackson was an American convict who became a left-wing activist, Marxist, author, a member of the Black Panther Party, and co-founder of the Black Guerrilla Family prison gang...
, a black radical activist prisoner who had been shot to death by corrections officers in California's San Quentin Prison on August 21, about 1,000 of the Attica prison's approximately 2,200 inmates rebelled and seized control of the prison, taking 33 staff hostage.
