Virginia Prisons Accountability Committee: April 2022

Sunday, April 17, 2022

Absolute Power Corrupts, The Virginia Department of Corrections [VADOC] and The Press


On February 16, 2022; True to the adage that absolute power corrupts; the Virginia Department of Corrections [VADOC] issued a press release, proclaiming that Virginia's press and corporate media coverage of its activities was "inaccurate" and "skewed."

We have patiently waited, watching, listening for a response from Virginia's press and corporate media that would calmly remind VADOC that not only does: 

United States Constitution Amendment 1

Speaks against....."Abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.....

But The Constitution  of Virginia

At Section 12. Freedom of speech and of the press declares....."That the freedoms of speech and of the press are among the great bulwarks of liberty and can never be restrained except by despotic governments, that any citizen may freely speak, write and publish his sentiments on all subjects, being responsible for the abuse of that right, that the general assembly shall not pass any law abridging the freedom of speech of the press"  

So in light of the above excerpts representing the fair and just bulwarks of our social compact. Why then would a function of Virginia's executive, the Virginia Department of Corrections not only seek biased and favorable press coverage but would seek to intimidate Virginia's press into self-censorship and what is appalling and sad is this continuing kowtow of Virginia's press to the corrupted demand of the Virginia Department of Corrections.

The Virginia Department of Corrections is a fact of the commonwealth organized violence and violence in all of its forms and expression exist for itself. Requiring a distilled level of transparency if there is to be accountable justification of the rule of law.

We state that the VADOC element or the prison official is no greater or lesser than the imprisoned and prisoner in their charge         Because both exist as creations of the rule of law and if the rule of law isn't to succumb to and become a selective narrative which VADOC clearly anticipates that by its February 16, 2022 press release reminder it does then Virginia's press and corporate media has to actually do what our constitutional privileges demand. We call Virginia's press to account

By vapac