Attica

The penal facility in Attica, New York, was one of the last so-called big house prisons built in the [Page 84]United States. Constructed in 1931 at a cost of $9 million, it was the most expensive facility of its day. The prison was sold by Governor Mario Cuomo in 1991 to the state's Urban Development Corporation for $242 million.

Attica's notoriety stems from the riot and prisoner takeover of 1971, which some have called “the bloodiest encounter between Americans since the Civil War.” Ironically, in view of its later history, Attica was originally built to help end riots and revolts at other New York State prisons.

In 1929, prisons at Clinton and Auburn had been the sites of serious rioting. State officials believed that a modern, secure facility would solve the problems they were experiencing with the inmates. The facility included a seemingly impenetrable wall that cost $1.275 million to construct. Enclosing fifty-three acres, the wall was two feet thick and extended thirty feet above ground, twelve feet below it.

Conditions for prisoners at Attica were harsh. Inmates spent at least fourteen hours each day in their cells. Cramped cells, bad food, inadequate medical care, minimal recreation, and lack of employment training contributed to a dehumanizing atmosphere.

The prison population in the 1960s and 1970s was mainly poor men from New York cities. An estimated two-thirds of the 1200-plus Attica inmates were Puerto Rican or African American. They were also younger and more politically aware than previous generations of Attica inmates. The corrections officers were employed from the community and were mostly white men raised in rural New York; only one was Puerto Rican. Prison authorities banned political organizations and were particularly hostile to Black Muslims, forbidding them to hold religious services. These ethnic and cultural differences, coupled with administrators' fear of unrest, created a sense of tension that permeated the prison community.

Administrators knew inmates were angry about conditions at the prison. In the summer of 1971, prisoners staged a number of peaceful protests at Attica. Inmates united to voice their complaints to Commissioner of Correctional Services Russell Oswald, who visited the prison in early September but was called away before enacting any changes.

On September 8, 1971, correctional officers tried to discipline two inmates who appeared to be fighting, which sparked a protest. The following day, a riot broke out. Inmates took control of the cell blocks and seized forty hostages. One corrections officer died in the takeover, and three prisoner informers were executed. Black Muslim inmates stepped in to protect the hostages during negotiations with Commissioner Oswald.

The insurrection continued for four days. Oswald agreed to most of the prisoner demands but refused to grant the “complete amnesty” that was requested. He informed inmates that an assault would take place unless the hostages were released. On September 13, Oswald, with the approval of Governor Nelson Rockefeller, ordered state troopers to retake the facility by force. Twenty-nine inmates and ten hostages were killed during the assault. In the end, forty-three people were killed. Of the wounded, three were hostages, one was a state trooper, and eighty-five were inmates.

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