The word ‘Attica’ is a part of the American lexicon due to the events that are detailed in this book. However, between the time I first read this book (February) and now, the world has changed a bit, but the events of the book haven’t. They’re encased in amber as a reminder of a truly terrible time in American history, and the brave men who stood up for their rights when no one else would.
Written by Frank “Big Black” Smith and Jared ReinmuthCover by Améziane
Illustrated and colored by by Ameziane
Lettered by Andworld Design* The uprising at Attica Prison remains one of the bloodiest civil rights confrontations in American history … but without Frank “Big Black” Smith it could have been even worse. Now for the first time, the late Frank “Big Black ” Smith shares his experience at the center of this uprising, struggling to protect hostages, prisoners and negotiators alike.
* Before his death, Frank “Big Black” Smith worked with Jared Reinmuth, the son of his lawyer, to share the true story of his time in Attica State Prison. Adapted to a graphic novel by Ameziane (Dark Horse’s Muhammad Ali), this is an unflinching look at the price of standing up to injustice.
Reading “Big Black: Stand at Attica” is a trip through prejudices, preconceptions, and privilege. At every turn, the inmates at Attica are exploited by someone they don’t know for no reason other than a fundamental lack of respect for their lives. To really unpack the events of this book would take more time than we have for a standard review, so I’m going to instead try to focus on the craft of the book instead of its story, as much as I can separate the two.
The story here is not an objective one, as it is told from the perspective of Big Black, which makes the book an interesting mix of first person narrative and historical document. There obviously was some research done by Reinmuth, so it’s not as if it is just an illustrated interview transcript, but the issues presented are all from Big Black’s perspective. That isn’t meant to be a critique of the work at all. The story is clearly a personal one, but mitigated by time and perspective, so it comes out surprisingly less emotional than expected. I know if this happened to me, I don’t think I would ever be able to recount the story as evenly as it is told here.
Ameziane doesn’t shy away from the horrors of what he’s illustrating, presenting the violence in stark and clean images, forcing the reader to grapple with what they’re seeing. This is one of those stories that, a few years ago, seems like it can’t possibly be true ‘in America,’ but modern times have shown that American institutions can be just as cruel and evil as the atrocities we’ve read about in other countries. Ameziane’s colors are really interesting here, too, as they take on a sort of sepia tone for much of it, which is often used to evoke nostalgia in media. This is, obviously, not a nostalgic story at all, but the choice allows the reader to grapple with the past in a more active way. It is saying “this is the time period that others wax nostalgic about all the time, but this is nothing to remember fondly. Things have always been bad and broken.” It’s a powerful choice.
There is so much in this book that makes my blood boil, but through all of it, Big Black’s calming presence is felt. He is drawn as a hulking figure, but one that usually has a neutral expression on his face, allowing some sense of normalcy to be seen/felt in the midst of this chaos. It is also, perhaps, a commentary on how, while this is shocking to folks reading this years later, likely not incarcerated, there is a sense that this wasn’t totally unexpected. Ameziane draws Big Black like he’s usually handling whatever situation he’s in with grace and thoughtfulness.
Overall, the book is an inspiring one, a real tale of the little guy winning against a nearly insurmountable opponent. And while the treatment of prisoners is not perfect, the events at Attica helped improve, at least in the short term, the lives of folks who are incarcerated in the United States. But that’s only part of the discussion; the US has the highest incarceration rate in the world, at 724 per 100,000 citizens. The prison industrial complex is a serious issue facing all Americans, and we are doing very little about it. Because of folks like Big Black, things have improved marginally, but because of folks like you and me, the system can improve a lot more. If we, as a people, can look at this story and feel something, then we can absolutely use our voices, money, and votes to attempt to change the prison system in real ways. Don’t let this story be part of the past; the riots are in the past. The change can be in the future.
