Robert ‘Seth’ Hayes is one of the longest-held political prisoners in the USA. Born in 
the Bronx in 1948, Seth was imprisoned due to his activity in the Black Panther Party and the Black Liberation Army, a fighting formation which grew out of the Black liberation movement of the 1960s.
It was in the period of social upheaval in the late 1960s that Seth radicalized and joined the Black Panther Party and later the Black Liberation Army. Drafted into the U.S. Army and sent off to fight in Vietnam, Seth was wounded and awarded a variety of military awards including the Purple Heart, the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, and the Vietnam Campaign Medal. Back in the U.S., when riots exploded across the nation in response to the April 4th, 1968 assassination of Martin Luther King, Seth’s troop was ordered to assist in putting down the massive rebellions which took place and spread across the United States. According to Seth, “it was the saddest day of my life, and I could never identify again with the aims of the armed forces or the government.”
After the assassination of Martin Luther King and the social upheaval which followed it, Robert Seth Hayes joined the Black Panther Party, working in the Party’s free medical clinics and free breakfast programs. Seth, like many other activists was then forced underground by FBI and police repression of the Panther movement.
In 1973, following a shootout with police, Seth was arrested and convicted of the murder of a New York City police officer, and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. Seth has always maintained his innocence.
Jailed for over 30 years, Seth has long since served the time he was sentenced to and while in prison he has worked as a librarian, pre-release advisor, and AIDS councilor. He has remained drug and alcohol free throughout his entire period of incarceration and has maintained a charge free record in prison. Seth first came up for parole in 1998, but prison officials have refused to release him, and are effectively punishing him for having been a member of the Black Panther Party, and of having remained true to his ideals after 30 years behind bars.
Seth has been diagnosed with Hepatitis C and adult onset Diabetes since the year 2000. Unfortunately, despite his repeated requests, Seth has not been receiving adequate health care from Clinton Correction Facility, (the prison where he is currently being held) and his condition has steadily deteriorated.
www.sethhayes.org
Check out Seth’s support site for updates, more information, and to listen to his solidarity statement with Six Nations.
Certain Days
Seth is a member of the collective that produces the Certain Days: Freedom for Political Prisoners Calendar, who are celebrating their 10th anniversary in 2011. Lean more, including how to order, at certaindays.org.
Write Seth
Robert ‘Seth’ Hayes
#74-A-2280
Wende Correctional Facility
3040 Wende Road
Alden, New York
USA 14004-1187
