I’ve been banned from contacting James Costello who is currently serving 5 years in HMP Manchester for “stirring up racial hatred”. I’ve never spoken to James about politics, we only spoke about family and lighthearted things. I believe I’ve been banned because of my politics as 7 other people have been banned from contacting him, including Mark Collett and David Clews!

This is completely unacceptable and is an attempt to cut him off from his friends and other nationalists. I phoned the prison and they said I need to contact their security department by post, so I’ve written them a letter asking them to explain why they’ve banned me and telling them I hadn’t broken any rules and I’d like to appeal the ban. I’m hoping they get back to me soon and I’ll let you know what they say.

In the meantime, please consider writing James a letter to let him know we haven’t forgotten about him. I can’t imagine what it must be like knowing you’re serving multiple years behind bars. I know we all have busy lives but it takes 10 minutes to write a quick letter. Remember, James was out week in, week out campaigning for our people. He was such a dedicated activist and I have no doubt he’ll continue to be throughout his life.

NAME: James Costello
PRISONER NUMBER: A3561FA
DATE OF BIRTH: 08.01.1985
ADDRESS: HMP Manchester, 1 Southall Street, Manchester, M60 9AH