Citing unfair and inhuman treatment, about half of the prisoners in the overcrowded Attica Correctional Facility in western New York state riot and take control of the prison on September 9, 1971. They take 42 hostages and issue demands for prison reform. They organize, craft weapons and build defenses, holding half of the complex for days.

On the fourth day, the Governor orders police to take control of the prison by force. At least 39 people are killed, including 10 officers and staff, nearly all killed by law enforcement gunfire. Angry correctional officers torture surviving inmates.

Over the next couple years, the New York Corrections Department makes many reforms based on the prisoners’ demands, but those reforms are largely reversed by the 90s.