By Mark Scott
Buffalo, NY – A former Attica inmate who became a leader in a multi-million dollar lawsuit stemming from the bloody 1971 prison riot has died.
His name was Frank Smith. But he was widely known simply as "Big Black." Smith was 70 when he died Saturday at a North Carolina hospital after a battle with cancer. Big Black was an inmate at Attica Correction Facility when prisoners took over the prison in September 1971, holding several guards and other employees hostage. After state police regained control, many inmates were beaten and tortured, including Smith, who then filed a lawsuit that resulted in a $12 million award to inmates just four years ago. UB English Professor Bruce Jackson chronicled the legal proceedings for a book he wrote.
"'Big Black' was one of the four principal defendants and he was one of the most visible," Jackson said. "He was a very articulate guy and very passionate guy. When he testified on the stand, he broke down in tears describing what happened to him. Everyone in the courtroom was visibly moved."
"Big Black" became a vocal advocate for civil rights. In a 1974 interview on WBFO, he said his cause was receiving significant support from everywhere but Buffalo.
"We are getting national support. The people are beginning to understand that the same oppression the Attica brothers are receiving is on themselves," Smith said in the interview.
He may have been a former inmate, but "Big Black" earned nearly universal praise for the way he persevered in his more than 25 year legal battle with the state. US District Court Judge Michael Telesca, who presided over the Attica settlement, said of Smith, "he was a real peacemaker in the Christian sense."