Philly Feb. 13: FREE MUMIA teach-in

[Communist]

[FONT=Arial Black]______________________________________________[/FONT]

Feb. 13 international teach-in to demand:
[FONT=Century Gothic]FREE MUMIA[/FONT]

By Betsey Piette
Philadelphia
[FONT=Garamond]Published Feb 10, 2010 7:21 PM

[/FONT]In light of the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that opened the door for reinstatement of the death penalty for political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal, activists from the Philadelphia region, across the U.S. and around the globe will take part in an important teach-in in Philadelphia on Feb. 13, to take up the next stage in the struggle to free Mumia.



The event, from noon to 5 p.m. at the Abiding Truth Ministries Church in west Philadelphia, will provide updates on the latest legal developments, including the Jan. 19 U.S. Supreme Court decision that sends Abu-Jamal’s case back to the Third Circuit Court to reconsider a ruling made by Judge William Yohn that overturned the death sentence in 2001. The Supreme Court’s decision also went against a 2008 Third Circuit Court ruling which granted a new sentencing phase jury trial if the death penalty was to be reinstated for Abu-Jamal.

Both decisions are very dangerous, particularly in light of the recent election of Philadelphia’s first African-American district attorney, Seth Williams, who campaigned on the promise to execute Abu-Jamal should the death sentence be reinstated.

The Feb. 13 program will connect local, national and even international activists involved in the 28-year-long fight to free Abu-Jamal through a network of video conferencing and video streaming. While most participants will gather for the teach-in in Philadelphia, those from other U.S. cities as well as Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean will be able to share in presentations and discussion on upcoming action proposals via the Internet.

Information will also be provided for those unfamiliar with this important case of the U.S.’s most prominent death row inmate, whose legal case dates back to Dec. 9, 1981, when Abu-Jamal was framed up for the murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner.

Throughout the long series of legal proceedings since then, which have often involved gross violations of his civil and legal rights, Abu-Jamal has maintained his innocence. The Feb. 13 meeting will address the state’s efforts to silence Abu-Jamal — referred to by many as “the voice of the voiceless” — a campaign dating back to the 1970s Cointelpro campaign, when he was a young leader in the Philadelphia chapter of the Black Panther Party.

Students and Young People for Mumia

Recognizing that it will take more than one campaign or one rally to win this important struggle, the meeting will provide updates on ongoing campaigns as well as the opportunity for new proposals to be raised, including expanding outreach to and education of students and youth, many of whom were not yet born when Abu-Jamal was first incarcerated or were young children during the massive rallies on his behalf in the late 1990s.

The necessity to reach young people was addressed by Larry Hales, speaking on behalf of the national youth organization FIST (Fight Imperialism, Stand Together). Hales noted, “If it were not for a vigilant international campaign, Mumia would not be alive today. But much more vociferous action is required now, during this period of extreme economic downturn when millions have been laid off, are suffering, and more and more people are being fed into the prison industrial complex.
“Students and young people are needed at the forefront of such a movement. Mumia, who first became politically active at the age of 15 and was a former member of the Black Panther Party, is a hero for young people.
“He has continued to be a member of the community of oppressed people fighting for a better world free from oppression, repression and exploitation,” said Hales. “He has continued to speak for the voiceless, the hundreds of thousands who are locked in cages, removed from society, and the many more who are caught up in the so-called criminal justice system.”

FIST is calling on students and youth to join in a new formation, Students and Young People for Mumia. Hales, who had a face-to-face meeting with Abu-Jamal this past September, told Workers World, “Mumia Abu-Jamal faces perhaps the most crucial period since 1999, when then governor of Pennsylvania, Tom Ridge, signed the last of the two death warrants for Mumia, the first being in 1995.

“Life in prison is no option over the death penalty, but the struggle to free Mumia has always been a struggle that has had to fight to keep him alive while at the same time demanding his freedom. At all costs it is important to stop the plans of the state of Pennsylvania to kill Mumia.”

The Feb. 13 teach-in will provide updates on two important international petition campaigns on Abu-Jamal’s behalf. The petitions are addressed to both President Obama and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and call for an investigation into civil rights violations in this case as well as an examination into the role played by the treacherous Cointelpro campaign against Abu-Jamal.

The teach-in will also take up a series of meetings and demonstrations being proposed from March through July 2010 to broaden awareness of the case and garner more support for Abu-Jamal. “Time is running out,” stressed Pam Africa, chairperson of International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal, who is a key sponsor of the Feb. 13 event.

“The time for organizing is now, organizing with all the strength that you have. Tell the people they must get into the streets in order to save this brother who has been on the front lines, from death row, on every issue of social justice that there is.”


For more information on the Feb. 13 event, call 215-476-8812, 212-330-8029, or 212-633-6646, or visit www.freemumia.com or www.millions4mumia.org.

[FONT=Arial Black]___________________________________
[/FONT]
[FONT=Garamond]___________________________


[/FONT][FONT=Garamond]
Articles copyright 1995-2010 Workers World.
Verbatim copying and distribution of entire
article is permitted in any medium without
royalty provided this notice is preserved. [/FONT]

[Communist]

[FONT=Times New Roman].[/FONT][FONT=Microsoft Sans Serif]
Int’l teach-in builds support for Mumia Abu-Jamal[/FONT]

By Audrey Hoak
Philadelphia
[FONT=Times New Roman]Feb 17, 2010 4:43 PM

[/FONT]
Activists from Philadelphia, across the U.S. and around the world participated in a video conferencing and live teach-in Feb. 13 to take up the next stage in the struggle to free Mumia Abu-Jamal. The hall at the Abiding Truth Ministries Church was full despite nearly 50 inches of snow that hampered public transportation and put parking in the city at a premium.

The resounding message from all fronts was to keep the pressure on and fight harder than ever before to free Abu-Jamal.


Feb. 13 teach-in. Photos by PVN and Lal Roohk

Pam Africa of International Concerned Friends and Family of Mumia Abu-Jamal opened the event by reminding people that we overturned the death penalty for Mumia under Gov. Tom Ridge and now we must do it again. She stressed the need to educate people, particularly youth, about this case and its relevance to the struggle for Black Liberation and against the death penalty.

Journalist and Temple University professor Linn Washington Jr., who has been investigating this case since the day of Abu-Jamal’s arrest on Dec. 9, 1981, said, “The focus shouldn’t be whodunit, but on exactly how corrupt the proceedings have been starting with police and judicial misconduct and courts that have consistently ignored their own laws and rulings, creating what is now called the ‘Mumia exception’ for those standards which apply to everyone but Mumia.”


[FONT=Arial Narrow]Pam Africa [/FONT]

Washington noted, “If not for the fact that Abu-Jamal’s very life is at stake and the many future cases that hinge on its outcome, the state’s antics would be laughable. But they are deadly because Abu-Jamal is a revolutionary facing execution who has become the symbol of justice to people all over the world.”

Many refuse to stand by and let the state take his life. Ernesto Luisa, an Afro-Venezuelan leader in Caracas, Venezuela, called in to extend support for Abu-Jamal and for the eradication of the death penalty, which is so often applied to African Americans. Luisa demanded the Justice Department listen to the international community regarding this case.


[FONT=Arial Narrow]Linn Washington [/FONT]

Unable to join the session by phone, Abu-Jamal sent a message read by Johanna Fernandez of Educators for Mumia, who had visited him that morning. He said, “This is an intense time for me and for all of us. It’s a time to struggle more, not less. As you know, in my case law isn’t law and precedent is not precedent. I encourage you to look at Amnesty International’s case for me and ORGANIZE! ORGANIZE! ORGANIZE!”

Ramsey Clark, former U.S. Attorney General and a founder of the International Action Center, sent a statement, saying, “Don’t fail or falter, we need maximum effort now. We stand no chance to dump U.S. militarism if we can’t save Mumia.”



Speakers addressed how Abu-Jamal’s life is threatened because he defends those in prison and speaks out against the U.S. wars against Afghanistan and Iran, military bases in Colombia, the coup in Honduras and the U.S. invasion of Haiti. His is a voice for the survivors of Hurricane Katrina, on behalf of Palestinian people, in solidarity with Cuba, and against attacks on immigrants and other forms of racism and legal lynching.

Nana Soul of Black Waxx Recordings and Artists & Activists United for Peace streamed in with a poem telling Mumia that he cannot be extinguished or contained.


[FONT=Arial Narrow]Suzanne Ross [/FONT]

While citing that courts are not the answer, Ramona Africa, one of only two survivors of the state’s murderous attack on the Philadelphia home of MOVE in 1985, described plans to use the courts as a tool to keep the pressure on the authorities. To mark the 25th anniversary of the Osage Avenue bombing on May 13, Africa and the MOVE organization will be filing murder complaints with District Attorney Seth Williams against those responsible for the death of their family members.

The program was dedicated to the late Veronica Jones, who courageously stood up to menacing cops and a threatening judicial system when she recanted a false statement forced out of her to incriminate Abu-Jamal. Her sister, Valerie Sundail, reported that Jones wrote a book that will soon be released.


[FONT=Arial Narrow]Ramon Africa [/FONT]

Time to act is now

Various proposals for action were raised at the event. One prong in the fight is to demand a civil rights investigation as well as an investigation into the role of the federal COINTELPRO program that targeted Abu-Jamal since he was a young student activist. Petitions addressed to both U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and to President Obama will be followed up with a phone campaign to congressional leaders on Feb. 26 and in-person meetings on April 26.


[FONT=Arial Narrow]Victor Toro [/FONT]

Miya Campbell of Fight Imperialism, Stand Together was streamed in from Boston. She encouraged people to come out, teach and make Mumia accessible to everyone. FIST is proposing the formation of Students and Young People for Mumia, and will raise Abu-Jamal’s case during nationwide student actions March 4.

Plans are also underway to raise Abu-Jamal’s case at the upcoming U.S. Social Forum in Detroit in late June and for demonstrations in Philadelphia July 3 and again on July 4 when President Obama will be in town.

A solidarity message from incarcerated human rights lawyer, Lynne Stewart, was read by her partner, Ralph Poynter. Despite health problems stemming from her incarceration, Stewart insisted the case for Mumia needs to come before everything and everybody, and stressed that people need to act, not just plan or pledge. Poynter acted by raising $400, which he delivered in person to Pam Africa.

A highlight of the program came when Victor Toro, a Chilean leader who faces deportation, said, “Mumia is a symbol and an extraordinary man. He is a 21st century Mandela. His resistance is that of immigrant people. Social activists of South America join to get Mumia out of jail. He is ours.”

________


[FONT=Garamond]Articles copyright 1995-2010 Workers World.
Verbatim copying and distribution of entire
article is permitted in any medium without
royalty provided this notice is preserved. [/FONT]