Saturday, December 17, 2011

Live Stream and Footage from Dec. 9 at Constitution Center

For those of you who could not attend last Friday's historic gathering at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia but attempted to view the stream live online, we would like to apologize for any difficulties in connecting.  Especially to those overseas who planned on viewing this stream, we apologize if you experienced any viewing problems.  Due to a number of reasons there were compatibility and connectivity issues which made our stream cut out at times.  We were well aware of these issues and worked hours on end through the night to attend to them.  We apologize to all who had difficulties in viewing and thank you for sticking with it.

During the event, our official Facebook and Twitter profiles were active, posting updates, information and pictures the entire night.  We received a high volume of shares, likes and tweets.  Our website, www.freemumia.com also received record high hits during the event, where updated information was present.

Since the event, video and photo footage from the evening has been posted to www.freemumia.com.  This building collection of footage (including the speeches of Cornel West, Amiri Baraka, Ramona Africa, Marc Lamont Hill, Immortal Technique, Goldii and others) can be viewed at
http://www.freemumia.com/?p=627

Also, a DVD of the entire evening will soon be available.  When it is, this will be announced on freemumia.com

Thank you for your continued support.

Jeremy
www.freemumia.com

Report on Mumia's Status and Call to the DA

From Sis. Johanna Fernandez:

Dear Friends:

I visited Mumia yesterday, December 15, in the new prison that houses him, SCI Mahanoy. Even though he has been released from death row, he remains in Administrative Custody while he awaits transfer to general population. Because he is still in Administrative Custody and not yet in general population,  visits still take place behind the plexiglass barrier characteristic of the no-contact visits to prisoners on death row. 

Mumia boarded a vehicle to SCI- Mahanoy in the early morning hours of December 14th at 4AM. Despite the dehumanizing character of the heavily armored vehicle that transported him from SCI Greene to SCI Mahanoy, Mumia delighted in the opportunity to see cows, horses, and Pennsylvania's beautiful landscape during the 7 hour ride to Frackville, PA.

He described the last number of days as a "crazy whirlwind."  Last Friday alone, he spent 6 hours packing up books, letters, and other belongings in preparation for what he believed was a move into general population at  SCI Greene. But the Department of Corrections had other plans in mind. As you know, that same day, December 9, his call came through at the National Constitution Center.  At the prompting of Pam Africa, the last 30 seconds of that call turned into a rousing ovation to Mumia by the 1,100 people in attendance. This is was he wrote in a letter about his experience that very same night on December 9, "It's been minutes since I've hung up the phone, and I'm still buzzing from the loving vibes zapping through the phone. It's really electric!"

While in Administrative Custody at Mahanoy, Mumia is technically in  "the hole." This means that he has absolutely no human contact; absolutely no belongings in his cell other than a rubber pen,  8 sheets of paper and 8 envelopes  (4 of which he has used to write letters to family and friends);  he gets only one hour in the yard and one visitor a week; and at night the lights in his small cell are dimmed only slightly, and otherwise remain on all day.

Mumia noted that he missed the knock of his next door neighbor on the Row at SCI Greene,  Sugarbear, who called for him through a knocked on the wall "at least 20 times a day."

Mumia noted that as he was being escorted to his cell at Mahanoy, the majority of prisoners he saw in "the hole" were black and he immediately thought of Michelle Alexander's evocative analysis and descriptions of mass black imprisonment nationwide.

Mumia is committed to remaining mindful of the challenges of this new period. He remains strong and hopeful about the possibilities of this next phase of struggle, both in his personal day-to-day life,  and in the movement. He welcomes and is prepared for the change.  Below please also note a special note he dictated to OWS.

Mumia reiterated that despite his isolation and the alienating character of his transfer to Mahanoy, he feels vibrations of love around him.

We await, impatiently, Mumia's transfer to general population and call on the DA's office to complete the transfer immediately. PLEASE NOTE: The DA's number and address below.

Let us remind the DA that Mumia should have been in general population since 2001 when Judge Yohn overturned the death penalty in his case; but the DA's office held him on death row for a decade while it filed losing appeals. By law, Mumia should be in general population, not in "the hole." We demand his immediate transfer.

With love and solidarity,

Johanna Fernandez


::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
SETH WILLIAMS, Philadelphia DA

Three South Penn Square
Corner of Juniper and South Penn Square
Philadelphia, PA 19107-3499
215-686-8000

http://www.phila.gov/districtattorney/contact.html

Hear Mumia Speak about his Removal from Death Row

Listen to the audio at http://www.prisonradio.org/media/audio/mumia-democracy-now-12-12-2011

Mumia on Democracy Now! 12-12-2011

Mumia Abu-Jamal Speaks About His Removal From Death Row
Hundreds of supporters of the imprisoned journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal gathered on Friday in Philadelphia to mark the 30th anniversary of his arrest for the killing of a white police officer. The event occurred just two days after Philadelphia prosecutors announced they will no longer seek the death penalty for Abu-Jamal. On Friday, Abu-Jamal, a former Black Panther, called it to the event to make his first public remarks since the prosecutor’s decision was announced.

Mumia Abu-Jamal: “I am for the first time, in almost 30 years, I’m not on death row physically. I’m in a new block, called an AC block. The cells are somewhat identical to death row but no one on this block is on death row, including myself. It takes some getting used to, you see, I’m still acclimating myself.”

Abu-Jamal was also asked about his reaction to having his death sentence converted to life without parole.

Mumia Abu-Jamal: “I must admit to some surprise because I was expecting the hearing–by that I mean a sentencing hearing–even though many friends and supporters and even lawyers said there probably wouldn’t be one. I believed there would be one. And I continued to feel this way until I heard the news. I will be talking to my lawyers in a matter of days and we will be going over precisely those kinds of questions. Because there will not be a hearing there is some disappointment because we thought we could make some things happen in that hearing and really give a good fight, but we’ll have to fight in other ways. I want to thank everybody that really supported us for so many years.”

Mumia Events in Mexico + Vienna


Dear activists for the freedom of Mumia Abu Jamal!

On December 9th, 2011 the Committee for the Freedom of Mumia Abu Jamal/Vienna organized a rally on the busy Mariahilfer Street. In the Christmas hurly-burly we announced our message that we are pleased with the repurchase of the death penalty on the one hand but we vehemently fight "against the creeping death" of Mumia Abu Jamal (Desmond Tutu) of life imprisonment" on the other hand. So we demanded again and again the freedom for Mumia Abu Jamal! 75 persons signed our petition for freedom for Mumia Abu Jamal. Three of them want to cooperate with our committee!

Please add our video report to your other reports on the international actions on December 9th, 2011:

http://www.labournetaustria.at/MumiaKundgebung%209.12.11b.htm

In solidarity

Free Mumia

Karl
http://www.labournetaustria.at/mumia.htm


Mexico City Activists and Musicians say "Bring Mumia Home"

From Amig@s de Mumia de México:

On December 9, 30 years after Mumia Abu-Jamal was kidnapped by the Philadelphia police gang and railroaded for the homicide of Daniel Faulkner, around 200 activists and musicians held an 8 hour event in his support outside the US Embassy in Mexico City. With love for a free spirit who has always had the courage to tell the truth even while spending all this time in the clutches of the enemy, we celebrated the setback suffered by the Philadelphia DA's office in their drive to murder Mumia under cover of law, and made it perfectly clear that we will not stand for his slow death in prison or any attempt on his life once he has been moved into general population.

Among us were people who have supported Mumia since the 90's and were arrested and beaten for marching for his freedom in December, 1999. Many more know who he his and what he stands for because they've read his writings in the independent news media, and dozens have only recently learned of his struggle and the high price he's paid for being true to his commitment to Black Liberation and worldwide revolutionary changes for all. In any case, we hope our rebellious, high-energy vibes have floated through to Mumia. And we also want authorities in the United States to know that there are people in far parts of the world who say ¡NO! to their crimes of State against Mumia and the political prisoners of MOVE, Leonard Peltier, Sundiata Acoli, Jalil Muntaqim, Herman Bell, Dr. Mutulu Shakur, Sekou Odinga, Marshall Eddie Conway, Albert Woodfox, Herman Wallace, Veronza Bowers, David Gilbert, Oscar López Rivera, the Cuban 5, Daniel McGowan, Bradley Manning and dozens more.

The statement read by Amig@s de Mumia de México said, in part:

"On Wednesday, December 7, the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office gave up on its 20 year campaign to murder Mumia Abu-Jamal through the court system. At a press conference, DA Seth Williams said that he will no longer seek a death sentence. We celebrate his defeat in this terrain… brought about by the pressure from a worldwide movement of which Mumia himself is very much a part… and hope it will be one step forward towards his freedom.

But this does not mean that Philadelphia officials no longer want Mumia's death. ICFFMAJ and the MOVE Organization have sounded the alert that his enemies have never stopped hating him and are furious about the international support he has. They suspect that authorities will try to kill him in prison, just as they murdered George Jackson and tried to use other prisoners to kill Leonard Peltier.

The tone of an anti-Mumia event held last night at the Keswick Theatre in Philadelphia was threatening…. Maureen Faulkner, who has functioned as a spokesperson for the Fraternal Order of Police for years, emphasized that she will tolerate no "special treatment" for Mumia once he is moved to general population and that she longs for the day when "Abu-Jamal stands before his ultimate judge", which now "doesn't seem so far off."

Seth Williams has said that Mumia will stay in prison for the rest of his life and would have us believe that this sentence is infallible. Yet we remember a constant theme in Mumia's writings ––that no empire lasts forever––, and we might say the same about court decisions. When there are enough organized people in the streets, Mumia will walk free. Let's bring him home."

Our joy over a possible advance in Mumia's case was tinged with the anger and pain we feel over the recent murders of Mexican activists Trinidad de la Cruz Crisóstomo just days ago, and Pedro Leyva two months before ––two courageous comrades with a total commitment to the recovery and defense of Nahua lands in Xayakalan, Ostula, Michoacán. We hold the United States government responsible for their deaths due to their financing and training of police, military, and paramilitary forces that operate with impunity in Mexico.

We felt honored by the presence of two relatives of political prisoner Alberto Patishtán, who has been locked up for eleven years for struggling for a decent life for the indigenous peoples of Chiapas and for organizing La Voz del Amate and other prisoner groups inside the prisons of his state. His cousin Beatriz detailed the numerous transfers of Alberto from one prison to another to block his educational, social and organizing efforts, including his most recent transfer to the Guasave prison in the state of Sinaloa, 1,200 miles from home. We are happy to join in the struggle to make sure this comrade with an unbreakable commitment to his people walks free in his own lands once again.

We also felt stronger due to the presence of a contingent from the Peoples' Front in Defense of the Land of San Salvador Atenco, who came to the event with a message of solidarity for Mumia: "Freedom knows no color, respects no borders, and has no limits. It angers us to know that yet another comrade is being held prisoner because he wants to change the future. We are with him all the way. We deeply appreciate his solidarity with us and today we are here in solidarity with him…"

We will never forget that the Mexican government planned to subject Felipe Álvarez and Nacho del Valle to slow death in prison with sentences of 67 ½ and 112 ½ years respectively, but they couldn't do it, and they couldn't break down their spirit of struggle either. Last Friday, Felipe Álvarez said that "as members of the Peoples' Front, we keep on struggling after we were set free by the support of national and international organizations and so many people, so many activists, including compañero Mumia, who is still held in captivity. We send our brotherly greetings to this freedom fighter and want him to know that we will keep on fighting for his freedom. ¡Zapata vive. La lucha sigue!"

Nacho del Valle said: "Mumia is an example of dignity, an example of integrity. Today he's been in prison for 30 years. How long did it take me to say 30 years? Three seconds. Two seconds. Thirty years of indomitable consciousness! When we were in prison, we heard that he was supporting us. Somebody told me, "This man is struggling for you from a long way away". That tells us that he is not bound by prison walls even though he is locked up in a stinking dungeon. His freedom lies in his consciousness, in his love for others….Comrades, we know what repression is…It's true we may feel fear because fear is part of our existence. But that kind of fear is different than the kind that makes a person subservient, that makes one a slave of the powerful…Here in our Mexico we are living through some of the most perverse atrocities ever wreaked by human hands, and the figures don't even begin to tell the story. More than 50,000 deaths in recent years. That's more deaths than in many wars fought by armies! How is such a thing possible? But, well, we know that's what's happening. But even though it may seem like our numbers are small, we have here today the best this country has to offer, people with the consciousness it takes to produce hopes and expectations. And from this very spot, we must construct hopes and expectations of the freedom we want for our brothers and sisters who are struggling behind bars…We know that repression is mainly and selectively aimed at people struggling for freedom and justice, at those who dare to say enough is enough! But that shouldn't intimidate us. There are thousands of us. There are millions of hearts and souls, millions of people of conscience demanding freedom for this man who is a living example of integrity, freedom, and above all, dignity. We know they have not beaten him down in 30 years and that we have a struggle ahead…¡Mumia vive! ¡La lucha sigue! Free all political prisoners!"

The Other Culture presented a performance that brought out the history of Mumia with the Black Panthers and fashioned several installations, including one to the memory of baby Life Africa who was trampled to death by the Filadelfia police in 1976; his parents are Janine and Phil África of the MOVE 9 who have been held behind bars for 33 years for defending life in all its forms.

Rappers, sonideros, reggae bands and acoustic musicians made beautiful music straight from the heart. Thanks to the Mexikan Sound System, ARH Al Intifadah, Jorge Salinas, MC Xozulu, La Otra Acústica, Youalli, Van-T, Nehualyome Dub, Lírika Podrida, el Indio Sin Dios, Sangre Maíz, Luna Negra, Ollin Roots, y los Dub Riders de Reggae AmbulanT Sonidero Cultural Sin Fronteras, our event had a lively beat and songs of struggle, ranging from "Corrido de Gabino Barrera" to "No voto y no me callo", "Alta Resistencia", "Sata Massagana" "Libertad a Mumia Abu-Jamal" and "Wirikuta", among many others.

Ever since she got out of prison, Edith Rosales, ex Atenco prisoner and plaintiff against the impunity for sexual torture that she and others experienced on May 4, 2006, has been present at each and every event in support of Mumia. In her message she reminded us that "Political prisoners never shut up…Mumia keeps on denouncing government crimes from his cell. It's part of his struggle. And it's really admirable, compañeros, because you can't imagine how hard it is to write when you're locked up, how hard it is to coordinate your thoughts. We must keep on struggling for him. All political prisoners must be freed from those dungeons."

Jaime spoke for Anarchist Black Cross: "Once again we're here in front of this embassy that represents an empire that massacres and murders people all over the world. Once again we're here to demand freedom for the revolutionary activist Mumia Abu-Jamal. Now they've been forced to back down on the death penalty due to international solidarity. And it's a beautiful thing to see the energy here today and know that solidarity is being stepped up to get him out of prison. We have to free all the political prisoners in Mexico, too, like Alberto Patishtán and the prisoners of the Voz del Amate who were on hunger strike in Chiapas for more than a month. From his small cell, Mumia never has stopped denouncing the U.S. prison system, a control mechanism of one class over another charged with hatred and racism, a mechanism used to publish all who rebel… We're with Mumia and all the prisoners in this country and in the world. Prisoners to the streets!

Hilda spoke about the need to oppose the militarization of the country and to demand the live appearance of the thousands of disappeared people in the country. She also spoke of the threat that autonomous indigenous communities pose for capitalism and invited everyone to participate in a march in solidarity with the Trique people displaced from the Autonomous Municipality of San Juan Copala, from Huajuapan de León to the Zócalo of the City of Oaxaca next December 19.

A preliminary analysis begun by Tania and Miguel of the privatization of prisons in Mexico was read. It brings out that the large majority of people in Mexican prisoners are "poor youth, who in most cases are there for stealing less than five thousand pesos, or are effectively kidnapped because they can't pay the ransom called "bail"… The privatization of prisons should put us on alert that corporations profit from people who are deprived of their freedom and turn justice into big business… Once this is done, it's necessary to keep the prisons full, which necessarily implies a constant inflow of captives…"

A message from Nodo Solidale was read, which says in part, "One of the tasks we have as a social movement is to never forget our prisoners, not a single one. And much less those who continue to speak out and set an example, like Mumia Abu Jamal on death row in the United States or Alberto Patishtán Gómez in Mexico… Let's keep on weaving organization, constructing alliances, looking for new freedom roads in the name of Mumia, Alberto, the Mapuches locked up in Chile, the 5,000 Palestinians held in Israeli jails, the anarchists pursued by every State, the insubordinate Arabs in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, and women like Rosa Díaz López in Chiapas, who from their jail cells, denounce the injustices they experience and witness. We must grow stronger in the name of a world where there will be no prisons because there will no longer be rich people getting richer and poor people punished."

This December 9, there were also marches, rallies and events in other parts of the world, including a big event in the Constitution Center in Philadelphia, with music, dance, theatre, and speeches, as the para-police motorcycle gang Centurions shouted slogans of hate outside. Among many other messages, arguments were made that Seth Williams has the obligation to free Mumia Abu-Jamal now. The question was raised: If the Supreme Court declared the death sentence unconstitutional, why is there reason to believe that the same judge, the same DA and the same jury didn't violate Mumia's constitutional rights when they found him guilty of murder? And it was further argued that for 30 years Mumia Abu-Jama has been subjected to the cruel and unusual punishment of isolation, now recognized by many psychologists and human rights defenders as torture, and for this reason must be immediately released from prison with credit for time served.

In one place after another, the struggle continues, now with fresh energy, to bring Mumia Abu-Jamal home.

See more photos and audios of portions of the event by Multimedios Cronopios:
http://www.multimedioscronopios.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1433:evento-pot-la-libertad-de-mumia-abu-jamal&catid=36:mumia-abu-jamal&Itemid=11


Important Presentation by Sis. Ramona Africa December 9, 2011




Thousands Rally in Phila. to Demand Mumia's Release

From info@freemumia.com
Mon, 12 Dec 2011


The Free Mumia Abu-Jamal Coalition of New York wishes to thank and congratulate the thousand people who turned out Friday night in Philadelphia to give substance to the demand that Mumia be freed.  This pathbreaking event was held at the National Constitution Center, located directly across the mall from Independence Hall.

For more coverage, please go to our website, www.freemumia.com.  Below is an article on the rally by Philadelphia journalist Dave Lindorff.


No Execution for Mumia: 30 Years After a Police Shooting, Abu-Jamal Backers Vow to Free Him from Life in Prison

By Dave Lindorff

The mood was both celebratory and angry among a 1000-plus overflow audience packed into the balcony space of the Constitution Center in Philadelphia on the evening of Dec. 9.

The crowd of supporters of Philadelphia journalist and black political activist Mumia Abu-Jamal had come to denounce the over 29 years that he has spent locked in solitary confinement on Pennsylvania's grim death row since his conviction for the shooting of a white police officer, Daniel Faulkner. But they were also there to celebrate the surprise decision, announced two days earlier by Philadelphia DA Seth Williams, not to seek to reinstate Abu-Jamal's death sentence, which had been permanently vacated by a recent decision of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Technically, the Supreme Court, last Oct. 11, had decided not to review a decision by a Third Circuit Court panel that had upheld a 2001 Federal Judge's ruling declaring his 1982 death sentence to have been unconstitutional. The Federal Court and Appeals Court decisions had been appealed by the district attorney's office for years, all the way to the Supreme Court.

The event at the Constitution Center had initially been planned to mark the 30th anniversary of the shooting incident that had led to Abu-Jamal's arrest and to his trial and conviction. But only two days before, Williams, who had 180 days from the Supreme Court's ruling to decide whether to request a new jury trial to attempt to win a new death sentence, had held a press conference to announce that he would not take that step, and would instead allow Abu-Jamal's penalty to revert automatically to life in prison without parole.

Read the full article at NationofChange

ALERT: Mumia Transferred to SCI-Mahanoy

From Ramona Africa:

ONA MOVE, Everybody!  We've received news that Mumia has now been transferred to SCI-Mahanoy, another prison in Pennsylvania.  He is in "Administrative Segregation", he is not in general population yet. We need to let those administrators know, immediately, that we know Mumia is there and that the WORLD is watching.  People need to flood the prison with calls and flood Mumia with postcards (Mumia needs to know that we have his back). ----Ramona

Mumia Abu Jamal
AM-8335
SCI-Mahanoy
301 Morea Rd.
Frackville, PA. 17932

Superintendent John Kerestes
Deputy Superintendent Bernadette Mason
570 773-2158

This is no time to relax, we must be ever-vigilent!!!

Report on The Free Mumia Abu Jamal Protest in London on 9th December 2011. Free Mumia Now !

From www.dreadtimes.com
From Sis. Emma Lewis:

Action called by Free Mumia Abu Jamal Defense Campaign UK: Sixty people protested outside the US Embassy 5- 7 pm, to demand the immediate and unconditional release on Mumia Abu Jamal.

A sizeable number of the protesters marched from Speakers Corner, along Oxford Street calling for freedom for Mumia and for all political prisoners, before joining others at the US Embassy, Grosvenor Square.

Initiallly we shared the space immediately outside the Embassy with other activists who were calling for action to tackle climate change.

Speakers from the Irish Political Prisoners, FRFI, Pan African, UHURU, and others brought support from their organisations. Linn Washington from Philadelphia campaign joined us.

The campaign is delighted with the news that the state will not be seeking to reimpose the death penalty. But a message from MOVE reminded us this does not mean they do not want Mumia dead. The Police Federation and other reactionary forces are already threatening his rights and his safety in prison. Russia Today TV was there to record the protest and interview participants about why Mumia's case is important and why we believe he must be released immediately.

Members of the campaign then went on to a public meeting in support of Mumia held at Metrolpolitan University where comrade Togogara was speaking on behalf of the campaign.

Article from:
http://libcom.org/news/report-free-mumia-abu-jamal-protest-london-december-9th-2011-10122011

Mumia Abu-Jamal: "To My Friends of OWS"

Thursday, December 15, 2011
Message to OWS dictated today while in Administrative Custody at SCI Mahanoy in Frackville, PA.


My Friends of OWS,

My message will have to be brief. But let not this brevity take from it, its strength.

You are the central movement of the hour. You're raising questions that are in the hearts of millions. Your motto, "We are the 99%," has been heard, heeded, and responded to by millions. You can be certain that the 1% have heard you clearest of all.

Your work, however, is just beginning. You must deepen, strengthen, and further your work until it truly reaches the 99%, almost all of us: workers, black folk, Latinos and Latinas, LGBTs, immigrants, Asians, artists, all of us, for we are integral parts of the 99%. I salute you and hope fervently that you will grow beyond number.

Though I speak to you today by proxy, I'm confident that you will here my voice soon.

Love, fun and music,

Mumia Abu-Jamal

Mumia's address to the USHRN 2011 National Human Rights Conference

December 15, 2011
From Kali Akumo: 

Greetings All,

Enclosed is a messaged delivered by Mumia Abu Jamal to the US Human Rights Network 2011 National Human Rights Conference and Membership Meeting on Friday, December 9th. December 9th marked Mumia's 30th year on Death Row (even despite the partial victory of December 8th).

Please listen and pass along:

http://www.ushrnetwork.org/MumiaAddress

In Unity and Struggle,
Kali