Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Antti R. has been moved

UPDATE ON ANTTI

Finnish anti-war activist, Antti, who is serving just over two weeks
imprisonment for non-payment of fines imposed on him when he refused
to be conscripted into the army, has been moved to a new prison
address.

Such movements can delay a prisoner from receiving their letters of
support. Therefore to help Antti stay strong and remind him he is
not forgotten please write to Antti today and send your letter via
his support e-mail address

supportantti@hotmail.com

Antti is a well known prisoner support activist who has always sort
to help others. Now it is our turn to help him.

Aracruz works to criminalize Activists in Brazil

Aracruz Cellulose, the world’s leading supplier of bleached eucalyptus pulp, has recently begun taking advantage of the Brazilian Judiciary for its own economic benefit.

Aracruz has specifically targeted Priest Emil Schubert, union leader Luis Alberto, professor Elza and radio broadcaster Ligia Sancio, demanding reparations to the company for moral and physical damage if they don’t cease their protest against Aracruz’s contemptible social and environmental practices.

This is not the first time Aracruz has taken such steps. In 2006, they successfully prevented the demarcation of 11 thousand hectares of indigenous land in Brazil, by rallying the support of the Brazilian People through a propaganda campaign, which included the strategic use of Billboards and tv commercials. Aracruz also gained the support of it’s workers through indirect threats that they’ll lose their jobs if they didn’t.

Further, Aracruz accused the Tupinikim and Guarani communities of not being true indigenous groups and told the local population of Aracruz County that the Tupinikim and Guarani intends to commit violence against them. People in Aracruz County now react in fear. (From Indymedia. See more billboards here)

From Indymedia - In Brazil, the judiciary power is often used in an attempt to criminalize activists within social movements and their supporters, trying to coerce and restrain them both politically and socially. This is a way for the multinational corporation Aracruz Cellulose to take advantage of it’s economic power, by abusing this restrain instrument in an attempt to dismantle those who dare to oppose it’s wicked development logic.

The priest Emil Schubert, union leader Luis Alberto, professor Elza and radio broadcaster Ligia Sancio have been targeted by the corporation, which has decided to open a lawsuit against them to demand reparations to the company for moral and physical damage if they do not cease their political protest. This means that Aracruz is trying to stop them, using a judicial measure, from expressing themselves against the irresponsible social and environmental practices of the company.

In October 2005, indigenous Tupinikim and Guarani occupied Aracruz factories in the state of Espírito Santo, after trying every bureaucratic way to claim back their ancient land currently occupied by Aracruz. The activists were present during the action to witness the reaction of the Brazilian State, which has shown itself to be excessively violent against many social movements. In one example of such violent actions, the Federal Police, a couple of months after an indigenous protest in January 2006, destroyed two villages and injured thirteen indigenous people. The police action was condemned by the Organization of American States (OEA) as well as several international groups. (source)

Further Reading
Sept 06 - Brazil: The Tupinikim Indians Vs. Aracruz Celulose War Gets Ugly
Jan 06 - Twenty Tupinikim and Guarani Indians injured in police evictions
About the Guarani and the Tupinikim

Monday, July 30, 2007

Eric McDavid - 7/29

We wanted to give you a quick update about Eric, fundraising, and the
status of his trial.

Fundraising
We have now passed the $10,000 mark with our fundraising. We currently
have $10,300. Thanks to everyone who has donated - especially to those of
you who have offered up matching funds, which has allowed us to double the
amount of money we would normally be making in a very short time period.
In that vein, another anonymous donor has offered up matching funds of
$500! If you donate now, every dollar you give to Eric's legal defense
will be matched, allowing you to double the amount of your donation.
Please take advantage of this opportunity while it's available.


Eric says...
Eric has asked us to share this visualization with all of you, and that we
all keep it in mind as trial approaches:

the locomotive has made it's way and passed over the summit. now, it's
momentum is kinetic as it crosses the valley below... throughout the
journey, this train has been guided by rails woven of the love and support
of family both large and small... not too far off in the distance, is the
place where the mountains gave passage to the river on it's way to the
sea; this is the convergence point to which the rails lead. a sphere of
crystalline light is tucked into those folds of green; therein, the image
of the judge is reading off a piece of paper = the verdict of
not-guilty........

Trial Date
Trial is still set for September 10. Jury selection will occur on that
day, with open arguments most likely starting on September 11. We would
love to have the courtroom full of supporters for Eric throughout the
duration of the trial - especially the last few days, and the day the
verdict is announced. We realize this is tricky, as no one knows exactly
how long trial will run, or when the last day will actually be... If you
are available at all those two and a half weeks, please seriously consider
coming to court to support Eric. He has relied on everyone's love and
support these past 19 months, and it's imperative that we carry that
through trial - the time when he will most need everyone's love, courage
and strength.

Fundraiser in Sacto
For those of you in the Sacramento area, we will be hosting a Bicycle
Drive-In fundraiser for Eric on Friday, August 10, at the skatepark at
28th and B (over the railroad tracks). The final details are still being
worked out, but you can expect an evening of music, a vegan bake-sale, and
a showing of the movie "Over the Edge" (if you haven't seen the movie,
prepare to be amazed...). If you would like to bring something to the
bakesale, please let us know ahead of time. Suggested donation will be
$5. Stay tuned for more details.

Free The San Francisco 8: Former Black Panthers in Prison Need Your Support

by Ron Jacobs; ZNet July 30, 2007

Eight former Black Panthers are currently in prison in California on charges related to the 1971 killing of a San Francisco police officer. Similar charges were thrown out back in 1975 after it was determined that the evidence used to indict the men was extracted by police torture. Two of the men have been held as political prisoners the past thirty years in New York State prisons, but the other six have been living regular lives, working and raising families. A ninth man is still being sought by the police.

These men, known collectively as the San Francisco 8 (SF 8) are being held on $3 million bail each. This bail is considered excessive and the men, their legal team and their supporters are trying to get it reduced so that those members of the SF 8 who are not currently serving time can go home during the upcoming legal proceedings. The struggle to gain these men's freedom is gaining but will require much more public support. In a manner similar to the campaign waged in 1971-1972 to free Angela Davis and the ongoing campaign to free Mumia Abu Jamal, this campaign must become a widespread and international campaign.
As part of this growing effort, several supporters of the SF 8 spoke on a panel at the US Social Forum in Atlanta, Georgia in June 2007. Among the speakers were former US Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and former Panther Kathleen Cleaver. Ms. Cleaver's remarks were addressed to the mostly young audience at the forum and provided them with a historical overview of the Black Panther Party. In addition, she talked about the US government's counterintelligence program known as COINTELPRO and how the Panthers and other leftist popular organizations organized despite the police harassment and attacks. In addition, she spoke about the differences between the 1960s/1970s and now. Most importantly, she spoke about community and the need to understand the nature of how the State has been very successful in criminalizing groups and people who organize against it. To fight this phenomenon, Cleaver emphasized the need to organize and maintain popular support beyond the radical community. When she introduced Ms. McKinney, she spoke to McKinney's attempts to get Congress to investigate the COINTELPTO program.
In order to gather some information about the current status of the case, I recently got in touch with Claude Marks- a member of the Freedom Archives and one of the main organizers of the Free the SF 8 Defense Committee. Our exchange follows.
Ron: Hi Claude. The last time I checked in with you , most of the SF 8 had just been arrested and the authorities were working on getting the others extradited to California. Can you update the readers to where the case is now? Are the men still in jail? What is their bail?

Claude: Yes, they remain in jail and the bail is currently set at $3 million each. August 6th is when hearings on bail reduction continue - starting with Ray Boudreaux and Richard O'Neal. Arguments based on their responsible roles in their communities and to their families and countering the notion that they are flight risks, will be made. In the case of Ray Boudreaux, it is evident from the video "Legacy..." that he was fully aware of being targeted and yet, voluntarily made all of his appearances before the 2005 grand jury. Their intent is to fight the unjust charges and win!

The hope is that bail will be reduced and will be set at amounts obtainable through securing property (by California law at twice the value of the bail amount) allowing their defense to continue with them in the streets and with their families.

Ron:I know this is conjecture, but why do you think the state has set the bail so high? What are they afraid of?

Claude:I think the bail is set high as part of the state's criminalization of them - the same reason they are brought into the public courtroom in chains and shackles.

Ron: How has the response of the public been--in San Francisco? How about the rest of the country? The world?
Claude: Support is growing tremendously - as people find out about the case they are outraged that such enormous resources are being expended to prosecute these elder of the Black community. National and now international showings of "Legacy..." along with our efforts to speak widely about the case are responsible for a much broader movement being built.

Ron: Most observers agree that this case is (as the SF 8 said in their May 19, 2007 statement) "a continuation of COINTELPRO." Can you explain how and why this is so?
Claude: The prosecution is designed to re-criminalize resistance to a repressive and racist state. The conditions that led to demands for self-determination and an end to police & government violence against the Black community, that led to the ten-point platform of the Black Panther Party and the creation of community programs, still exist. The fact that more Black people are in prison than in higher education, that poverty levels are unrivaled, that the future for Black and Brown children is so bleak makes the politics of these men and the movements they helped lead even more urgent today. The state wants to warn people that resistance to colonialism and empire is futile or comes at a very high price.

COINTELPRO's goals and practice are not only much the same under Homeland Security and The Patriot Act - but are unencumbered by a political climate that took outrage at violations of civil and human rights in the 1970s when a Congressional investigation declared illegal the FBI led program. Today, the government, state and federal, act with impunity as long as they use the 'T' word. The evidence in this case - still based on the torture and brutality of police interrogators against some of these men - is now being put forth as acceptable - torture having been re-defined and also justified in the Guantanamos and Abu Ghraibs and Atticas...and the jails of New Orleans.


Ron: Also, what do you all make of the recent release of the CIA documents (the so-called Family jewels)? I read a writer somewhere making the point that the release was timed to turn our attention away from the current doings of the government and its secret police. What's your take on that?
Claude: The current regime is worse, and feeling emboldened by numbed public opinion. It is up to us to marshal the community outrage and build a movement that rejects the sense of government impunity - a movement that forces the dropping of these charges and a release of these 8 men - including the long overdue release of Jalil Muntaqim and Herman Bell who are parole eligible and have lived more than half their lives in prison behind COINTELPRO prosecutions.

Ron: In recent months, several environmental activists have been jailed for their supposed involvement in arson and other such actions against various corporate and research facilities. Without getting into the logic behind these actions and their effect, do you believe the government's pursuit and prosecution of these activists is related at all to the government's insistence on prosecuting the SF 8?

Claude: The so-called justice department wants to smash any and all dissent and has for years targeted the environmental and animal rights movements to make their resistance costly. The sentencing of Jeff 'Free' Luers to almost 28 years for property crimes by an Oregon Judge who stated that Free was being made an example to discourage the building of a movement was the opening parry of the 'Green Scare.' Yes, this is part of creating a chilling effect on dissent and a repressive atmosphere that selectively labels people terrorists to suit the goals of an extreme right-wing agenda.

Ron: These folks have received some pretty stiff penalties because the prosecution has been able to portray them as "terrorists." What do you think this means in the long term for the SF 8 and for political activism of any sort?
Claude: The SF 8 will prevail because the legal case is weak and the political movement will expose the torture-induced statements and build sizeable community-based outrage at these prosecutions.

Ron: Back to the SF 8. When is the next bail reduction hearing? After that, what's next?

Claude: Bail hearings resume August 6th. Other motions will address matters like the 30+ year delay when there is no new evidence, lost evidence, as well as the unnecessary chaining and shackling of these men in court.

Ron: How can the readers support the defense? Are there buttons and bumperstickers? What about speaking engagements? And personal support for the brothers in jail?

Claude: For a list of what you can do to stay informed and contribute to building a support movement in your community check out this
site

Sunday, July 29, 2007

7/26 Letter from Daniel McGowan

July 26, 2007

I'm pretty convinced at this point, nearly 20 months after my arrest, that I am incredibly lucky to have the best support network I have ever seen, the aptly named Family and Friends of Daniel McGowan. No offense is meant to any other defendant (or prisoner) support group, but I've only experienced the love and support of my crew. That intense support - moral, legal, financial and otherwise - has made all the difference to me and it's why I write today with acceptance of my current situation and with clear conscience. Ok, maybe not full acceptance - I mean, I still have eyes and ears and can see what is going on in America's prisons.

I can remember a conversation I had in early January 2006 with my wife jenny. I was in Lane County Jail in Oregon and my bail hearing was a few weeks off but she told me, "We put a website up for you - supportdaniel.org." That news helped sustain me through my 23 hour lockdowns knowing my friends had my back and the country would soon hear about the Green Scare being promoted by the good ol' US of A. To name or attempt to list the many things my support network has done would be a failure. The list is too long and surely I would forget many things. More than things I could list are the intangibles - the subtle and not-so-subtle hints - "Either way, we got your back", "I don't care if you did it or not", "We'll be here to the end". Most recently, I've had people remind me they will be there with a hug the day I walk out of these prisons.

This will sound cliché, and it is, but maybe that's a sign you are doing something right. Mail call is my favorite time of the day! You've heard this before, maybe from Josh Harper, Peter Young or Jeff Free Luers and others. Since I've been here at MDC, I have been embarrassed (in a good way) over and over, each and every day by the insane amount of mail, books and magazines I get. It keeps me reading for hours and although I cannot write people back right now, I at least have a mountain of mail to chip away at. I get this mail because my support network sends out countless bulletins on my list, myspace, IMCs, etc and has printed over 250,000 flyers with my mug on it and because my wife works her ass off on my website. I could go on forever praising people but it can never fully express how thankful I am for all of the support. Solidarity is what makes this term on the "disabled list" doable. (sorry for the sports reference - I stole that one from a friend.)

As always, please keep my codefendants Sadie (statename Joyanna Zacher), Exile (statename Nathan Block) and Jonathan Paul (set to be sentenced in early August) on your mind and in your hearts. All of us are or will be in federal transport soon - a very stressful and chaotic affair.

Finally, I've read a few good books lately and highly recommend them:

Dam Nation: Dispatches from the Water Underground by Cleo Woelfle-Erskine (Editor), Laura Allen (Editor), and July Oskar Cole (Editor) (2007). This anthology of writings on water range from dam removal, international water struggles and Manifest Destiny to grey water system construction. This book made me long for the outside where I could set up a grey water system in my own backyard. Published by Soft Skull Press and available there or through AK Press.

The Fight in the Fields: César Chávez and the Farmworkers Movement by Susan Ferriss (Author), Ricardo Sandoval (Author), Diana Hembree (Author). I was so hopelessly ignorant of the plight of farmworkers in California before reading this excellent book. I still am but realize there is a tremendous amount to learn from this hard-working and fairly successful movement. It also made me think a lot about the recent campaigns against Taco Bell and Burger King by the Coalition of Immokalee Workers in Florida.

Love and rage,

Daniel McGowan

Daniel McGowan is an environmental and social justice activist. He was charged in federal court on many counts of arson, property destruction and conspiracy, all relating to two incidents in Oregon in 2001. Until recently, Daniel was offered two choices by the government: cooperate by informing on other people, or go to trial and face life in prison. His only real option was to plead not guilty until he could reach a resolution of the case that permitted him to honor his principles. As a result of months of litigation and negotiation, Daniel was able to admit to his role in these two incidents, while not implicating or identifying any other people who might have been involved. He was sentenced to 7 years in prison on June 4, 2007 and began serving his time on July 2, 2007.

Current address for Romaine Chip Fitzgerald

We have received a letter from Chip, so we now have his current address. His new address is the following:

Romaine 'Chip' Fitzgerald B-27527

FC-2-110
PO Box 921
Imperial, CA 92251

We have no current news as to when his parole hearing will be scheduled again. We ask everyone to stay updated on his situation and support his parole campaign when he has a new date.

Please keep updated by reviewing our Chip Freedom Campaign at:
http://www.abcf.net/la/laabcf.asp?page=lachip1

Corrected Birthday List for August

August

BILL DUNNE
10916-086 / P.O. Box 2068
Inez, KY 41224
USP Big Sandy
August 3

DEBBIE SIMS AFRICA
OO6307 / 451 Fullerton Ave
Cambridge Springs, PA 16403-1238
August 04, 1956

OJORE NURU LUTALO
59860 / PO 861
SBI# 0000901548
Trenton, NJ 08625
August 6th

DR. MUTULU SHAKUR
83205-012
P.O. Box 8500
Florence, CO 81226
Florence ADMAX
August 8, 1950

ANDREW STEPANIAN
26399-050 / Box 1500
Butner, NC 27509
FCI Butner Medium II
August 8

RENE GONZALEZ
58738-004
FCI Marianna P.O. Box 7007
Marianna, FL 32447-7007
August 13, 1956

HANIF SHABAZZ BEY
#295933
P.O. Box 860
Oakwood, Virginia 24631
Keen Mountain Correctional Center
August 16, 1950

RUBEN CAMPA
#58733-004/ Box 1000
Oxford WI 53952-0505
F.C.I. Oxford
August 18, 1963

RUSSELL MAROON SHOATS
AF-3855
175 Proggress Dr.
Waynesburg, PA 15370
August 23, 1943

Saturday, July 28, 2007

Of 'White Trees', Black Boys and Jena, Louisiana


[col. writ. 7/21/07] (c) '07 Mumia Abu-Jamal
If you asked me two weeks ago if I've ever heard the name of a little town in Louisiana called 'Jena', I would've drawn a blank.
Jena? Never heard of it.
It made me think of the ill-fated Palestinian village called Janin, that Israel crushed into oblivion several years ago.
I think the incumbent president's daughter has that name (with and additional 'n').
But, that's it.
When a friend sent me several internet articles about recent events there, I was, quite frankly, flabbergasted.
I was astonished to learn that today, in the first decade of the 21st century, in Jena High School, there is still a 'white tree', called that not because the leaves are white, but because it is a generous giver of shade, and only white students sit under it.
In Sept. 2006, a young student named Kenneth Purvis asked the school principal for permission to sit under the 'white tree.' The principal answered that he could sit where he liked.
So, they did.
The next day, the 'white tree' was festooned with three nooses, in school colors.
In the South (or the North, for that matter), nooses have one clear meaning -- they are threats of death.
People naturally got riled up, angry, or scared.
Jena's High School principal looked into the matter, found the three white students responsible, and recommended that they be expelled.
The school superintendent felt otherwise, rescinded the expulsion, and instead recommended a 3 - day suspension. Speaking to the Chicago Tribune, the superintendent said, " Adolescents play pranks. I don't think it was a threat against anybody."
(Perhaps he meant anybody important - or white)
For Jena's Black community, this was but the latest slap in the face.
Black students at the high school decided to resist by holding a sit-in under the 'white tree' to protest the light suspensions given to the 3 white noose-hangers.
When word got out about the pending sit-in, the local DA came to a Jena school assembly, with several cops to threaten the students who dared to think they could do what people did some 40 years ago throughout the South (before the so-called 'New South'). He told them if they didn't stop making a fuss about this 'prank' he could be "your worst enemy." To make the point plain, he told the teen gathering, " I can take away your lives with a stroke of a pen."
Several days later, a white Jena student, who reportedly made racist taunts, including calling Black students 'niggers', got knocked down, punched and kicked. The boy was taken to the hospital, treated and released. That very night, he was well enough to attend a public event.
Within days six Black Jena students were arrested and charged with attempted second degree murder. All six were also immediately expelled.
The 6 teens were given bails set from $70,000 to $139,000.
Bail at these ranges could've just as easily been set at $1 million, for they were at rates that none of the local parents could afford. That meant, of course, that all of the accused were held in jail for months, awaiting trial.
And if money for bail was out of reach, what about money for attorneys?
Again -- out of the question.
That meant that public defenders were appointed by the court.
For one of the accused, Mychal Bell, this meant little better than no counsel at all, for his trial was soon decided by an all-white jury, who promptly convicted him of aggravated second degree assault, battery and conspiracy.
Bell now awaits sentencing which may put the teenager in prison for the next 22 years.
The public defender never challenged the all-white jury pool, put on no evidence, and didn't call a single defense witness.
The law of aggravated assault requires the use of a deadly weapon. What was the weapon?
Tennis shoes.
Families and friends of the Jena 6 are organizing against this case, and are also being threatened by the local establishment. One woman told Louisiana ACLU member, Tory Pegram, "We have to convince more people to come rally with us.....What's the worse that could happen? They fire us from our jobs? We have the worst jobs in the town anyway. They burn a cross on our lawns or burn down my house? All of that has happened to us before. We have to keep speaking out to make sure it doesn't happen to us again, or our children will never be safe."
To contact the Jena 6 Defense Committee, write:
P.O. Box 2798
Jena, Louisiana 71342
Or on the web: jena6defense@gmail.com.
--(c) '07 maj
[Sources: Quigley, Bill, "Injustice in Jena: Black Nooses Hanging From the 'White' Tree", July 3, '07; Quigley@loyana.edu.; Mangold, Tom, " 'Stealth racism' stalks deep South", BBC News, 5/24/07 online]

Support the “Bookin’ for Daniel” Marathon Run This Sunday

This Sunday, a supporter of eco-defense prisoner Daniel McGowan will run a full marathon – 26 miles and 385 yards – in order to raise funds for Daniel’s educational fund. The fund will assist with payment for Daniel's master's degree, which he will complete while serving a seven-year sentence in federal prison for acts of economic sabotage intended to raise awareness and to stop the destruction of the planet. The runner and those assisting her efforts state, “We believe that Daniel’s voice must not silenced by his imprisonment, and that communication and education are vital in the battle against global warming.”

As this event draws near, please consider a making a pledge. Every little bit counts! (Pledge details below.)

About Daniel McGowan:
Daniel McGowan is an environmental and social justice activist from New York City. He was arrested in a multi-state raid against the environmental community that revealed itself to be part of a much larger wave of repression known as the "Green Scare." On June 4, 2007 McGowan was sentenced to seven years in prison for charges of conspiracy and arson. These charges relate to two eco-defense actions that occurred in Oregon in 2001. While Daniel took a guilty plea and accepted responsibility for his own actions, he and three other defendants refused to name names as part of their "global resolution" plea deal. During his sentencing, Daniel was given a "terrorism" enhancement to his sentence, based on his involvement in acts of property destruction which hurt no living being. The National Lawyers Guild has decried this sentencing enhancement as an "unnecessary and excessive government tactic to discourage the exercise of free speech."

Daniel in his own words:
“Those in power have not dealt with global warming. That, in my opinion, is a crime. Old-growth forests in Oregon are still being logged, genetically engineered trees and crops are still being introduced into the environment and the only success I see is when people organize and pressure governments and corporations to change their behavior.”

About “Bookin’ for Daniel”
Some of you may know the runner, Esther of Portland, Oregon's Eberhardt Press, not only from her publishing efforts, but also from her consistent work around the "Operation Backfire" eco-sabotage cases. In a blog entry, Esther states her reasons for training for and participating in the marathon, writing: "I want to communicate to Daniel and his family that we who support him are down for the long haul. Today, tomorrow, after 26 miles or seven years we will continue to struggle for the health of our planet and the freedom of all humans, including our comrades behind bars."

For more details about the "Bookin' for Daniel!" run, or to make a pledge to Daniel McGowan's educational fund as sponsorship for this event, please visit: http://bookinfordaniel.eberhardtpress.org/

Background on Daniel McGowan's case and general support information is available at: http://www.supportdaniel.org/

Movie Trailer for Factor 8:The Arkansas Prison Blood Scandal

A new movie is out which documents the role of the Arkansas prison system’s blood harvesting program and the role that it played in the spread of AIDS and HCV to non prisoners, especially hemophiliacs. Prisoners sold their blood to harvesting companies through the early 1990s, long after it was known many were infected with varius blood borne illnesses. Then governor Bill Clinton and his aide Vince Foster successfully fought all attempts to shut the program down. Of course, Arkansas was not the only state to have such programs, Arizona, Rhode Island and many others did as well. They were just the last to end it. As a result, tens of thousands of people have needlessly died, and are still dying. To my knowledge, the only publications that have reported on this topic very extensively are Prison Legal News and Counterpunch. One of the articles on the topic by Jeff St. Clair is at: http://prisonlegalnews.org/257_displayArticle.aspx

To check out the film go to: http://www.factor8movie.com/factor8.htm

Friday, July 27, 2007

Gathering of the Tribe by Mumia Abu-Jamal

[col. writ. 6/19/07] (c) '07 Mumia Abu-Jamal
Ona Move! LLJA!
For what do we gather -- we youths and elders -- if not to try to find some clue to how to remake this world that is obviously going wrong?
Why gather, unless there is at least some hope that some words, some key, some insight may be gained that will glow like the proverbial light bulb over the head of the guy in the comics?
But -- as an elder who was a revolutionary before he was 15, please lend your ear to my thoughts.
I wish to share with you some ideas that I've always shared with young folks. I try to remind them that Huey P. Newton, who founded the Black Panther Party, did so at the tender age of 24. Twenty-four years old!
His friend and co-founder, Bobby Seale, was only a few years older.
I say this to remind you, especially young people, of what young folks are capable of, when they put their minds and hearts to it.
Huey didn't ask Martin Luther King, Jr. for permission. He didn't ask Malcolm X for his OK.
Like most young people of his time, he talked to other young folks, and before you know it, a dozen young brothas and sistas were with him, trying to build the Party from scratch.
What's my point?
Am I suggesting that this was/is easy? Or that, if Huey could do it, you could too?
No. It would be dishonest of me, and dangerous for you, to do that.
It's important to remember that old adage by Santayana: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
It's important for you to learn mistakes of the past, so that you can side-step them in the future.
Among the Ashanti people in West Africa, the following proverb is used: " A wise man who ceases to learn ceases to be wise."
Study. Study. Seriously study our people's history of resistance, so that you can remake this world {that is} on the brink of chaos.
Huey P. Newton studied the works of Malcolm X; he studied anti-Imperialist movements in Cuba, Latin America, Africa, and Asia. He studied the writings of Mao, of Che, of Kwame Nkrumah and beyond.
Then he put his studies into practice.
The great Frantz Fanon, a revolutionary psychiatrist who helped {in} the Algerian Revolution said, "Every generation must, out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, and fulfill it or betray it."
That is your task. It can't be handed to you like a ticket.
It must emerge from the inner recesses of the soul, from the red embers of collective and personal history.
You must own it, and make it yours, by seizing the stage of history - by taking it.
For, as elders return to their ancestors, the earth becomes the inheritance of the living.
The challenge is great; the threats are daunting; but the promise of freedom, of true liberation couldn't be sweeter.
Thank you! Ona Move!
From Life's Row, this Mumia Abu-Jamal
*******
Mumia Abu-Jamal is a political prisoner in the United States, with what could be the final decision on his legal appeals possibly coming down this summer. That decision could give Mumia his freedom, a new trial, life in prison, or execution. It is time to turn up the heat against this injustice.
Free Mumia!
For more on the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal read:
Top Ten “Fry Mumia” Myths Debunked
(Myth #1) “Five eyewitnesses saw Mumia shoot officer Faulkner.”

COMMUNITY ACTION FOR THE SAN FRANCISCO 8

***Please distribute widely***

COMMUNITY ACTION FOR THE SAN FRANCISCO 8

The San Francisco 8 will be in court on August 6. Join Jericho Boston to
help put out the word about their case and gather signatures for a
petition demanding their release.

WHEN: Monday, August 6, 5-7pm
WHERE: Dudley Station, Roxbury

We will be gathering at Dudley Station at 5:00p.m.
Look for the banner:

"COAST TO COAST SOLIDARITY ... FREE THE SAN FRANCISCO
8!"

***

Who are the SF8?

The San Francisco 8 are community activists who have
dedicated their lives to serving their people; most were members of the
Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. They are now being unjustly charged with
murder for a killing that took place 30 years ago based on confessions
obtained through torture.

In 1973, New Orleans police employed torture over the
course of several days to obtain confessions from members of the Black
Panther Party for the killing of a police officer that had taken place in
San Francisco in 1971.
The men were stripped naked, beaten, covered in blankets soaked with
boiling water, and shocked with cattle prods. A court ruled in 1974 that
both San Francisco and New Orleans police had engaged
in torture to extract a confession, and a San Francisco judge dismissed
charges against three men in 1975 based on that ruling.

In 2003 the case was re-opened and the men were
subpoenaed to a series of grand juries. In 2005 they asserted their
Constitutional rights to refuse to testify and were jailed for civil contempt. In
2007, the prosecution re-filed the charges against the SF8 based on the same
tortured confessions illegally obtained in 1973. The men were arrested on
January 23; 6 of the 8 had bail set at $3 million.

On August 6, 2007 the SF8 will be appearing in court
for their next bail hearing. Help us build a movement to win their
release!

For more information about the SF8:
http://www.freethesf8.org/
For updates on local actions: www.jerichoboston.org

(We will be showing the film Legacy of Torture: the
War Against the Black Liberation Movement on August 18 as part of an event
for Black August. Stay tuned for more information.)

Jericho Boston
(617)830-0732
jericho_boston@yahoo.com
www.jerichoboston.org




FREE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS AND PRISONERS OF WAR!

Jericho-Boston
PO Box 301057
Boston, MA 02130

jerichoboston.org

(617)830-0732



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From: Jericho Boston
To: jericho_boston_announce@lists.riseup.net
Subject: [jericho_boston_announce] Community Action for the San Francisco 8, August 6th
Date: Fri, 27 Jul 2007 14:09:53 -0700 (PDT)


***Please distribute widely***

COMMUNITY ACTION FOR THE SAN FRANCISCO 8

The San Francisco 8 will be in court on August 6. Join
Jericho Boston to help put out the word about their case and gather
signatures for a petition demanding their release.

WHEN: Monday, August 6, 5-7pm
WHERE: Dudley Station, Roxbury

We will be gathering at Dudley Station at 5:00p.m.
Look for the banner:

"COAST TO COAST SOLIDARITY ... FREE THE SAN FRANCISCO
8!"

***

Who are the SF8?

The San Francisco 8 are community activists who have
dedicated their lives to serving their people; most were members of the
Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. They are now being unjustly charged with
murder for a killing that took place 30 years ago based on confessions
obtained through torture.

In 1973, New Orleans police employed torture over the
course of several days to obtain confessions from members of the Black
Panther Party for the killing of a police officer that had taken place in
San Francisco in 1971. The men were stripped naked, beaten, covered in
blankets soaked with boiling water, and shocked with cattle prods. A court
ruled in 1974 that both San Francisco and New Orleans police had engaged
in torture to extract a confession, and a San Francisco judge dismissed
charges against three men in 1975 based on that ruling.

In 2003 the case was re-opened and the men were
subpoenaed to a series of grand juries. In 2005 they asserted their
Constitutional rights to refuse to testify and were jailed for civil contempt. In
2007, the prosecution re-filed the charges against the SF8 based on the same
tortured confessions illegally obtained in 1973. The men were arrested on
January 23; 6 of the 8 had bail set at $3 million.

On August 6, 2007 the SF8 will be appearing in court
for their next bail hearing. Help us build a movement to win their
release!

For more information about the SF8:
http://www.freethesf8.org/
For updates on local actions: www.jerichoboston.org

(We will be showing the film Legacy of Torture: the War Against the Black Liberation Movement on August 18 as part of an event
for Black August. Stay tuned for more information.)

Jericho Boston
(617)830-0732
jericho_boston@yahoo.com
www.jerichoboston.org

FREE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS AND PRISONERS OF WAR!

Jericho-Boston
PO Box 301057
Boston, MA 02130

jerichoboston.org

(617)830-0732

Bookin for Daniel: Pledge Now!!

Friends and Comrades,

Hi, this is Esther of Eberhardt Press. I am running the Bookin' for
Daniel marathon this weekend! That is 26.2 miles and I would love it
if more of you pledged. Thanks so much to everyone who has already.
Your support means a lot to me and a whole lot to
Daniel. Remember
every bit helps!
=====================

From Friends and Family of Daniel McGowan:

Our friend is running a marathon this weekend in San Francisco to
raise funds and show support for eco-defense prisoner Daniel McGowan.
All proceeds from this run will go directly to Daniel McGowan’s
education fund. Daniel will complete his master’s degree while
serving a seven-year sentence in federal prison. We believe that
Danniel’s voice must not silenced by his imprisonment and that
communication and education are vital in the battle against global
warming.

“ those in power have not dealt with global warming. That, in my
opinion, is a crime. Old-growth forests in Oregon are
still being
logged, genetically engineered trees and crops are still being
introduced into the environment and the only success I see is when
people organize and pressure governments and corporations to change
their behavior.” - Daniel McGowan


Global warming is caused by burning fossil fuels and deforestation.
Daniel McGowan is a social justice and environmental activist from
NY. Around ten years ago, at a time when the media was protecting
corporate interests by pandering to global warming deniers, Daniel
took action.
He used economic sabotage (including two arsons in which no one was
harmed) to raise awareness and stop the deforestation of the planet.
He will now spend the next seven years in prison.
While the earth heats up, forests are still being unsustainably
logged, as a result
humans are displaced by environmental
catastrophe, and more species die each day. The state will continue
to crack down on those who resist. Someday, your children may ask
you, “what did you do?” Will you tell them, “I recycled ?”

By supporting Daniel, you can contribute
in a meaningful way to creating a more
honest, healthy, and sustainable life
for all creatures of planet earth.

Pledge at www.BookinforDaniel.eberhardtpress.org

Check out Daniel's support site at www.SupportDaniel.org

Thank you for taking the time to read this and thank you so much to
everyone who has decided to pledge. Feel free to forward this to
anyone who you might think would be interested in supporting Daniel.

In wrongful convictions, justice system turns up guilty

By Adam Liptak
The New York Times
Published: Monday, July 23, 2007
In April, Jerry Miller, an Illinois man who served 24 years for a rape he did not commit, became the 200th American prisoner cleared by DNA evidence. His case, like the 199 others, represented a catastrophic failure of the criminal justice system.
When an airplane crashes, investigators pore over the wreckage to discover what went wrong and to learn from the experience. The justice system has not done anything similar.
But a new study does. Brandon Garrett, a law professor at the University of Virginia, has, for the first time, systematically examined the 200 cases, in which innocent people served an average of 12 years in prison. In each case, of course, the evidence used to convict them was at least flawed and often false - yet juries, trial judges and appellate courts failed to notice.
``A few types of unreliable trial evidence predictably supported wrongful convictions,'' Garrett concluded in his study, ``Judging Innocence,'' which will be published in the Columbia Law Review in January.
The leading cause of the wrongful convictions was erroneous identification by eyewitnesses, which occurred 79 percent of the time. In a quarter of the cases, such testimony was the only direct evidence against the defendant.
Faulty forensic evidence was next, present in 55 percent of the cases.
In some of those cases, courts put undue weight on evidence with limited value, as when a defendant's blood type matched evidence from the crime scene. In others, prosecution experts exaggerated, made honest mistakes or committed outright fraud.
Most of the forensic evidence involved problems with the analysis of blood or semen. Forty-two cases featured expert testimony about hair, an area that is, Garrett wrote, ``notoriously unreliable.''
Informants testified against the defendants in 18 percent of the cases. (In three cases, it turned out they had an unusually powerful motive for their false testimony, as DNA evidence proved they were in fact guilty of the crime they had pinned on the defendant.)
There were false confessions in 16 percent of the cases, with two-thirds of those involving defendants who were juveniles, mentally retarded or both.
The 200 cases examined in the study are a distinctive subset of criminal cases. More than 90 percent of those exonerated by DNA were convicted of rape, or of both rape and murder, rape being the classic crime in which DNA can categorically prove innocence.
For other crimes, there is often no biological evidence or, if there is, it can give only circumstantial hints about guilt or innocence.
Only 14 of those exonerated had been sentenced to death, 13 in rape-murders. There is a widespread misconception that DNA evidence has freed many inmates from death row, but it is actually a rare murder not involving rape in which biological evidence can provide categorical proof of innocence.
``DNA testing is available in fewer than 10 percent of violent crimes,'' said Peter Neufeld, a founder of the Innocence Project at Cardozo Law School, which was instrumental in securing many of the exonerations.
``But the same causes of wrongful convictions exist in cases with DNA evidence as in those cases that don't.''
Garrett's study strongly suggests, then, that there are thousands of people serving long sentences for crimes they did not commit but who have no hope that DNA can clear them.
In a second forthcoming study of false convictions, this one focused on capital cases, two law professors - Samuel Gross of the University of Michigan and Barbara O'Brien of Michigan State - cautioned that ``exonerations are highly unrepresentative of wrongful convictions in general.''
``The main thing we can safely conclude from exonerations is that there are many other false convictions that we have not discovered,'' the Michigan study said. ``In addition, a couple of strong demographic patterns appear to be reliable: black men accused of raping white women face a greater risk of false conviction than other rape defendants; and young suspects, those under 18, are at greater risk of false confession than other suspects.''
Garrett also found that exonerated convicts were more apt to be members of minority groups than was the prison population generally.
For instance, 73 percent of the convicts cleared of rape charges were black or Hispanic, compared with 37 percent of all rape convicts.
The courts performed miserably in ferreting out the innocent. The U.S. Supreme Court, for instance, refused to hear appeals from 30 people who turned out to be innocent.
Of course, appeals courts do not typically reconsider a jury's factual findings, focusing instead on asserted procedural errors. Only 20 of the 200 even appealed on the ground that they were innocent; none of those claims was granted.
Perhaps the most troubling finding in Garrett's study was how reluctant the criminal justice system was to allow DNA testing in the first place.
Prosecutors often opposed it, and 16 courts initially denied requests for testing.
Yet DNA evidence can do more than free the innocent. In many cases, it also identified the person who actually committed the crime.
``In 40 percent of our cases, we not only exonerated but also identified the real perpetrator,'' Neufeld of the Innocence Project said.
``In every single one of those cases, that perpetrator had committed violent crimes in the intervening years.''
The era of DNA exonerations should be a finite one. These days, DNA testing is common on the front end of prosecutions, meaning that in a few years, the window that the 200 exonerations has opened on the justice system will close.

Thursday, July 26, 2007

Mumia Abu-Jamal: Jammiing Janet Africa?: The Latest On A MOVE Woman

Jammiing Janet Africa?: The Latest On A MOVE Woman
[col. writ. 7/19/07] (c) '07 Mumia Abu-Jamal
Janet Africa is one of several MOVE women who are serving an unjust term of 30 to 100 years stemming from the police assault on MOVE's home and headquarters on Aug. 8, 1978.
On that fateful day the police attacked their home at 33rd & Powelton Avenue in West Philadelphia, and tried mightily to kill them all. Launching hundreds of shots into the house, and even using water cannons against them.
Miraculously, MOVE survived this onslaught, but only to face the quieter and less obvious weapons of judges and lies to convict 9 MOVE men and women of killing a cop who was attacking their homes -- a cop, Incidentally, who apparently died from the same cause as did former NFL star Pat Tillman in Iraq -- so-called "friendly fire."
That was 29 years ago.
Recently, Janet, when returning from her prison job, was approached by a male guard who wanted to search her. Janet said she would consent to a search, but would prefer a female guard do so.
When the female guard ( a C/O Dover) was approached, she went off into a rant of "she ain't special", and told a passing Sgt. to write Janet up, and throw her into the hole.
But what Janet asked for wasn't anything special at all.
It's a rule at the state's newest woman's prison, Cambridge Springs, that any women there can utilize.
Janet quite rightly wondered, "Why is a regular guard telling a Sgt., supposedly her superior, what to do?'
And than it dawned on her. 'This is a set-up. They're trying to create a pretext to deny me and my sisters parole.'
August 8, 2008 marks the minimum term of the MOVE 9 -- 30 years.
But someone in the hole can't even get a hearing before the agency.
MOVE 9 supporters are burning up the phone lines to let prison officials know that they know what's up.
MOVE members and supporters are organizing to support their people by caravans through Philadelphia neighborhoods to teach folks about the MOVE 9, and their upcoming parole dates.
If you want more information, call the MOVE organization at: (215) 387-4107.
Or write:
The MOVE Organization
P.O. Box 19708
Phila., PA 19143
NOW IS THE TIME TO PAROLE THE MOVE 9!
As MOVE's Ramona Africa recently wrote in an e-mail update: "This year's activity is more important than ever because of the upcoming parole hearings. It is not simply a commemoration of the Aug. 8, 1978 police attack on MOVE but it is the launch of our campaign for the paroled of innocent MOVE people.
Join us in the fight for Freedom!"
--(c) '07 maj
*******
Mumia Abu-Jamal is a political prisoner in the United States, with what could be the final decision on his legal appeals possibly coming down this summer. That decision could give Mumia his freedom, a new trial, life in prison, or execution. It is time to turn up the heat against this injustice.
Free Mumia and the MOVE 9 Now!
For more on the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal and the MOVE 9 read:
Top Ten “Fry Mumia” Myths Debunked
(Myth #1) “Five eyewitnesses saw Mumia shoot officer Faulkner.”

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Transgender inmate sues state over prison rape claims

July 24, 2007 Southern Voice

A transgender woman who claims she was repeatedly raped and beaten by
a male cell mate went to court this week to challenge a state policy
that assigns inmates like her to men's or women's prisons depending
on whether they have undergone sex-change surgery. Alexis Giraldo,
30, claims that Folsom State Prison guards ignored her complaints of
abuse and returned her to the same cell until a subsequent assault
got her placed in protective custody and eventually moved to another
facility.

A transgender woman who claims she was repeatedly raped and beaten by
a male cell mate went to court this week to challenge a state policy
that assigns inmates like her to men's or women's prisons depending
on whether they have undergone sex-change surgery.

Alexis Giraldo, 30, claims that Folsom State Prison guards ignored
her complaints of abuse and returned her to the same cell until a
subsequent assault got her placed in protective custody and
eventually moved to another facility.

Giraldo, who was born a man but lives as a woman and takes hormones
to feminize her appearance, is suing the California Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation for emotional distress and violating
her constitutional right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment.

"Prisons are violent places, and male prisons are especially violent
places," said Greg Walston, a San Francisco lawyer who took on
Giraldo's case pro bono. "You take that boiling cauldron and you put
one woman in there – which is exactly what happened here – and it's
like throwing a fresh piece of meat into a lion's cage."

The San Francisco jury hearing the case has been asked to award
Giraldo unspecified damages. Superior Court Judge Ellen Chaitin has
been asked to order prison officials to come up with a new system for
housing transgender inmates.

The California Attorney General's office, which is representing the
corrections department and Folsom staff members also named as
defendants in the lawsuit, said Friday that it would not comment on
the case.

Briefs filed by the state argue that Giraldo initially was in a
consensual sexual relationship with her cell mate in violation of
prison policy, did not report specific rape claims, and refused
offers to be moved to a different cell. Once she made it clear she
was being forced to service her cell mate against her will and
strangulation marks were found on her neck, she was removed to
protective custody, the state maintains.

"Plaintiff alleges that he informed prison staff on a number of
occasions about these events. However, the documentation maintained
by prison personnel – including some of the defendants in this case –
does not bear out these assertions," the state's brief states.

Several counties in California, including San Francisco, have created
separate units specifically for transgender prisoners. But like other
states and the federal Bureau of Prisons, California assigns inmates
to prisons based on their genitalia rather than physical appearance.

Biological men who dress and act like women but have not had sex
reassignment surgery can be assigned to a psychiatric prison like the
one to which Giraldo eventually transferred or the general population
of a regular men's prison.

Teda Boyll, a retired guard and supervisor in California, testified
for Giraldo as an expert witness on Friday, saying that in her
opinion Folsom officials failed to adequately investigate Giraldo's
concerns and assure her safety.

"There are some warning signs," Boyll said. "When an inmate says, 'I
am getting pressured for sex,' it means it is already happened or it
is imminent he will have to provide nonconsensual sex to another
inmate."

Giraldo was sent to Folsom for shoplifitng and a parole violation in
January 2006 and spent three months there before she was transferred
to the medical prison. She was paroled earlier this month and is
scheduled to testify on Friday afternoon.

Her former cell mate, who is serving a sentence for armed robbery, is
also scheduled to testify in the case.

http://www.southernvoice.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=13499

Finish anti-war prisoner

Urgent ELP! Bulletin (24th of July 2007)

Dear friends

ELP has just learnt that a very well known Finnish prisoner support
activist, Antti, who has links to the Anarchist Black Cross and who
once served a prison sentence for refusing to be conscripted into the
Finnish army, is back in prison.

Antti has been jailed for 16 days for refusing to the fines issued as
part of his previous sentence.

An e-mail account has been sent up and we urge everyone to send
urgent messages of support to supportantti@hotmail.com

Please do send a message of support to Antti. As we said, Antti is a
well known prisoner support activist who has always been the first to
help others in the past, therefore it is now our turn to help him.

============

British Earth Liberation Prisoners Support Network
BM Box 2407
London
WC1N 3XX
England
www.spiritoffreedom.org.uk

Reporter stitches up mouth to protest jailing

July 23, 2007 AP

BAKU, Azerbaijan - An Azerbaijani journalist has gone on a hunger strike to protest his prison sentence and stitched up his mouth to strengthen his demand, a media freedom activist said Monday.

Faramaz Allahverdiyev, a reporter from the opposition Nota Bene newspaper, sewed up his mouth when he went on a hunger strike last week, said Emin Huseynov, who heads the Institute for Freedom and Security of Reporters.

Huseynov told The Associated Press that he learned about Allahverdiyev’s move from other prisoners.

Justice Ministry’s spokesman Rafiq Ramazanov said that Allahverdiyev went on a hunger strike Sunday, but added that he was unaware of him stitching up his mouth.

Allahverdiyev was sentenced to two years in prison in January on charges of slandering the interior minister. The Organization or Security and Cooperation in Europe, a top trans-Atlantic democracy and security body, criticized the verdict as another blow to media freedom in the oil-rich Caspian Sea nation.

Independent media and opposition parties in Azerbaijan have come under increasing pressure from its authoritarian leadership.

Azerbaijan is ruled by President Ilham Aliev, who succeeded his father, Geidar — a former KGB general who had been in power for a decade — in a 2003 election that was criticized by foreign observers and dismissed as fraudulent by the opposition.