Re: Do the Right Thing

[Tim Lohrmann <timlohr@yahoo.com>]

Well said, Bob!
The issue is Mumia's right to a fair trial. It's next
to impossible to look at what happened during his
so-called trials and not admit that he deserves a new
one.

I'd like to add a little on Mumia's pre-conviction
"celebrity status" that Bob mentioned. I believe it
sheds quite a bit of light on why his trial went the
way it did.

As some may remember, before Mumia's arrest there was
a situation in Philadelphia many have called the
"Black Waco," in which the Philly police department
got involved in a siege situation with members of
MOVE(a black radical/social movement.) The police
screwed up. They were responsible for resorting to the
use of incendiary bombs on the home of the MOVE
members--killing many of them and burning down an
entire city block of row houses in that Philadelphia
neighborhood. 

Mumia, a MOVE supporter and journalist, followed this
story tirelessly. A talented journalist showing the
needlessness of this death and destruction--was not
something the Philadelphia Police pros were at all
receptive to--no more than the FBI was receptive to
investigation of their more recent outrageous and
deadly Waco assault. It's not at all paranoid to
suggest then, that the police and prosecutorial
establishment in Philadelphia--with the Frank Rizzo
mindset still alive--would have liked nothing better
to see Mumia behind bars. Or dead. 

Just some more background that needs to be considered
as to why Mumia's situation is a cause not just
another case.
TL


--- Bob Hoffmann <escape@alt-escape.com> wrote:
> Last year, there was an international day of
> demonstrations demanding a new 
> trial for Mumia Abu-Jamal.  Some Moscow citizens
> joined this movement by 
> organizing a local protest.
> 
> Phil Cooper had some errors/oversights/etc. in his
> posting.  Although 
> Vision 2020 is not designed for this debate, Phil
> opened the door, so:
> 
> "Convict Abu-Jamal has written a book, "Live from
> Death Row," and
> attempted to place himself in a celebrity status as
> a result of his
> criminal behavior. "  Mumia already had celebrity
> status before his 
> conviction.  He was (is) an award-winning
> journalist.  Many people think he 
> was falsely accused and convicted because of his
> already existing celebrity 
> status as someone who spoke out against racism and
> police brutality.
> 
> Mumia's recorded statement at Evergreen State
> College:  The previous 
> posting omitted that recorded statements from Mumia
> have been aired at the 
> Kent State University May 4th Remembrance ceremony,
> on the Pacifica Radio 
> Network, and numerous other forums.  Support in
> Mumia is not incidental; it 
> is very widespread.
> 
> "spitting in the face of Officer Faulkner":  It is
> curious that attempts to 
> appeal a conviction should be viewed as spitting in
> someone's face.  All 
> action in support of Mumia is premised on the belief
> that he did not 
> receive a fair trial, and that he may very well be
> innocent. If the 
> Fraternal Order of Police doesn't believe in the
> right of appeal, and 
> doesn't believe that people should help raise money
> for legal appeals, 
> perhaps they should relocate to a country where
> sentences are final, and 
> executions are swiftly implemented.  Otherwise,
> people sworn to uphold the 
> law should not hypocritically object to legal
> organizing.
> 
> "the killers 3 minute diatribe of hate." [sic]  By
> comparing Mumia's many 
> recorded statements with Phil Cooper's posting, it
> would be easier to apply 
> this phrase to the latter rather than the former.
> 
> The list of people to be boycotted:
> The FOC apparently omitted Amnesty International,
> which says "Amnesty 
> International has concluded that the proceedings
> used to convict and 
> sentence Mumia Abu-Jamal to death were in violation
> of minimum 
> international standards that govern fair trial
> procedures and the use of 
> the death penalty. Amnesty International believes
> that the interests of 
> justice would best be served by the granting of a
> new trial to Mumia 
> Abu-Jamal."  It is in this spirit that people around
> the world have 
> organized to support Mumia, financially and
> otherwise.  If the FOC is 
> opposed to such efforts, it is de facto opposed to
> fair trials.
> 
> For more details, please see the following Web
> sites:
> http://www.amnestyusa.org/abolish/reports/mumia/
> http://www.mumia.org/index3.html
> http://mojo.calyx.net/~refuse/mumia/
> http://www.freemumia.org/
> 
> I thank Phil Cooper for raising this very important
> issue.
> 
> Bob Hoffmann
> 229 East C St., Suite B
> Moscow, ID  83843  USA
> Phone: (208) 883-0642
> Fax: 1-800-683-3799
> 


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