Open
World Conference of Workers
In Defense of Trade Union Independence & Democratic Rights
All Out May 11th to Free
Mumia!
1) All Out May 11 to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal! (Statement issued by Mobilization to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal for Western Region Mass Demonstration in San Francisco on May 11)
2) International Week of Action Around May 11 to Free
Mumia Abu-Jamal! Appeal from the International Committee to Save the
Life of Mumia Abu-Jamal
1) All Out May 11 to
Free Mumia Abu-Jamal! (Statement issued by Mobilization to Free Mumia
Abu-Jamal for Western Region Mass Demonstration in San Francisco on May
11)
On Saturday, May 11, 2002, thousands of people from throughout the Western
Region will gather in San Francisco for a mass march and rally to Free
Mumia Abu-Jamal, internationally known journalist and death row inmate.
At 11:00 a.m. people will assemble at Justin Herman Plaza, at the foot of
Market Street and the Embarcadero and march up Market Street to a rally at
Civic Center at 1:00 p.m. There will be speakers representing labor,
students,
anti-war activists, communities of color, communities of faith, and others
as well as spoken word artists and musicians. For more information
call the Mobilization to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal at (415) 695-7745 .
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Mumia's is the leading death row case in the world, and millions of people
have called for his freedom. Mumia has been on death row for 20
years for a crime he did not commit. The courts have refused to hear
the sworn testimony of Arnold Beverly, a professional hit man hired by the
mob and corrupt police to kill Police Officer Daniel Faulkner on December
9, 1981, in Philadelphia. The courts have refused to hear the sworn
testimony of witnesses who can prove Mumia's innocence. In a ruling
that has been appealed, the federal court has thrown out Mumia's death
penalty sentence and plans to sentence him to life in prison without the
possibility of parole, a death sentence in itself. The courts, the
prosecution and the government hope to defuse and confuse the movement by
these actions -- but we are unifying and mobilizing around the demand to
Free Mumia Abu-Jamal. Mumia is in jail for his political ideas and for
speaking the truth. We are all in danger of losing our
constitutional rights. Stand up for Mumia and stand up for Freedom.
********************
2) Appeal: INTERNATIONAL WEEK OF ACTION AROUND MAY
11 TO FREE MUMIA ABU-JAMAL! From the International Committee to Save
the Life of Mumia Abu-Jamal
The International Committee to Save the Life of Mumia Abu-Jamal calls on
working people and supporters of democratic rights the world over to
mobilize in an International Week of Action around May 11, when mass
actions will be organized in the United States to win freedom for Mumia
Abu-Jamal.
In San Francisco, California, thousands will gather May 11 in a West Coast
Mobilization to Free Mumia under the following slogans:
* Stop the Execution!
* Overturn the Conviction!
* Free the Bill of Rights from Death Row!
The call for the San Francisco May 11 protest -- which has been endorsed
by the San Francisco Labor Council (AFL-CIO) - underlines the urgency of
building the widest possible support for Mumia, stating, in part: "
Mumia's freedom and very life rests in the power of human rights fighters
and working people the world over. ... A top priority must now be to bring
this critical fight to working people everywhere. ... The outcome is truly
in our hands."
Speakers at the San Francisco rally include Walter Johnson,
Secretary-Treasurer, San Francisco Labor Council (AFL-CIO); Julian Kunnie,
professor of Africana Studies at the Universirty of Arizona-Tucson (who
was a delegate to the International Conference Against Deregulation in
Berlin last February); and Alan Benjamin, on behalf of the International
Committee to Save the Life of Mumia Abu-Jamal -- among others.
Baldemar Velasquez -- president of the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC/AFL-CIO)
and co-convener of the international delegations to the U.S. Justice
Department in Washington, D.C., organized by the International Committee
to Save the Life of Mumia Abu-Jamal -- explains the latest developments in
Mumia's case and reiterates the critical need to redouble our efforts to
win Mumia's freedom! He states:
"The December 18, 2001, decision by Judge Yohn to strike down Mumia's
death-penalty sentence represents a major concession to the international
movement that has taken to the streets to demand freedom for Abu-Jamal.
Our powerful movement for justice for Abu-Jamal forced the judge to throw
out the death-penalty sentence.
"We are proud to have contributed to building this broad-based
movement with our international campaign directed at then-Attorney General
Janet Reno, including the two delegations of leading unionists and elected
officials from around the world to the U.S. Justice Department in January
and December 2000.
"But we are deeply concerned that Judge Yohn's decision does not rule
out the death-penalty sentence altogether. In fact, Pennsylvania
authorities still seek Mumia's execution. They have appealed Yohn's
decision.
"Furthermore, Judge Yohn's 272-page ruling upheld Mumia's original
frame-up murder conviction. Citing spurious 'statutory deadlines,' and
so-called legal precedents that 'innocence is no defense,' he refused to
admit to the record the mountain of new evidence conclusively proving
Mumia's innocence. This is unacceptable!
"The death-penalty sentence, which Yohn struck down, must not be
reinstated. If anything, Abu-Jamal should be allowed to go free, having
already served 20 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. Judge
Yohn's affirmation of Abu-Jamal's conviction must be reversed. All the
evidence produced by Abu-Jamal's attorneys, including the confession of
Arnold Beverly, must be heard. The conviction must be overturned and Abu-Jamal's
innocence proclaimed, even if a new trial is required to do this."
The International Committee to Save the Life of Mumia Abu-Jamal, which has
mobilized in more than 60 countries worldwide to demand freedom for Mumia,
now calls upon all supporters of democratic rights the world over to
mobilize in an International Week of Action around May 11 to win freedom
for Mumia Abu-Jamal.
All out for the International Week of Action to Save the Life of Mumia
Abu-Jamal!