MIM NOTES No. 197,		November 1, 1999

Amerikkka continues attack against Mumia as freedom struggle grows

During September, many allies joined the struggle to support 
justice for Mumia Abu-Jamal as rallies, concerts, art shows, 
educational events and information distribution intensified. The 
International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal 
organized events world-wide to bring attention to Mumia's case. 
MIM and RAIL continued efforts during our First Annual End the 
Amerikkkan Lockdown Month (September 13th through October 15th) to 
build support for the freedom of Mumia and all incarcerated 
political leaders and to build opposition to the imperialists' 
prison system. MIM and RAIL contingents attended others' events in 
support of Mumia and to organize for proletarian-led anti-
imperialist revolution.

Amidst the growing movement to support Mumia, Amerika continues 
its push for execution of this innocent man -- framed because of 
his political activities. MIM has previously reported on the 
bourgeois press building public opinion against Mumia and the 
phony "confession" that pig Philip Bloch claimed to have heard 
Mumia make. Also, the Fraternal Order of Pigs has called for a 
boycott of businesses and individuals connected to the movement to 
support Mumia. And most recently, the United Snakes Supreme 
Kangaroo Court refused to hear Mumia's appeal that his original 
trial was unfair and unconstitutional.

It is only through repression that imperialism can continue. This 
is the reason that Mumia was framed in the first place. It is also 
the reason Amerika has increased its prison population to over 1.8 
million. MIM builds support for the freedom of Mumia in the same 
context of Black Panther Party's work: internationalism. We urge 
more supporters to join the side of anti-imperialism. We cannot be 
satisfied with one victory, nor will we be destroyed by a loss. We 
must expose specific imperialist crimes but continue to emphasize 
that the evil, violent system of imperialism is at root of 
individual crimes committed by the state.



Supreme Court refuses appeal

The United Snakes Supreme Court announced on October 4 that it 
will not hear Mumia's appeal during its current term. The court 
refused to hear a writ of certiorari from Mumia. The writ of 
certiorari was a request for the Supreme Court to intervene early 
in the appeals process. The good news is that this does not mean 
the Supreme Court or other courts cannot rule on the merits of the 
appeal in the future. The bad news is that this was reported in by 
the wire services to imply that this was a final rejection for 
Mumia.

The writ a certiorari was about the violation of Mumia's sixth 
amendment rights during his trial. The sixth amendment is supposed 
to guarantee a fair trial before a jury of one's peers. Mumia's 
original trial and the reluctance of the court system to examine 
that mockery of justice loudly and clearly testify to the rotten 
nature of Amerikan justice.

Mumia attempted to represent himself at his original trial but was 
denied this right by the blatantly biased Judge Sabo. When Mumia 
attempted to defend himself as best he could, Sabo removed him 
from the courtroom. Mumia was then not able to follow the 
proceedings from outside the courtroom and was refused attendance 
to a meeting in Sabo's chambers about the removal of a juror.

The next step for Mumia and his attorneys will be to file a 
federal writ of habeas corpus to begin the normal federal appeals 
process. But because of the 1996 Effective Death Penalty Act, the 
federal courts give a "presumption of correctness" to state court 
findings. This underscores the fallacy that Amerika's courts 
ultimately bring out the truth. Judge Sabo, the original kangaroo 
court's judge, is presumed correct despite his well-proven bias.



Masses move against repression

MIM and RAIL were present at the "100 Cities" rallies across the 
country. We talked with people about the state's attack against 
Mumia and urged them to join the struggle against imperialism 
entire. MIM unites with those who merely see the imprisonment of 
political leaders as unjust, at the same time we urge activists to 
examine the underlying reason for the leaders' imprisonment.

Mumia is a former Black Panther Party member and remains an 
outspoken Black leader and staunch anti-imperialist. Mumia was 
framed for the righteous 1981 killing of a Philadelphia cop 
engaged in an act of police brutality. The Philly police and power 
structure had long hated Mumia for his political activity. They 
created an opportunity to silence his activism by conducting a 
bogus trial and convicting him of murder.

Revolutionaries who fought for national liberation of Amerika's 
internal semi-colonies have been murdered and imprisoned because 
they fought to end the oppressive imperialist system. We must 
struggle for the freedom of political activists in the context of 
continuing to fight imperialism itself.

MIM agreed with some of the masses' comments regarding the 
importance of youth in the revolutionary struggle. To paraphrase 
the youth: "Youth make the revolution. Young people are always at 
the forefront of revolutionary struggles."

Some oppressed nation youth discussed their immediate struggles 
against funding cuts at their schools and the dismantling of 
remedial programs. The youth had become supporters of Mumia's 
freedom because "the attack on Mumia and the attack on their 
schools was the same attack." This is an important connection to 
make as we build a stronger alliance between students and 
prisoners.

As MIM promoted our Serve the People Free Books for Prisoners 
Program elsewhere, reactionaries told MIM, "Prisoners should not 
be sent books because they should not have access to knowledge. 
Afterall, knowledge is power." This is the same statement that 
Amerika makes about all members of oppressed nations when it 
expands funding for the pigs and prisons as it decreases access to 
education.

The progressive youth also pointed to lessons regarding 
internationalism learned from activism. For instance, the movement 
to free Mumia has grown in part because of international support, 
as demonstrated through rallies at u.$. embassies in other 
countries. MIM compared this to the international communist 
movement.

MIM is admittedly a small Party. We do not rely on the support of 
Amerika's white majority because of its historical and continued 
defense of imperialist superprofit extraction. But with millions 
of people struggling for Maoist victory in countries like Peru, 
Nepal, India, Turkey, Bangladesh and the Philippines, MIM is not 
concerned primarily with size in the imperialist countries. Within 
the belly of the beast, the imperialists may seem strong, but they 
are weak because the world's majority will smash the imperialist 
system. Similarly, Amerika's majority may not support Mumia, but 
certainly the world's majority is standing on the same side 
against imperialism.

In another region, RAIL attended a march organized by progressive 
anarchist youth. Since the RAIL branch had been for years 
struggling to build support for Mumia and anti-imperialism, it was 
positive to introduce new people to the context of RAIL's work. 
RAIL was pleased to see the growing support for Mumia's freedom 
and that many youth were interested in doing more with their lives 
than merely ingesting drugs and escaping.

While the majority white settler nation is reactionary, white 
nation youth have a special opportunity to break that mold. MIM 
and RAIL organize white nation youth to commit class and nation 
suicide and to side with the world's majority. White nation youth 
do not yet have a cemented stake in the suburban surreality, but 
do have a stake in a world free from environmental, nuclear and 
imperialist destruction. MIM continues to urge youth involved in 
anarchist, punk or hip-hop sub-cultures to dive into political 
activism that goes beyond what t-shirts and buttons one wears.

At other events at more elite universities, MIM's discussions with 
oppressor nation students exemplified the necessity of proletarian 
leadership. Many students got involved in the struggle to free 
Mumia because of their own self-interest. Similar to many Vietnam 
War protesters, these students thought that they could be next.

While MIM does not underestimate the state's power to murder 
revolutionaries, it is important to set students straight on the 
current reality outside of elite universities.

There is already a war going on. The imperialists are currently 
engaged in World War III against the Third World and against 
internal semi-colonies. Police are already gunning down innocent 
Black and Latino youth in the streets.

Mumia's case is typical for Black men in Amerika. Black nation 
members are sentenced to death and summarily executed without ever 
receiving a fair trial. The Amerikan system imprisons Black men at 
a rate nearly ten times the rate of white male imprisonment.

It is fine for activists to become involved temporarily in a 
progressive struggle for their own reasons. But we must continue 
to push those allied for their own reasons to take up 
internationalism and anti-imperialism. MIM makes clear to 
activists that the struggle goes beyond individual cases. All 
executions, like all imprisonment, under imperialism are 
political. Without fighting against imperialism, the system that 
seeks to execute Mumia is let off the hook.