Mumia Abu-Jamal
Mumia Abu-Jamal (born Wesley Cook; April 24, 1954) is a convicted murderer, American activist and journalist who became involved in black nationalism in his youth and was a member of the Black Panther Party until October 1970. He left the party and became a radio reporter, eventually becoming president of the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists.
When we appraise the work of Mumia Abu Jamal that has been documented by Babylon since he joined the Black Panther Party at the age of 14 (in the tradition of Lil' Bobby Hutton, who joined the BPP at 16), we must surely praise him for his tenacity but simultaneously condemn ourselves for not displaying the ineluctable energy of Mumia, especially when he issues forth from the dungeon while we exist out here on the big yard of Babylon. How can a man locked down on death row and later struggling on in spite of a life sentence, put an entire nation upon his shoulders without blinking for a moment, even when faced with disease and everyday trauma of life in the dungeon, yet he stands tall as the tallest tree in the forest, as fearless as the greatest warrior in African, and for that matter, human history, not to suggest Africans are not human, as some would indeed suggest!
Mumia Abu Jamal, we praise you and all political prisoners in Babylon and call for the general amnesty of all the men, women and children caught in the shackles of Babylon, neo-slaves under the 13th Amendment of the US Constiution wherein involuntary servitude is legal. We send our prayers and every ounce of our spiritual energy to you, Mumia, that you may continue as freedom fighters even though you reside on the lowest level of hell in the belly of the beast. We have no doubt that though your body is in captivity, your mind, heart and spirit flies freely like the hawk who soars so smoothly in the sky, gliding silently while focused on devouring its prey. Sail on, Mumia, guide us to freedom's victory! Teach us how to stand as you stand with shackles on your feet, though here in the big yard the shackles are not on our feet but on our minds and spirit. We appreciate you, appreciate you, appreciate you. Even down in your dungeon, we know you are freer than most of us will ever be!
Marvin X/El Muhajir
9/16/17
