Mumia Abu-Jamal

Mumia Abu-Jamal (born Wesley Cook April 24, 1954) is a journalist and political activist, most famous for his 1982 conviction and death sentence for the murder of Daniel Faulkner, a police officer, and for the subsequent mass campaigns for and against him. Technically, he had been awaiting execution in Pennsylvania from 1982 until December 2001 when Federal District Court judge William Yohn overturned Jamal's death sentence. However, Yohn reaffirmed Jamal's conviction, ruling that he will remain in custody indefinitely.

Appeals, international response and prison life

Abu-Jamal's conviction has been upheld in both state and federal courts. In December 2001, a federal judge affirmed his murder conviction but ordered that Abu-Jamal should either receive a new sentencing hearing or have his sentence commuted to life in prison because of an error by the trial judge in presenting rules of sentencing to the jury. This decision was appealed by both sides and, as of August 2005, the appeal is still pending.

Related Topics:
December 2001 - August 2005

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In October 2003, Mumia Abu-Jamal was awarded the status of honorary citizen of Paris in a ceremony attended by former Black Panther Angela Davis. The mayor of Paris, Bertrand Delanoë, said in a press release that the award was meant to be a reminder of the continuing fight against the death penalty, which was abolished in France in 1981. The proposal to make Abu-Jamal an honorary citizen was approved by the city's council in 2001.

Related Topics:
October 2003 - Paris - Angela Davis - Bertrand Delanoë - France

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In addition, organizations ranging from Amnesty International, the European Parliament, and the Japanese Diet to several national U.S. trade union federations (ILWU, AFSCME, SEIU, the national postal union) and the 1.8 million member California Labor Federation have declared the original trial unfair and either demand a new trial or Abu-Jamal's immediate release.

Related Topics:
Amnesty International - European Parliament - Japanese Diet - Trade union - ILWU - AFSCME - SEIU - California Labor Federation

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Human Rights Watch noted serious concerns about the fairness of his trial, particularly the heavy reliance during the sentencing phase on information regarding his political beliefs and associations.

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According to Amnesty International's website, while they are "not in a position to say whether Mumia Abu-Jamal is innocent or guilty", they have 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 is against the death penalty in all cases.

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"Free Mumia!" is still a cry of black civil rights movements.

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Since his imprisonment, Abu-Jamal has continued his political activism, publishing Live from Death Row, a book on life inside prisons, as well as making frequent commentaries on radio shows.

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While in prison, Abu-Jamal completed his Bachelor of Arts from Goddard College, and earned an Master of Arts from California State University, Dominguez Hills, both by distance education.

Related Topics:
Bachelor of Arts - Goddard College - Master of Arts - California State University, Dominguez Hills - Distance education

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He has recently endorsed rapper Immortal Technique and appears on his album Revolutionary Vol.2 several times. He calls it "truth in the form of hip hop."

Related Topics:
Immortal Technique - Revolutionary Vol.2

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• Jamal opponents note a December 9, 1998 episode of the ABC news program 20/20 claimed the results of their four-month investigation was that Jamal did receive a fair trial and that many if not all of the arguments made by his supporters are based on incomplete information or information that is blatantly false. However, Jamal supporters contend that 20/20 had a strong bias against Jamal. A witness who testified in favor of Jamal (Jenkins) was discredited by 20/20 because she was prostitute, but the fact that a key witness who testified against Jamal (White) was also a prostitute was omitted by the program.