We join with supporters of Mumia Abu-Jamal the world over in celebrating the 18 December 2001 ruling which removes the imminent threat of the African American journalist’s execution. The decision is a crucial turning point in the fight to reverse this 20-year frame up, although Mumia is still far from free. The ruling by U.S. District Court Judge William Yohn was based on finding technical errors in the legal process, rather than an examination of the mountains of new evidence which proves Mumia’s innocence.Yohn overturned the death sentence and ordered a new sentencing hearing, but let the conviction for the 1981 murder of Philadelphia Police officer, Daniel Faulkner, stand.
The role of the U.S. legal system, which has kept an innocent Black radical imprisoned for two decades, is to maintain racist class rule. In the state of Pennsylvania, African Americans are just 9% of the population but are 62% of those on death row!
The fight to free Mumia has become the catalyst for an international grassroots campaign which aims to end the racist death penalty in the U.S. and to free all political prisoners, while exposing the systematic conspiracy against Mumia Abu-Jamal. The recent ruling is a tribute to the determination of this movement. Now is the time to redouble our efforts. Mumia is incarcerated because he is a champion of all the oppressed and exploited, and the campaign to save him will not be concluded until he is free to stand before us and speak out against capitalism and injustice.
