Human Rights for Prisoners March: politicalprisoner

Thursday, November 27, 2014

Thanksgiving Prayer from Leonard Peltier

Greetings my Relatives, Friends, & Supporters:

I was thinking about the national holiday “ Thanksgiving” the other day. I won’t even go into what a horrible shame this American holiday is based on. Instead, I will just let it remind me of the common bond I have with all my brothers and sisters of the Earth. Even if Thanksgiving, the holiday, is based on an incorrect portrayal of history. The concept of being Thankful, is a universal truth. I mean, lets face it, being thankful/grateful has been part of Indian Nations much longer than the invention of a holiday.

I admit there are days in here when I find it very hard to be thankful, but it does not take much to bring it back for me. Most days, I get cards and letters from people all over the world, sometimes I can even smell the soil, the pines, and sometimes even fry bread in the paper that is sent to me. I hear stories of your lives, your troubles, your children, your jobs. oh there is some word for what I am trying to say but I don’t remember it, but I get a sense of life through all of you, and I am thankful for that. I often want to reach out and help you sometimes. I would love to come work on your cars or help you build sweat lodge, or even just mow the lawn. I miss helping people and I hate asking for help, which it seems, is all I do.

In here, I am able to focus on the simple things in life. You have no idea how cool it is to just get a new pair of socks. In the last few months I have really been feeling my age, and I am so very thankful for all the support you have all given me. I won’t lie, it has been a rough time lately, but I am hopeful that is changing.

My people have always had a deep and connected relationship with the Sun, and I realized the other day just how much I miss the Sun. When I had the Sun’s light upon me, I felt stronger. These walls hold out the Sun’s energy, and it weakens me.

When you miss something, it is easier to be thankful for things you do have.

My friend and Spiritual adviser, Lenny Foster, visited me recently, and he reminded me of some basic things I have to be thankful for. I have watched him age over all these years too, and I am thankful for him and his wisdom. He sang with me and prayed with me, and I felt a bit of the Sun again.

I guess my point is, that we can find the things we need in places we may not expect.

I can always pray, this can never be taken away from me, and through that prayer, I can keep the Sun and hope alive.

And so, on this day, “ Thanksgiving” I will choose to be thankful and not to celebrate tyranny.

I also want to pray with and for you.

I pray for each and every one of you, whether you support me or you do not.

I pray that your lives will be full of meaning and you will find new ways to learn.

I pray for your strength and that you will always stand up for the things you know are right.

I pray that each one of you will find a way to protect our Mother Earth, she is crying out for us to hear her.

I pray that you will listen to you inner wisdom and let it guide you to make choices that will help each other, and that you will be examples for those still learning their way in this life.

I pray that you will be present with the moments you have, enjoy the simple things in life— like the Sun, The Dirt, The Air, The Water, and that you would protect them as you would your own children.

I pray that you will look for opportunities to lift up your sisters and brothers and not to bring them down.

I pray that you will grow and enjoy good natural foods.

I pray for you to savor the attention of your loved ones.

I pray for you to build productive bridges of peace with those you oppose.

I pray that when others make bad choices you help them find positive solutions.

I pray for understanding in times of misunderstanding…….

And yes, I pray very deeply and honestly that I can go home for a little while before I cross over to the Spirit World.

I am with you always, and I feel your prayers too. I am always grateful for your support, your love, your friendship, your letters and the contact you give me with LIFE.

It is harder for me to physically see well enough to write letters these days, so please forgive me if I don’t write you back. It is not that I don’t want to. Know that I am often sitting and thinking of you, and being thankful for all of you.

Your old, thankful friend, and brother.

In the Spirit of Crazy Horse,
Leonard Peltier

Mitakuye Oyasin!

To help Leonard Peltier with his bid for Freedom join us at his webpage

www.leonardpeltier.info

***********

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Friday, March 14, 2014

Mumia Abu-Jamal Status Update

The FOP Campaign to Defeat the Adegbile Nomination
The Issue Is Mumia Abu-Jamal: Innocent and Framed!
by Rachel Wolkenstein
March 15, 2014

The controversy surrounding president Barack Obama’s nomination of Debo Adegbile and the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) successful campaign against him was not, in fact, an abstract constitutional dispute over the Sixth Amendment right to counsel. For the FOP any defense of Mumia Abu-Jamal is grounds for a rabid attack.

In response, Adegbile and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF) and most supporters of the nomination, from the Obama administration down though the liberal left distanced Adegbile from Abu-Jamal’s legal defense and discount the idea that either he or the LDF had or could have challenged Abu-Jamal’s conviction for the murder of police officer Daniel Faulkner.

The Executive Director of the LDF describes the FOP-led campaign as a “smear campaign” against Debo Adegbile, accepting the premise that legal representation of Mumia Abu-Jamal is a “smear” instead of insisting that as a lawyer this is a point of pride, responsibility, and a cornerstone of American jurisprudence.

But the smear—the lies—propagated by the FOP are against Mumia Abu-Jamal, that he is an unrepentant, vicious cop-killer who should have been executed.

There is an unambiguous and unequivocal answer to this attack: Mumia Abu-Jamal is innocent and framed for the December 1981 murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner.

The Debo Adegbile nomination controversy was and is squarely about the meaning and import of the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal. Examining his case is akin to opening Pandora’s box—it explodes the myth of American “justice.”

The case of Mumia Abu-Jamal is the extraordinary political persecution of an innocent man, a former Black Panther Party spokesman, defender of the MOVE organization and radical journalist, know as the “voice of the voiceless,” who was sentenced to death because of his political beliefs and affiliations. It is about racist legal lynching in the United States, the legacy of slavery. It is also an exposé of the every day workings of an inherently class-biased, racist and politically driven criminal injustice system.

Every element of the constitutional right to a “fair trial,” to due process, was violated in convicting and sentencing Mumia Abu-Jamal to death. But the most fundamental violation of due process is being framed for a crime you did not commit.

From moments after the shootings, the Philadelphia police and prosecution, with the complicity of the U.S. Attorney General’s office, manufactured Abu-Jamal’s guilt and actively suppressed his innocence—evidence that someone else shot and killed officer Faulkner. Every part of the police and prosecution’s case—witness testimony, Abu-Jamal’s supposed confession and ballistics—is a lie.

Mumia Abu-Jamal’s only “crime” on December 9, 1981 was that he survived being shot and then brutally beaten by police officers.

To continue reading...
www.RachelWolkenstein.net