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umia Abu-Jamal is an
A frican
Am erican
journalist, author and
community leader in Philadel­
phia who most believe is
wrongly accused of killing a
police officer. Pennsylvania's
Republican Governor Thomas
Ridge has scheduled him for
execution August 17, 1995-
without compelling evidence
that Abu-Jamal committed the
crime.
‘J
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The accused has always main­
tained his innocence. Eyewitnesses
at the scene describe a person o f
different physical appearance, and
police never tested Abu-Jam al’ s
hands for powder bums.
Abu-Jamal, as an active journal­
ist and president o f the local Black
Journalists Association, had long
been a thorn in the side o f the local
police establishment through his crit­
ical writings on police brutality and
other conditions in Philadelphia.
Police shot, arrested and beat him at
the scene o f the crime and, despite
having no previous criminal record,
sentenced him to death. Abu-Jamal
has been on Pennsylvania’ s Death
Row for 12 years.
A recent letter signed by five
prominent members o f the CBC, ad­
dressed to the Attorney General o f
the U.S., sets out the case in the
follow ing words: "A grave injustice
is about to be committed. We are
rushing to execute someone in the
R ainbo W
C O A L IT IO N
Mumia Abu-Jamal’s Race
To Avoid Legal Lynching
face o f ample evidence that his con
stitutional rights have been denied,
that he did not receive a fair trial, and
most importantly, that he is in fact
innocent. Passionate and document­
ed racial biases, both personal and
societal, surrounded this man’s ar­
rest, his trial, his conviction and his
sentencing."
M um ia’s community activism
dates back to the days o f Frank Rizzo,
former Mayor and Police C hief o f
Philadelphia. The Fraternal Order o f
Police has been actively lobbying for
his execution, and Gov. Ridge made
reviving carrying out the death pen­
alty a key issue in his election cam­
paign. Ridge rushed to sign the exe­
cution papers on Friday, June 2 when
he learned that Abu-Jamal’s lawyers
were filing papers for a new appeals
court trial the follow ing Monday.
Human rights activists have or­
ganized an international committee
to educate the public and bring pres­
sure to stop this gross miscarriage o f
justice. The committee, co-chaired
by actors Ossie Davis and M ike
Farrell, set forth the follow ing posi­
tion: "M onths o f investigation, re­
search and review demonstrate un­
equivocally that Mumia, a man who
has claimed his innocence since the
very beginning, was the victim o f a
politically-motivated, racially-based
prosecution in which evidence o f his
innocence was suppressed. He was
denied his most fundamental right to
a fair trail and appeal” .
Rev. Jesse Jackson has sent
Governor Ridge an open letter to
demand: ( I ) an immediate stay o f
execution: (2) a new trial so that
Abu-Jamal's lawyers can present
Editorial Articles Do Not Necessarily
Reflect Or Represent The Views O f
The Jlortlanh ©hscruer
new, form erly suppressed evidence;
and (3) that Judge Sabo, who presid­
ed over the original trial, should not
be permitted to participate in or in­
terfere with the appeals process.
On Wednesday, July 12, in the
PhiladelphiaCourtofCommon Pleas,
Judge Alvert Sabo refused to recuse
him self from the hearing to stay the
August 17 scheduled execution. A l­
though A b u -J a m a l’ s a tto rn e y ,
Leonard Weinglass, has submitted
over 400 pages in appeal, including a
statement o f 19 claims o f constitu­
tional error and improprieties com­
mitted during the first trial, Sabo
refused to rule whether these claims
“ had merit” and whether a stay o f
execution is applicable and a new
trial warranted. Another hearing to
rule on the stay is scheduled for Fri­
day, July 14, with others to follow.
Judge Sabo, Death Row’s “ King",
has a career total o f 32 death sentenc­
es, o f which 93.5% have been people
o f color (84% Black).
JaxFax is urging emergency ac­
tion! Write your outraged and pro­
test to: The Honorable Thomas
Ridge, Governor o f Pennsylvania,
225 Main Capitol Building, Harris­
burg, PA 17 120; or call him (instate)
at 800-932-0784 or (out o f state)
717-783-1198. You may also want
to write: The Honorable Janet Reno,
Attorney General o f the United States,
Department o f Justice. I Oth & Con­
stitution Avenue, NW, Washington,
DC 20530 or call 202-5 14-2001.
“Along The Color Line”
Toward A Politics Of Black Liberation
in D r . M a n n in g M a r a b i e
/ VT
ore than a decade ago,
black p ro g re ss iv es
throughout the country
w ere o ptim istic about the
p o litic a l fu tu re of black
America.
ÖT-.
■
We had been actively involved
in building Jesse Jackson’ s Rainbow
Coalition, and an unprecedented pres­
idential campaign w ithin the Demo­
cratic primaries. Many o f us were
participating in the growing antiapart­
heid mobilizations and nonviolent
protests throughout the nation, wh ich
eventually pressured the w hite-m i­
nority regime in South Africa into
capitulation.
Today, that level o f optimism
has largely retreated from the p o liti­
cal landscape, as the public mood o f
black America has become far more
pessimistic. Our middle class, black
leadership seems largely ineffective
and lacking in m otivation against the
weight o f the Far Right and the new
conservative m ajority in congress.
But candidly, we must also have the
courage to reassess the shortcomings
o f the more progressive and activist-
oriented strategy for black empow­
erment, as it evolved in the 1980s and
1990s.
Many progressive black activ­
ists a decade ago favored what I have
previously described as an "inside-
outside” approach toward black pol­
itics: strong support for candidates in
the left wing o f the Democratic Par­
ty, such as Congressman Ronald V.
Dellums o f California and the late
Chicago M ayor Harold Washington;
critical support for some liberal and
centrist Democrats, on a case-by­
case basis, and only i f necessary to
defeat candidatesoftheextreme Right
(eg., black Democrat Harvey Gantt's
unsuccessful campaign to unseat re­
actionary Republican Senator Jesse
Helms o f North Carolina); extensive
efforts to build independent, Third
Party movements and campaigns at
local and*state levels; and the devel­
opment o f principled coalitions and
dialogues between elements o f wha,
might be termed the "Rainbow Left"
to facilitate the practical tasks o f
constructing an alternative political
culture to the mainstream o f the so­
cial order. A t the level o f theory, this
political orientation was expressed
in the formulation o f a “ race/gender/
class analysis:: that is, the grounding
o f one’ s politics at the sites o f these
central categories o f oppression, and
to build linkages from antiracist, fem­
inist and anticorporate organizations
and campaigns toward a vision o f a
democratically restructured society.
In practice, this political orientation
embraced a radical multiculturalism,
challenging from the margins the
bastions o f the dominant political
culture. It embraced the diverse strug­
gles o f the oppressed: the battles for
the empowerment o f gays and lesbi­
ans, feminists, progressive environ­
mentalists, Asian Americans, Pacif­
ic Island Americans, Latinos, pro­
gressi ve-m inded trade un ion ists, farm
workers, A frican-Am ericans and
many others.
This leftist approach to radical
democratic reform has largely col­
lapsed over the past decade. At one
level, the reasons for this retreat are
not d iffic u lt to discern. For the past
fifteen years, black people, the Amer­
ican working class and the most dis­
advantaged sectors o f society have
been the targets o fa massive political
offensive by the Right. In a series o f
presidential elections (with the par­
tial exception o f the election o f 1992)
and within national politics overall,
there has been a triumph o f Reaction.
Both Houses o f Congress are dom i­
nated by a governing elite whose
ideology is unambiguously racist,
sexist, homophobic and anti-work­
ing class.
But we must also recognize that
certain weaknesses and limitations
in our political outlook and theoret­
ical orientation have contributed to
the current sense o f pessimism and
demoralization in poor people and
working class communities, as well
as in various segments o f communi­
ties which experience racial oppres­
sion. Speaking from the vantage point
o f the Left, activists had an analysis
ofcapitalism which did not adequate­
ly appreciate its capacity to deflect
criticism , to displace contradictions,
and to manipulate subordinate social
classes against themselves and their
own material interests. Our view o f
history was distorted by a determin­
istic b elief that the w orld’s social
protest movements would, within our
own epoch, triumph over the forces
o f imperialism and corporate capi­
talism.
Martin Luther King, Jr., talked
about a "moral arc o f the universe
which bends toward justice." I also
hold this view. But the struggle is
also affected by the fact that people
make their own history, but not in the
manner in which they choose. The
struggle for power is always m ulti­
faceted. It involves much more than
what occurs in the electoral arena, or
even at the point o f production. The
struggle for power i f profoundly cul­
tural: it is the battle to redefine val­
ues, assumptions, collective behav­
iors and rituals. Political institutions
and the collective participation with­
in them are directly associated w ith
the values o f the market, which dom­
inate the ideological landscape o f
American society. Mapping a strate­
gy for social transformation requires
a sober and honest evaluation o f real
contradictions as well as sources o f
democratic resistance within the po­
litical culture.
What is crystal clear to anyone
is that the contradictions w ithin
American capitalism are more pro­
found than ever before. In the past
fifteen years, there has been a mas­
sive redistribution o f wealth upward,
from working people to the privilege
elites. The top I percent o f all US
households has today a greater net
wealth than the bottom 95 percent o f
all households. We have witnessed
the massive growth o f the US penal
system as a primary means for ware­
housing unemployed Latino, black
and poor young people. What then,
should be the basis for constructing a
new radical democratic politic: a
politics o f black liberation?
A politics o f liberation should
ground itself in the actual conditions
and perspectives o f those who suffer
most greatly from the disempower-
ment o f globalized capitalism.
The common points o f experi­
ence and struggle, resistance and
suffering, o f hope and human eman­
cipation between classes and those
communities defined by racial and
gender domination, by the oppres­
sion o f political and social control,
create the context for a unified social
movement.
We must build strong black in­
stitutions that address the immediate
material needs o f our people, but we
must also advance a political vision
o f radical democracy which chal­
lenges oppression at every level o f
our society .
It’s Time To Draw Some New Lines
b \
D r . L enora F t ia n i
(5 ^
f 1
he U.S. Supreme Court
decision on racial
re d is tric tin g was a
political one. After several dec­
ades in which “identity” politics
has shaped the political land­
scape and has gone hand-in-
glove with the growth of big
governm ent, a backlash
against so called “special inter­
ests" spurred the court's ruling.
Where does this leave the black
community? For 25 years were have
pursued a strategy o f getting more
black elected officials in office, push­
ing black political representation as
the key to our empowerment. Within
the framework o f this strategy, the
political/legal pursuit o f drawing dis­
trict lines to favor maximal black rep­
resentation was coherent. But from
the very start, in my opinion, this strat­
equated having black voters electing
black officials without having politi­
cal power, it necessarily limited the
scope o f our influence. We are still a
minority o f the American population.
To impact more broadly we, o f course,
have to participate in coalitions with
other voters not just around the issues,
but at the voting booth itself.
Those black leaders who attack
coalitional p o litics on separatist
grounds or who insist that the black
community has to "get itself together
first" are usually disingenuous. The
question is not whether we should
engage in coalitional politics, but
who it is we re in acoalition with and
wha, the terms are.
Since the strategy to increase the
number o f black elected officials first
evolved in the early 1970s, our singu­
lar political partnership has been with
white liberals in the Democratic Par­
ty, who saw great political benefit to
themselves from this arrangement.
Even the passage o f the Voting Rights
Act o f 1965, by a majority Democratic
Party Congress, was both a product o f
our fierce struggle for civil rights and
a practical recognition on the par, o f
the Democratic Party that the empow­
erment and activation o f Black votes
would shore up national party strength,
particularly in the South.
Now to the problem. Thusly situ-1-
ated, black voters, encouraged to rein- 0
force our black “ identity" by electing y
black Democrats, had arguably be-
come more “ Democrat” that black.
M ilitant rhetoric about electoral self-
determination and black empowerment
notwithstanding, we had given up our
political independence and our ability
tocoalitionize with whomever it made
sense, because we “ belonged” to the
Democrats. Then, as political polar­
ization in the country intensified and
the white liberals found themselves at
odds with the black community, they
deserted the coalition and left us pow­
erless.
TEetter T f Trite GTT iter
Send your letters to the Editor to:
Editor, PO Box 3137, Portland, OR 97208
egy was seriously flawed Since it
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A Rock And A Hard Place
“The Oregonian” Shakes Up The Black Community: Part II
The NAACP, o f course, is still
'T bl’ ortland’s far-ranging
| daily newspaper-and
a, the forefront o f any discussion o f
AT
often arbiter of every-
black leadership, though that ma)
I body’s affairs - has once again
change as grassroots dissatisfac­
I fastened its eclectic eye on
tion reaches a critical mass. I found
I the future (or non-future) of
con versations that centered on ly for
1 black Americans. Reference
a moment on the a bility and dedica­
I is to the July 19 article, “From
tion o f Myrle Evers-Williams, the
IB e n e fit
to
B u rd e n ,”
suggesting through a chain of
I inferences that public sector
■ jobs for African Americans
| may be in serious danger.
Last week, we
a spirited re­
sponse here in the
northeast commu­
n ity and it has
grown in intensity,
ranging from con­
sternation to suspi­
cion. Visiting several neighborhood
coffee houses where the “ middle
class" denizens o f the “ public sec­
tor” gather to discuss all and sundry,
I found spirited discussions in re­
spect to the major premise o f the
article “ A ffirm ative Action In Pub­
lic-Sector May Damage Blacks”
(Too many o f you!).
Since there is universal agree­
ment among Americans (black and
white) that white males control the
media and all other systems for in­
formation transfer, it was not sur­
prising to find this cultural shock
already had begun top m odify the
vernacular and the idiom. One gen­
tleman reminded every' one o f the
warning by Marshall McLuhan o f
“ Global Village” fame: “ The medi­
um is the message.” The group came
up with a new spin on a current
political adage: “ It’ s the medium
dummy, not the economy.”
A t a meeting o f a neighbor­
hood organization, most o f the
evening was taken up by a spirited
discussion that was sort o f a para­
phrase o f my close to last week’s
article, “ Do we have a black leader­
ship that can save the situation?” It
I was humorous how fast participants
rushed to give the debate a national
focus, avoiding any local assess­
ments. Outside after the meeting, it
was a different story, with some
rather strong (and capable) person­
al ¡ties promising some serious chal­
lenges: “ local leadership captives
o f outsider board o f directors...
W e’ve lost direction and control,
not to mention m illions in real es­
tate.” (D id blacks ever have any
control?).
I cited
new board chairman. Quickly, a
younger generation seems to move
to a super-rational position, “ The
old school has failed us, she is j
from that set." W ill youth risk an­
other Benjamin
Chavis?.
But, then,
African A m eri­
ca yo u th re ­
member ve ry
w ell when an
ambitious, mid­
dle-class dominated N AACP bull­
dozed them aside in 1989 and sided
with Virginia police because “ bad
publicity” might threaten their “ Jet
Magazine" upward m obility. Black
college student victims o f a police
riot were denied support because
the black establishment was te rri­
fied that a protest would endanger
Doug W ilder’s chances o f becom­
ing America’s first elected black
governor.
The terrible irony is that it was
the sacri flees o f black students (beat- ]
ings, imprisonment and death) that
secured these members ofthe black
establishment their middle-class |
j
jobs and income. Doesn’t anyone
remember SNIC, Carmichael, et al?
(The “ Student Nonviolent C oordi­
nating Committee" whose sit-ins at
lunch counters and inarches secured
so many rights and opportunities
for our new Negroes and Uncle
1 oms). Could this happen here in
Portland i f the middle class were
put to test? (It may happen soon).
Some think that Oregonian ar­
ticle was extremely useful because
it has "provoked some long-over­
due self-examination.”
I heard one career woman spec­
ulate, “ have we (some o f us) be­
come so comfortable and secure
that we have completely forgotten
who we are - and are not? I ’ m afraid
that a lot o f us have become “ plan­
tation managers” - well-paid “ Ne­
groes” employed in the public sec­
tor to stroke the masses and do a
good jo b for the master. We’ ve
become so good at public relations,
we believe we are real. Now the
wall is cracking.”
Wtic ^ o rtlan h (©bseruer
(USPS 959-680)
OREGON’S OLDEST AFRICAN AMERICAN PUBLICATION
Established in 1970 by Alfred L. Henderson
Joyce Washington—Publisher
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