Category: Civil Liberties

Court Overturns Conviction of Death Row Inmate Kevin Richey

by Rebecca Doran – February, 2005   On Jan. 25, Ohio prisoner Kenny Richey—internationally known as the Innocent Scot on Death Row—was granted a victory by the federal courts.   This ruling in favor of Richey, which overturned his disputed 1987 conviction and sentence of death, was handed down by the Sixth Circuit Court of … Continue reading Court Overturns Conviction of Death Row Inmate Kevin Richey →

Black poet harassed for travel to Cuba

Brock Satter, an African American poet and bandleader of a “spoken-soul-hop fusion” group, was a featured artist at the Ninth Annual Hip-Hop Festival in Havana in 2003. Satter traveled legally to Cuba under the U.S. regulations in force at the time. But subsequently, he received a letter from the U.S. Treasury Department requesting information on … Continue reading Black poet harassed for travel to Cuba →

State bungles ‘evidence’ in Kevin Cooper case

by Rebecca Doran The controversial case of San Quentin Death Row inmate Kevin Cooper continues in U.S. District Court in San Diego. However, for those interested in learning details of the hearings, the mainstream media has proven to be a great disservice. Cooper has spent nearly 20 years on Death Row. He was convicted in … Continue reading State bungles ‘evidence’ in Kevin Cooper case →

Zapatista Supporters Ambushed

By GERRY FOLEY Murderous attacks and threats against supporters of the Zapatista National Liberation Movement in the state of Chiapas have been reported in the Mexico City daily La Jornada. In its Aug. 27 issue, Herman Bellinghausen, the paper's correspondent in Chiapas, reported that paramilitaries organized by the PRI, the former ruling party in Mexico, killed … Continue reading Zapatista Supporters Ambushed →

The USA Patriot Act: A Bastion for Scoundrels, A Menace for Labor

By BOB MATTINGLY Across America, there's a slowly growing realization that our constitutional birthright was disregarded last October, when both houses of Congress and the president joined together to make the deceptively named USA Patriot Act the law of the land. Legal experts say that the passage of the massive 342-page law guts our revolutionary … Continue reading The USA Patriot Act: A Bastion for Scoundrels, A Menace for Labor →

National Civil Liberties Conference to Focus on Mumia Abu-Jamal

By JEFF MACKLER The Northern California-based Mobilization to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal will host, along with the Department of Ethnic Studies at the University of California at Berkeley, a national conference that will situate Mumia's fight for life and freedom in the context of the post 9-11 assault on civil liberties and democratic rights. The Nov. … Continue reading National Civil Liberties Conference to Focus on Mumia Abu-Jamal →

Mumia’s Attorneys Appeal Court’s Refusal to Hear Frame-Up Evidence

By JEFF MACKLER One year ago, the attorneys representing Mumia Abu-Jamal filed a sworn declaration by award-winning Philadelphia Court Reporter Terri Maurer-Carter stating that at the time of Mumia's 1982 trial, in the anteroom to Judge Albert Sabo's courtroom, she overheard the judge state in relation to Mumia's case, "Yeah, and I'm going to help … Continue reading Mumia’s Attorneys Appeal Court’s Refusal to Hear Frame-Up Evidence →

Where Standing Still and Minding Your Own Business is a Crime

By ADAM RITSCHER I keep imagining a sign. It's big and green, with white lettering. It hangs over the highway, and it looks like this: Or maybe it isn't over the highway-it could be hanging off the side of city hall with bright flashing Las Vegas lights. "Seven hundred dollars," you'd think to yourself, staring … Continue reading Where Standing Still and Minding Your Own Business is a Crime →

Earth First! / Judy Bari Trial – Landmark victory for Civil Liberties

By MICHAEL SCHREIBER In a landmark victory for civil liberties, on June 11, a jury determined that members of the FBI and the Oakland Police Department must pay $4.4 million in damages to Daryl Cherney and to the estate of the late Judi Bari, two organizers for Earth First! and its campaign to protect the … Continue reading Earth First! / Judy Bari Trial – Landmark victory for Civil Liberties →

‘Politics on Trial’ Introduction to a New Book of writings from the Late, William Kunstler

Socialist Action asked attorney Michael Smith for an article on recent government attacks on civil liberties. Smith has given us the following essay, which he co-wrote as the introduction to the book, "Politics on Trial: Five Famous Trials of the 20th Century," by attorney William Kunstler, just published by Ocean Press (www. oceanbooks.com.au).   By … Continue reading ‘Politics on Trial’ Introduction to a New Book of writings from the Late, William Kunstler →

American Indians Pursue Lawsuit Against US Government

By ADAM RITSCHER In 1887 the U.S. Congress passed the Dawes Act, which took much of the remaining land possessed by American Indians and divided it up into individual plots. The plots ranged in size from 40 to 160 acres. The idea was to force American Indians to become Western-style small farmers. The effect, however, … Continue reading American Indians Pursue Lawsuit Against US Government →

Activists Mobilize to Defend Mumia

The case of the world's most well-known death row political prisoner and innocent man, Mumia Abu-Jamal, was an integral part of the mass antiwar mobilizations on April 20 in Washington, D.C., and San Francisco. Taped messages from Mumia opposing U.S. moves in the Middle East were played at both demonstrations. Speakers for Mumia's defense addressed … Continue reading Activists Mobilize to Defend Mumia →

Solidarity Activists Forced Into Hiding in Colombia

The Irish Latin American Solidarity Campaign announced March 29 that two representatives sent to Colombia to investigate a complaint of human rights violations had been forced to go into hiding by collusion between the Colombian army and right-wing terrorist death squads. One of those endangered was an Irish citizen, Gearoid O Loinsigh; the other was … Continue reading Solidarity Activists Forced Into Hiding in Colombia →

Commentary by Mumia Abu-Jamal: Silent, Hidden Terrorism

By MUMIA ABU-JAMAL The envoys, public relations specialists, and apologists for the Bush administration tell all that their's is a global, borderless war against terrorism, and "all who harbor terrorists." This glib threat has justified the American entry and intervention into nations as diverse as Somalia, the Philippines and the Indonesian islands, in a search … Continue reading Commentary by Mumia Abu-Jamal: Silent, Hidden Terrorism →

Mumia Abu-Jamal’s Statement to Anti-WEF Protests: Who Benefits from War?

By MUMIA ABU-JAMAL When George II (or is it III?) was enthroned in the White House by the Gang of Five of the Supreme Court, as a kind of American Emperor, a thought came to mind, chillingly: There will be a war. It came with such a clarity that it was surprising. Why? A couple … Continue reading Mumia Abu-Jamal’s Statement to Anti-WEF Protests: Who Benefits from War? →