>
> WW News Service Digest #79
>
> 1) From a cell block--minors majoring in militant struggle
> by "WW" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> 2) Mumia asked to speak at Kent State massacre anniversary
> by "WW" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> 3) Building May 7 for Mumia
> by "WW" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> 4) 'Send Elian home now'
> by "WW" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> 5) Wall Street: A crashing success
> by "WW" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> 6) For the oppressed of Zimbabwe
> by "WW" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>
>-------------------------
>Via Workers World News Service
>Reprinted from the Apr. 27, 2000
>issue of Workers World newspaper
>-------------------------
>
>APRIL 15: FROM A CELL BLOCK--
>MINORS MAJORING IN MILITANT STRUGGLE
>
>By Ben Becker
>Washington
>
>[Becker is a 16-year-old high school student from
>Baltimore. He was one of those arrested at the April 15
>Washington demonstration to "Shut Down the Prison-
>Industrial Complex."]
>
>
>
>Of the 678 people who were illegally arrested at the April
>15 "prison-industrial complex" protest in Washington, 20
>were under 18 years old. From the moment the hard plastic
>handcuffs were strapped on our wrists, we were separated
>from the 658 older prisoners, each facing the same
>fraudulent charges.
>
>As I approached the all-metal cab of the van, I heard a
>chorus of, "Hey man," "Whazzup," and "Join us"--as if I had
>a choice. These were the spirited people that I would be
>spending the next six hours with.
>
>The painful heat caused by the sweatshirts and jackets of
>the immobile and tightly confined prisoners was overwhelmed
>by loud, synchronous chants and stomping feet, along with
>bad attempts at singing "The Internationale" and "We Shall
>Overcome." The five militant females and five militant
>males in the back of the van, divided by a metal wall, sang
>together; it was only a physical barrier.
>
>For the next few hours, the disorganized pigs fumbled
>around with our information and their instructions about
>what to do with us. While going through the normal
>procedures for juvenile jail, which included removing our
>outer garments for searching, we encountered many cops,
>each differing only in their appearance.
>
>The condescending and utterly false words, "once you get
>over this protesting stage" and "so you were willing to
>give up your freedom?" were often heard during our many
>exchanges.
>
>Of course, there is no freedom to lose in this oppressive
>country--you can't sacrifice what you don't have. And if
>there were, protesting would be an assertion of this
>freedom. As for "the protesting stage," it will only end
>when the capitalist system ends.
>
>Shocking as it may be, one of the pigs was actually
>accurate in one assessment. He said, "I bet each one of
>your parents are in these same organizations that you are
>in." His newfound confidence, gained by the rippling of
>nodding heads throughout the room, was instantly smashed,
>when one young protestor calmly replied, "I bet yours
>aren't."
>
>The group became very relaxed as the night carried on and
>more and more youths were brought into our large cell. It
>may be a sign of immaturity or naivete, but there were
>times when parts of the group of young protesters ignored
>the pigs' threats of being placed in a solitary cell, and
>continued to talk loudly.
>
>The unified youths also were able to neglect the burly
>police who purposely ate their sweet-smelling hot plates of
>food a few feet beyond the bars of our cell. Upon the
>release of each of the upbeat prisoners, there was a warm
>handshake given to each person--despite the cops' attempt
>to rush them.
>
>Throughout the cell, we could hear a lot of "Nice meeting
>you" and "Hang in there," but there was one resounding
>statement: "See you tomorrow."
>
> - END -
>
>(Copyleft Workers World Service. Everyone is permitted to
>copy and distribute verbatim copies of this document, but
>changing it is not allowed. For more information contact
>Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011; via e-mail:
>[EMAIL PROTECTED] For subscription info send message
>to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web: http://www.workers.org)
>
>
>
>Message-ID: <002c01bfab2b$2976faf0$[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>From: "WW" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>Subject: [WW] Mumia asked to speak at Kent State massacre anniversary
>Date: Thu, 20 Apr 2000 20:47:24 -0400
>Content-Type: text/plain;
> charset="iso-8859-1"
>Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
>
>-------------------------
>Via Workers World News Service
>Reprinted from the Apr. 27, 2000
>issue of Workers World newspaper
>-------------------------
>
>30-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF KENT STATE MASSACRE:
>MUMIA ASKED TO SPEAK
>
>By Martha Grevatt
>Cleveland
>
>Students at Kent State University have invited Mumia Abu-
>Jamal to help mark the 30th anniversary of the Ohio
>National Guard killing of four students there. The 1970
>killings of students at Kent and at Jackson State
>University, during protests of the U.S. invasion of
>Cambodia, were an attempt to silence the anti-war movement
>when it was at its peak.
>
>For the past 30 years, commemorations have featured well-
>known activists such as Kwame Toure (formerly Stokely Car
>mich ael) and the William Kunstler. With at least 5,000
>people expected to take part in this historic anniversary,
>the invitation to Abu-Jamal publicly challenges the
>conviction of this political prisoner who now sits on
>Pennsylvania's death row.
>
>"The obvious connection is that Mumia's impending
>political execution is an attempt to silence dissent, just
>as May 4 was an attempt to silence dissent," said Justin
>Hons of Kent Anti-Racist Action. "Beyond that, Mumia at the
>time of the shootings was a member of the Black Panther
>Party, the group most heavily targeted by Cointelpro, and
>he was part of the same movement for liberation and
>revolution that the students were part of."
>
>Kent ARA has been very active in supporting Abu-Jamal. On
>April 4 the group organized a walkout, occupied the student
>center, and forced the media to pay attention. On April 25
>they are bringing Abu-Jamal's lead attorney Leonard
>Weinglass to speak on campus.
>
>The mainstream media have been vociferous in their attacks
>on the invitation. The April 5 Cleveland Plain Dealer ran a
>lead editorial denouncing the students, and published two
>hostile columns by right-wing commentator Dick Feagler.
>Feagler wrote that Abu-Jamal's campus supporters just want
>something to rebel about.
>
>WNIR talk radio spent a whole day denouncing the students.
>The university newspaper, the Kent Stater, also condemned
>ARA.
>
>"These are attacks on our intelligence and our ability to
>make decisions," Hons responded.
>
>Caving in to right-wing pressure, Kent State President
>Carol A. Cartwright has publicly disassociated the
>university from the May 4 commemoration. However, the
>decision to have Abu-Jamal speak is not without campus
>support. The Black United Students, teachers in Pan-African
>Studies, and the Black campus community in general are
>supportive.
>
>The May 4 Task Force, which organizes the annual
>commemorations, voted unanimously in favor of Abu-Jamal
>speaking, and its members have publicly defended that
>choice.
>
>Many agree there is no better way to honor the memory of
>the murdered students than to block the state from
>murdering Mumia Abu-Jamal.
>
>Readers can send letters of support for the invitation to:
>Kent ARA, c/o KSU, OCL Box 8, Kent OH 44240.
>
> - END -
>
>(Copyleft Workers World Service. Everyone is permitted to
>copy and distribute verbatim copies of this document, but
>changing it is not allowed. For more information contact
>Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011; via e-mail:
>[EMAIL PROTECTED] For subscription info send message
>to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web: http://www.workers.org)
>
>
>
>Message-ID: <003201bfab2b$3c87a810$[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>From: "WW" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>Subject: [WW] Building May 7 for Mumia
>Date: Thu, 20 Apr 2000 20:47:56 -0400
>Content-Type: text/plain;
> charset="iso-8859-1"
>Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
>
>-------------------------
>Via Workers World News Service
>Reprinted from the Apr. 27, 2000
>issue of Workers World newspaper
>-------------------------
>
>EYE OF THE HURRICANE: BUILDING MAY 7 FOR MUMIA
>
>By Greg Butterfield
>New York
>
>"Let's march," announces Johnnie Stevens of the Peoples
>Video Network. Somewhere in the city there's a
>demonstration against police brutality.
>
>A squad of activists picks up fliers, grabs folding tables
>and lugs sound equipment from the 14th Street office of
>Millions for Mumia and the International Action Center--the
>hub of the May 7 Mobilization for Mumia at Madison Square
>Garden.
>
>First out the door is 19-year-old Sarah Sloan, clutching a
>pile of protest signs stapled to cardboard poles. "Abolish
>the NYPD," one says. "Stand up for Mumia. Pack the Theater
>at Madison Square Garden," reads another.
>
>Not everyone leaves the office. Phones are ringing off the
>hook. A woman enters as the squad leaves--she's on her
>lunch break and wants a stack of flyers. There are news
>releases to fax, tickets to sell, emails to answer.
>
>Welcome to the eye of the hurricane. It's a typical day in
>this exciting mobilization, the volunteer staff agrees.
>
>Renowned author Minnie Bruce Pratt, a lesbian activist, is
>here. She's been gathering signers for an ad in the May 7
>commemorative journal sponsored by Rainbow Flags for Mumia,
>the lesbian/gay/bi/trans focus of the Free Mumia movement.
>
>"Financial contributions for the ad are pouring in," Pratt
>tells Workers World. "People are contributing with great
>enthusiasm."
>
>Monica Moorehead, a coordinator of the May 7 event, says
>Abu-Jamal's case is becoming more familiar to the general
>public.
>
>"I was fortunate to go to Bedford-Stuyvesant, a
>predominantly Caribbean neighborhood in Brooklyn, to do
>visibility," she told Workers World. "I would go into a
>record shop or an African dress shop and ask if I could
>leave leaflets in the store. They didn't hesitate to say
>`yes, of course,'" Moorehead explains.
>
>"People in the oppressed communities can easily relate to
>someone like Mumia who is a victim of police brutality
>similar to Patrick Dorismond and Amadou Diallo," she points
>out.
>
>"After she saw a poster, one woman came over to us to ask
>if Mumia was going to receive a new trial because he
>certainly deserves one. These kinds of responses show how
>important an event like the one on May 7 is to expose how
>Mumia was a victim of a racist frame-up by the Fraternal
>Order of Police and the criminal injustice system."
>
>Moorehead adds, "Having an event for Mumia at a
>prestigious venue like Madison Square Garden will go a long
>way in popularizing what Mumia stands for."
>
>Ellen Catalinotto has been passing out leaflets with a
>group of activists in the Chelsea neighborhood of
>Manhattan. She tells how one member of the group, a 74-
>year-old woman, was harassed by cops who claimed she fit
>the description of a wanted criminal.
>
>"What are you doing out here?" one of the cops asked her.
>
>"I'm saving a man's life," she replied, waving a May 7
>flier in the cop's face.
>
>Everyone agrees that more volunteers are needed. If you
>live outside New York, you can hook up with others in your
>area to fill a bus or vans to come to Madison Square
>Garden.
>
>If you live in the New York area you can work with your
>organization or community or come into the May 7
>Mobilization office. For more information, you can call
>(212) 633-6646, email [EMAIL PROTECTED], or visit the
>Web site www.mumia2000.org.
>
>General admission tickets are $15. Groups of 10 or more
>can purchase tickets at $10 each. Tickets may be purchased
>on the Internet at www.leftbooks.com, at the May 7
>Mobilization office, or by sending a check or money order
>to May 7 Mobilization for Mumia, 39 West 14 Street, Suite
>206, New York, NY 10011.
>
> - END -
>
>(Copyleft Workers World Service. Everyone is permitted to
>copy and distribute verbatim copies of this document, but
>changing it is not allowed. For more information contact
>Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011; via e-mail:
>[EMAIL PROTECTED] For subscription info send message
>to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web: http://www.workers.org)
>
>
>
>Message-ID: <003801bfab2b$5e985c10$[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>From: "WW" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>Subject: [WW] 'Send Elian home now'
>Date: Thu, 20 Apr 2000 20:48:53 -0400
>
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