Socialist Action /November 1999
Fighting for Mumia in the Midwest
As the movement to save the life of Mumia Abu-Jamal enters a critical
stage with the signing of a death warrant, young activists from across the
Midwest are organizing for a fight.
College and high school students in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois
are setting up Mumia committees in their schools, breathing new life into
old ones, and planning emergency demonstrations.
The momentum began with the Mumia 911 actions in late September. Students
and other activists converged on Minneapolis and Chicago on Sept. 25. In
the week leading up to that, many poetry readings, concerts, and other cultural
actions were held as part of the National Art for Mumia week.
There were Mumia events on five different University of Wisconsin campuses,
from Stevens Point to Madison. For many students, this was the first time
they'd gotten involved in Mumia's case.
"I knew something about his case, and I'd seen his picture everywhere
all over town, but this was the first time I've marched for Mumia, or anyone
for that matter," said Jessica Monez, a college student who marched
on Sept. 25 in Chicago.
Following the signing of a death warrant, emergency protests were held
in the Twin Cities, Chicago, and Ohio, and in each case young people turned
out.
YSAers and activists from the Socialist Discussion Club at the Minneapolis
Community & Technical College (MCTC) are reaching out to other campus
groups to set up a Mumia committee.
Many Black and Latino students at MCTC have expressed interest, as has
Culturas Unidas, the campus Latino group. Weekly film showings of "A
Case for a Reasonable Doubt" are already planned.
Similarly, YSAers at Northland College in northern Wisconsin are responding
to the new warrant by going door to door in the dorms to talk about Mumia
and other pressing social issues.
At Grinnell College in Iowa, the Grinnell Socialists are using their
weekly campus radio program to get the word out to students about Mumia.
They organized caravans to travel to other cities for the Sept. 25 and the
Oct. 16 events.
Youth for Socialist Action calls upon all of our fellow students and
young activists to push even harder in the coming weeks to reach out to
more people and to more schools.
As we all know, Mumia's life is in our hands, and that means we need
as many hands as possible!
This article is the collective product of YSAers from across the Midwest.
Socialist Action /November 1999 |