May 13th At 25
[col. writ. 5/8/10] (c) '10 Mumia Abu-Jamal
May 13th, 1985 is more than a day of infamy, when a city waged war on its own alleged 'citizens', but also when the city committed a massacre - and did so with impunity.
When babies were shot and burned alive, with their Mothers and Fathers, and the killers rewarded with honors and pensions - while politicians talked and the media mediated mass murder.
On that day, the City of Philadelphia, armed and assisted by the U.S. government, dropped a bomb on a house and called it "law."
The Fire Department watched buildings ignite like matches in the desert, and cut off water. The courts of the land turned a blind eye, daubed mud in their sockets, and prosecuted Ramona Africa, sending her to prison for nearly a decade for having the nerve to survive an urban holocaust, and jailed her for the crime of not burning to death.
Eleven men, women, and children died - and not one killer was even charged with a misdemeanor.
But on that day, more than MOVE members died. The city died too. Its politicians died. Its media died. its courts died. And its churches and houses of worship died - for they ceased to function, and served power and money, over life.
In a very real sense the city massacred itself; for when faith in such institutions died, they became empty, hollow and dead, but for the shell.
May 13th, 1985 is a day that shall live in infamy.
But for more reasons than the obvious. It was the death knell of a system committing suicide.
It proved that a man called John Africa spoke powerful truths when he named the nature of the system as corrupt, flawed and poisoned.
Everyday past that date, has only proved it even more.
-(c) '10 maj
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If you are planning to organize an event or would like to order in bulk, you can also receive a 45% discount on any bulk orders of 20 copies or more. The book retails for $16.95, for orders of 20 copies or more the discounted price would be $9.32 per book, plus shipping and handling. Prepayment would be required and books are nonreturnable. If you or your organization would like to place a bulk order, please contact Stacey Lewis at 415.362.1901 or stacey@citylights.com
Let's use the opportunity of the publication of this brilliant, moving, vintage Mumia book to build the momentum for his case, to raise the money we desperately need in these challenging economic times, to get the word out – to produce literature, flyers, posters, videos, DVD's; to send organizers out to help build new chapters and strengthen old ones, TO GET THE PEOPLE OUT IN THE STREETS … all the work that we must do in order to FREE MUMIA as he faces LIFE IN PRISON WITHOUT PAROLE OR EXECUTION!
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