>From: "C. Clark Kissinger" <cck1@earthlink.net>
>Date: Tue, 17 Aug 1999 20:51:28 -0400
>
>ANOTHER WRITE-UP . . . FOR RAPPING!
>[col. writ. 8/14/99] *1999 Mumia Abu-Jamal
>
> On Thursday, August 12th, 1999, I finally got through on a call I
>had been trying to complete all week long: to Amy Goodman, the host of the
>acclaimed Pacifica news broadcast, "Democracy Now!", aired over WBAI-FM, in
>New York City, and over the Network, nationally. I was thrilled to get
>through, and, as her topic was the buzz over the imminent release of 16
>Puerto-Rican Independentista political prisoners, its was a perfect
>opportunity to express solidarity for the brave and committed Puerto-Rican
>freedom fighters, who have suffered enormously in their long imprisonment at
>the hands of their cruel American colonizers. After speaking with relatives
>and loved ones of the Independentistas, Amy calmly announced to her
>listeners that she had a guest on the line (me) who might offer a few
>opinions on the controversy. It went something like this:
>
> AG [Amy Goodman]: On the line now from a state correctional
>institution in Pennsylvania, after considerable difficulty, is our guest,
>Mumia Abu-Jamal, convicted in the murder of Philadelphia police officer,
>Daniel Faulkner, in 1981; in a trial that many have condemned as riddled
>with constitutional, and other errors.. Mumia, welcome to Democracy Now.
>
> MAJ: Thank you, Amy, it is my pleasure to be with you all
>at Democracy Now!
>
> AG: Now, Mumia, I'm sure you've heard about the
>controversy that we're discussing this morning; the imminent release of some
>16 PR political prisoners, under certain conditions...have you heard?
>
> MAJ: Yeah, well, I did see some mention on this on the
>TV, and these are my thoughts on the issue: Under the constitution, one is
>allegedly allowed the rights of association. For these brothers and
>sisters, freedom ain't really freedom is it? First I wanna say: Libertad
>para los presos politicos de Puertoriqueno! Yes, "Free all Puerto-Rican
>Political Prisoners!" Yeah! We're with that! But, under the U.S.
>government's plan, they will be granted a kind of half-freedom; they won't
>be allowed to associate with each other, so their freedom of association is
>dead. Also, one of the other conditions that the government is placing upon
>them is the demand that they 'renounce violence.' Now, Amy-where have we
>heard this before? If we look at recent world history we'll se that that
>was exactly the same thing that the racist government of South Africa
>demanded of Nelson Mandela and other imprisoned members of the ANC....
>
> At this moment, my phone line went dead, as a guard pulled the wire
>from the phone jack on the wall, disconnecting me. Another guard appeared
>at the cell door hollering at the top of his lungs: "This call is
>terminated!" When I demanded to know why, he replied, "This order cam down
>from the very top!" I immediately called to the Sgt. standing by and
>looking on, "Sgt! Where did this order come from?"
>
> He shrugged his shoulders, answering, "I dunno. We just got a phone
>call to cut you off.."
> The next day, the answer came in the form of a write-up; #A69958,
>where I am charged with a Class I Misconduct: Unauthorized Use of the Mail
>or Telephone. In the write-up, the following institutional offenses are
>stated:
>
> On August 12, 1999, at 0936 hours, Inmate Jamal made a
>telephone call to a news radio station named Pacifica Radio Network's
>Democracy Now. Per DC-ADM 009 News Media Relations, it states News Media
>requests for inmate interviews by telephone shall be approved at the
>discretion of the Facility Manager. Inmate Jamal did not request from the
>Facility Manager permission to be interviewed by the news media. In
>addition, inmate Jamal placed a news reporter on his IPIN list knowing full
>well that the person was a reporter. This is verified by the attached
>documentation. Also, per DC ADM 6.5.8, all communications between Capital
>Case inmates and the news media shall be conducted in accordance with DOC
>and institutional policies on visitation and telephone privileges. It
>should be noted inmate telephone calls are a privilege. As a result of
>inmate Jamal not requesting permission from the Facility Manager to be
>interviewed or speak with the news media, his telephone call was terminated
>after 11 minutes of speaking with the news media.
>
> This write-up was signed by a Lt. and a Captain of the guards.
>
> In order to produce this write-up, ranking staff members had to
>ignore their own rules; for example DC-ADM 009-1, Nov. 11, 1996, which
>states:
>
> News media are entitled to the same access to specific
>inmates as the general public. There shall be no special arrangements made
>for news media interviews with specific inmates. All communications between
>specific inmates and the news media shall be conducted in accordance with
>the DC-ADM 812 (Inmate visiting Privileges) and the DC-ADM 818 (Inmate
>Telephone Calls).... [d] If an inmate wants to talk with a news media
>representative over the telephone, it is his responsibility to place a
>collect call to the reporter under guidelines set forth in DC-ADM 818 -
>Inmate Telephone Calls.
>
> There are rules-and there are rules, it seems, especially when the
>state deals with Mumia Abu-Jamal. Here, the DOC writes me up, using a rule
>that no longer exists! But since when have rules gotten in the way of
>corrupt bureaucracies which follow the foul winds of the political masters?
>
> Clearly, we are not working with 'rules': we are working with the
>state's exercise of its political power to censor a captive who they, once
>again, have acted to silence. But, like before, it ain't working. I thank
>Amy and her fervent politically adept listeners at "Democracy Now!" for that
>great opportunity to show solidarity. You keep on listening...I'll keep on
>rapping!
>
>MAJ *1999