New video available from the Freedom Archives:
Jalil Muntaqim: Voice of Liberation
Jalil Abdul Muntaqim (formerly Anthony Bottom) was 19 years
old when he was arrested. He is a former member of the Black
Panther Party and the Black Liberation Army, and is one of
the longest held political prisoners in the world.
This documentary is a unique opportunity to visit and hear
Jalil's story.
Jalil was born October 18, 1951, in Oakland, CA. His early
years were spent in San Francisco. Jalil participated in
NAACP youth organizing during the civil rights movement. In
high school, he became a leading member of the Black Student
Union, often touring in "speak-outs."
After the assassination of Dr. King, Jalil began to believe
a more militant response to racism and injustice was
necessary. He began to look towards the Black Panther Party
for Self-Defense for leadership and was recruited into the
BPP by school friends who had since become Panthers.
Two months shy of his 20th birthday, Jalil was captured
along with Albert “Nuh” Washington in a midnight shoot-out
with San Francisco police. When Jalil was arrested, he was a
high school graduate and employed as a social worker.
While in San Quentin prison in California in 1976, Jalil
launched the National Prisoners Campaign to Petition the
United Nations to recognize the existence of political
prisoners in the United States. Progressives nationwide
joined this effort, and the petition was submitted in
Geneva, Switzerland. This led to Lennox Hinds and the
National Conference of Black Lawyers having the UN
International Commission of Jurists tour U.S. prisons and
speak with specific political prisoners. The International
Commission of Jurists then reported that political prisoners
did in fact exist in the United States.
In 1997 Jalil initiated the Jericho Movement. Over 6,000
supporters gathered in the Jericho '98 march in Washington
DC and the Bay Area to demand amnesty for US political
prisoners on the basis of international law. The Jericho
Amnesty Movement aims to gain the recognition by the U.S.
government and the United Nations that political prisoners
exist in this country, and that on the basis of
international law, they should be granted amnesty because of
the political nature of their cases.
Jalil has filed numerous lawsuits on behalf of prisoners.
After many years of being denied the opportunity to attend
college, Jalil graduated with a BS in Psychology and a BA in
Sociology in 1994.
During his imprisonment, Jalil has become a father and a
grandfather. Jalil has worked as an educator of other
inmates and practices organizing and advocacy whenever
possible to ensure the most adequate, humane treatment for
all people. He has been repeatedly punished for these
activities, through physical abuse, formal discipline, and
numerous prison transfers.
For more information about Jalil Muntaqim and his writings:
www.kersplebedeb.com/mystuff/profiles/muntaqim.html
www.prisonactivist.org/pps+pows/jalilmuntaqim/
Edited and produced by Eve Goldberg and Claude Marks in
November 2002 and based on an interview done in August 2000
by John O'Reilly and Nina Dibner. VHS 20 minutes.
Produced by The Jericho Amnesty Movement and the Freedom
Archives. And available for $20 plus $1.50 shipping ($2.50
outside the US).
© 2002 The Freedom Archives:
522 Valencia Street
San Francisco, CA 94110 (415) 863-9977
www.freedomarchives.org
The Freedom Archives
522 Valencia Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
(415) 863-9977
www.freedomarchives.org
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