Sorry folks. let me try this again. I think some might be interested in this: ============================================== Tear Down the Walls An Historic Conference Tear Down the Walls will be an unprecedented international convocation on behalf of approximately 100 political prisoners and prisoners of war (PPOWS) who are currently behind bars in the United States. Participants from around the world will come together to learn, strategize and join the fight to win amnesty for these women and men who are some of the longest- held political prisoners in the world. Hosted by OSPAAAL, an organization which spans three continents, and sponsored by a broad coalition of U.S.-based groups, the conference will shine an international spotlight on the United States' record of persecution of those who struggle for social change. Who Are The Political Prisoners? The PPOWs are women and men incarcerated because of their involvement in political activities which challenged the unjust nature of the U.S. socioeconomic system and its hegemonic policies around the world. Most political prisoners have been in prison since the 60's and 70's when the U.S. government's domestic counter-insurgency COINTELPRO program was initiated to destroy liberation movements inside the U.S. by targeting their leadership. The majority of the PPOWS are Black/New Afrikan, and there are also Puerto Ricans, Native Americans, Chicano/Mejicanos and North Americans. There are PPOWS from the religious activist communities and those incarcerated as a result of recent resistance to U.S. policies. There are also political fugitives living in exile who need to be defended and protected. The political prisoners have been inflicted with disproportionately long sentences, isolation, and sensory deprivation. They have been criminalized and denied their basic human rights under international law. Human Rights Violations The political prisoners are part of the massive, racist prison industrial complex which incarcerates over 2 million people and represents the ugly face of globalization within the borders of the U.S. The same government which spearheaded COINTELPRO is sponsoring massive incarceration as a method of exploiting, controlling and disrupting entire communities. The United States masquerades as a protector of human rights and democracy in order to justify its assaults against other nations such as its continuing embargo of Cuba, its support for Israeli aggression against Palestine, and its growing intervention in Colombia. The U.S. uses the issue of human rights abuses and political prisoners in other countries as a key propaganda tool with which to leverage social and economic control over other nations, particularly those which represent a political challenge. At this juncture in history as George Bush, the "king of executioners," has assumed the presidency through a blatantly manipulated, election, it is imperative for those of us living inside US borders to work together with international forces to expose and resist the aggressive and repressive character of the U.S. system. The Need For An International Conference The fight to win amnesty for all U.S. PPOWS needs to be based on international law with the recognition and assistance of progressive forces worldwide. International support has given significant momentum to the efforts to free Mumia Abu-Jamal, Leonard Peltier as well as the successful campaign to release eleven Puerto Rican ppows in 1999. During the 1960's and 70's, liberation, anti-war and social justice movements (which many of the political prisoners were part of) gained strength and leadership from movements in Latin America, Africa and Asia. Cuba has a long, impressive history of offering solidarity to U.S. PPOWS and fugitives, having granted political asylum to many who were able to leave the U.S. OSPAAAL has, since its inception in 1966, fought to build solidarity between peoples of the three continents. In 1996 OSPAAAL hosted an international conference in support of the Puerto Rican political prisoners' release. Tear Down the Walls will provide a place to analyze the victories that have been won in the past, such as the release of Geronimo Ji Jaga and the eleven Puerto Rican political prisoners, as well as the setbacks such as the recent rejection of clemency for Leonard Peltier. The lessons drawn will contribute to the development of a multipronged strategy to free all the political prisoners. Goals For The Conference * To advance the national and international movement to free U.S. political prisoners and defend US political prisoners in exile. * To forge solidarity between progressive forces around the world. *To analyze the lessons of other campaigns to free PPOWs. * To denounce the social and political conditions which exist in the U.S. system which give rise to the disproportionate incarceration of people of color within the United States. * To deepen an analysis of the interrelationship between political prisoners, the growth of the prison industrial complex and U.S. counterinsurgency strategy world-wide. * To develop a concrete action program for future work. The conference will also offer an opportunity for former political prisoners and family members of current political prisoners to come together in a strongly supportive setting to heal, learn from each other and to become reenergized for the ongoing fight to free their loved ones and those they left behind the walls when they were released. Conference Program To Include: * Presentations from international representatives * Educational plenary forums * Retreat of former political prisoners and family members * Workshops to develop specific programs * Film * Hip-hop * Dance * Poster exhibit Call For Papers And Workshops Please send in proposals for workshops and papers in the following theme areas: * Internationalizing the amnesty movement * Women political prisoners * Analysis of past campaigns * Documentation of human rights violations * Relationship of ppows, counter-insurgency and the prison industrial complex * Youth organizing for PPOWS Sponsoring Organizations partial list: Can't Jail the Spirit Publishing Group Hands Off Assata Campaign Interfaith Prisoners of Conscience Project International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal Jericho Amnesty Movement Leonard Peltier Defense Committee Malcolm X Grassroots Movement MOVE National Boricua Human Rights Network New Afrikan Peoples Organization Provisional Government Republic of New Afrika Release 2001 Campaign United Church of Christ Participating Former Political Prisoners partial list: Ramona Africa Africa family members Safiya Bukhari Alan Berkman Bobby Castillo Linda Evans Herman Ferguson Claude Marks Ahmed Obafemi Alicia Rodriguez Luis Rosa Kazi Toure Oscar Washington Laura Whitehorn Donna Willmott Registration/Information Print this form and mail it to: Tear Down the Walls P.O. Box 3585 Oakland, CA 94609 USA Phone: (510) 539-0050 E-Mail: [log in to unmask] WWW: www.thejerichomovement.com/teardownthewalls Name: Organization's name: Address: Country: Phone: E-mail: Nationality/ Work language ___ I/We would like to attend Tear Down the Walls. Please send a registration packet. ___ I/We would like to attend the retreat for former PPOWS and family members. ___ I/we would like to help work on the conference. Let us know how to become involved. ___ I/we would like to donate $_____ to help send a former prisoner or a family member to TDW. ___ My organization would like to have an official table at the conference. (Source: Tear Down The Walls <http://www.thejerichomovement.com/teardownthewalls>) ----------------------------------------------------------------- Arm The Spirit is an autonomist/anti-imperialist information collective based in Toronto, Canada. Our focus includes a wide variety of material, including political prisoners, national liberation struggles, armed communist resistance, anti-fascism, the fight against patriarchy, and more. We regularly publish our writings, research, and translation materials on our listserv called ATS-L. For more information, contact: Arm The Spirit P.O. Box 6326, Stn. A Toronto, Ontario M5W 1P7 Canada E-mail: [log in to unmask] WWW: http://burn.ucsd.edu/~ats/ ATS-L Archives: http://burn.ucsd.edu/archives/ats-l ----------------------------------------------------------------- Abdoulie A. Jallow _______________________________________________________ Send a cool gift with your E-Card http://www.bluemountain.com/giftcenter/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------