EDITORIAL
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MP\Rt:,U5 6A.R'IE.'Y
NoLaw-
A federal ci 11 rights trial in Phila­
delphia charging 7 Iormer Grat rford
Prison guard with iolatin the ci il
rights of a numb r of pri 'one y
everely beating them, .. hilc the,
were sha klcd and uff d hand and
foot in November 19 9, r cal d, In
glaring fa hro n. how, in pri 005.
there i no law-there are no ri ht .
Despite the guilty plea' and
damning te timony of 5 ex-guard •
that they and their eolleagu . m Ii­
ciously beat, kicked, ·tomped,
blackja ked and t ered (that i , used
a hand-held clectri hockin device)
pri oners who ommitt d no i rsutu­
tional offense, a civil jury a quitted
the 7 of virtually all ch rein Fe -
ruary 1
One juror w quoted as in
although it was proven th t pri oners
were badly beaten, no con pi racy
was proven by U .. pr ecutors.
. One pri oner, \ h . uff red from
AlDS and thu had le I ntcrnal re­
source with which to r und from
the horrific phy ical and p ych 10 i­
cal trauma he uffe red in the b u ng.
h smce died. .
In the month-l n trial it w: re­
vealed guard thought 1 pn. one
transferred fr m Camp Hill Pri on
shortly after rioters and rebels nearly
leveled the central P A. ra ihty t a
pile of smoulderin . he' were part
of the notin crew that npped it
apart.
FA T the 1 ( were non-n t­
ers, who were only too glad to be­
leaving what am t be 'all d
"Camp Hell" and to comin t th
.state' I rge t, and Bla .kc t PrJ. on,
G�terford.
Instead, they were leavrn the fire,
only t t nrnrn red in the tryin
pan, so to peak.
At Graterford. wh sc rna, IV'
hauntin wallx : e med to 01 cr <orne
rclrct lrorn the ra 'in lit .ral and p\)'­
chic inferno .... nr Camp Hili, the 1<)
No Rights
MUMIA
ABU
JAMAL
FROM
DEATH
ROW
men m t uniformed hatred and naked
brutality, they were beaten, kicked
and terronzed by government offi-
ial . worn to pr teet the illusive
"pea e" in pri on -guard who,
acting on n thin ut as urnpti ns,
(1.';. aulted a er a dozen m n on the
notion that they were "trouble­
makers."
S me, tho e few 'who could navi­
rate the trea her u traits and hoal
of civil liti ation, ued tat official
for damage.
thers b und up th ir wound and
blended int the wall while waiting
for terms to xpir .. o they could be
"tr "again.
Several tes tl ied I fl th federal
pro ution.
..
One died.
But all und out how fra ile th
very y tern th.u- tole theirvcry free­
dom w when the tate mmitt d
rime. against them.
nOT that w rds
lik "justi c." "law," "civil righ ,It
and ye , "cnm " have different and
cia tic meaning dcp nding up n
who. e "ri ht." were vi lated. who
c mmltted what "crime" a ai n t
\ hom. nd wh ther ne work f r th
."-
RE ... TL Y I 1'1 4 pag f
Mother Jon • a replay of thi clas: i­
cal deb te w \ aged b tween nco­
con ervative ideologue Sh Iby
Steele and liberal progre sive Roger
Wilkins, over th current tate of
American ra e relation .. Like many
white conservativ who love to
blame the victim of oppre . ion,
Steele argued that Bl ks as indi-
nUTL 'T th deb tea
. tep further, out of the pa of hi -
tory, and into the poli tical future.
What is really bing debated i
the qu tion of the relationship be-
PRO MAY HA cer-
tain rights or privileges in me re­
pects- uch as the right to
vote-s-and not others. In America,
our democracy now permits ormal,
DR.
N I G
RABLE
"Man, how many times do I _ ott I tell you ... the secret to success in this business is
knowing who to victimize, an some people ya' just don't wanna' mess with."
lack
and hanq-up
card old to
and ,begin again
BY JAMES E. ALSBROOK
LY
private ch I are C th licand they
usually supply t hers who ive the
arne d dication and receiv the
amc appr iauon.
an di
,
The teach
Northern
dedi- .
admire other human for their indus-
liege try integrity, intelli rcn e and de­
p ndability.
JU T AS MILLIO , of poor,
rejected p' oplc fr m Europe and
1 cwhere cam t Arncri an land
and made them bl than
10 yea a can American
Bla ks wh want equali ty and lr e­
dom for their cluldrcn nd them-
clvc to mall r t wn and b in
a new either al nc of With p opl
who value w rk and int nty m re
than they que ti n kill 01 r.
Living and workin 10 friendly,
ngcnial climat of public b havior
andcornmunity plnJon an do much
to revers many BI k P rsoru ' frui t­
t ,aiml paths to now her and
redeem the Bla k man' innat
odn ss and fai th 10 him clf and 10
th rs.