by Mumia Abu-Jamal
Rev. Edward Pinkney is the kind of preacher that Martin Luther King would have admired. Rather than build a mansion and live like a prince, Pinkney has for years advocated for his community, fighting for water rights, fair elections and social justice for the people of Benton Harbor, Michigan.
Because of his political activities, he’s been targeted by the government, tried by the Michigan political machine, tried before an all-white jury and, with no evidence, convicted of allegedly altering five petition dates!
Incredibly, Rev. Pinkney is facing 10 years in prison!
Remember the petitions? They were recall petitions of Benton Harbor’s mayor, a politician owned and operated by the Whirlpool Corp. – the real owner of the town. For speaking out against this corporate-political domination, Pinkney became the target of the legal system.
At trial, no one even claimed Rev. Pinkney altered anything. He turned in hundreds of recall petitions against Whirlpool’s puppet mayor – that was crime enough, apparently.
As Rev. Pinkney approaches his second year in prison, his support is growing across the country, as he fights his appeals. The call to Free Rev. Pinkney is growing!
© Copyright 2016 Mumia Abu-Jamal. Keep updated at www.freemumia.com. His new book is “Writing on the Wall,” edited by Joanna Hernandez. For Mumia’s commentaries, visit www.prisonradio.org. Encourage the media to publish and broadcast Mumia’s commentaries and interviews. Send our brotha some love and light: Mumia Abu-Jamal, AM 8335, SCI-Mahanoy, 301 Morea Road, Frackville, PA 17932.