President Obama Must Free Leonard Peltier

[XXPANTHAXX]

by Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman
January 23, 2009

The welcome news that President Obama is taking steps to shut Guantanamo
and right other Bush-era human rights abuses must quickly be joined by a
proclamation of freedom for Leonard Peltier.

Peltier is the nation's best-known native activist and has become a
global symbol of abject injustice and prison abuse. Imprisoned in the
late 1970s for allegedly murdering two FBI agents, Peltier has never
been given a fair trial. Federal authorities have quashed or destroyed
thousands of pages of evidence that might have freed Peltier decades
ago.

The Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee points out that "Amnesty
International considers Leonard Peltier to be a political prisoner whose
avenues of redress have long been exhausted....Amnesty International
recognizes that a retrial is no longer a feasible option and believes
that Leonard Peltier should be immediately and unconditionally
released."

The committee adds that" Documents show that although the prosecution
and government pointed the finger at Peltier for shooting FBI agents at
close range during the trial in 1976, for three years the prosecution
withheld critical ballistic test results proving that the fatal bullets
could not have come from the gun tied to Leonard Peltier. This trial
also denied evidence of self defense."

The committee further states that: "the U.S. Prosecutor, during
subsequent oral arguments, stated: "we can't prove who shot those
agents.” And that the Eighth Circuit found that "There is a possibility
that the jury would have acquitted Leonard Peltier had the records and
data improperly withheld from the defense been available to him in order
to better exploit and reinforce the inconsistencies casting strong
doubts upon the government's case."

The committee also says that "Judge Heaney, who authored the denial now
supports Mr. Peltier's release, stating that the FBI used improper
tactics to gain Mr. Peltier's conviction."

Now 64 years old, Peltier is suffering from diabetes and a series of
other serious ailments brought on by his decades in prison. He has great
grandchildren he has never seen. His case is the centerpiece of the book
IN THE SPIRIT OF CRAZY HORSE by Peter Matthiessen.

Reports from Betty Peltier-Solano, Leonard's sister, now assert that
Peltier was severely beaten during a recent transfer to the Canaan
Federal Penitentiary. According to Peltier-Solano, he has been held in
solitary confinement and limited to a single meal a day, a serious
threat to his health due to his diabetes.

Over the decades Peltier has been a model prisoner, concentrating on his
art and writing. His commitment to native American rights has been
consistent throughout the years, though he's been repeatedly denied
media access.

Peltier is eligible for parole in the near future. His supporters fear
this latest round of abuse may be designed to discredit him. The FBI
recently sent a letter accusing Peltier of prompting this latest attack.
Given Peltier's age, poor health, immanent parole status and
long-standing political commitments canont be viewed as a calculated
absurdity. His sister writes that "currently, the FBI is actively
seeking support for his continued imprisonment."

The political involvement of the FBI is itself an issue the President
must address. At very least Peltier should be freed on bail pending a
new trial, with a concerted effort on the part of the new Department of
Justice to unearth all suppressed evidence in this case.

Leonard Peltier has languished unjustly in prison far longer than those
held in Guantanamo. It is time to set him free!

To find out more, contact the Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee
at Official Web Site of the Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee.

--
Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman have co-authored four books on election
protection, which appear at The Free Press -- Independent News Media, along with Bob's
FITRAKIS FILES. Harvey's HISTORY OF THE U.S. is at
harveywasserman.com. This article was originally published by
The Free Press -- Independent News Media.

[Sourakhata]

Free the Indian Brother, support him:
Urgent Alert: Leonard Peltier Beaten!

Free all our Elders & Freedom Fighters locked up for decades. Leave Auntie Assata in Peace!!

Now we'll see where Obamination's heart is...If he got any or if he's gonna perpetuate the blind & racist repression that Amerikkka has been mastering for centuries.

[rebelAfrika]

This would be one of Obama's BEST moves if he's got enough nutts to do it.

[Insatiable]

Originally Posted by rebelAfrika

This would be one of Obama's BEST moves if he's got enough nutts to do it.

I doubt he has it in him.

Everything is scripted with this guy. I doubt Peltier is part of the script.

[rebelAfrika]

Originally Posted by Insatiable

I doubt he has it in him.

Everything is scripted with this guy. I doubt Peltier is part of the script.

Yeah...look at how he did Rev. Jeremiah Wright. I doubt he has it in him as well.

[Majadi]

Expect nothing, get reality! We must expect nothing of a revolutionary nature of Mr. Obama to do, thus we will get reality. We can deal with him based on actual political structures well researched by we, the revolutionary, and the historicall framework of the United States! With this analysis we can understand clearly that he must not free Leonard Peltier, nor Mumia, Nor Dr. Shakur, in fact he must operate per his masters. We must operate per our ancestral legacy, this means death to this system and long life for Afrikan children! These two ideals are anti-thetical and never the twain shall meet!

[Sourakhata]

His deafening silence on Troy Davis case or his swiss-esque 'neutrality' on topic regarding afrikan in the US say nothing good about his intentions & eventual kind gestures towards our POWs. We're not naïve. Amerikkkan judiciary system is profoundly racist (like all western ones), it takes more than Obama to reform it, it takes Fiyaaah to burn them all !!

[Majadi]

Originally Posted by Sourakhata

His deafening silence on Troy Davis case or his swiss-esque 'neutrality' on topic regarding afrikan in the US say nothing good about his intentions & eventual kind gestures towards our POWs. We're not naïve. Amerikkkan judiciary system is profoundly racist (like all western ones), it takes more than Obama to reform it, it takes Fiyaaah to burn them all !!

That is why you are my people! I like that "swiss-esque 'neutrality'" I am at work you are killing me, I cannot stop laughing, people are thinking I am crazy..or crazier than normal!

[Insatiable]

Originally Posted by rebelAfrika

Yeah...look at how he did Rev. Jeremiah Wright. I doubt he has it in him as well.

If you think about it, even the Wright saga was scripted to a great extent.

Think about how he started off his campaign by "hiding" Wright!

Obama is not making any plans. He's simply regurgitating stuff fed to him by Brzezinski, Axelrod, Emanuel, Goolsbee, Soros, Volcker, Gates, and others.