#DEMOCRACYNOW: MARCH FOR #MUMIAABUJAMAL: 100+ mile march from Philly to SCI Mahanoy ends (and a #JuliaWright news poem)

Supporters of Mumia Abu-Jamal are on a 103-mile, 12-day march ending Tuesday in Frackville, Pennsylvania, where he is imprisoned at the Mahanoy state prison. The march ends on the same day Abu-Jamal was arrested in 1981 for the murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner, for which he has always maintained his innocence. One of the best-known political prisoners in the world, Abu-Jamal was an award-winning journalist and co-founder of the Philadelphia chapter of the Black Panther Party before his incarceration, and has continued to write and speak from prison. Human rights groups say he was denied a fair trial, with evidence unearthed in 2019 showing judicial bias and police and prosecutorial misconduct. Abu-Jamal is now 71 years old, and advocates say he is being denied proper medical care in prison, permanently risking his eyesight.

“We’re marching today to demand freedom for Mumia and all political prisoners,” says activist Larry Hamm.

“We ration healthcare in this country, and in particular for prisoners,” says Noelle Hanrahan, part of Abu-Jamal’s legal team, who is demanding “that Mumia get specialist care … and that he is given the treatment that he deserves.”

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AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org. I’m Amy Goodman, with Juan González.

One of the world’s most well-known political prisoners, Mumia Abu-Jamal, was arrested on this day in 1981 for the murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner, for which Mumia Abu-Jamal has always claimed innocence. Amnesty International and human rights groups have found he was deprived of a fair trial. His lawyers say evidence shows his trial was tainted by judicial bias and police and prosecutorial misconduct, like withholding of evidence, bribing or coercing witnesses to lie. Evidence in boxes discovered in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office by DA Larry Krasner in 2019 includes notes from one of two key witnesses to prosecutors requesting, quote, “the money owed to me,” unquote.

Mumia Abu-Jamal was an award-winning journalist, member of the Philadelphia chapter of the Black Panther Party, ultimately sentenced to death, but went on to write 15 books and record a weekly column while a global movement built around his case. He spent 29 years in solitary confinement. In 2012, Mumia Abu-Jamal was moved from death row to the general prison population after a federal appeals court in 2011 upheld the overturning of his death sentence by a federal judge, citing improper jury instructions, and prosecutors agreed to a life sentence rather than a new sentencing hearing.

Mumia Abu-Jamal is now 71 years old, was recently blind for eight months until he had cataract surgery, but needs more medical care to prevent him from permanently losing his vision. Dozens of his supporters who hope to draw attention to his claims of medical neglect are on 103-mile, 12-day march that’s ending today in Frackville, Pennsylvania, where Mumia is imprisoned at SCI Mahanoy.

ZAYID MUHAMMAD: We’re taking that long walk, because the walk for freedom is a long walk. And we do it with an intense, extra motivated passion, because we just lost a bold freedom fighter in Imam Jamil Abdullah al-Amin in the clutches of the state, and that should not have happened. So, under no circumstances can we allow the state to take any more of our freedom fighters. It’s time to get Mumia all the healthcare he needs.

AMY GOODMAN: In a minute, we’ll speak with someone on the march and a member of Mumia Abu-Jamal’s legal team. But first, this is a Prison Radio commentary that he recorded in August, titled “Mumia’s Vision: A Message for the Movement.”

MUMIA ABU-JAMAL: I have been reluctant to talk about my eye problems. The reasons may have eluded some, but I explain that, you know, in the context of being in prison, any sign of weakness is to be avoided at all costs. These are, unlike many other institutions in society, heavily male, and therefore gender-conscious in a way that society is not. Weakness brings predation.

So, I kept it quiet. And I kept it quiet simply because I wrongly believed that once I got examined and once it was clear that this was a real visual contextual problem, that I would get a rather quick response. Boy, was I wrong. I was, as the saying goes, as wrong as two left feet. What I got was evaluation after evaluation after evaluation after evaluation, literally. It was only when I went outside and those prior evaluations were repeated by a noted ophthalmologist that the ball began to roll. And even then, the ball rolled exceedingly slowly.

I have been, for all intents and purposes, unable to read, unable to write, unable to see anything more than the masthead of a newspaper and not even its headlines, blurry television bursts of color. The television is my radio now.

AMY GOODMAN: Mumia Abu-Jamal, speaking from prison, SCI, State Correctional Institution, Mahanoy in Pennsylvania.

For more, we’re joined by Larry Hamm, chair of the People’s Organization for Progress, one of the elders on the March for Mumia. He is in Frackville, Pennsylvania, where the prison is. And here in New York, one of Mumia’s lawyers, Noelle Hanrahan, founder and producer of Prison Radio, which has been recording and distributing Mumia’s commentaries from prison since 1992.

Larry, let’s begin with you. You’re on this more than 100-[mile] march that’s ending today. Why did you march? What are you calling for?

LARRY HAMM: Good morning, Amy. Good morning, Juan. Good morning, Noelle.

We are marching to free Mumia and free all political prisoners. We are marching to draw attention to Mumia’s medical problems, but, more importantly, to demand that he get the surgery and medical treatment he needs. We are marching for humane treatment for all prisoners, especially our elders. I’m a witness to the fact that we have an aging prison population, and, like Mumia, many of them are not getting the medical care they need. So we’re marching today to demand freedom for Mumia and all political prisoners and to demand that Mumia get the urgent surgery and medical treatment he needs.

JUAN GONZÁLEZ: And, Noelle, I’d like to ask you: In terms of his battle for healthcare, Mumia’s battle for healthcare, why has it been so difficult for him to get that healthcare?

NOELLE HANRAHAN: [inaudible] healthcare in this country, and in particular for prisoners, there are contracts by Wellpath that specifically state that they limit ophthalmological care in prison to on-site monitoring. They do not send people routinely out for specialist care. We had to fight. The Abolitionist Law Center, the lawyers and the movement had to come together to demand that Mumia get care just for post-cataract surgery. When we got the specialists to look at Mumia, they discovered two other conditions that could mean that he loses his eyesight permanently if he is not treated. He has not been treated for these conditions since June.

AMY GOODMAN: So, what are you demanding right now?

NOELLE HANRAHAN: That Mumia get specialist care for his glaucoma and his diabetic retinopathy, and that he is given the treatment that he deserves. But we’re not just calling for Mumia, because there are many inmates. They know who’s blind in prison. They are refusing care to save money for Wellpath.

AMY GOODMAN: Why is ophthalmological care particularly limited?

NOELLE HANRAHAN: I don’t know if it’s particularly limited. It’s the one we’ve researched right now. I believe that they likely limit all care that might cost them money. Like our lawsuit for hep C care in 2017 that won care, the first preliminary injunction for hep C care, they did not treat Mumia with a fast-acting cure for two years, causing, likely, the diabetic retinopathy.

JUAN GONZÁLEZ: And, Noelle, Philadelphia has a supposedly progressive DA, District Attorney Krasner, who his own office found forgotten files on Mumia that showed bias in his trial. Why has there been no movement by the DA to reopen his case?

NOELLE HANRAHAN: I think the DA has been pressured to actively litigate this case by being impeached by the Pennsylvania Senate, also by being called up in a special — there was a King’s Bench petition that deposed Larry, that asked him specifically if he was going to prosecute Mumia. There are pressures. Mumia is the third rail in Philadelphia. He is like everyone else in prison, the 5,000 people that are serving life without possibility of parole just in Pennsylvania. He’s one of a class of many. And Krasner, he will do the right thing. He is elected by the people. He’s elected by the abolitionist ecosystem. We have an obligation to make it impossible for him to not support us. But there’s pressure.

AMY GOODMAN: And on what grounds are you asking for his case to be reopened now?

NOELLE HANRAHAN: There are three ways that any lifer can get out. It would be a post-conviction relief application, which we are developing, that he doesn’t have one in court right now. His last one was denied in March by a lower court that did not fairly review his case. He can also go through the pardon board, which is a five-member panel and also the governor, six — have to be unanimous — or compassionate release, which is extremely limited.

AMY GOODMAN: Finally, if you can comment, Larry Hamm, on what you’re doing today in front of the prison in Frackville, Pennsylvania, what this more than hundred-mile march has meant for you? You’re about the same age as Mumia Abu-Jamal.

LARRY HAMM: I am exactly the same age as Mumia, and our birthdays are in the same month.

Yesterday, we reached the hundred-mile mark, and today we will march the last three miles to Mahanoy prison, where Mumia is incarcerated. We will have a press conference and a rally there to once again make the call for Mumia to get the medical care that he needs, and for all prisoners, especially our elders, to get the medical care that they need.

AMY GOODMAN: And, Noelle Hanrahan, 10 seconds.

NOELLE HANRAHAN: It’s relief from the inside out. This was built by prisoners. It was built by prisoners’ families, the Abolitionist Law Center, Saleem Holbrook, Bret Grote, the lead attorney. We are going to win and create the world that we deserve.

AMY GOODMAN: Noelle Hanrahan is one of Mumia Abu-Jamal’s attorneys and founder and producer of Prison Radio. Larry Hamm is chair of the People’s Organization for Progress, on the March for Mumia, speaking to us from Frackville, Pennsylvania, where he is imprisoned. I’m Amy Goodman, with Juan González.

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After the March for Mumia – a bluesy poem

Julia Wright

i so longed to march

with y’all

from the city of the absence of love

to SCI Mahanoy

that here across the pond

i lost balance and fell

twice in twelve days

as i walkedin a foreign town

with a Free Mumia banner

in my mind

yesterday

while y’all gathered

in front of Mumia’s prison

i was seeing a doctor

for this repeated loss of balance
after examining me

the doctor shook her head

and said :Madam

if you want to walk safe distances

you need a cane
this morning

i bought a cane

but

the real weathered walking stick

in your youthful hands

#PEOPLESORGANIZATIONFORPROGRESS WILL PARTICIPATE IN 100-MILE MARCH FOR #MUMIAABUJAMAL

Posted on November 26, 2025 by toddpanther

PEOPLE’S ORGANIZATION FOR PROGRESS (POP)
PO BOX 22505
NEWARK, NJ 07101
973 801-0001
CONTACT: LAWRENCE HAMM

NOVEMBER 26, 2025

FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE

PEOPLE’S ORGANIZATION FOR PROGRESS WILL PARTICIPATE IN 100 MILE MARCH FOR MUMIA ABU-JAMAL

POP CHAIRMAN LAWRENCE HAMM WILL MARCH FOR MUMIA

The People’s Organization for Progress (POP) will participate in a 103-mile march to draw attention to the worsening medical condition of political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal. It will begin Friday, Nov. 28, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The “March For Mumia” will start at 9 a.m. at Uncle Bobbie’s Cafe & Books, 5445 Germantown Avenue in Philadelphia. The event is sponsored by the March For Mumia coalition.

“We are marching to demand freedom for Mumia Abu-Jamal and all political prisoners,” Lawrence Hamm, Chairman, People’s Organization For Progress, stated.

“We are also marching to demand an end to the abuse that Mumia and other political prisoners experience, and that they receive the proper medical attention and care they need,” Hamm said.

The participants will walk 103 miles over twelve days until they reach the SCI Mahanoy Corrections Facility in Frackville on December 9th, where Abu-Jamal is incarcerated. Hamm said he will attempt to march to entire route.

Mumia Abu-Jamal is a renowned journalist and author who has written more than a dozen books. He is a revolutionary, political activist and former member of the Black Panther Party.

Abu-Jamal, 71 years old, has been incarcerated for 44 years. In 1981, he was convicted for the murder of Daniel Faulkner, a Philadelphia police officer.

His death sentence was subsequently commuted to life imprisonment. He has always maintained his innocence. His case, the issue of his innocence, and his fight for freedom have garnered international support over the decades.

Many well-known political activists, celebrities, and human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International, have demanded a new trial for Abu-Jamal. He has become a prominent personality in the fight to end racism, mass incarceration, inhumane treatment of prisoners, and the death penalty.

“We believe that Mumia is innocent and should be free. We demand freedom for all political prisoners. At a minimum Mumia should have a new trial,” Hamm said.

Over the years POP has held demonstrations rallies and programs to draw attention to Abu-Jamal’s struggle for freedom and his fight for medical care. More than a decade ago Hamm personally visited Abu-Jamal at the prison in Frackville.

“Mumia has been an elder for some years and has been experiencing very serious health challenges. He is in danger of going blind if he does not have surgery and treatment for diabetic retinopathy. We are marching to demand the Department of Corrections provide it,” he said.

The People’s Organization For Progress is part of the March For Mumia coalition. Besides Hamm other POP members will be marching including community organizer and poet Zayid Muhammad, and activist Steven Bernhaut.

“We invite everyone to join us for the march whether you can march one day or twelve days, or whether you can march one mile or 100 miles. Even if you can’t march come out and cheer us on. We need your support,” he said.

“When I march for Mumia I will also be marching for an end to mass incarceration, the death penalty, and slave labor in our prisons. I will be marching for all those treated unfairly and inhumanely by the criminal justice system,” Hamm said.

For more information contact March For Mumia at (862) 240-6589, or MarchforMumia@gmail.com. Visit the website at MarchforMumia.org. To contact Lawrence Hamm call the People’s Organization For Progress at (973) 801-0001.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Steven Bernhaut, 201-960-9204; marchformumia@gmail.com

Website: http://www.marchformumia.org

MARCHERS TO KICK OFF 103-MILE WALK FROM PHILADELPHIA TO FRACKVILLE, PA TO HIGHLIGHT PRISON ABUSES AND TO FREE MUMIA

“Many people say it is insane to resist the system, but actually, it’s insane not to.” — Mumia Abu- Jamal

Philadelphia, PA — Starting at 9 a.m., Friday, Nov. 28, activists, community leaders, and families of the incarcerated will gather next to Uncle Bobbie’s Bookstore at The Market Square Monument, 5447 Germantown Ave, Germantown, Philadelphia to embark on a March for Mumia, a 12-day mobilization demanding freedom for journalist and political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal, and calling attention to the systemic crisis of elder abuse, medical neglect, and politically targeted incarceration.

After libations and a few speakers, marchers carrying signs will walk 7.1 miles up Germantown Ave. through Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill and eventually to Miles Park in LaFayette Hill, where participants will share food and solidarity.

For 11 more days, marchers will walk for 3-6 hours daily for 7-12 miles until they reach SCI Mahanoy in Frackville, PA on Dec. 9. Once there, participants will present a list of demands to the facility’s Superintendent, Bernadette Mason.

Abu-Jamal, 71 years old, suffers from chronic health conditions—including heart disease and vision loss—worsened by what his family and supporters describe as medical neglect by the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin (formerly known as Black Power activist H. Rap Brown), following complaints of elder abuse and medical neglect by his family and supporters, died Nov. 23 after 23 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. Al-Amin’s and Mumia’s conditions reflect the broader crisis of this country’s aging prison population amid decades of medical neglect, as our brothers and sisters behind bars are routinely denied adequate care and proper food.

The March seeks to highlight these abuses and demands an end to the systemic neglect of elderly and sick incarcerated people across the U.S. and the immediate release of Mumia Abu-Jamal and other political prisoners.

Born in 1954, Abu-Jamal grew up in Philadelphia amid racial segregation and police violence. As a teenager, he joined the Black Panther Party and later became an award-winning journalist known for exposing systemic racism and police abuse. His reporting challenged Philadelphia’s power structure, earning him recognition—and hostility—from local authorities.

In 1981, Abu-Jamal was arrested and convicted of the shooting death of a Philadelphia police officer. His 1982 conviction was tainted by racial bias, coerced testimony, and judicial misconduct. Although a federal court overturned his death sentence in 2001, he remains imprisoned for life without parole. Despite decades of appeals and evidence of prosecutorial misconduct and constitutional violations, the state has blocked every attempt to grant him a fair trial.

Prominent voices including Amnesty International, the United Nations Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, Bishop Desmond Tutu, Maya Angelou, Nelson Mandela, Toni Morrison, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), the International Transport Workers Union and the Congressional Black Caucus, among others, have long called for justice for Mumia and for his release.

March organizers and endorsers unite under a shared belief in the dignity of all human beings. It’s time to end a system that treats people as disposable.

Visit http://www.marchformumia.org for more details.

-30-

“We must choose farms over arms!” #WBAI #VantagePoint Radio w/ #RonDaniels : The Genius of Rev. #JesseJackson — Legacy and Lessons from the 1984 and 1988 Campaigns

Posted on October 26, 2025 by toddpanther

Black media institutions/forums don’t have the funds to create advance obits. So this will clearly function as one of them.

Vantage Point Radio: The Genius of Rev. Jesse L. Jackson — Legacy and Lessons from the 1984 and 1988 Campaigns

https://stateofblackamerica.org/authors/dr-ron-daniels

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REQUIRED READING ON THE TOPIC BY AMIRI BARAKA:

https://www.firstofthemonth.org/jesse-jackson-and-black-people-redux/

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CIVIL RIGHTS GROUP CONDEMNS CHARGES BROUGHT AGAINST U.S. REP. #LAMONICAMCIVER

Posted on May 20, 2025 by toddpanther

PEOPLE’S ORGANIZATION FOR PROGRESS (POP)
PO BOX 22505
NEWARK, NJ 07101
973 801-0001
http://www.njpop.org
CONTACT: LAWRENCE HAMM

MAY 20, 2025

FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE

CIVIL RIGHTS GROUP CONDEMNS CHARGES BROUGHT AGAINST CONGRESSWOMAN MCIVER

The following statement was issued by Lawrence Hamm, chairperson of the People’s Organization For Progress:

The People’s Organization For Progress (POP) condemns Alina Habba, interim U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, for bringing charges against Congresswoman LaMonica McIver.

The charges have been filed in connection with the incident involving the arrest of Mayor Ras Baraka that occurred on May 9th at Delaney Hall in Newark.

POP believes that Congresswoman McIver is innocent and that these charges are false. We demand that Habba dismiss these charges against the congresswoman just as she dismissed those against Mayor Ras Baraka.

Congresswoman McIver should not have been charged in the first place. She is not the one at fault here.

The fault lies with the ICE agents who precipitated the incident. They escalated the event, overreacting with excessive force in a reckless, abusive, and totally unprofessional manner.

The ICE agents were armed. Congresswoman McIver, Congresswoman Bonnie Watson-Coleman, Congressman Robert Menedez Jr, and Mayor Baraka were unarmed. The ICE agents created a dangerous situation.

The behavior of ICE personnel and the response of the U.S. Attorney’s Office is characteristic of what happens in police brutality cases.

The police abuse someone and then pile charges on the innocent victim to deflect attention from their own misconduct and to coverup their misdeeds.

Rep. McIver did nothing wrong. She and the other House representatives were at Delaney Hall to conduct an oversight visit which they have a right to do as members of Congress.

We also believe the charges against the congresswoman are politically motivated. McIver, Baraka and other elected officials across the country are being targeted because their policies and positions on immigration are opposed to those of the Trump administration.

The filing of these charges against Congresswoman McIver is a grave injustice. In so doing U.S. Attorney Habba is violating her oath of office when she swore to be impartial and to do justice.

These charges and the pursuit of Congresswoman McIver in this manner is a waste of taxpayer money. The dismissal of the charges against Mayor Baraka should have been the end of this unfortunate episode.

Finally, Habba has said she is doing this because “no one is above the law.” It is difficult to take this pronouncement from her seriously.

Her boss and the man who appointed her, President Trump, places himself above the law almost every day of the week. He blatantly defies the laws of this nation at every turn.

Trump violates the constitution, ignores court orders, attacks attorneys, locks up judges and denies people their rights. Rather than charging McIver she should consider bringing charges against Trump.

-END-

[REVISED AND UPDATED] “Donald Trump Must Be Defeated”: N.J. Activist Group Endorses Harris-Walz Ticket

Posted on November 4, 2024 by toddpanther

PEOPLE’S ORGANIZATION FOR PROGRESS (POP)
PO BOX 22505
NEWARK, NJ 07101
973 801-0001
http://www.njpop.org
CONTACT: LAWRENCE HAMM

NOVEMBER 4, 2024

FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE

DEFEAT TRUMP: PEOPLE’S ORGANIZATION FOR PROGRESS (POP) ENDORSES HARRIS-WALZ TICKET

The People’s Organization For Progress (POP) publicly announced today its endorsement of the Harris-Walz ticket for president and vice president of the United States. The following statement was issued today on behalf of POP by the group’s chairman Lawrence Hamm:

Today, the People’s Organization For Progress (POP) publicly endorses Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz, the Democratic Party nominees for President and Vice President of the United States.

All voters are urged to cast their ballots for the Harris-Walz ticket on Election Day, Tuesday, November 5, 2024. POP calls for a massive record turnout to ensure that former president Donald Trump is soundly defeated.

The People’s Organization For Progress is an all-volunteer, multi-issue, grassroots group that works for racial, social, and economic justice. The 42-year-old organization was established in 1982. It was founded by its current chairman Lawrence Hamm. Although based in Newark its activities have been statewide in scope.

The decision to make an organizational endorsement was made two weeks ago at the October 17th POP meeting. At that meeting, POP chairman Lawrence Hamm presented his statement of endorsement that had been made earlier that month.

After a review of the statement and the subsequent debate that followed, the group voted to adopt it with minor amendments as an organization’s position. The full statement is released for the first time today.

The election, which started last month with vote-by-mail and early voting, will end tomorrow with in-person voting at regular polling places. As of today, all things remaining the same, there are two possible outcomes as far as who will win the election. It will either be the Harris-Walz team or that of former president Donald Trump and Senator J. D. Vance, the Republican nominees.

POP believes the Harris-Walz ticket is the better choice between these two. Trump has already shown us what he can do. He served one term in the White House, and it was a disaster.

He was a failed president. That is why he was defeated by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in 2020. POP believes a second Trump term would be more catastrophic than the first.

Trump must be defeated in November. He was one of the worst presidents in American history. He must be prevented from winning a second term in the White House.

The Harris-Walz team is the only ticket with the potential strength to defeat Trump at the ballot box. Doing all we can to ensure their victory is how to keep Trump out of the White House again.

The race between Harris and Trump is very close. As of today, it is too close to call. Every vote is going to count. We must vote in record numbers and do everything else necessary to realize a Harris-Walz victory and defeat Trump in November.

Our endorsement of the Harris-Walz ticket does not mean we agree with the Vice President on all of her policy positions. In particular, we strongly oppose the Biden-Harris administration’s support of Israel’s genocidal war against the Palestinians.

POP has issued statements opposing U.S. support for this war since it began last October. Over the past year, the U.S. has given billions in military aid to Israel for its genocidal war against the Palestinians. In so doing our country has become a partner in genocide.

With U.S.-made bombs, aircraft, and weapons of war, Israel has killed, according to conservative estimates, more than 45,000 Palestinians, the majority of whom have been women and children. Others have put the death toll as high as 186,000 when you include those who are missing and buried under the rubble.

It has wounded more than 100,000 and displaced more than 2,000,000, which is nearly the entire population of Gaza. The majority of Palestinians are suffering from starvation and disease because of the war.

Israel has bombed and destroyed more than 86,000 housing units and damaged more than 300,000 more. It has destroyed 32 hospitals, 100 universities and schools, and more than 25,000 other buildings, including mosques and churches.

Israel has turned Gaza into an apocalyptic uninhabitable wasteland, but the destruction has not stopped there. It has expanded the war to the West Bank. Israel has bombed Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Iran. It is threatening all-out war with Iran. Israel is turning the war in Gaza into a regional conflagration and dragging the international community closer to world war.

Since October of 2023, POP has opposed and demonstrated against the war and called for an immediate ceasefire. Because of the Biden-Harris administration‘s continued support for the war we urged our members to vote uncommitted in the New Jersey presidential primary race and urged others to do the same in order to send a strong message to the administration to change course.

In July, President Biden bowed out of the race and threw his support behind Vice President Harris who went on to the Democratic National Convention to win her party’s nomination for president. At that time she said she wanted a ceasefire and that the administration was working to bring the war to an end.

Whatever the Biden-Harris administration is doing to bring about a ceasefire in Gaza is not working. In fact, it has produced the opposite effect. Saying you want a ceasefire while doing everything possible to send more weapons to Israel will prolong the war and genocide, not end it.

The Biden-Harris administration must drastically change course on the Gaza war and Middle East policy. Just saying you want a ceasefire is not enough. Vice President Harris must call for an arms embargo against Israel in order to bring the fighting to an end.

Other nations have announced a halt to weapons sales to Israel. The U.S. should do the same. The majority of Americans want a ceasefire in Gaza. The majority of Americans want the U.S. to stop sending weapons to Israel for the war in Gaza.

POP believes that if the Vice President called for an arms embargo against Israel to bring about an end to the war, it would improve her chances for victory in November. Continuing on the current course will only increase the chances of defeat.

We have opposed and protested against Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza and U.S. support for it under the Biden-Harris administration. And we will continue to do so if there is no change in policy under a Harris-Walz administration.

Trump must be defeated. We cannot allow a would-be dictator who tried to seize power through a right-wing coup attempt, conspired to overturn an election, and led a violent insurrection, to become president of the United States. A second term will only allow him to try to do it again.

He is leading a reactionary movement that has in its ranks white supremacists, neo-nazis, and violent extremists. Their movement wants to roll back nearly one hundred years of hard-won rights and social progress. A Trump victory will only strengthen that movement.

The initiatives Trump proposes to realize this reactionary agenda are outlined in Project 2025, Agenda 47, the platform of this year’s Republican National Convention, and several recent Supreme Court decisions.

Trump has used the U.S. Supreme Court to accomplish the goals of that movement. He has made appointments that have led to a conservative super majority on the court. It has issued decisions that will negatively impact the lives of millions of people.

Trump is a racist, fascist, sexist, bigot, and pathological liar. When he was elected, he failed to win the popular vote. While president, he was impeached twice. He is the only former president convicted of a crime.

He is facing upcoming trials on other charges. He has vowed to pardon those of his followers who violently attacked the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Trump is corrupt and unfit to hold office.

Both he and his enablers in the Republican Party must be defeated. Democrats must win the White House, win back the majority in the House of Representatives, and hold on to and widen their majority in the Senate.

Tomorrow is Election Day. We urge everyone to go to the polls and to also do whatever you can to get other people to go and vote. Tell your family, friends, neighbors and coworkers to go vote. Use whatever means of communication that is available to you including word of mouth, phone calls, emails, text messages, and social media.

There must be massive voter mobilization. Everyone must vote. Don’t sit this election out. Everyone must get involved. Those who can should help get people to the polls.

We must vote in record landslide numbers to hand Trump a crushing and incontestable defeat on Election Day so that the Harris-Walz team can win both the popular vote and the electoral college.

Our work will continue after Election Day. Trump has made it clear that he will not concede if he loses the election. He will try to overturn the results of this election as he did with the 2020 election. We must remain vigilant and be ready to take to the streets and prevent him from stealing this election.

We must continue to struggle after the new president is sworn in on January 20, 2025. We must hold the Harris-Walz administration accountable just as we did the Biden administration. We must hold their feet to the fire to bring the war in Gaza to an end and to improve the quality of life for the vast majority of people at home.

Lawrence Hamm
Chairman
People’s Organization For Progress

“Donald Trump Must Be Defeated”: N.J. Activist Lawrence Hamm Endorses Harris-Walz Ticket

Posted on October 7, 2024 by toddpanther

PEOPLE’S ORGANIZATION FOR PROGRESS (POP)
PO BOX 22505
NEWARK, NJ 07101
973 801-0001
http://www.njpop.org
CONTACT: LAWRENCE HAMM

OCTOBER 7, 2024

FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE

DONALD TRUMP MUST BE DEFEATED: HAMM ENDORSES HARRIS-WALZ TICKET

The following endorsement was issued today by Lawrence Hamm, Chairperson, People’s Organization For Progress and former candidate for U.S. Senator (NJ):

Today, I am personally and publicly endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz, the Democratic Party nominees for President and Vice President of the United States. I urge all voters to cast their ballots for the Harris-Walz ticket on Election Day, Tuesday, November 5, 2024.

The election will take place In less than thirty days. As of today, all things remaining the same, there are two possible outcomes as far as who will win the election. It will either be Harris-Walz team or that of former president Donald Trump and Senator J. D. Vance, the Republican nominees.

Between these two I believe the Harris-Walz ticket to be the better choice for the country. Trump has already shown us what he can do. He served one term in the White House and it was a disaster.

He was a failed president. That is why he was defeated by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in 2020. I have every reason to believe a second Trump term would be more catastrophic than the first.

It is imperative that Trump is defeated in November. He was one of the worst presidents in American history. He must be prevented from winning a second term in the White House.

The Harris-Walz team is the only ticket with the potential strength to defeat Trump at the ballot box. Doing all we can to ensure their victory is the means by which to keep Trump out of the White House again.

The race between Harris and Trump is very close. As of today it is too close to call. Every vote is going to count. We must vote in record numbers and do everything else necessary to realize a Harris-Walz victory and defeat Trump in November.

My endorsement of the Harris-Walz ticket does not mean I agree with the Vice President on all of her policy positions. In particular, I have strongly opposed the Biden-Harris administration’s support of Israel’s genocidal war against the Palestinians.

I have issued statements opposing U.S. support for this war since it began last October. Over the past year U.S. has given billions in military aid to Israel for its genocidal war against the Palestinians. In so doing our country has become a partner in genocide.

With U.S. made bombs, aircraft, and weapons of war Israel has killed, according to conservative estimates, more that 45,000 Palestinians, the majority of whom have been women and children. Others have put the death toll has high as 186,000 when you include those that are missing and buried under the rubble.

It has wounded more than 100,000, and displaced more than 2,000,000 which is nearly the entire population of Gaza. The majority of Palestinians are suffering from starvation and disease because of the war.

Israel has turned Gaza into an apocalyptic uninhabitable wasteland, but the destruction has not stopped there. It has expanded the war to the West Bank. It is bombing Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and threatening all out war with Iran. Israel is turning the war in Gaza into a regional conflagration and dragging the international community closer to world war.

As a candidate for U.S. Senate in the NJ Democratic Primary I ran in opposition to the war and called for an immediate ceasefire. Because of the Biden-Harris administration‘s continued support for the war I voted uncommitted in the presidential primary race and urged others to do the same in order to send a strong message to the administration to change course.

I believe that if the Vice President called for an arms embargo against Israel to bring about an end to the war it would improve her chances for victory in November. Continuing on the current course will only increase the chances of defeat.

I have opposed and protested against Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza, and U.S. support for it under the Biden-Harris administration. And I will continue to do so if there is no change and policy under a Harris-Walz administration.

Trump must be defeated. We cannot allow a would be dictator who tried to seize power through a right wing coup attempt, conspired to overturn an election, and led a violent insurrection, become president of the United States. A second term will only allow him to try to do it again.

He is leading a reactionary movement that has in its ranks white supremacists, neo-nazis, and violent extremists. Their movement wants to roll back nearly one hundred years of hard won rights and social progress. A Trump victory will only strengthen that movement.

Trump has used the U.S. Supreme Court to also accomplish the goals of that movement. He has by made appointments that have led to a conservative super majority on the court. It has issued decisions that will negatively impact the lives of millions of people.

Trump is a racist, fascist, sexist, bigot, and pathological liar. When he was elected he failed to win the popular vote. While president he was impeached twice. He is the only former president convicted of a crime.

He is facing upcoming trials on other charges. He has vowed to pardon those of his followers who violently attacked the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Trump is corrupt and unfit to hold office.

Both he and his enablers in the Republican Party must be defeated. Democrats must must win the White House, win back the majority in the House of Representatives, and hold on to and widen their majority in the Senate.

There are less than 30 days until the election on November 5th. I urge everyone to engage in voter registration efforts until the October 15th cut-off date. Those folks who are registered should check their registration and make sure everything is in order.

There must be massive voter mobilization. Everyone must vote. Don’t sit this election out. Everyone must get involved. Those who can should help get people to the polls.

We must vote in record landslide numbers in order to hand Trump a crushing and incontestable defeat on Election Day in both the popular vote and the electoral college.

Lawrence Hamm
Chairperson, People’s Organization For Progress
Former Candidate For U.S. Senator