The Tragedy of Leonard Peltier vs. the US
by Peter Matthiessen
The New York Review of Books
Volume 56, Number 18 · November 19, 2009


On July 27, 2009, I drove west from New York to the old riverside town of Lewisburg in central Pennsylvania, the site of the federal penitentiary where early the next morning I would make an appeal to the parole board on behalf of the American Indian Movement (AIM) activist Leonard Peltier in his first parole hearing in fifteen years. On this soft summer evening, a quiet gathering of Peltier supporters from all over the country [shared] a makeshift picnic... [and] were optimistic about a favorable outcome. Surely a new era of justice for minorities and poor people had begun with the Obama administration, and anyway, wasn't Leonard's freedom all but assured by the Parole Act of 2005, which mandated release for inmates who had spent thirty or more years in prison? Read More: http://freepeltiernow.blogspot.com/2...

Circle for Clemency

What: Peaceful demonstration in support of Leonard Peltier’s freedom
When: 05 November 2009; 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Where: Washington, DC

President Obama will host his first annual White House Tribal Summit on 05 November 2009. The Nations will be given the opportunity to interact directly with the president and other top administration officials. All of the 564 federally recognized tribes are invited to send a representative. This is a prime opportunity to be seen and heard on the issue of Leonard Peltier’s wrongful conviction and imprisonment.

Peltier's brothers, sisters, friends, and other supporters will gather in Lafayette Park on Pennsylvania Avenue (across from the White House) at 6:00 a.m. Bring signs and banners, wear Peltier T-Shirts, etc. From Lafayette Park, supporters will walk to the Department of the Interior, 1849 C Street, NW, where tribal leaders will assemble for their meeting with President Obama.

In support of this action, tribal members are asked to (1) urge your Tribal Chairpersons to speak to Obama on Mr. Peltier’s behalf - Free Peltier NOW; and (2) lobby your Tribal Councils to pass resolutions calling for freedom for Peltier, the release of all case-related documents still withheld by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and a congressional hearing on the government’s role in the turmoil on Pine Ridge Reservation during the 1970s.

CONTACT: Rob at (919) 596-2100 or clemencynow@gmail.com

http://freepeltiernow.blogspot.com/2...