Mumia: Long Distance Revolutionary coming to Los Angeles

SYNOPSIS from the official website:

Before he was convicted of murdering a policeman in 1981 and sentenced to die, Mumia Abu-Jamal was a gifted journalist and brilliant writer. Now after more than 30 years in prison and despite attempts to silence him, Mumia is not only still alive but continuing to report, educate, provoke and inspire.

Stephen Vittoria’s new feature documentary is an inspiring portrait of a man whom many consider America’s most famous political prisoner – a man whose existence tests our beliefs about freedom of expression. Through prison interviews, archival footage, and dramatic readings, and aided by a potent chorus of voices including Cornel West, Alice Walker, Dick Gregory, Angela Davis, Amy Goodman and others, this riveting film explores Mumia’s life before, during and after Death Row – revealing, in the words of Angela Davis, “the most eloquent and most powerful opponent of the death penalty in the world…the 21st Century Frederick Douglass.”

Watch Democracy Now! interview with writer, producer and director Steve Vittoria and Noelle Hanrahan of Prison Radio

Check showtimes and buy tickets here.

Native American Youth to Diane Sawyer: We’re Not Poverty Porn via Colorlines

Last month ABC’s 20/20 aired a special they called “Children of the Plains,” that portrayed the Lakota Indian reservation as a place that only dealt with crime, unemployment, alcoholism, overcrowded trailers and crumbling schools.

On Monday, young Native American students from Rosebud, South Dakota released a short video that challenged the claims made by “Children of the plains.”

via Colorlines

Melvin Van Peebles Supports The Occupy Wall Street Movement With His 1971 Song From “Watermelon Man”

via Shadow and Act

Famed director Melvin Van Peebles, who knows his share of controversy, decided to lend his support to the Occupy Wall Street Movement. His 1971 song “Love That’s America,” from his first Hollywood film Watermelon Man, has been used with various OWS promotional videos circulating on the web now. The latest one, below, is by Cypher Films.

Read more via Shadow and Act