(Photo: Kenny)
“I am everyone who ever died without a voice or a prayer or a hope or a chance.”—Leonard Peltier
Tuesday was a day of great joy and celebration for those who have rallied for the freedom of political prisoners Oscar López Rivera and Chelsea Manning. With longstanding campaigns demanding the freedom of López Rivera, who fought for Puerto Rican independence, and Manning, a US soldier-turned-whistleblower, these were both important victories, for the prisoners, their loved ones and supporters around the world. In addition to Rivera and Manning, 207 other commutations were also granted on Tuesday. But among those left behind in this end-game round of clemency was another activist whose longtime campaign for clemency may well hinge on Obama’s last moves in office: Leonard Peltier.
In 1977, Peltier, an activist with the American Indian Movement (AIM), was convicted of murdering two FBI agents. For decades, advocates and human rights organizations have condemned the trial as a political witch hunt, during which evidence that could have exonerated Peltier was concealed by the state. After decades in prison, Peltier has become gravely ill. To say Peltier has received substandard care in the federal prison system would be a gross understatement, and behind prison walls, he likely won’t survive to see another administration that might set him free.
Peltier’s case has been summarized many times and I will lean on the voices of those who have explained Peltier’s case, how he was framed by the government for killing two FBI agents, and why. I will let their explanations, and Peltier’s own words, fill in the blanks for those in need of details, because what I want to say here is personal, and the plea I am about to make is as personal as it is political.
First, I want to explain that simply learning Peltier’s story, as a young girl, helped shape my future politics. My father’s belief in the necessity of assimilation limited my access to Native culture and history. He never…