The case of Mumia Abu Jamal.

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I met Mumia when he was a young leader of the Black Panther Party. When I heard he had been charged with killing a Philadelphia policeman, I checked into the facts of the case, and wrote this song.

Mumia Abu-Jamal

It started in the darkness of a downtown Philly street.
A cop was workin’ over, a kid was bein’ beat.
A cabby drivin’ by slammed on his brakes
And walked into a nightmare, and almost to his grave.

Chorus:
Mumia Abu-Jamal, Mumia Abu-Jamal,
Live from death row, he’s someone you should know,
Mumia Abu-Jamal.

Mumia saw his brother was beaten on the ground.
He tried to stop the policeman and Mumia was shot down.
When he woke up, he was in a hospital ward,
They told him someone shot that cop, killed him with a .44.

Mumia was a Panther when he was a kid,
Then he fought police brutality as a radio journalist.
Now he’s up for murder, it’s a miracle, they say,
He put a .44 bullet through the barrel of a .38. Chorus

The system is not equal, the system is not fair,
It’s always a little fairer if you’re a millionaire.
OJ had big lawyers to save him from disgrace.
Mumia had no money, and so he lost his case.

Old Judge Sabo did a little dance,
As he handed down the sentence he almost wet his pants
“Let’s kill all these Mumias and take a bite out of crime.
The streets will be much safer, the trains will run on time.” Chorus

They killed Sacco and Vanzetti, and murdered the Rosenbergs.
Now they have Mumia, and it’s equally absurd.
We can win a new trial, and when he is released,
We’ll lift him on our shoulders and carry him down the street. Chorus