Rep. Eric Swalwell’s 1999 Call for Mumia Abu-Jamal’s Release

Rep. Eric Swalwell reportedly advocated for the release of Mumia Abu-Jamal, a former Black Panther convicted of murdering a police officer, in a 1999 op-ed for his college newspaper.

Swalwell, a Democrat from California and a candidate to succeed Governor Gavin Newsom, penned the piece under the pseudonym “Radically Poetic.” He expressed his thoughts while studying at Campbell University in North Carolina.

In the column, Swalwell urged, “America, it’s time to wake up,” encouraging readers to explore the stories of various prisoners who he believed deserved fair trials.

He described Abu-Jamal and another convicted cop killer, Leonard Peltier, as “political prisoners” caught in a “systemically corrupt justice system.”

In the same piece, he directed readers to the rock band Rage Against the Machine’s website for more details on these cases.

Interestingly, Swalwell often identifies as the son of a police chief, which he claims influences his views on public safety and criminal justice. He frequently references his father’s law enforcement background during his campaign and public discussions.

Abu-Jamal was convicted for the 1981 murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner and was given a life sentence without parole. Originally sentenced to death, a federal judge overturned that decision in 2001 due to errors in jury instructions.

Swalwell’s father, Eric Nelson Swalwell Sr., was a police chief in Algona, Iowa, in the 1980s, amidst politically charged events like the Berkeley riots and the Angela Davis trial. His tenure faced controversy and ended after a legal battle over a parking ticket incident.

In 2011, Abu-Jamal’s sentence was commuted to life in prison without parole, with advocates arguing that he did not receive a fair trial, citing judicial bias.

Peltier, a member of the American Indian Movement, was sentenced to two life terms for killing FBI agents during a shootout on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in 1975. His sentence was commuted to house arrest by President Joe Biden last year, leading to his eventual release.

Rage Against the Machine has long supported both Abu-Jamal and Peltier, even hosting benefit concerts, including a notable event in New Jersey that attracted around 16,000 fans.