Guide to the Free Mumia Movement collection, 1995-2016

John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts
Box A
Brown University
Providence, RI 02912
Telephone: Manuscripts: 401-863-3723; University Archives: 401-863-2148
Email: Manuscripts: hay@brown.edu; University Archives: archives@brown.edu

Published in 2023

Collection Overview

Title:	Free Mumia Movement collection
Date range:	1995-2016
Creator:	Mumia 911
Extent:	7 linear feet
Abstract:	The collection contains materials related to mass efforts to free Mumia Abu-Jamal from incarceration, including posters, brochures, postcards, buttons, reports, and some letters.
Repository:	John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts
Collection number:	Ms.2023.004

Scope & content

This collection contains materials related to mass efforts to free Mumia Abu-Jamal from incarceration, including posters, brochures, postcards, buttons, reports, and some letters. Items in the collection were created beginning in the late 1990s by various organizations, artists and activists, typically as part of an event such as a fundraiser, concert, protest or art opening.

Access Points

Subject Topics

• Abu-Jamal, Mumia
• Mass incarceration United States
• Human rights movements
• African American prisoners

Document Types

• political buttons
• Letters (Correspondence)
• Letters (Correspondence)
• Posters
• Posters
• Postcards
• Postcards
• Brochures
• Brochures

Arrangement

Organized in one series.

• Series 1. Ephemera

Biographical/Historical Note

Described as "the most visible of the 3,000 people awaiting execution on America's death rows" by the New York Times in 1995, Mumia Abu-Jamal was born Wesley Cook in Philadelphia in 1954. As a teenager, Abu-Jamal became involved with the Black Panther Party, and he later became a radio reporter. In 1981, he was arrested on charges alleging he'd murdered Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner, and he was convicted and sentenced to death in 1982. Nearly 30 years and numerous appeals later, a federal court overturned Abu-Jamal's death sentence; he is now serving a sentence of life imprisonment without parole. Abu-Jamal's case is highly contested to this day, and conflicting accounts and pieces of evidence have convinced many that he is innocent.

This collection contains ephemera related to mass efforts to free Mumia Abu-Jamal from incarceration, including posters, brochures, postcards, buttons, reports, and some letters. Items in the collection were created in the late 1990s and the early 2000s by various organizations, artists and activists, typically as part of an event such as a fundraiser, concert, protest or art opening.

Access & Use

Access to the collection:	There are no restrictions on access, except that the collection can only be seen by prior appointment. Some materials may be stored off-site and cannot be produced on the same day on which they are requested.
Use of the materials:	Although Brown University has physical ownership of the collection and the materials contained therein, it does not claim literary rights. Researchers should note that compliance with copyright law is their responsibility. Researchers must determine the owners of the literary rights and obtain any necessary permissions from them.
Preferred citation:	Revolution Books collection about the Free Mumia Movement, Ms.2023.004, Brown University Library.
Contact information:	John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts Box A Brown University Providence, RI 02912 Telephone: Manuscripts: 401-863-3723; University Archives: 401-863-2148 Email: Manuscripts: hay@brown.edu; University Archives: archives@brown.edu

Administrative Information

ABOUT THE COLLECTION
Acquisition:	Purchased by the John Hay Library in 2023.
Processing information:	This collection was formerly named the Revolution Books Collection about the Free Mumia Movement and was renamed to fit the new scope of the collection.
ABOUT THE FINDING AID
Author:	Finding aid prepared by Janaya Kizzie
Encoding:	This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-09-27.
Descriptive rules:	Finding aid based on Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Additional Information

Related material:	Related Materials See also the Mumia Abu-Jamal Papers (Ms.2022.009) and selected digitized materials from both collections on the Brown Digital Repository: Mumia Abu-Jamal collections at the John Hay Library (Mumia Abu-Jamal: A Portrait of Mass Incarceration Exhibition, 2023)
Other information:	In 2022, the John Hay Library at Brown University announced that it had acquired the Mumia Abu-Jamal Papers (Ms.2022.009) and the Johanna Fernández papers as part of a collecting direction to document voices of mass incarceration in the United States. This collection supplements and complements the Abu-Jamal Papers by documenting mass efforts to free Abu-Jamal.

Inventory

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