From Regional Clemency for Leonard Peltier March & Rally.

The 2012 NW Regional March and Rally for Leonard Peltier’s Clemency has a Facebook event page: CLICK HERE.

As individual fingers we can easily be broken, but all together we make a mighty fist. — Sitting Bull

REGIONAL CLEMENCY FOR LEONARD PELTIER

MARCH & RALLY

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2012, TACOMA, WA.

12:00 NOON: MARCH FOR JUSTICE. Portland Ave. Park (on Portland Ave. between E. 35th & E. Fairbanks. Take Portland Ave. exit off I-5 and head east)

1:00 PM: RALLY FOR JUSTICE. U.S. Federal Court House. 1717-Pacific Ave.

<pre>This march is answering the call by LPDOC for marches and rallies on Feb. 4, 2012 Internationally in support of clemency for Leonard Peltier. Of all the regional marches in Tacoma, 16 since 1992, this is the most important one yet. The New Leonard Peltier Clemency Campaign is building and we need to show public support. If you are a regular supporter, please join us again. If you are a new supporter, who has thought about supporting Leonard, now is the time to do it. We need all of you.</pre>

SPEAKERS:

Co-MCs

Matilaja: Yu’Pik Eskimo from Mountain Village Alaska. Member of N.W. AIM since 1973, Friend of Leonard Peltier for 38 odd years and member of Tacoma Chapter LPDOC.

Steve Hapy: Long time Leonard Peltier and Native struggles activist, Tacoma Chapter LPDOC.

Drum

Albert Combs and Coastal Hand Drum Singers

Welcoming

Deeahop Conway, Puyallup Tribal member, Tacoma Chapter LPDOC

Leonard’s case and up-date

Arthur J. Miller: Northwest Regional Organizer LPDOC, Tacoma Chapter LPDOC, long time union member and human rights activist

Keynote Speakers

Ramona Bennett: Puyallup Tribal Elder, Life long friend of Leonard Peltier, Grand Mother, Great Grand Mother

Chester Earl: Puyallup Tribal member

Zoltan Grossman: Evergreen State College faculty in Geography and Native Studies, in Olympia. former board member of Midwest Treaty Network in Wisconsin.

Closing words

David Duenas: Puyallup Tribal Member

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Want to help out for the march? click here.

See a map of the march route click here.

Regional carpooling (OLY, SEA, PDX) click here.

Parking and public transportation click here.

Event flyers and posters click here.

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AFTER RALLY MEAL AND GET-TOGETHER

MARCH STATEMENT:

“I have no doubt whatsoever that the real motivation behind both Wounded Knee II and the Oglala firefight, and much of the turmoil throughout Indian Country since the early 1970s, was—and is—the mining companies’ desire to muffle AIM and all traditional Indian people, who sought—and still seek—to protect the land, water, and air from their thefts and depredations. In this sad and tragic age we live in, to come to the defense of Mother Earth is to be branded a criminal.” –Leonard Peltier, Prison Writings –

Leonard Peltier (of the Anishinabe, Dakota, and Lakota Nations), long time Native Activist and member of the American Indian Movement. Leonard Peltier, an innocent man who was convicted for the 1975 shooting deaths of two agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. U.S. prosecutors have repeatedly admit ted that they did not and cannot prove Peltier’s guilt, and the appellate courts have cited numerous instances of investigative and prosecutorial misconduct in this case. As late as November 2003, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals acknowledged that “…Much of the government’s behavior at the Pine Ridge Reservation and its prosecution of Mr. Peltier is to be condemned. The government withheld evidence. It intimidated witnesses. These facts are not disputed.” The trial of the first two AIM members in this case were found not guilty for reason of self-defense.

Behind the case of Leonard Peltier and the events that took place on the Pine Ridge Oglala Lakota Reservation is the continuing theft of Native land for energy corporations. High grade Uranium was found in the northwest corner of Pine Ridge. It was well known that the Lakota people would be unwilling to sell their land because they refused payment for the Black Hills. So a plan was carried out to suppress the traditional Oglala Lakota people and their supporters from the America Indian Movement. This lead to the Wounded Knee II Occupation, over 500 AIM members being indited on charges, a two and a half year reign of terror against the Oglala Lakota people, and the firefight near Oglala, that Leonard was charged with, that took place at the same time that a corrupt tribal Chairman was illegally signing away the part of Pine Ridge with the Uranium. The firefight took place as a means to divert attention and to suppress AIM.

Leonard has been in prison for over 35 years for a crime he did not commit and a crime that forces of greed were responsibly for. They have withheld medical care for Leonard and recently Leonard was placed in solitary confinement for 72 days and then sent to a high security prison in Florida, as far away from his lawyers and family as they could send him. Leonard is in bad health and they want Leonard to die in prison, alone and forgotten. We will not let that happen.

We are now organizing a new clemency for Leonard Peltier campaign and the regional marches on Feb, 4, 2012 are a very important part of that. Please help us raise money for it and get the word out everywhere. Please. let us come together in the spirit of unity for Leonard and for the kind of justice and peace we want for our world. Thank you.

Co-Sponsored by: PDX Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee, Oregon Jericho, NW Student Coalition, NW Jericho Coalition, Portland Animal Defense League.

For donations: Please make checks out to “Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee” and mail them to:

Tacoma Chapter LPDOC

P.O. Box 5464

Tacoma, WA 98415-0464

Thank you.

###################################################################### ###################################################################### ###### International Day of Solidarity With Leonard Peltier ###### ###### Clemency For Leonard Peltier Marches and Rallies ###### ###### February 4, 2012 ###### ###################################################################### ######################################################################