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Jericho is a movement with the defined goal of gaining recognition of the fact that political prisoners and prisoners of war exist inside of the United States despite the United States' government's continued denial ... and winning amnesty and freedom for these political prisoners. In November, the Jericho Amnesty Movement held a successful two-day national meeting in Richmond VA, bringing together representatives of chapters around the country as well as other organizations interested in the campaign to free all political prisoners and POWs. JAM adopted a new structure and mechanisms of accountability, featuring a steering committee composed of chapter representatives and elected national staff. Jericho also launched a new campaign for amnesty, clemency, pardons or other forms of release for the political prisoners still held as a result of COINTELPRO attacks on the Black liberation, American Indian, Puerto Rican independence and other movements. Jericho rededicated itself to connecting the issue of political prisoners to the struggles and communities they are part of and to the larger prison system, as well as to relating the continuing manifestations of COINTELPRO in Homeland Security and the USA PATRIOT Act.
Background
The Jericho Movement grew out of a call for a national march on the White House during spring break 1998 by political prisoner Jalil Muntaqim The call was made in October of 1996 through the Provisional GovernmentRepublic of New Afrika and the New Afrikan Liberation Front, but the organizers decided to...