Terrorists and killers as martyrs. (Insider Report).(labeling political activists jailed for murder as political prisoners)(Brief Article)

The campaign by hardcore revolutionaries to paint convicted murderers and terrorists as victims and martyrs is gaining steam. Cop-killer Mumia Abu Jamal is the superstar of the prison darlings; his image is now a familiar icon on T-shirts, posters, and dozens of Internet web sites. A global crusade by Communists and liberal-leftists to "Free Mumia" has featured marches, demonstrations, and letter-writing campaigns. Running a close second in the "political prisoner" celebrity scam is Leonard Peltier, the American Indian Movement revolutionary serving a life sentence for murdering two FBI agents.

Now, a larger share of the limelight is shining on Anthony Bottom, aka Jalil Muntaqin. Bottom is serving a life sentence for the 1971 murder of New York City police officers Waverly Jones and Joseph Piagentini. His comrades have been cranking up the propaganda mills in anticipation of his July parole hearing. Leading the effort is a motley crew of 1960s terrorists and radical lawyers from the National Lawyers Guild, the International Action Center, and the Center for Constitutional Rights. Typical of those championing Bottom's release is Laura Whitehorn, a lesbian revolutionary active for decades in the Prairie Fire Organizing Committee, the overt arm of the Weather Underground terrorist organization. Whitehorn was released in 1999 after serving 14 ...