The Albuquerque Peace and Justice Center | Photography by Joanna Keane Lopez
Updated June 2, 2024
“We need to do more than just what is right. We need to join together and right what is wrong.”
For nearly half a century, a cry for justice has echoed around the world, from Indian Country to the United Nations. The reverberation can be heard in the pleas of peace warriors, world leaders, human rights organizations, influencers, and celebrities: "Free Leonard Peltier... Free Leonard Peltier."
Now, members of the United States Justice team who put Leonard Peltier behind bars are advocating for his release. This includes former FBI agents and the prosecutor who played a significant role in Leonard's imprisonment.
“I have come to the realization that the prosecution and continued incarceration of Mr. Peltier was and is unjust. We are not able to prove that Mr. Peltier personally committed any offense on the Pine Ridge Reservation.”
This admission from the former United States Attorney, James Reynolds, marks a pivotal shift in the case. Leonard Peltier was wrongfully convicted as a result of FBI misconduct, coerced witnesses, evidence manipulation, and constitutional violations, which have “polluted the waters of justice” and exposed the FBI’s war on the American Indian Movement.
On June 2, 2024, Leonard Peltier was denied parole by the United States Parole Commission after what may have been his final parole hearing on June 10, 2024. At the age of 79, Leonard has been in captivity for nearly half a century. He remains the longest-held Indigenous political prisoner in the history of the United States, imprisoned at the United States Penitentiary, Coleman, a high-security prison in Florida.
As this sad news breaks in Indian Country and around the world, let us remember the words of Mahatma Gandhi, who endured years of arrests and imprisonments that ultimately led to the end of British Colonial Rule and India’s Independence.
“There is a higher court than courts of justice, and that is the court of conscience. It supersedes all other courts.”
In the pursuit of peace, justice, and freedom for Leonard Peltier, it is essential to appeal to that “Higher Court,” the “Court of Conscience,” and demand that the U.S. justice system obey the rules of law and grant freedom to Leonard Peltier.
Native Children’s Survival urges you to act now!
Call The White House at (202) 456-1111
Email @whitehouse at whitehouse.gov/contact
Write To Leonard Peltier At USP Coleman, P.O. Box 1033 Coleman, FL 33521, Include His #89637-132
Sign the PETITION created by the Native Organizers Alliance
The struggle for Leonard’s freedom is not over.