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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsRubin 'Hurricane' Carter, stricken with terminal cancer, fights for man he believes wrongly accused
http://www.northjersey.com/news/Rubin_Hurricane_Carter_stricken_with_terminal_cancer_fights_for_man_he_believes_wrongly_accused_of_murder.html<snip>
Rubin Hurricane Carter, the boxer who fought for 19 years to free himself from prison after twice being convicted of a mysterious triple killing at a Paterson bar in 1966, is in his final bout: He has terminal cancer but is still fighting to free a Brooklyn man he believes is wrongly accused of murder.
Carter, 77, has prostate cancer and is spending his final days in Toronto with his loyal former co-defendant, John Artis. The two former Paterson men head a non-profit, Innocence International Inc., dedicated to freeing prisoners it believes have been wrongly convicted.
Its impossible to say when a man will die, but he doesnt have long, said Ken Klonsky, the non-profits communications director. He is conscious, but his body is deteriorated, and he is very weak.
Carter penned an op-ed piece that ran in Fridays New York Daily News advocating for the release of David McCallum of Brooklyn, imprisoned since 1985. He and another man were teenagers when they were charged with the murder of a Queens man, Nathan Brenner, 20.
I am now quite literally on my deathbed and am making my final wish to those with the legal authority to act, Carter wrote. I request only that McCallum be granted a full hearing by the Brooklyn conviction integrity unit, under new District Attorney Ken Thompson.
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Go gently good man
Nanjing to Seoul
(2,088 posts)malaise
(269,237 posts)but then we must remember the absolute philosophical truth about life - everything that lives eventually dies - so like all your heroes we must attempt to live meaningful lives, love others and contribute to the improvement of conditions for all on our planet.
HappyMe
(20,277 posts)malaise
(269,237 posts)I think he found both of them
H2O Man
(73,655 posts)We've been close friends for over 40 years now. It's hard to express how highly I think of him.
Recommended.
malaise
(269,237 posts)fizzgig
(24,146 posts)couldn't tell you now what he said, but i left feeling so moved. cross easily, hurricane.
H2O Man
(73,655 posts)I'm thinking of posting an OP or two on Ruin's case, and his never-ending struggle for social justice. I've known this extraordinary man, since before his legal case gained popularity in the 1970s.
A favorite memory: Late one night, I answered the phone. "Pat," a familiar voice said, "you'll never guess who this is!" I responded, "Rubin, there's only one person that calls me at 3 am."
He was traveling with Nelson Mandela at the time. Among other things, the pair were talking with others about how to end thre Bush-Cheney military aggression in the Middle East. Rubin had met George W. Bush, to discuss the huge amount of death penalty cases in Texas. Rubin said that Bush was giddy when discussing the topic. The future president got off on the thought of killing people.
"Do you know what the 'W' in his name stands for?", Rubin asked. "Death! The man's name is George Death Bush."