This message was just received from Mumia’s attorney Noel Hanrahan on Sept. 2: As a result of widespread and persistent pressure, Mumia finally received cataract 2 laser surgery on his left eye today and can now see very clearly. But we must remain vigilant, consistent, and make sure that he sees a retinal specialist to treat his additional diagnosis that threatens his eyesight.
Black journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal, a world-renowned political prisoner, unjustly imprisoned for over four decades, is now incarcerated at SCI Mahanoy in Pennsylvania. More information can be found at Mobilization4Mumia.com.
A press conference organized by the Campaign to Bring Mumia Home, Mobilization4Mumia, and Free Mumia Coalition was held Aug. 22 to focus broader attention on the deliberate denial of necessary surgery by the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections to political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal, putting him at risk of blindness.
Co-hosted by Sophia Williams and Gabe Bryant, the virtual event began with a recorded message from Mumia who said his vision has deteriorated to the point where he cannot see more than the masthead of a newspaper and is unable to read or write. He concluded: “It appears that the DOC is slow walking me to blindness. There is legal precedent that delay is consistent with denial.”
Dr. Ricardo Alvarez, Mumia’s chosen doctor, described the specific vision problems Mumia is confronted with, going back over some of the history of the PA DOC’s medical neglect. “In 2015, Mumia suffered a diabetic coma due to the overuse of steroids to treat severe dermatitis, which left him with undiagnosed retinal diabetes. He also suffers from cirrhosis due to the denial and delayed treatment for hepatitis C [which he finally received after suing the DOC in 2017].”
Alvarez presented a chronicle regarding the systematic delay and denial of necessary eye treatment for Mumia after it was determined that he needed secondary cataract surgery. In late 2024, he was scheduled for an eye appointment in January 2025, but that was cancelled due to poor weather. In February, experiencing more vision loss, Mumia filed a grievance. In March, he received an onsite visit from an optometrist who determined that Mumia needed secondary cataract surgery. In April, another optometrist conducted an onsite visit, but instead of treatment, recommended more tests.
Alvarez explained that in May, Mumia’s legal team and his medical team secured off-site treatment, which in June revealed that he was also suffering from diabetic retinopathy, a complication of diabetes that caused damage to the blood vessels at the back of the eyes. An independent ophthalmological expert confirmed the progression of his eye disease and reported he needed treatment immediately or risk permanent blindness.
Despite knowing the severity of Mumia’s condition, the DOC continued to delay treatment, saying it would be scheduled in September without giving a specific date. Alvarez concluded: “This constitutes elderly abuse. This is an examination of healthcare under the pathologies of relationship. There is litigation that delay can be consistent with denial. This is such a case.”
Dr. Mark Taylor, with Educators for Mumia, serves as Mumia’s medical proxy. Taylor said: “Mumia should have had surgery scheduled in May. We all wrote letters but got no response. As his proxy, I was given no written reports on exams he received.
“In prisons in America and in poor communities, this is not the exception, it is the rule. It gets worse. Over the many calls I made [to the DOC] it was apparent to me that the prison’s health department’s schedule of care requires the approval of DOC higher up. They want Mumia not only in prison, they want him dead. Any letting down our guard, and they will hasten his disease and death. In his writings, Mumia highlights the many ways that the U.S. imperialist system kills by negligence and outright planning.”
Author and activist Julia Wright noted that a network of U.S. multibillionaire companies, including Aramark and Wellpath, control access to food and healthcare in the prisons.
Dr. Johanna Fernandez stated: “Prisons have become cruel nursing home warehouses for the aging. Poor Black and Brown people who couldn’t be employed by capitalism are now in these prisons. This is sanctioned elder abuse, carried out daily.
“Mumia did not have diabetes before suffering a diabetic coma that was the result of dereliction on the part of the prison medical staff. He has suffered one injury on top of the other – medically induced through neglect. He fought back against impossible conditions, and we have to say the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections has entirely abandoned its duties and it has to be held accountable.”
The press conference was viewed live by over 90 people on Zoom, and around 70 others via YouTube. You can view the entire program at tinyurl.com/mr2cnv2y. The panelists urged people to make calls to the PA DOC at 570-773-2158, and to donate to support the ongoing work at mobilization4mumia.com/donate-1.
Mumia has a well-founded fear of institutional distrust. He already has court-documented evidence of medical harm. He is an innocent man. Due to the DOC’s medical neglect, he should receive surgery or be released immediately.