Dr. Tarek Mehanna sentenced

Supporters packed the courtroom and overflow auditorium as Dr. Tarek Mehanna was sentenced on April 12 to 17 ½ years in prison for the “crime” of holding and expressing the belief that oppressed people have the right of self-defense against occupation — even if the occupying force is the United States. Mehanna is one of hundreds of Muslims who have been framed up and imprisoned by the U.S. government since 9/11.

Mehanna addressed the court and gave a stirring affirmation of his solidarity with all the oppressed. He explained that he would never have been brought to trial had he agreed to inform on the Muslim community.

“Throughout history there has been a constant struggle between the oppressors and the oppressed,” stated Mehanna. “And with each struggle I learned about, I found myself consistently siding with the oppressed and consistently siding with those that defend them. … I learned about Harriet Tubman, Nat Turner, John Brown, and the fight against slavery in this country. I learned about Emma Goldman, Eugene Debs, and the struggles of the labor unions, working class, and poor.

“I learned about Anne Frank, the Nazis, and how they persecuted minorities and imprisoned dissidents. I learned about Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, and the Civil Rights struggle. I learned about Ho Chi Minh, and how the Vietnamese fought for decades to liberate themselves from one invader after another. I learned about Nelson Mandela and the fight against apartheid in South Africa. …

“With each struggle I learned about, I found myself consistently siding with the oppressed, and consistently respecting those who stepped up to defend them — regardless of nationality, regardless of religion. … This trial was not about my position on Muslims killing American civilians. It was about my position on Americans killing Muslim civilians, which is that Muslims should defend their lands from foreign invaders. This is what I believe. It’s what I’ve always believed, and what I will always believe. This is not terrorism, and it’s not extremism. It’s the simple logic of self-defense.”

Following the sentencing, Mehanna’s family condemned the unfairness of the trial and the sentence. They affirmed how proud they were of Mehanna’s unwavering courage and position in solidarity with the oppressed.

Supporters rallied outside the courthouse and rededicated themselves to the ongoing fight against the dismantling of the Constitution and to their continuing solidarity with Dr. Mehanna as well as Aafia Siddiqqi, Ziyad Yaghi, Omar Khadr, the Newburgh Four, the Fort Dix Five and the countless other Muslims being persecuted by FBI frame-ups and “preemptive prosecutions.” Supporters pledged to continue the fight through Mehanna’s appeals process, which is already underway.

To read Dr. Mehanna’s statement in full, visit FreeTarek.com.