"United States of Secrets" Or "Long distance revolutionary" - Essay Example

Long Distance Revolutionary Produced by Stephen Vittoria, Long Distance Revolutionary focuses on the career of Mumia Abu-Jamal as a prolific journalist and writer from the depths of a penitentiary. The film depicts Mumia’s real-life trajectory to being a public intellectual and revolutionary figure, who spends most of his life in a Pennsylvanian prison. Thus, Vittoria tracks the protagonist’s early work in the realm of journalism as well as his battles and struggles after a murder conviction. While in incarceration, the African-American journalist becomes known as an international symbol of the nature of capital punishment in United State’s judicial system, as well as the controversial issue of racism.
The public views Mumia Abu-Jamal as a political prisoner as well as a victim of the unethical and unjust American judicial system. The African-American community affirms their long-held belief of Mumia’s innocence in his case associated with the murder of a police officer through the film. Therefore, the film received positive reception from the public, as they believe that the protagonist was a revolutionary who stood for the rights of individuals in the American society. He is thus considered a role model for the society as citizens see him as an incarcerated journalist who represents an international symbol of the product of injustice and nature of capital punishment. The documentary delivers a compelling case of innocence of the murder crime that Abu-Jamal is accused of. Therefore, the story represents the struggles that typify individuals, especially the African-American community, on issues apparent in the judicial system such as lack of substantial evidence to incarcerate a person, evidence tampering, and the withhold of exculpatory facts.
I believe that the film Long Distance Revolutionary is an influential political documentary and indictment of the hypocrisy and injustice apparent in the American society. The documentary focuses on controversial issues of injustice and institutional racism that is apparent in numerous institutions such as the judicial system.
The documentary focuses on a former Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists’ president and National Public Radio Reporter, who is widely recognized for his unwavering ability to compose publications such as books and articles within the confines of a prison. However, despite his international reputation, many people do not have the understanding about Mumia’s personality, his struggles, and his evolving worldviews. Therefore, the documentary offers an invaluable insight into the life story of the incarcerated journalist and revolutionary.
Work Cited
Long Distance Revolutionary: A Journey with Mumia Abu-Jamal. Dir. Stephen Vittoria. Perf. Cornel West, Alice Walker, Angela Davis. Street Legal Cinema, 2012. DVD. Read More