Today, we air another commentary by Mumia Abu-Jamal, a journalist on Pennsylvania’s death row.

In his new book, Death Blossoms, Mumia writes about being punished by Pennsylvania officials for publishing his first book, Live From Death Row. For those writings, he was put in the hole for engaging actively in a business or profession. On the outside, the Fraternal Order of Police denounced publishers Addison and Wesley for putting out the book, including dropping leaflets from an airplane over their corporate headquarters in Massachusetts.

Mumia says that, “It was right to write Live From Death Row, and its right for you to read it, no matter what cop, guard, prisoncrat, politician, or media mouthpiece tells you otherwise.”

Today, we’re going to go back in time and put Mumia’s writings and commentaries in historical perspective.

We’re joined by Siobhan Dowd, the editor of a new book of prison writings called, This Prison Where I Live. Siobhan Dowd is the director of PEN America’s Freedom to Write Committee. PEN — which stands for Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists and Novelists — is an international association of writers.

TAPE: MUMIA ABU-JAMAL, a prisoner on Pennsylvania’s death row.