By: Ameena Khan
On Nov. 4, attendees gathered in the dimly lit Woody Tanger auditorium as the Brooklyn College (BC) Film Society and Puerto Rican & Latinx Studies (PRLS) Department hosted a documentary screening and discussion of “Justice on Trial: The Case of Mumia Abu-Jama,l” as well as the legacy of Professor Johanna Fernández.
“Dr. Fernandez represents the best in the world of activism as an author, as a researcher, as a scholar activist, [and] as a film producer,” PRLS Professor Mike Mena addressed to the audience.
According to the City University of New York (CUNY) Graduate Center website, Dr. Fernández had “collaborated with and wrote about the imprisoned radio journalist and veteran Black Panther Mumia Abu-Jamal,” and had written and executive-produced the documentary, “Justice on Trial.”
The documentary examines the systemic flaws of the United States (U.S.) criminal justice system regarding the conviction and death sentence of Mumia Abu-Jamal, also referred to as “the most recognized death row inmate in the world today,” after being tried and convicted for the murder of Police Officer Daniel Faulkner in 1982.
Allegations of judicial and racial bias, police corruption, prosecutorial misconduct, and withheld evidence led to decades of appeals and federal court rulings deeming Abu-Jamal’s trial to be unfair and unconstitutional.
Furthermore, the film expands upon a larger discussion regarding how these systemic flaws in the U.S. justice system are still present.
“Instead, they are commonly practiced within the criminal justice system and account for the disproportionate incarceration of African Americans and Latinos in the United States,” according to the IMBb website.
“Fernández’s life was making sure that we don’t forget the political prisoners of our time,” said Ismael Bustelo, President of the BC Film Society, highlighting the documentary’s importance and relevance today.
“I personally believe we owe it to Professor Fernandez as students, as colleagues, and as comrades, to continue the struggle that she fought so passionately for.”
“I have a friend, and he was reading a book about the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal,” said Noora Khwaja, a BC senior majoring in linguistics and attendee at the screening. “I didn’t know who Abu-Jamal was, so I was interested. And then I saw that [this event] was doing this documentary. So, I thought it was a really good opportunity to learn more.”
“I remember that day that Instagram posts memorializing her legacy,” Mena recalled regarding the sudden and tragic passing of Fernández earlier this past summer.
“It was nonstop for about a week. […] And to say that I was shocked wasn’t an understatement.”
A year ago, Fernández was a keynote speaker at the PRLS Department’s 19th annual “Encuentro: The Possible Dream” and hosted a panel discussing her book titled “The Young Lords: A Radical History” about revolutionary Puerto Rican activists who organized and fought for social justice in New York.
“But more than being a simple historical presentation of the Young Lords, a simple history book, it is in fact a guide to activism,” Mena stated.
“[Fernández] fundamentally changed my entire approach to activism; How I understood it, even how I teach about it now. And perhaps most importantly, she taught me that activism can take many forms, including photography, [and] documentary filmmaking. So here I am, once again, honored and humbled to introduce more work of Johanna Fernández.”
For more information about the BC Film Society, visit @bklynfilmsociety on Instagram.
Students interested in the PRLS Department can visit Boylan Hall 1205, follow their Instagram: @bc_prls, or check the BC official website.