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发帖数: 29846 | 1 Teacher suspended after class write notes to Mumia Abu-Jamal
April 10, 2015 - 2:35 PM
Associated Press
ORANGE, N.J. (AP) — A teacher in New Jersey who assigned her third-grade
class to write "get well" letters to a sick inmate convicted of killing a
Philadelphia police officer was suspended Friday, the school superintendent
said.
Orange School Superintendent Ronald Lee said in a statement that school
administrators "vehemently deny" any knowledge of Marilyn Zuniga's
assignment. Preliminary inquiries found that Zuniga did not seek approval
from administrators nor were parents notified, Lee said.
The letters were delivered to Mumia Abu-Jamal in prison following his
hospitalization last month for what his family said was treatment for
complications from diabetes. The former Black Panther is serving life behind
bars for the 1981 murder of white Philadelphia police Officer Daniel
Faulkner. His conviction was upheld through years of appeals, but he has
gained international support for his claim that he is the victim of a racist
justice system.
A supporter and history professor at Baruch College, Johanna Fernandez,
brought him the letters.
She posted on her Facebook page that "he chuckled as he read excerpts from
these touching letters.
Abu-Jamal was released from a hospital in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, on April
1, and returned to the prison, she said.
The school district was closed for spring break and the superintendent said
a full investigation would begin when classes resume on Monday.
Zuniga will remain suspended without pay until the investigation is
completed, the superintendent said. Additional action could be taken by the
school board once the investigation is finished.
An email The Associated Press sent Zuniga seeking comment was not
immediately returned. |
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