25 Years Behind Bars: Interview with Imprisoned Black Panther

By Ben Farr,Workers World, 13 June 1996

Supporters of imprisoned veteran Baltimore Black PantherParty leader Marshall Eddie Conway have called a June 8demonstration here to protest the governor's blanket denialof parole for anyone serving a life sentence.

Conway has been imprisoned for 26 years in what hissupporters see as a classic police frame-up. On April 25,1970, Conway was arrested and charged with the fatal shootingof a Baltimore City police officer and the attempted murder oftwo other cops. His case is similar to the widely publicizedframe-up of revolutionary journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal.

Conway's supporters maintain that he was the target of acovert FBI COINTELPRO action to destroy the Baltimorechapter of the Black Panther Party.

At that time, Conway was denied the lawyer of his choiceand forbidden to defend himself. The state's case relied onthe testimony of a paid jailhouse informant and a policeofficer.

The informant claimed that Conway confessed to theshootings to him while they were cellmates. The injuredpolice officer picked Conway's picture out of two stacks ofphotos.

Conway's face was the only one in both stacks. There was nophysical evidence linking Conway to the scene of the crime andthere were no other witnesses.

Conway, who was not even present for most of his trial,was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.

He seemed a likely candidate for parole until Maryland'sDemocratic Gov. Paris Glendening eliminated all parole forstate prisoners sentenced to life. In response, supportershave called for a city-wide march, June 8, to demand that hebe freed.

INTERVIEW WITH EDDIE CONWAY

Workers World interviewed Marshall Eddie Conway viatelephone from the Maryland House of Corrections in Jessup,Md., where he is incarcerated.

WW: Why did you join the BlackPanthers?

Eddie Conway: I was in the army for three years stationed inEurope. I experienced massive institutionalized racism. Theassassination of Malcolm X was also a factor.

In `67 when I returned home I participated in the civil-rights struggle to integrate Sparrows Point Steel Mill. Allthese events convinced me of the need for self-defense ofthe Black community.

WW: What were you doing when you first learned of theincident you were charged with?

EC: In the space of 18 months from 69 to 70 attacks [policeand FBI] occurred against different BPP chapters. The entiresecondary leadership of the organization was imprisoned ordriven into exile. The primary leaders, of course, werealready in jail. Many of the people are still prisoners.

WW: What do you think of the huge growth in prisons that hastaken place in the last 15 years?

EC: There are no jobs in America. Many people get involvedin illegal activities just to eat. ...

I fear the genocidal trends in the U.S. government,particularly in conjunction with the rise of the right-wingmilitias. Look at Germany or Turkey--incarcerating a targetpopulation is the first step to eliminating them.

WW: Baltimore police have killed 18 people in the last 16months. There has been a growing movement from within thecommunity to fight back against police repression,particularly around the case of Preston Barnes. What is yourmessage to this movement?

EC: I encourage them to intensify their struggle. Demandcommunity control of the police ... not some rubber-stampcommittee appointed by the mayor, but actual completecommunity control.

WW: In the bourgeois election this year do you feel there isany difference between the Democrats and Republicans?

EC: There is no fundamental difference. They both representthe huge corporations. The only difference is one of style--the Democrats pretend to be more humanitarian. The both havethe same master.