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IMARI OBADELE’S IMPRISONMENT
Imari Obadele’s Imprisonment

Imari Abubakari Obadele (born Richard Henry), co-founder and president of the Provisional Government of the Republic of New Afrika, was among those imprisoned after the 1971 Jackson raid, convicted on federal charges arising from the shootout. He served years in federal prison, becoming one of the most prominent New Afrikan political prisoners.

After his release Obadele earned a doctorate and became a scholar and organizer, co-founding the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America (N'COBRA) and continuing to press the RNA's demands for independence and reparations. His imprisonment and later career linked the RNA's 1970s struggle to the enduring reparations movement.