Melina Abdullah | |
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Born | Melina Rachel Reimann |
Education | Howard University (BA) University of Southern California (MA, PhD) |
Employer | California State University, Los Angeles |
Children | 3 |
Relatives | Günter Reimann (grandfather) |
Melina Abdullah (born Melina Rachel Reimann on September 18, 1972)[1] is an American academic and civic leader. She is the former chair of the department of Pan-African Studies at California State University, Los Angeles, and a co-founder of the Los Angeles chapter of Black Lives Matter.
Early life and education
Melina Rachel Reimann was born on September 18, 1972, at East Oakland, Oakland, California, U.S.[2] Her father, John Reimann, was "a union organizer and self-proclaimed Trotskyist."[2] Her mother is Linda Fowler Blackston and she was raised by Oji "Baba" Blackston. Her paternal grandfather was Günter Reimann (born Hans Steinicke), a German-Jewish Marxist economist and member of the Communist Party of Germany who opposed Adolf Hitler and the Third Reich.[3][4][5]
She graduated from Howard University, where she earned a bachelor's of arts (B.A.) degree in African American Studies.[6] She subsequently earned a master's degree (M.A.) and doctoral degree (PhD.) in political science from the University of Southern California.[6][7] Reimann changed her surname to Abdullah due to her marriage to filmmaker Phaylen Abdullah and kept the name after their divorce.[8]
Activism
Abdullah is a self-described "womanist scholar-activist". She has said that her academic roles are connected with her activist role in fighting for liberating those who have been exploited many times.[9] She serves on several boards, including Black Community, Clergy and Labor Alliance (BCCLA), Los Angeles Community Action Network (LA-CAN), and Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education (SCOPE).[6]
Career
Abdullah is a tenured professor and served as chair of the department of Pan-African Studies at California State University, Los Angeles.[6] She was interviewed in 13th, a 2016 documentary about mass incarceration in the United States.
Abdullah has served on the Los Angeles County Human Relations Commission since 2014.[6] She is a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter chapter in Los Angeles, California,[2] and regularly writes articles for the LA Progressive.[10]
Abdullah was arrested on suspicion of battery against a police officer, following an incident in which she allegedly grabbed the officer’s arm during the arrest of protester Sheila Hines-Brim at an LAPD police commission hearing. Hines-Brim allegedly threw an unknown powdery substance at Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck, which she claimed were the cremated ashes of her niece Wakiesha Wilson (who died in LAPD custody in 2016). [11] Abdullah was charged with misdemeanor battery, as well as seven other counts: these charges included interfering with a public business establishment and the lawful business of the Police Commission during separate incidents in 2017. The criminal charges against Abdullah were eventually dismissed. [12] The city later agreed to pay Wilson’s family nearly $300,000 to settle a lawsuit they filed over her death. [13]
During the Sunday debate by ABC7 for the 2022 Los Angeles mayoral election, police removed Melina Abdullah, at Cal State LA as well as other protesters from the room as they did not have a tickets to the event.[14]
Personal life
Abdullah resides in Mid-City, Los Angeles.[15] She has three children.[2]
References
- ^ "Veromi.net | People Summary". veromi.net. Archived from the original on 1 October 2018. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
- ^ a b c d Aron, Hillel (November 9, 2015). "These Savvy Women Have Made Black Lives Matter the Most Crucial Left-Wing Movement Today". LA Weekly. Archived from the original on July 8, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
- ^ McGahan, Jason (21 January 2019). "The People v. Melina Abdullah". theLAnd. 1 (1).
- ^ "Profiles: Günter Reimann", Mises Institute.
- ^ Saxon, Wolfgang (April 4, 2005). "Guenter Reimann, Economic Publisher, Is Dead at 100". The New York Times.
- ^ a b c d e "Melina Abdullah". Department of Pan-African Studies. California State University, Los Angeles. 23 November 2013. Archived from the original on July 8, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
- ^ "Pan-African Studies | Melina Abdullah". Cal State LA. November 23, 2013. Archived from the original on June 6, 2020. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
- ^ "Black Lives Matter L.A. Leader Melina Abdullah is One of the Most Outspoken Critics of the LAPD. Now She's Facing Eight Criminal Charges". theLAnd. 2019-01-21. Retrieved 2021-04-28.
- ^ "Pan-African Studies | Melina Abdullah". Cal State LA. 2013-11-23. Retrieved 2021-04-28.
- ^ Abdullah, Melina (April 16, 2020). "Black Los Angeles Demands in Light of COVID-19 and Rates of Black Death". LA Progressive. Retrieved July 6, 2020.
- ^ "Black Lives Matter L.A. Leader Melina Abdullah is One of the Most Outspoken Critics of the LAPD. Now She's Facing Eight Criminal Charges". theLAnd. 2019-01-21. Retrieved 2022-05-11.
- ^ Service • •, City News. "Criminal Case Dismissed Against Black Lives Matter Leader". NBC Los Angeles. Retrieved 2022-05-11.
- ^ "Melina Abdullah, professor and co-founder of BLM Los Angeles, on police commission hearing arrest". FOX 11. 2018-05-09. Retrieved 2022-05-11.
- ^ Park, Jeong; Newberry, Laura; Wick, Julia (May 1, 2022). "Police forcibly remove Black Lives Matter-L.A. leader from mayoral debate". Los Angeles Times.
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