Four US Activists Convicted of Conspiring to Act as Russian Agents

Activists Omali Yeshitela, 82; Penny Joanne Hess, 78; Jesse Nevel, 34; and Augustus C. Romain Jr., (also known as Gazi Kodzo) 38, were found guilty of conspiring to act as unregistered agents of the Russian government.

The Details: The U.S. citizens engaged in a seven-year conspiracy to disrupt American politics. Between 2015-2022, they collaborated with Aleksandr Ionov, who worked at the direction of Russian intelligence. The group was found not guilty of acting as foreign agents, but each face up to five years in prison for conspiring to act as foreign agents.

For Context: Yeshitela, Hess, and Nevel are associated with the Uhuru Movement, which is the activist arm of the African People’s Socialist Party (APSP). Romain was an APSP member, but then founded Black Hammer, a black separatist organization in Atlanta. In 2015, the group petitioned the United Nations, accusing the U.S. of genocide against African Americans. Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, it organized protests against the suppression of pro-Russian content online.

Domestic Support: Previously, Democracy Now (Left bias), Glenn Greenwald (Center bias), and Tucker Carlson (Right bias) have interviewed Yeshitela and advocated for the group. On September 3, the Democratic Party criticized Independent presidential candidate Jill Stein for expressing support for the group.

Key Quote: Yeshitela said, “The most important thing is they were unable to convict us of working for anybody except black people."

How the Media Covered It: The New York Times (Lean Left bias) only quoted Yeshitela. The Epoch Times (Lean Right) dedicated much of its article to the defense's free speech arguments.