we found a relative of oscar lópez rivera. his name is julián lópez, and he is also here with us. begin by telling the audience, who is oscar lópez rivera? >> oscar lópez rivera is a puerto rican. he's a veteran. he was a decorated veteran in vietnam, he was a community organizer in chicago, and in 1981, he was arrested with a group of other puerto ricans and charged with seditious conspiracy. that was in 1981. in 1999, president clinton offered to release him and 13 other of his friends that were arrested because of the disproportionate sentence that they gave him. they had given him 70 years of prison for an act that he had no -- he had committed no violence, and it was never proved. >> had he killed anyone? >> no, no, no. he was charged with sedition. now, nelson mandela was charged with seditious conspiracy. so was jesus christ. so, we have groups of governments that have always charged people with sedition when they oppose the government. so, oscar was -- oscar could be released right now. he should've been out right now. >> how long has he been in? >> he's been in since 1981

oscar lopez rivera who is been in jail on sedition charges. ou joined thousands of supporters earlier this month for march calling on president obama to release oscar lopez rivera in prison. he was convicted in 1981 on federal charges of seditious conspiracy conspiring to oppose , u.s. authority over puerto rico by force. he was also accused of being a member of the faln, the armed forces of national liberation, which claimed responsibility for more than 100 bombings to call attention to the colonial case of puerto rico. in 1999, president bill clinton commuted the sentences of 16 members of the faln but lopez refused to accept the deal because it did not include two fellow activists who have since been released. in a rare video recording from prison, oscar lopez rivera said the charges against him were strictly political. >> i think the fact i was charged with seditious conspiracy to overthrow the government of the united states picks for itself, but the charge in reference to puerto ricans has always been for u.s. political purposes. because