Racial Justice

Finally, B’more Mayor Joins Call Of Citizens For DOJ Investigation Of Police

May 7, 2015 Luke Broadwater, www.baltimoresun.com Resist! Baltimore, Civil Rights, Criminal Justice, police brutality, Racial Justice

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake asked the Justice Department on Wednesday to conduct a full-scale civil rights investigation into the pattern and practices of the Baltimore Police Department — a probe that would examine excessive force, discriminatory harassment, false arrests, and unlawful stops, searches or arrests. "We all know that Baltimore continues to have a fractured relationship between the police and the community," Rawlings-Blake said. "I'm willing to do what it takes to reform my department." The Justice Department already is conducting a "collaborative review" with Baltimore police, but its recommendations will not carry the weight of law. Such reviews differ from full-scale civil rights investigations because they are launched by agreement with local officials and are not enforced by court order.

How Black Women Can Rescue The Labor Movement

May 6, 2015 Kimberly Freeman Brown And Marc Bayard, www.theroot.com Strategize! Black Women, Economic Justice, Labor Unions, Racial Justice, Social Change, Unemployment

The roles that African Americans play in their families and communities, on the job and in their unions are acts of resistance against the staggering inequality they face on a daily basis. The statistics regarding African-American wealth and wage inequality, unemployment, mass incarceration, police brutality and poverty are daunting. To cite just one, as of March 2015, the black unemployment rate (10.1 percent) was more than double the white unemployment rate (4.7 percent). Second, this report is our love letter to the labor movement—offering sometimes tough, but always unflappable, affection. We know what some may have forgotten: that if you are concerned about the economic advancement of black women, families and communities, you must think twice before you dismiss the value and importance of the labor movement.

Don’t Call It A Curfew: Martial Law In The United States

May 6, 2015 Shahid Buttar, www.truth-out.org Educate! Baltimore, Martial Law, police brutality, Racial Justice, Wars and Militarism

The only things that could make worse the martial law effectively imposed in Baltimore recently were the discrimination and bias apparent in its enforcement. Being Black in Baltimore in recent days meant being imprisoned in your home. And beyond Baltimore, the city's "curfew" neatly encapsulated much of what is wrong in the United States. Driving to City Hall on May 2, I passed a staging area for the National Guard and armored vehicles from police departments across the state of Maryland. The scene resembled an invasion by an armored tank column. The grim presence of military vehicles on a civilian street contrasted sharply with the ebullient mood of the rally and march in which we participated. Drawing over 5,000 people, the May 2 event included large numbers of children and a diverse representation of local communities.

The Fruits Of Govenment Sponsored Segregation

May 5, 2015 Richard Rothstein, www.epi.org Educate! Baltimore, Ferguson, police brutality, Poverty, Racial Justice

Baltimore, not at all uniquely, has experienced a century of public policy designed, consciously so, to segregate and impoverish its black population. A legacy of these policies is the rioting we have seen in Baltimore. Whether after the 1967 wave of riots that led to the Kerner Commission report, after the 1992 Los Angeles riot that followed the acquittal of police officers who beat Rodney King, or after the recent wave of confrontations and vandalism following police killings of black men, community leaders typically say, properly, that violence isn’t the answer and that after peace is restored, we can deal with the underlying problems. We never do so. Certainly, African American citizens of Baltimore were provoked by aggressive, hostile, even murderous policing, but Spiro Agnew had it right. Without suburban integration, something barely on today’s public policy agenda, ghetto conditions will persist, giving rise to aggressive policing and the riots that inevitably ensue.

Thousands Protest Racist Police Abuse In Israel

May 4, 2015 Sophia Jones, www.huffingtonpost.com Resist! Ethiopia, Israel, police brutality, Racial Justice

Last week's viral video showing an Israeli policeman beating an Ethiopian-Israeli soldier triggered mass protests in Tel Aviv during Sunday's rush hour. Thousands of Israelis poured into the streets to demand an end to recurring racism, particularly within the government and police force. Some protesters, many of whom were Israeli Jews of Ethiopian descent, sat in the middle of large intersections in Tel Aviv, purposely stopping traffic to bring attention to what they say is inherent racism within parts of Israeli society. Others linked arms and led marches down streets, raising their fists and Israeli flags high above the crowd. One protester, Daniel Arefayne, told The WorldPost that it wasn't just the brutal video that prompted him to come to the demonstration with his three young children. Incidents of violence and racism toward Ethiopian-Israelis keep happening, he said, and he's sick of it.

B’more Teen Turns Himself In, Faces Life In Prison

May 2, 2015 Truth Voice, www.truthvoice.com Resist! Baltimore, Criminal Justice, Mass Incarceration, Racial Justice

Allen Bullock, the 18-year-old seen in photos smashing in a police car with a traffic cone, turned himself in after being encouraged by his parents. But now he is being held on $500,000 bail, an amount his parents cannot afford, The Guardian reports. Bullock faces charges of rioting and malicious destruction of property, among other criminal counts, after turning himself in at the Baltimore City Juvenile Justice Center with his stepfather, Maurice Hawkins, at his side. According to Hawkins, who saw footage of his stepson on Saturday, the teen agreed to turn himself in after his stepfather told him that the police would “find him, knock down our door and beat him” if he didn’t, The Guardian notes.

Baltimore’s Injustice Not Just Police: Prosecutors, Judges & Prison

May 2, 2015 AbZimet, www.commondreams.org Educate! Baltimore, police brutality, Racial Justice, Social Change, System

So much is broken here - the system, economy, community or any faith in so-called law and order in a city that takes more seriously the bustingof cars than the breaking of necks. When Allen Bullock turned himself in, his stepfather said it proved "he was growing as a man and he recognized what he did was wrong.” But he was aghast at the state's response, allowing as how "They're making an example of him and it is not right.” His mother said her son was out protesting because "he said the police were hunting and killing, not serving and protecting." As to smashing cars, she said, “He was dead wrong and he does need to be punished. But he wasn’t leading this riot. He hasn’t got that much power.” Word.

To Baltimore With Love: Chicago’s Freedom Dreams

May 1, 2015 Kelly Hayes, www.truth-out.org Resist! #BlackLivesMatter, Black Lives Matter (BLM), Chicago, Freddie Gray, Racial Justice

As protests continued in Baltimore on Tuesday, hundreds of Chicagoans rallied and marched in solidarity with those who've taken to the streets in the wake of Freddie Gray's death at the hands of Baltimore police. Local organizers passionately defended Baltimore's protestors, who have repeatedly been characterized as "thugs and criminals" by both politicians and media figures. Speakers also drew connections between the death of Freddie Gray and a number of community traumas in their own city, including the death of Rekia Boyd, and the recent acquittal of her killer, Chicago police detective Dante Servin. I was able to speak to two of the event's organizers about their intentions in planning the event, and the larger struggle their groups are currently engaged in. Page May is a prison abolitionist and an organizer with We Charge Genocide.

Unarmed Teen Cried For Mother Before He Died

May 1, 2015 David Lohr, www.huffingtonpost.com Educate! California, police brutality, Racial Justice

Lucia Morejon cannot escape the haunting memory she has of the final desperate words spoken to her by her teenage son after he was shot by police: "Mommy, Mommy, please come, please come." Hector Morejon, the youngest of five children, made that plea for help after he was shot by a Long Beach, California, police officer, who allegedly thought the 19-year-old was in possession of a firearm Thursday afternoon. The teen, who Lucia Morejon's attorney says was unarmed, directed the cries for help toward his mother when she saw him in an ambulance directly after the shooting. His final words to his mother came, the attorney alleges, after police denied Lucia Morejon access to her son before the ambulance drove away.

Broke Cities & Broken Bodies – It’s Time To Make Connections

April 30, 2015 Matt Stannard, www.occupy.com Educate! Baltimore, Economic Justice, police brutality, Politics, Racial Justice

On the evening of Saturday, April 25, protests in downtown Baltimore against the death-in-custody of Freddie Gray turned violent; according to many accounts, white thugs instigated violence and the cops responded to the response. The scene was ugly and tragic. Forty miles away, comedians, elected officials and media celebrities wore tuxedos and drank wine as they listened to the President of the United States joke about partisan politics. The juxtaposition of police-induced riots in Baltimore with the opulence of the White House Correspondents' Dinner led Ted Scheinman to declare: “If you've worried that the political class is out of touch with its criminalized underclasses, Saturday evening offered a grim case study.”

Rise Of The New Black Radicals

April 29, 2015 Chris Hedges, www.truthdig.com Educate! #BlackLivesMatter, Black Lives Matter (BLM), Racial Justice

The world’s hundreds of millions of disenfranchised youths—in America this group is dominated by the black and brown underclass—come out of the surplus labor created by our system of corporate neofeudalism. These young men and women have been discarded as human refuse and are preyed upon by a legal system that criminalizes poverty. In the United States they constitute the bulk of the 2.3 million human beings locked in jails and prisons. The discontent in Ferguson, Athens, Cairo, Madrid andAyotzinapa is one discontent. And the emerging revolt, although it comes in many colors, speaks many languages and has many belief systems, is united around a common enemy. Bonds of solidarity and consciousness are swiftly uniting the wretched of the earth against our corporate masters.

5 Things Everyone Needs To Know About Baltimore

April 29, 2015 Michael Arria, www.alternet.org Educate! Baltimore, Corruption, Criminal Justice, Impunity, police brutality, Racial Justice

Freddie Gray's family says 80% of his spine was severed and his voice box was crushed. It's believed that Gray was the victim of a "nickel ride," a purposely rough ride designed to dole out "street justice" to suspects. As David Graham wrote in the Atlantic, "Once Gray was in the van, he was handcuffed. Apparently because he was "irate" during the ride, officers stopped and shackled his legs, too. The one thing they didn't do was buckle his seat belt. Not only does that sound like common sense, it's also department policy—and BPD admits it was violated." While news cameras have descended upon the city of Baltimore and knee-jerk analysis is being offered around the clock, it's important to keep some things in mind. Lieutenant Brian Rice. Sgt. Alicia White, Officer Caesar Goodson, Officer William Porter, Officer Garrett Miller, and Officer Edward Nero have been suspended until the investigation concludes, but will continue to earn their salaries.

The “Shocking” Statistics Of Racial Disparity In Baltimore

April 29, 2015 Bill Quigley, www.commondreams.org Educate! Baltimore, Education, Inequality, Mass Incarceration, police brutality, Public Health, Racial Justice, Unemployment

Were you shocked at the disruption in Baltimore? What is more shocking is daily life in Baltimore, a city of 622,000 which is 63 percent African American. Here are ten numbers that tell some of the story. One. Blacks in Baltimore are more than 5.6 times more likely to be arrested for possession of marijuana than whites even though marijuana use among the races is similar. In fact, Baltimore county has the fifth highest arrest rate for marijuana possessions in the USA. Two. Over $5.7 million has been paid out by Baltimore since 2011 in over 100 police brutality lawsuits. Victims of severe police brutality were mostly people of color and included a pregnant woman, a 65 year old church deacon, children, and an 87 year old grandmother.

Government Treating #BlackLivesMatter Like A Terrorist Group

April 29, 2015 Adam Johnson, www.alternet.org Educate! police brutality, Racial Justice, Surveillance, Terrorism

We learned in the wake of the Occupy Wall Street movement that the government’s use of its anti-terror apparatus at a local and federal level was both routine and pervasive. Thus far, the means with which similar practices have been used on #BlackLivesMatter have been subtly emerging -- thanks in large part to some truly intrepid journalism -- from across the country. Here is a recap of the five of the worst examples: The police wearing the counterterrorism jackets at protests are perhaps the most palpable sign of the agency's transformation since 2001. Before 9/11 the NYPD had no counterterrorism bureau and the Intelligence Division focused its resources on gang activity. After the September 11 attacks, however, billions of dollars were poured into the department to counter the threat of terrorism, as a 2011 60 Minutes report showed.

The Brutality Of Police Culture In Baltimore

April 28, 2015 Conor Fiedersdorf, www.theatlantic.com Educate! Baltimore, Freddie Gray, police brutality, Racial Justice

In Baltimore, where 25-year-old Freddie Gray died shortly after being taken into police custody, an investigation may uncover homicidal misconduct by law enforcement, as happened in the North Charleston, South Carolina, killing of Walter Scott. Or the facts may confound the darkest suspicions of protestors, as when the Department of Justice released its report on the killing of Michael Brown. What's crucial to understand, as Baltimore residents take to the streets in long-simmering frustration, is that their general grievances are valid regardless of how this case plays out. For as in Ferguson, where residents suffered through years of misconduct so egregious that most Americans could scarcely conceive of what was going on, the people of Baltimore are policed by an entity that perpetrates stunning abuses.

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