You are here: Home / Archives for Southern Shift

Media Matters: Sherrod: I’m a Victim of Breitbart, Fox ‘Racism’

July 21, 2010 By

Sherrod: I’m a Victim of Breitbart, Fox ‘Racism’

by Joe Strupp

Original story: http://mediamatters.org/strupp/201007210037

Shirley Sherrod, the former Agriculture Department Georgia Director of Rural Development, says she is a victim. A victim of poor reporting and, as she contends, clear bias and racist coverage from both Andrew Breitbart and Fox News.

“When you look at their reporting, this is just another way of seeing that they are (racist),” Sherrod told me about Fox in a lengthy interview Tuesday night. “But I have seen that before now. I saw their reporting as biased during the Bush Administration and the Clinton Administration.”

Sherrod was forced to resign on Monday after a portion of a taped speech she gave last March was posted at Breitbart’s Biggovernment.com.

In the edited tape, she spoke about how she had not initially helped a white farmer as much as she could have in 1986 when he was going to lose his farm. In the posting, Breitbart made it appear as though the story had occurred during her time as a federal official and not 24 years ago when she worked for a non-profit organization.

Breitbart also did not include the entire context of the speech, in which she later explained that she learned from the situation and ended up helping the farmer, Roger Spooner and his wife. Both Spooners spoke out several times Tuesday to support Sherrod and voice that they would have lost their farm if not for her help.

Breitbart has since posted the full version of the tape, but his original posting also remains.

“It was a time when I realized that they did some of the same things to white farmers that they did to black farmers,” Sherrod said about the speech. “I thought that all white farmers got the best treatment, but I found out in this case that was not so.”

Explaining the speech further, Sherrod said, “I am trying to say to the people there that it is time for us to move forward. We do not want to forget the past and be in a position that racism is there and we don’t see it. We want to move together. Our area of the state cannot grow and thrive until we learn to get along.”

But after Breitbart posted the video clip, Sherrod said the lack of context and explanation sparked anger against her. She said she found out about the clip when someone e-mailed a link to her and asked about it.

“I couldn’t believe it. I found this out when someone sent me (a link to) the tape, people who follow him, who put it out there,” Sherrod said about Breitbart. “I got crank calls right away. Someone sent me an e-mail and link and said ‘shame on you’ and other stuff. I was sitting in a meeting and I was really upset.

“I texted back that they were so wrong and that they need to know the message and they got it wrong.”

Sherrod said Cheryl Cook, USDA deputy undersecretary, called her Monday and said she had to be on administrative leave.”

She adds: “People were calling and writing the Department of Agriculture in Athens, Ga., and Washington to tell them about it. That I needed to be fired. That a racist like me had no business working for the department. That is the way they intimidate people and it worked.”

By the end of the day Monday, she was forced to resign.

Sherrod, 62, said her first reaction was shock that, after a career working for civil rights and as the daughter of a father murdered by racists, she would be seen in such a terrible light.

“To have people say that I was such a racist was unbelievable,” she said of the fallout from the video and Fox coverage. “My whole life, if you look into what I have done, my father was murdered in 1965. If you look at all of us, we all hurt with that and we got involved into the movement and channeled our effort into good, instead of hating.

“I am getting hate calls and e-mails at this point. I got one call last night at my house at 12:30 a.m. that said ‘you lost your job, good for you’ and ‘bitch’ There are people out there who will believe that I am a racist person, even though the story is getting out there.”

She said her husband, Charles, and her two children, who also live nearby in Athens, Ga., were surprised, but have been toughened by years of seeing her work in the civil rights movement: “They had to grow up in the movement so they have had to deal with stuff like this through the years. We did not always take the easy road. They have some thick skin as a result.”

But the clear damage to Sherrod comes from Breitbart, who posted the tape without context, and Fox, which ran with the story and did not seek to confirm it.

“The news media should tell it like it is and not the way they want it to be,” she said.

Sherrod said Breitbart never contacted her before posting the video clip to ask about it.

“I never heard that name until a few minutes ago,” she said Tuesday night about Breitbart. “He never contacted me. I think they intended it to be what it ended up being, a racist thing that could unite even more the racist people out there who follow them.”

She also said Fox News never checked the facts with her before posting a story and the video clip.

“Not before they reported it,” she said of Fox’s negligence. “They have called me today and initially I had said yes (to an interview), but I thought about it and I did not think they intended to be fair in their reporting. They are going to say what they want to say regardless of what I say.”

She said Fox showed no professionalism in continuing to bother her for an interview, but failing to correct their coverage.

“I think they should but they won’t. They intended exactly what they did. They were looking for the result they got yesterday,” she said of Fox. “I am just a pawn. I was just here. They are after a bigger thing, they would love to take us back to where we were many years ago. Back to where black people were looking down, not looking white folks in the face, not being able to compete for a job out there and not be a whole person.”

Still, Fox continued to push for an interview with her, Sherrod said.

“It was unbelievable. I am refusing to be on there. They have been calling me and calling me. I have refused to do an interview because they are biased,” she explained. “I don’t think Fox News does it fairly. It is worse so now. I have sat and listened to the way they cover the news even before this administration and I saw what was going on.”

Sherrod said this situation has worsened her view of racism in media coverage.

“I think it is race. You think we have come a long way in terms of race relations in this country, but we keep going backwards,” she said. “We have become more racist. This was their doing, Breitbart put that together misrepresenting what I was saying and Fox carried it.”

Sherrod said she has gotten no future job offers and believes this will scar her reputation forever, even if all the facts come out.

“There will be people who always think of this,” she said. “I can see in the future whatever I do, this story will be recounted, no matter what. This will be brought up. People will constantly be trying to point out negative things.”

Have other job offers come up? “No, no one. People are afraid of me now, I guess, with all of this. That is the other fallout from this. Anyone would be afraid of me, maybe I am a troublemaker, a racist.”

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said he is reviewing the matter, hinting that Sherrod could possibly get her job back.

Asked if she would return if asked, she said: “I think I would have to go back for a short time, even if I did not stay for a long haul. I would need to prove a point, that I can be bigger than them. I was doing a lot of good things. People had access to that office that never did before. I had reached out to the poorest counties.”

Despite that, she plans to carry on.

“I will go back to doing what I was doing before, working with people, trying to build,” she said. “There are a lot of projects in Georgia I have been involved in creating. I will get busy with that again.”

Sherrod said she is considering legal action, perhaps against Breitbart, Fox or the federal government:

“I don’t know enough to know. I wish I did. I would love to sue. I am going to talk about it. I have been getting calls from all over the country. I don’t want to leave one stone unturned.”

Sherrod said she has been helped by many media outlets, such as CNN and others that have allowed her to explain the truth, enough so that the NAACP retracted a statement Tuesday that had denounced her.

She said that has convinced her to trust some media outlets, noting she had plans to be on Good Morning America and NPR Wednesday.

“The only one I refused to do is Fox,” she said, adding the fair coverage by others “makes me think highly of some of the media, but not any better about Fox. It is a bad taste in my mouth dealing with them. It would help some if they apologized and say they were wrong, but I don’t see that happening.”

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , ,

Rage Against the Machine & Other Artist Step Up to Boycott Arizona…Benefit Concert Called Sound Strike to Suppoirt the Fight Against SB1070

July 21, 2010 By

SOUNDSTRIKE ARTISTS RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, CONOR OBERST AND THE MYSTIC

VALLEY BAND HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE REGARDING BENEFIT CONCERT TO SUPPORT

ORGANIZATIONS FIGHTING ARIZONA ANTI-IMMIGRANT LAW SB 1070.

Rage Against the Machine

LOS ANGELES, CA July 21: Rage Against the Machine will play their first concert in Los Angeles in 10

years at the Hollywood Palladium Friday with all proceeds going to benefit Arizona organizations fighting

SB 1070. Oberst and The Mystic Valley Band will also perform.

Benefit concert performers will be joined by long time civil and immigrant rights activists Tom Seanz,

President of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), Dolores Huerta, Co-

Founder of the United Farm Workers (UFW), Arizona grass roots leader Sal Reza of Puente, and other

community leaders. This will be the Soundstrike’s first official press conference.

The SoundStrike artist boycott of Arizona has gained international attention and support. Hundreds of

artists have committed to exercise their conscious and their collective power to both reverse the punitive,

discriminatory and misguided Arizona law as well as to help lead a more productive national debate on

diversity and unity.

Soundstrike participant and Rage vocalist Zack de la Rocha said, “SB 1070 if enacted would legalize racial

profiling in Arizona. This law runs counter to music’s essential purpose, which is to unite people and not

divide them. We want to thank the artists of conscious that have joined the Soundstrike throughout the

world who use their role as artists to stand for civil and human rights.”

About The SoundStrike:

The mission of The Sound Strike is a call for Artist’s to Boycott Arizona due to the passage the Sb1070

law. For more information please visit our website www.thesoundstrike.net.

ARTISTS THAT HAVE JOINED THE SOUND STRIKE (PARTIAL LIST).

RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE • NINE INCH NAILS • KANYE WEST • CALLE 13  • CHRIS ROCK • MAROON 5 •

GOGOL BORDELLO • MY MORNING JACKET • BEN HARPER • RY COODER • PITBULL • STEVE EARLE • BILLY

BRAGG • MIA • SWEET HONEY AND THE ROCK • ANTI-FLAG • THROWING MUSES • STATE RADIO • AZTLAN

UNDERGROUND • DJ SPOOKY…AND HAVE JOINED • CYPRESS HILL • JUANES • CONOR OBERST • LOS

TIGRES DEL NORTE • CAFE TACVBA • MICHAEL MOORE • JOE SATRIANI • SERJ TANKIAN • RISE AGAINST •

OZOMATLI • SABERTOOTH TIGER • MASSIVE ATTACK • ONE DAY AS A LION • STREET SWEEPER SOCIAL

CLUB • SPANK ROCK • SONIC YOUTH • TENACIOUS D • THE COUP

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Interview w/ Immortal Technique about Haiti-6 Months Later He Calls It a Police State

July 18, 2010 By

Haiti marks six months since a massive earthquake shook the already poor nation. Billions of dollars have been donated to help the country rebuild but half a year later, the impoverished island nation still is dire straits. RT spoke to rapper and activist Immortal Technique, who recently spent time in Haiti. He argued that there is no long term vision in Haiti, referring to the nation as a military and police state run by the United States and the UN.

We are posting the interview, but we also encourage folks to read Immortal’s incredible insightful essay

http://hiphopandpolitics.wordpress.com/2010/07/01/immortal-technique-returns-from-haiti-heres-his-thoughts-observations/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oy8qbwN0Ktg

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Essential videos to peep, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , ,

An Open Letter to the Justice for Oscar Grant Movement: Suggestions on Next Steps, Strategy and Unity Building

July 16, 2010 By

An Open Letter to the Justice for Oscar Grant Movement: Suggestions on Next Steps, Strategy and Unity Building

By Kali Akuno
National Organizer – Malcolm X Grassroots Movement
Director of Education, Training, and Field Operations – US Human Rights Network

Kali Akuno

The righteous anger and indignation on graphic display in Oakland, California Thursday, July 8th at the mockery of justice rewarded to Johannes Mehserle for murdering Oscar Grant and the open collaboration of several non-profit organizations with the government to contain and delegitimatize the people’s resistance is a clarion call. It’s a call not just for justice for Oscar Grant and the countless victims of police terror, but for radical, systemic change. The anger, and its focus, indicates a heightened awareness on behalf of a new generation of working class Black, Latino and Asian youth of the intractable contradictions between the imperialist state and oppressed peoples and the willingness to challenge them.

A new phase of development and a new set of challenges now confront the movement to win justice for Oscar Grant. The inexperience of the youth forces engaged and the current weaknesses and fragmentation of the left make this a very, very delicate time. If certain conversations aren’t had, if certain lessons of the past and present aren’t incorporated, and if certain contradictions aren’t addressed, then all of the radiant energy on display July 8th could easily fade, or just as easily turn its wrath in upon itself and miss its true target.

This small contribution is an attempt to help ignite conversation, share reflections from critical movements of the past, and offer suggestions in the hope of helping to facilitate strategic and programmatic development within the movement.

On Next Steps and Organizing Orientation
1. Joint Reflection: to move the Justice for Oscar Grant Movement forward progressive forces focused on building the democratic mass movement, should join forces and come together to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the Justice for Oscar Grant Movement over the past year and half. One of the two main objectives of such a collaboration, in the short term, would be to produce a joint assessment and a unified set of demands, both tactical and strategic, to help anchor the movement in its next phase of struggle.
2. Joint Assessment: This assessment should be issued as a statement and/or document that provides a clear analysis of the movements weaknesses and errors and some strong points of orientation to try and anchor, sustain, and guide it going forward. Some key points of assessment should include (but not be limited to) the following:
a) A firm condemnation of collaboration and opportunism; but avoiding personalized vilification of the social forces that collaborated (being mindful of the lessons of COINTELPRO)
b) A statement of distinction on the role of political and community organizations as opposed to non-profits; and clarity on the reformist orientation and political limitations of non-profit organizations
c) The function of organization in the movement to combat infiltration (as appears to have occurred within the Black Bloc and other formations)
d) The need for strategy to help facilitate forward development and political advancement of the movement(s)
3. Joint Strategy and Work Plan: The second primary objective of such a collaboration would be to draft a one-year strategy and work plan to realize the unified demands that are put forward to the movement to democratically accept (understanding the independence of initiative of each formation), modify, or categorically reject.

This convergence of forces, although necessarily centered in California, particularly the Bay Area and Los Angeles, should seek to build and consolidate a national and international organizing initiative.

On Demand Expansion and Development
1. The opening of a Federal Investigation by the Department of Justice (DOJ) can and should be used as a national organizing opportunity. However, more self-determining justice initiatives should be organized simultaneously to challenge US hegemony (internally and externally) by internationalizing the struggle. More concretely, an independent “people’s or citizens” commission should be established to conduct an autonomous examination of the evidence, issue indictments, and pressure the DOJ and its process. This commission would ideally consist of family members, community activists, lawyers, jurists, etc. and call on various international bodies within the United Nations (UN) and International System (such as the Inter-American Court) to intervene in the case and challenge the racist policies and practices that enabled it.
2. The demand for resources and economic development must be supported unequivocally, but modified in a manner that puts limits on the controls of City Hall and its near exclusive access by “grasstop” forces. A means to accomplishing this (not without its faults or limits by any stretch) could be the institutionalization of participatory budgeting systems to determine the use of the cities resources to ensure they are used to address and service human needs such as adequate housing, health care, education, etc.

Synthesis Demands
This synthesis is an attempt to combine and expand on the demands originally articulated by the African People’s Socialist Party (APSP), By Any Means Necessary (BAMN) Coalition, and the New Years Movement (NYM).
1. We demand that Officers Pirone and Domenici be indicted for murder.
2. We demand civil restitution and reparations for the family Oscar Grant, and the victims of Police violence by the OPD and BART.
3. We demand that BART Police be disarmed and disbanded.
4. We demand that the Police Bill of Rights, which shields the records of police misconduct, abuse and murder, be immediately abolished, and that all police records be made public.
5. We demand that an independent “peoples commission”, drawn and determined by the citizens of Oakland, with international jurists determined by this commission, be granted oversight into the Federal Department of Justice investigation of the murder of Oscar Grant, and systemic violations of civil and human rights by the Oakland and Transit Police.
6. We demand the termination of all Gang Injunction laws and policies in Oakland and throughout California on the grounds of their unconstitutionality and their violation of civil and international law.
7. We demand that Oakland be declared a sanctuary city, and that all ICE raids and racial profiling policies and practices targeting Latino/a, Black, Asian and other oppressed peoples be terminated immediately.
8. We demand that the City of Oakland, the State of California, and the Federal Government provide massive funding for education and jobs in Oakland that are allocated and distributed via a transparent and democratic public participatory budgeting process.

One-Year Plan Targets/Tactics
1. Conduct a mass and coordinated non-compliance action in Oakland and Los Angeles the day after Mehserle’s sentencing, that calls for Student walk outs and strike or “sick out” actions by Public Sector, Transit, Dock, and other workers that disrupts the regular flow of “business” to raise our demands and demonstrate the power of mass action.
2. Organize broad, neighborhood Police/Copwatch formations, and work to create “liberated zones” in Black, Latino, Asian, and white working class and poor communities, where the police are prohibited or curtailed in their activities.
3. Organize a massive local, regional, statewide, and national “Justice for Oscar Grant” petition drive to pressure the DOJ and build support for the movement’s demands (buttressed by broad internet and social networking interface to support and broaden reach).
4. Develop a broad people’s media and cultural workers initiative to provide educational, motivational, and agitation tools and resources for the movement and to provide sufficient analysis and coverage to frame the movement from its own perspective and counter the reactionary framing and attacks of the bourgeois media.
5. Hold a People’s Tribunal, with international observers and jurists, to pressure the DOJ and its deliberations.
6. Utilize Inter-American and United Nations special action procedures and special rapporteurs to conduct international investigations, recommendations, and sanctions on the US government for its failure to protect the human rights of Oscar Grant, the victims of police violence, and the targets of the various racial profiling laws and policies sanctioned by the government.
7. Organize local, state and national referendum and legislative initiatives to realize and support the movement’s demands. A possible start could entail running progressive candidates in Oakland who stand on a platform based on the movement’s demands in the upcoming elections to help define public debate and pressure the government to comply.

Without a doubt, accomplishing all of this is a tall order, particularly for a young and fragmented movement. But, as the history of the peoples’ struggles against white supremacy, colonialism, and imperialism here and all over the world demonstrate, no political challenges are insurmountable. If we dare to win, then we must dare to struggle against the internal shortcomings and subjectivities of the movement that hinder us from building the operational unity needed to execute initiatives of scale such as those proposed in this paper. The struggle for unity does not mean that we should stop struggling against collaborationist and opportunist ideas and practices. It simply implores us to do all we can to seize the opportunities at hand. With organization, strategy, discipline, and determination we can and will win!

In Unity and Struggle.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Kali can be contacted via kaliakuno@gmail.com

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Prominent Lawyers Group Charge Oakland Police w/ using Excessive Force-Walter Riley, Lawyer & Father of Boots of the Coup Arrested

July 14, 2010 By

For those who don’t know, Oakland Police used what they called a containment strategy. This is where they had large numbers of police on all 4 sides of a street which prevented folks who came to speak out from leaving. So what this meant was the heavily publicized speak out which was sanctioned and supported by the city of Oakland had lots of folks come to 14th and Broadway and City Hall. At 8’clock the police shut it down as planned.

The police then announced it was an unlawful assembly and people would be subject to arrest if they did not leave. This included everyone from elected officials to lawyers to press who didn’t have the special green cards that the police had issued to corporate outlets embedded with them..

When people went to leave they walked down Broadway toward the city center where they were met by a line of police who pushed the crowd and started marching in the opposite direction..

As the crowd moved hastily back past 14th street to 16th they were met by another line of riot police who told them they could not go past… This meant the crowd of two hundred or so folks turned to go up 14th only to find another wall of police who were advancing forward. This left one way to go which was toward City hall which had its backstage area and other exit points blocked off or into the BART station.

Police closed the BART. So folks were contained in this human box set up by the police who were advancing forward in full riot gear. People got angry and that’s when the Footlocker on broadway got ransacked.  What was not shown on the news was the police in full riot gear were standing right there. Seems to me they could’ve easily moved in, but opted not to, while at the same time preventing peaceful protestors from leaving.  Some of the aggressive behavior is captured in the footage below..

-Davey D-

http://vimeo.com/13217165

OPD, Law Enforcement Used Excessive Force At Oscar Grant Protests: NLG Decries Police Tactics, Assaults on Peaceful Protesters

Yesterday at 8:31pm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Press Conference Wednesday, July 14, 12 Noon, 14th and Broadway in Oakland

Oakland—Despite claims by Oakland Police (OPD) and city officials that law enforcement used restraint during last Thursday’s protests following the Johannes Mehserle verdict, details emerging paint a very different picture. Police used excessive force against a largely peaceful protest, violently attacking a number of people. Police arrested many demonstrators who had done nothing wrong, and then held them in jail through the night and in some cases through the weekend and beyond.

Among those arrested were NLGSF member, and prominent Oakland attorney, Walter Riley. “Thursday’s law enforcement conduct must be investigated. The police were provocative and seemed determined to instigate violence, which of course, served their police contract negotiations with Oakland at a time when they are facing layoffs of 80 officers,” said Riley. “In the organized rally where protesters, including me, were helping to ensure peaceful protest, the police helped to perpetuate a narrative of violence by allowing a small number of people to vandalize businesses when they could have stopped it.”

Also arrested were Oakland School Board member Jumoke Hinton Hodge, 69-year-old former school principal Susan Harman, journalists and legal observers. Many of the arrestees were seriously injured by the police, including a handful who were taken to the hospital from the scene and at least one individual who was denied medication, causing a potentially life threatening situation to an elderly member of the community.

“Last Thursday a court in Los Angeles sent a disgraceful message about police violence, and that message was reinforced by the conduct of Oakland Police and other law enforcement Thursday evening,” said Carlos Villarreal, NLGSF Executive Director. “OPD and outside agencies brought in as reinforcement used overwhelming force on a largely nonviolent assembly, sweeping up lawyers, legal observers, journalists and community members, and seriously injuring a number of individuals.”

Walter Riley Father of Boots Riley of the Coup was Arrested in front of his Law Office

Several years ago the National Lawyers Guild and ACLU obtained a $2 million settlement in a lawsuit over OPD brutality toward demonstrators, and at that time OPD adopted new crowd control policies designed to safeguard freedom of speech in just this sort of volatile situation.

“If OPD had followed its own crowd control policies, the injuries would have been avoided,” explained NLGSF attorney Rachel Lederman. “The aggressive use of police formations, baton beatings and indiscriminate arrests were unnecessary and violated people’s constitutional right to protest. To make things even worse, OPD violated state law by jailing people for long periods of time who had been arrested for very minor offenses.”

The National Lawyers Guild San Francisco Bay Area Chapter (NLGSF) condemns the police abuse by OPD and other law enforcement on the scene and is investigating possible legal action. The NLGSF is a human rights bar association founded in 1937 with hundreds of members throughout the Bay Area. Find out more at www.nlgsf.org.

Carlos Villarreal

Executive Director

National Lawyers Guild SF Bay Area Chapter

www.nlgsf.org

415.285.5067×304

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Jasiri X Drops New Song & Banging Video-What if the Tea Party Were Black?

July 14, 2010 By

Jasiri X has released a video called “What if the Tea Party was Black?” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtH7vH4yRcY

The Hip Hop artist says that he got the idea when Paradise,a member of the pro-black rap group X-Clan, forwarded him a copy of Wise’s article. “I saw the article and I liked the concept,” says the rapper. So Jasiri hit the studio with producer Cynik Lethal while Paradise grabbed his video camera and they went on their mission to defeat the Right Wing propaganda machine.

What If the Tea Party Were Black?

by Tim Wise

http://www.alternet.org/story/146616/what_if_the_tea_party_were_black?page=entire

Let’s play a game, shall we? The name of the game is called “Imagine.” The way it’s played is simple: we’ll envision recent happenings in the news, but then change them up a bit. Instead of envisioning white people as the main actors in the scenes we’ll conjure – the ones who are driving the action – we’ll envision black folks or other people of color instead. The object of the game is to imagine the public reaction to the events or incidents, if the main actors were of color, rather than white. Whoever gains the most insight into the workings of race in America, at the end of the game, wins

So let’s begin.

Imagine that hundreds of black protesters were to descend upon Washington DC and Northern Virginia, just a few miles from the Capitol and White House, armed with AK-47s, assorted handguns, and ammunition. And imagine that some of these protesters —the black protesters — spoke of the need for political revolution, and possibly even armed conflict in the event that laws they didn’t like were enforced by the government? Would these protesters — these black protesters with guns — be seen as brave defenders of the Second Amendment, or would they be viewed by most whites as a danger to the republic? What if they were Arab-Americans? Because, after all, that’s what happened recently when white gun enthusiasts descended upon the nation’s capital, arms in hand, and verbally announced their readiness to make war on the country’s political leaders if the need arose.

Imagine that white members of Congress, while walking to work, were surrounded by thousands of angry black people, one of whom proceeded to spit on one of those congressmen for not voting the way the black demonstrators desired. Would the protesters be seen as merely patriotic Americans voicing their opinions, or as an angry, potentially violent, and even insurrectionary mob? After all, this is what white Tea Party protesters did recently in Washington.

Imagine that a rap artist were to say, in reference to a white president: “He’s a piece of shit and I told him to suck on my machine gun.” Because that’s what rocker Ted Nugent said recently about President Obama.

Imagine that a prominent mainstream black political commentator had long employed an overt bigot as Executive Director of his organization, and that this bigot regularly participated in black separatist conferences, and once assaulted a white person while calling them by a racial slur. When that prominent black commentator and his sister — who also works for the organization — defended the bigot as a good guy who was misunderstood and “going through a tough time in his life” would anyone accept their excuse-making? Would that commentator still have a place on a mainstream network? Because that’s what happened in the real world, when Pat Buchanan employed as Executive Director of his group, America’s Cause, a blatant racist who did all these things, or at least their white equivalents: attending white separatist conferences and attacking a black woman while calling her the n-word.

Imagine that a black radio host were to suggest that the only way to get promoted in the administration of a white president is by “hating black people,” or that a prominent white person had only endorsed a white presidential candidate as an act of racial bonding, or blamed a white president for a fight on a school bus in which a black kid was jumped by two white kids, or said that he wouldn’t want to kill all conservatives, but rather, would like to leave just enough—“living fossils” as he called them—“so we will never forget what these people stood for.” After all, these are things that Rush Limbaugh has said, about Barack Obama’s administration, Colin Powell’s endorsement of Barack Obama, a fight on a school bus in Belleville, Illinois in which two black kids beat up a white kid, and about liberals, generally.

Imagine that a black pastor, formerly a member of the U.S. military, were to declare, as part of his opposition to a white president’s policies, that he was ready to “suit up, get my gun, go to Washington, and do what they trained me to do.” This is, after all, what Pastor Stan Craig said recently at a Tea Party rally in Greenville, South Carolina.

Imagine a black radio talk show host gleefully predicting a revolution by people of color if the government continues to be dominated by the rich white men who have been “destroying” the country, or if said radio personality were to call Christians or Jews non-humans, or say that when it came to conservatives, the best solution would be to “hang ‘em high.” And what would happen to any congressional representative who praised that commentator for “speaking common sense” and likened his hate talk to “American values?” After all, those are among the things said by radio host and best-selling author Michael Savage, predicting white revolution in the face of multiculturalism, or said by Savage about Muslims and liberals, respectively. And it was Congressman Culbertson, from Texas, who praised Savage in that way, despite his hateful rhetoric.

Imagine a black political commentator suggesting that the only thing the guy who flew his plane into the Austin, Texas IRS building did wrong was not blowing up Fox News instead. This is, after all, what Anne Coulter said about Tim McVeigh, when she noted that his only mistake was not blowing up the New York Times.

Imagine that a popular black liberal website posted comments about the daughter of a white president, calling her “typical redneck trash,” or a “whore” whose mother entertains her by “making monkey sounds.” After all that’s comparable to what conservatives posted about Malia Obama on freerepublic.com last year, when they referred to her as “ghetto trash.”

Imagine that black protesters at a large political rally were walking around with signs calling for the lynching of their congressional enemies. Because that’s what white conservatives did last year, in reference to Democratic party leaders in Congress.

In other words, imagine that even one-third of the anger and vitriol currently being hurled at President Obama, by folks who are almost exclusively white, were being aimed, instead, at a white president, by people of color. How many whites viewing the anger, the hatred, the contempt for that white president would then wax eloquent about free speech, and the glories of democracy? And how many would be calling for further crackdowns on thuggish behavior, and investigations into the radical agendas of those same people of color?

To ask any of these questions is to answer them. Protest is only seen as fundamentally American when those who have long had the luxury of seeing themselves as prototypically American engage in it. When the dangerous and dark “other” does so, however, it isn’t viewed as normal or natural, let alone patriotic. Which is why Rush Limbaugh could say, this past week, that the Tea Parties are the first time since the Civil War that ordinary, common Americans stood up for their rights: a statement that erases the normalcy and “American-ness” of blacks in the civil rights struggle, not to mention women in the fight for suffrage and equality, working people in the fight for better working conditions, and LGBT folks as they struggle to be treated as full and equal human beings.

And this, my friends, is what white privilege is all about. The ability to threaten others, to engage in violent and incendiary rhetoric without consequence, to be viewed as patriotic and normal no matter what you do, and never to be feared and despised as people of color would be, if they tried to get away with half the shit we do, on a daily basis.

Game Over.

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Lebron, Gilbert & Jesse.. This is Bigger than Any Hip Hop Beef-But Who Wins when Millionaires Fight?

July 13, 2010 By

Here’s the podcast to our July 13th Hard Knock Radio show

w/ sports columnist/author Dave Zirin and

sports broadcaster/emcee FranK Red on Lebron James and also the passing of NY Yankee Owner George Steinbrenner

http://www.kpfa.org/archive/id/62541

Everyone is talking about Lebron James and the brouhaha he has with Cleveland Cav’s owner Dan Gilbert.  Adding to the mix is Jesse Jackson. Lemme just say for the record this is not Hip Hop beef. It’s a beef between 3 men who have more money and resources than most of us could ever dream for… It’s important to not this because their beef becomes are distraction as we discovered the other night when Lebron’s ‘Decision’ where to make his next millions overshadowed the ‘Decision’ to slap an out of control cop on the wrist with manslaughter for the killing of Oscar Grant.

At any given moment, a kid from the projects or a rich millionaire like Lebron could be subjected to the harsh treatment of someone with a badge and a gun..

I think Dan Gilbert reacted more as a fan than an owner with his letter, however because what he says in his position as owner is gonna hold a certain amount of weight, he had to be more mindful or at least state it plainly so there’s no confusion. I’m not alone in my opinion, the NBA went a fined ole boy 100 Gs for the outburst.

I think Jesse Jackson was right in his assessment if he looks at Gilbert from the standpoint of him being an owner and not a fan… But Jesse has got to be taken to task for ignoring the Grant case. There’s no notice on his site about Grant. I could assume that maybe he wasn’t up on it, because it didn’t get national play..but there was also no mention of the explosive torture case involving former Chicago Captain Jon Burge who was recently found guilty of perjury and obstruction of justice and was responsible for torturing hundreds of Black men in Chicago over a 30 year period. This was right in Jesse’s backyard and while we give him props for the battles he does take on, like Gilbert when he speaks his words take on extra weight. A younger, more hungry Jesse Jackson would’ve made the connection to Grant when speaking about Lebron..

Here’s a list of Jesse’s recent press releases. http://www.rainbowpush.org/news

Lastly we have Lebron James.. At 25 the weight of the world shouldn’t be on his shoulders, but he’s got to be smarter and more aware or come off looking like a big spoiled cry baby. He got used by the media that went above-board to focus on him while obscuring the verdict of Oscar Grant. You know it was huge because it even obscured a lot of coverage around the riot which was in reaction to the decision. Is that Lebron’s fault.. Technically ‘No’, but ethically ‘Yes’. Because he has a lot, much is expected and you can’t run around calling yourself King and not be up on issues pertinent to your ‘subjects’.  I think the editorial written by the folks at Whatupdoe in Detroit says it all.

Lastly I’ll say this..a great basketball player is one who transcends the sport and exercises leadership both on and off the court. Lebron is a master on the court but still has a way to go to live up to the title of King…His challenge was to leverage his greatness and be in ‘partnership’ by shifting the balance of power between him and owner Dan Gilbert. That would be the ascension I’m talking about.

Can Lebron James be the next Paul Robeson?

Right now he was a paid employee and not someone who was stepping up and finding away to make it happen for his team. He’s in a sport thats unlike any other where one guy can truly make a difference. Lebron left before making that difference in terms of being a champ and he knows this no matter how many rings he gets elsewhere. He knows he has unfinished business in Cleveland.. Same way Muhammad Ali knew he had to fight Joe Frazier after he beat George Forman and was the champ.  In addition since James calls himself King, he’s gonna have to move in the direction of being ‘that guy’ who smartly weighs in on issues of the day. Failure to do that as he gets older renders him to be cartoonish…In other words at 25 it’s cute to call yourself ‘King’, after he gets older it becomes silly unless he does King like things. I say he needs to take a page from singer John Legend on the activism/education tip and strive to be more Paul Robensonisque.

Until then Lebron is someone who we will say pulled a Meg Whitman. He’s no different than Ebay chair who is trying to buy her way to the Governor’s mansion in California. Buying your way to a championship in the NBA is not being a true winner.

Davey D

Open Letter to from Dan Gilbert

http://www.nba.com/cavaliers/news/gilbert_letter_100708.html

Dear Cleveland, All Of Northeast Ohio and Cleveland Cavaliers Supporters Wherever You May Be Tonight;

Does Cleveland Owner Dan Gilbert sound like someone w/ a slave-owners Mentality?

As you now know, our former hero, who grew up in the very region that he deserted this evening, is no longer a Cleveland Cavalier.This was announced with a several day, narcissistic, self-promotional build-up culminating with a national TV special of his “decision” unlike anything ever “witnessed” in the history of sports and probably the history of entertainment.Clearly, this is bitterly disappointing to all of us.The good news is that the ownership team and the rest of the hard-working, loyal, and driven staff over here at your hometown Cavaliers have not betrayed you nor NEVER will betray you.There is so much more to tell you about the events of the recent past and our more than exciting future. Over the next several days and weeks, we will be communicating much of that to you.

You simply don’t deserve this kind of cowardly betrayal.

You have given so much and deserve so much more.

In the meantime, I want to make one statement to you tonight:

“I PERSONALLY GUARANTEE THAT THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS WILL WIN AN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP BEFORE THE SELF-TITLED FORMER ‘KING’ WINS ONE”

You can take it to the bank.

If you thought we were motivated before tonight to bring the hardware to Cleveland, I can tell you that this shameful display of selfishness and betrayal by one of our very own has shifted our “motivation” to previously unknown and previously never experienced levels.

Some people think they should go to heaven but NOT have to die to get there.

Sorry, but that’s simply not how it works.

This shocking act of disloyalty from our home grown “chosen one” sends the exact opposite lesson of what we would want our children to learn. And “who” we would want them to grow-up to become.

But the good news is that this heartless and callous action can only serve as the antidote to the so-called “curse” on Cleveland, Ohio.

The self-declared former “King” will be taking the “curse” with him down south. And until he does “right” by Cleveland and Ohio, James (and the town where he plays) will unfortunately own this dreaded spell and bad karma.

Just watch.

Sleep well, Cleveland.

Tomorrow is a new and much brighter day….

I PROMISE you that our energy, focus, capital, knowledge and experience will be directed at one thing and one thing only:

DELIVERING YOU the championship you have long deserved and is long overdue….

Dan Gilbert
Majority Owner
Cleveland Cavaliers

Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr. Reacts to Dan Gilbert’s Open Letter

http://www.rainbowpush.org/news/single/rev._jesse_l._jackson_sr._reacts_to_dan_gilberts_open_letter

“Mr. Dan Gilbert’s accusations, expressed in an open letter to LeBron James after his announcement that he will play next year’s NBA season for the Miami Heat, have legal and social implications for the league, its union and the character of LeBron James. By saying that he has gotten a free pass and that people have covered for him way too long, Gilbert suggests that LeBron has done something illegal or illicit.

He speaks as an owner of LeBron and not the owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers. His feelings of betrayal personify a slave master mentality. He sees LeBron as a runaway slave. This is an owner employee relationship–between business partners–and LeBron honored his contract.

He must know the Curt Flood suit, which changed plantation rules and created free agency; and the Spencer Haywood suit that changed eligibility rules.

If he believes that LeBron quit in games 2, 4, 5 and 6 of the 2010 Eastern Conference semifinals, then, why did he fire the coach? If he believes that LeBron intentionally quit, determining the outcome of those games, why did he pursue him and offer him and additional $120 million to stay in Cleveland?

These accusations endanger LeBron. His jersey is being burned in effigy, and he is being projected as a betrayer by the owner.

When players or coaches speak disrespectfully to or about referees, they are fined. If Mr. Gilbert cannot prove that LeBron changed games by quitting, he defames his character. He should have to face a challenge by the NBA and the players association. LeBron has every right to an apology.

Other players cannot just watch this as if it is LeBron’s personal problem. This is an attack upon players in general.

LeBron is not a child, nor is he bound to play on Gilbert’s plantation and be demeaned. He has been a model citizen and has inspired the children of Akron, Cleveland, the State of Ohio and the United States.

He has conducted camps for children, helped to win a gold medal for our nation and his public deportment has been excellent.

Mr. Gilbert’s statement is mean, arrogant and presumptuous.

I hope that LeBron will speak up and speak out clearly and forcefully.”

The Rainbow PUSH Coalition is a progressive organization protecting, defending and expanding civil rights to improve economic and educational opportunity. The organization is headquartered at 930 E. 50th St. in Chicago. For more information about the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, please visithttp://www.rainbowpush.org or call (773) 373-3366.

Here’s a response to Jesse’s remarks…from the website Whatupdoe.com out of Detroit..

Mr. Jackson,

Let me start out by saying that I recognize your accomplishments and everything you’ve done in the past. I know you marched with Martin Luther King, Jr. I know you were there when Martin was assassinated. I’m aware that, in the 80’s, you orchestrated a huge voter registration drive that led to millions of African Americans registering to vote and that you were a huge factor in Chicago electing its first African American Mayor in 1983. I know that you helped to found the Chicago branch of Operation Breadbasket, the economic arm of the Southern Christian Leadership Council. It’s amazing that in 1984, 1990, and 1999 you were able to enter Syria, Iraq, and Yugoslavia, respectively, to negotiate the release of United States soldiers and civilians during war times.

With that being said…

You’ve never let us forget you marched with Martin and were there with him when he was assassinated. In fact, you pretty much remind us just about every time you speak. Your voter registration drives were for your own selfish gain during your presidential runs in 1984 and 1988. I also know that your exact location during Martin’s assassination has been the center of controversy. You were actually suspended by the SCLC, in 1971, for using the organization for personal gain. You then resigned shortly after being suspended by the SCLC only to start Operation PUSH  to “save humanity,” and founded the National Rainbow Coalition that sought out equal rights for African Americans, women, and homosexuals. Ironically, in 2001, it was unearthed that you had an affair with a woman that led to the birth of a child. In addition to that, to keep your mistress quiet, you paid her around $36,000 in Rainbow Push Coalition funds for “moving expenses” and “contract work,” with an additional guarantee for $40,000 more for future, “contract work,” but rescinded once the affair was made public. The same funds from your “non-profit,” that are solicited donations, in most cases I’m assuming, to support the causes your organization is supposed to be supporting.

You are also the same African American activist that was heard saying, during an interview, that, in regards to President Obama, you wanted to, “cut his nuts off,” for lecturing black churches about the state of welfare? The same President Obama that has been a pillar and champion for equality even before his election into office?

The last few times I’ve seen or heard your name mentioned? The highly publicized Duke Lacrosse scandal, the highly publicized scandal of unfunny Seinfeld actor/comedian Michael Richards’ usage of the word, “nigger,” in response to African American hecklers, and the highly publicized N.A.A.C.P.’s burial of the word, “nigger,” and all variations of it.  And now you’re lashing out against Dan Gilbert for his highly publicized open letter to LeBron James with your own open letter.

Well, Mr. Jackson, this is my open letter to you.

Quite frankly, to be blunt, I don’t know the difference between you (along with Rev. Al Sharpton) and an ambulance chasing personal injury attorney. Just that, in this case, the ambulance is free publicity.

Now, I didn’t mention any of the above to point fingers or to be hurtful but to bring up a point: Everyone’s human. We all fall victim to our emotions and actions. No one is above reprieve and everyone deserves the benefit of the doubt and second chances.

However, if there is one thing I am sick of, I am sick and tired of the race card. I’m sick and tired of race being made an issue. And I’m definitely sick and tired of you, your cohort Rev. Al Sharpton, and everyone using racism as a crutch for some sort of favoritism or pity. For me and my generation, slavery is no longer a valid excuse for us not improving the quality of life for us and those surrounding us.

We’re going to have to agree to disagree on Dan Gilbert’s open letter being worded in a way that, “suggests that LeBron has done something illegal or illicit.” Should Gilbert have let his emotions dictate his words? No. He’s the owner of an NBA franchise. Not only could that letter be bad for future business, but as an owner he should hold himself to a higher standard. But, with that being said, he has nothing to apologize for. Are we asking people to apologize for the way they feel? What are we doing here?

LeBron most certainly fulfilled his contractual obligations, thus being allowed to make whatever decision he felt best for himself.

But there is nothing in Gilbert’s open letter to LeBron that signifies a slave and a master relationship, nor is there anything in Gilbert’s open letter that signifies him seeing LeBron James as a, “runaway slave.” Your egregious, extremely exaggerated connections of his letter to slavery and racism is reckless. It does more to hurt race relations in our country than it does to strengthen them.

continue reading Open Letter to Jesse Jackson here...http://www.whutupdoe.com/an-open-letter-to-jesse-jackson.html


Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Oscar Grant Family Press Conference: The Trial, The Verdict & What the Mainstream Press Covered Up

July 11, 2010 By

Oscar Grant's Uncle, Cephus Johnson aka Uncle Bobby along with Minister Keith Muhammad.

Sat July 10 Oakland, Ca: There was a press conference held at True Vine Church Here organizers along with the Oscar Grant family returned from Los Angeles and gave a Community Report Back. They go in on the jury and the press.

Minister Keith Muhammad started off by presenting a detailed break down of what took place in the courtroom. Here are the links below..followed by a brief summary of what was talked about…

http://www.swift.fm/mrdaveyd/song/50228/ pt1

http://www.swift.fm/mrdaveyd/song/50231/ pt2

http://www.swift.fm/mrdaveyd/song/50226/ pt3

Minister Keith talked about the jury and the way they deliberated. He noted the instructions given to the jury and the steps they were supposed to take in determining a verdict. He explained the delays that took place  and what they met. He noted the instructions Judge Robert Perry gave to them. Folks need to hear this portion of the press conference and keep in mind many of the concerns that Minister Keith and the Grant family raise around how quickly the jury returned a verdict. On many levels, it seems the jury didn’t fully deliberate at all.

The issue of the jury’s racial make up is talked about and how the lack of African-Americans raised cause for concern and impacted the verdict. Los Angeles is almost 25% white but was 75% on the jury. The claim that there were no Black jurors available was outlandish. Minister Keith outlines what Judge Robert Perry insisted upon in terms of selecting a jury. Many people felt the prosecutor David Stein dropped the ball. As was pointed during this press conference, he was handcuffed by the specific instructions and method dictated by Judge Perry…

What’s most troubling is what was not reported by the mainstream press around both the jury deliberation and instruction. They also spoke about how harshly the family was treated when the jury was finally reached a verdict. They weren’t even allowed in the courtroom, by callous guards..

Below is the link to the podcast detailing the Jury selection and deliberation as well as how the family was treated in court. Minister Keith also lays out some key issues that were presented in court but covered up by mainstream media… What should be noted was during his presentation much of the mainstream local media was present from KPIX to ABC etc..I would encourage folks to listen to the presentation which is in 2 parts and see if any of this is reported. Ask yourself why it hasn’t been in the news.

http://www.swift.fm/mrdaveyd/song/50228/

The Harsh Treament of Oscar Grant’s Friends Both That Night & On the Stand

Killer cop Johannes Mehsersle

In pt2 of the Community Report back… Minister Keith lays out the under reported treatment of Oscar Grant’s friends who sat on the platform and witnessed their friend be killed in front of them. He talks about the harsh treatment they received by the police including taunts after Grant was killed. He explains how the young men some as young as 15 were handcuffed and made to sit in jail handcuffed for over 6 hours after Grant was killed and then informed that they were NOT arrested and were free to go.. This is beyond heartbreaking

Minister Keith details the testimony the boys gave in court and the video footage they took while on the platform. Key aspects to the boys testimony including how the Johannes Mehserle‘s defense attorney Michael Rains tried to mock them and assassinate their character when they took the stand. Hearing about what Oscar Grant’s friends endured is beyond troubling.

Also included are details around the judge’s treatment. The boys when seeing the video broke down in court and the jury was instructed to leave.. They did not want their tears to impact the jury. With Mehserle the jury was allowed to stay when he cried. Minister Keith also explains how Mehserle was coached on how to cry..

Included in this portion is a lot of other key elements the mainstream press witnessed and was presented yet decided not to include in any of their reports. The most glaring was the behavior of Mehserle’s partners and them using racial epithets..

They also lay out the role, the money spent and conflicting testimony delivered by the expensive expert witnesses that Mehserle brought forth. He spent 65k on one witnesses who attempted to tell everyone the dozens of videos showing Grant’s shooting were unreliable and inconclusive.

He spent 50k on another expert witness a former cop named Greg Meyer who tried to tell us that Mehserle meant to use his taser. What the mainstream press ommited was showing how Mehserle ion several occasion brandish his taser that night in attempts to taunt and intimidate Grant and his friends who were never charged with anything or legally arrested. Grant took a picture of Mehserle holding the taser two minutes before was killed.

Lying cops Marysol Domenici and Tony Pirone

It was also pointed out that the officers and media claimed that Grants friends were out of control and threatening, however none of the videos or police reports indicate this.

What was also glaring were the lies told by Mehserle’s partners Tony Pirone and Marysol Dominci.

Below is the podcast to part 2.. This is very detailed,,pay close attention..please pass it around.

http://www.swift.fm/mrdaveyd/song/50231/

Uncle Bobby Speaks to the Letter of Apology Released by Johannes Mehserle

Cephus Johnson aka Uncle Bobby is the uncle to Oscar Grant. Here he talks emphatically about the ‘apology letter’ sent by Johannes Mehserle. He says its garbage and fake. He explains that the letter was never addressed to him, Oscar’s mother Wanda, Tatiyana (Oscar’s daughter) or Sophena (the mother to Oscar’s daughter). He also talks about how Mehserle in his defense chose to assassinate Oscar’s character while invoking the policeman’s bill of rights to keep his hidden.

He noted that the letter was garbage and was as fake as the tears he shed on the stand. He said that Mehserle needs to spend 14 years in jail an then write a letter of apology and give it to the family privately. Cephus also explains the lies Mehserle detailed in his letter including how he attempted to attend to Grants aid after shooting him. Uncle Bobby points out that the video shows Mehserle handcuffing Oscar after he shot him..

Cephus also addresses the issue of violence during protest. he talks about police dressed as undercover agitating the crowds. Its later pointed out tht the family never called for violence. Its unfair to place blame on the family. Below is the podcast of the full press release and interview we did with Cephus Johnson. The video just shows a portion of his remarks.

http://www.swift.fm/mrdaveyd/song/50226/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfYGQNZAeQc

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Searching for Justice as Oakland Streets Turn Lawless

July 10, 2010 By

Searching for Justice as Oakland Streets Turn Lawless

by Jesse Strauss

check out yesterday’s radio show to get a blow by blow account of what happened on the streets of Oakland the night of the verdict

http://kpfa.org/archive/id/62458

As the Oakland community begins to understand the meaning of Johannes Mehserle’s involuntary manslaughter verdict, the streets exploded angrily last night.

Mehserle is the former BART cop who killed Oscar Grant on New Year’s morning, 2009. As Grant was lying face down on a BART platform, Mehserle stood up, grabbed his firearm, aimed down, and shot Grant. Mehserle’s next action was to handcuff the wounded 22 year old father before calling for any kind of medical assistance. Oscar Grant was killed that morning, but the Oakland community will never forget his name.

Yesterday at 4pm, an LA courthouse announced the jury’s verdict, that Mehserle killed Grant with “criminal negligence”, receiving the charge of involuntary manslaughter. From what I understand at the time of this writing, the verdict could mean that Oscar Grant’s killer will serve anywhere from two to fourteen years in jail.

It’s clear, though, that the Oakland community does not consider the conviction strong enough. Speaker after speaker at the 6pm rally in downtown Oakland told the crowd of at least a thousand that they were disappointed with the verdict. Many folks spoke out about their feelings in different ways, but no one seemed comfortable with what had happened.

At the same time, no one seemed uncomfortable by the huge amount of support given by the larger Bay Area. What many sources have called “outside agitators”, many people in the streets last night recognized as community support.

While we think about the mainstream narrative of “outsiders”, it seems important to keep in mind that Oscar Grant himself lived in Hayward, and Mehserle was not an Oakland cop, but a BART officer, which meant his jurisdiction spanned across a range of cities throughout the Bay Area. Oakland simply and justifiably is at the center of this action.

The inside agitators, which are mostly Oaklanders (although I did see some people from Berkeley, Hayward and Vallejo), clearly played a strong role in the community response to the verdict. As the formal rally came to a close at 8pm as organizers were ordered to shut it down by the city, it became clear that the police forces, whether Oakland cops, California Highway Patrol, or others from nearby cities, were excited and ready to use their new training and equipment on the people who came out to voice their opinions.

Once the rally ended, at least two people had already been arrested, but it was fully unclear to any of us witnessing the events what prompted those arrests. Only a few minutes later, I was told that a block away a Footlocker’s windows were broken and its contents ransacked by community members. When I arrived there, I watched some young people grab shoes in the store and run out before two others blocked the entrance, telling others that justice for Oscar Grant does not look like what we were seeing.

But what does justice look like?

As I walked away from Footlocker, I saw freshly sprayed graffiti covering windows and businesses with statements like “Justice 4 Oscar Grant” and “Off The Pigs”. Continuing down the street, I saw protesters running in any direction they could find to avoid confrontations with police, who were slowly marching up Broadway Avenue in Downtown Oakland.

Then the shattering started. Much of the next few hours became a blur. I watched numerous windows at the downtown Oakland Sears fall to the ground as someone lit small fireworks nearby. Sirens echoed in every direction and police announced that the gatherings were illegal and we would be arrested and possibly “removed by force which could cause serious bodily injury”. Minutes later, the wind carried a draft of pepper spray toward me as I walked by three large flaming dumpsters in the middle of Telegraph Avenue.

In the midst of all the action I searched for some kind of organization—some kind of unified goal or idea of justice. The community is angry, and there is no correct platform to address that anger. For those who are sure that Mehserle should be charged with a crime stronger than involuntary manslaughter, the legal approach did not work.

While leadership and organization seemed to have flown out the window, it did seem that the rebellions were much more calculated than those just after Grant’s murder, as most of the broken windows were concentrated at corporate giants like Footlocker and Starbucks. The strongest piece of organization I witnessed in Oakland’s streets last night were the groups of people preventing attacks on local businesses.

The police came in as a close second. They didn’t seem to know how to deal with what was going on, but they would march in formation down a street, only to watch new trash cans light up and windows shatter another block down. While they may have been organized within their small army, officers had no idea how to deal with the realities of last night. In fact, it became clear to me that they made Oakland’s streets very unsafe.

As I walked from Telegraph to Broadway on Grand Avenue, first watching a Starbucks window broken and then that of a sushi restaurant, I realized the night was getting out of hand for everyone. Trying to stay connected with some sort of normality and step away from the crazy streets, I called a friend. As soon as my conversation was over I looked down at my phone to hang up. Then a hand came out of nowhere, perhaps over my shoulder, and grabbed the phone. I tried to hold onto it until I was startled and disoriented by a fist slamming into my eye and I let the phone disappear as blood began dripping from just above my left eyelid.

But where were the police to respond to a robbery and assault in the middle of a major intersection in downtown Oakland? They were clearly not making it safe for me to be in that space, and it is still unclear who or what they made it safe for. The person or people who have the phone and gave me a black eye and some possible medical bills were not crazy and violent Oaklanders that need to be policed to help or save people like me. These were people who took advantage of a lawless space that our law enforcement officers created themselves.

The night started with people moving and becoming angry (or angrier) because police declared a peaceful gathering in the street to be illegal. Windows were broken because people were angry and moving quickly down the streets with nowhere to voice their anger safely.

Hours later, I’m lying in bed with a black eye and a gash above my eyelid. I can only imagine how my night would have ended if the police hadn’t declared the peaceful gathering illegal and created a sense of lawlessness in Oakland’s streets.

This is not justice for Oscar Grant. But what is? From the Grant’s murder to those of us who were endangered by police last night, law enforcement needs to be held accountable to the communities they serve. That at least seems like a good starting point.

———

Born and raised in Oakland, Jesse Strauss is a producer for Flashpoints (www.flashpoints.net) on Pacifica Radio. His articles have been published on Truthout, Common Dreams, CounterPunch, Consortium News, and other sources. Reach him at jstrauss (at) riseup.net.

check out yesterday’s radio show to get a blow by blow account of what happened on the streets of Oakland the night of the verdict

http://kpfa.org/archive/id/62458

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLy25lOggJQ

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner


Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Essential videos to peep, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Ner City: My thoughts about yesterday’s town hall meeting for Oscar Grant

July 4, 2010 By

My thoughts about yesterday’s town hall meeting for Oscar Grant

by Ner City

original story: http://bit.ly/9di80X

First of all I would like to thank Josh Healey for giving me the 411 about this meeting. Josh excuse my language but you’re a real a** mutha fucka for real.

Yesterday’s town hall meeting was very interesting. It was sad that it wasn’t really a “Town Hall Meeting” but more like a “Street Hall Meeting”. What I mean by that was I wish there were more people there. No Oakland Raider, Athletic, Golden State Warrior rep, no KMEL rep, KTVU, NBC, CBS, ABC (Shout out to Greg Bridges from KPFA for being there) but besides him and maybe a few people from grassroots movements everyone else seemed M.I.A. The church was maybe half full. Maybe a lot of people were like me out of the loop and found out about this meeting at the last minute or not knowing at all. *shrugs*

Things that I learned:
There are tiers to Manslaughter, Involuntary Manslaughter & 2nd Degree murder. Meaning that a person convicted of involuntary manslaughter can still get a lot of years if a gun was involved. Same for Manslaughter & 2nd degree murder. So if Mehserle gets a guilty verdict for whatever he can still have 10-21 years added mandatory. .

There were some disturbing things that I learned also. As reported on my status update Mehserle was kicked out of the same high school where he was voted “Most huggable” for slapping a Latina woman. This evidence was not allowed in court for some strange reason.

The Judge’s final instructions to the jury were that if they felt that Mehserle was going for his taser they must find him not guilty.

Things that moved me:
Oscar Grant’s mother being there. It’s one thing to see the woman on TV and try to feel her pain, but it’s a totally different thing to see her in person. She’s a very strong woman and probably wishes she didn’t get so much attention. A mother losing her son has to be the biggest pain ever felt. 9 months carrying the child, all those years raising them and now you have to spend the rest of your life trying to cope without them. Damn.

My feelings about the Town Hall Meeting:

I have mixed feelings. For two hours only 4-5 people spoke. Two Muslim ministers, this guy named “Tony”, Oscar Grant’s uncle, Donald Lacy and the pastor of the church that we were at to wrap things up. Though all of them said things to move the crowd (though some of them started preaching, ranting & going on a tangent a little too long) to me there wasn’t any “So this is what we’re going to do now.” Moments

I wanted to know what are we as a people in this room going to do to spread the message about the different tiers of involuntary manslaughter, manslaughter & murder to the people that don’t know because the news isn’t doing that.

How do you feel if Mehserle gets involuntary manslaughter but gets 14 years? Will you say that it’s “Injustice”? If so will you riot? And speaking of “rioting” I highly doubt one person in that church would throw a brick, kick out a window, jump on a car or start beating white people which is being said by so many people if the verdict doesn’t go their way. My point is that we need to talk to the people that will or might want to do that. Hell, we were on 27th & San Pablo (Just a few blocks where my Grand Father lived in some of the most hood spots) and I bet you a few of these young kids would love to “tear some shit up for injustice and rage”. We need to touch them.

So Monday I’m going to do my part and walk the streets of both East & West Oakland to talk to some of these young men and just to see where their head’s at. People are quick to say that the riots could happen downtown but what about the rest of “The town”? What about the Fruitvale area where Oscar was murdered? What about East Oakland where if you remember our people went wild twice, once over the Raiders winning the AFC championship & another time just because there was suppose to be a Tupac & Dogg Pound concert at the Eastmont Pavilion <—– I’m showing my age. What about Oakland’s west side? Those are questions that need to be asked and addressed don’t you think?

These were the things that Josh and I were talking about as I was dropping him off from the meeting. It was strange how our conversation just stopped when we pulled up & seen two Oakland’s police cars near Josh’s “favorite taco truck”, that just shows you there’s still tension in the air, my question that I asked Josh that I wished I could’ve asked the people in that room, or the mayor or the police chief (Both who weren’t there) this…

My Question- Everybody’s worried about what Oakland is going to do if they don’t get the verdict they want and how are they going to react, but how will Bart Police, Oakland Police, SFPD, Richmond PD, LAPD and every PD in the state of California and outside of it..how will they react (to us) if they do not get the verdict they want? Will they feel that justice was not served and lash out at us in their own special way?

Just something to thing about.

BTW I hate that picture of Oscar Grant wearing all black with the beany. To me it helps play into people’s ignorance and fear of a dangerous black man painting a picture of him being a thug and the media, defense attorney and police on the scene can hype that bs so I found a better one to post.

I will leave this note with a remix to the battle cry that was created from this horrible crime against a young man’s life “I am Oscar Grant, who doesn’t want his Son to be the next Oscar Grant”

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wu-NSij9wDk

Filed Under: 2009-Daily Hip Hop News, Political articles, Southern Shift Tagged With: , , , , ,
« Previous Page
Next Page »