Funny how the police involved in the beating of three alleged unarmed men have suddenly had an "epiphany" and changed their stories. As the three young men beaten and kicked by police in a car-stop arrest captured on videotape face a court hearing, police officials have changed their account of the shooting they say led to the trio's arrest. Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey said narcotics officers on surveillance saw the three suspects and a fourth man emerge from their car and walk toward 4th and Annsbury streets, where a group of people had gathered.The fourth man fired at the group and then fled on foot, Ramsey said, and police units tracked down the three others who had left in the car. Now, police say that there was no fourth man and that 19-year-old Pete Hopkins, one of the three who were beaten and arrested, fired the shots that wounded three men on the corner before police pursued the vehicle. So, where's the gun? Did they find any residue on his hands?
The new revelations basically show how 10 days after the videotaped violence that cast Philadelphia in a bad light around the world first surfaced, investigators are still struggling to explain what happened and why. So, I guess it is real convenient to finally "remember" what exactly happened and change your story. Now, if a defendant did that, it would be considering lying and, as in the case of Sean Bell of New York, it would be considered unreliable testimony and the cops let off the hook.
This is absurd. These are highly trained surveillance officers and they claim they can't even count the number of people who emerge from a car. If they cannot count, then why are they even in the force to uphold law and order? I wasn't there and I don't know what really happened, but this is horrible publicity for Philadelphia that has been faced with escalating incidents of gun violence and murder in the city of Brotherly love. This is the last thing Mayor Nutter would like to be confronted with, but it is a startling reality. The force seemed to be really excessive and I was particularly glad that it was caught on videotape by a neutral third party or we may have never heard about this or the defendants would have been accused of causing this on themselves. It seems really odd and suspect that the cops are changing their stories at this stage and I would take it with a grain of salt. Smells like a cover-up to me. Just my thoughts, you be the judge.....
Friday, May 16, 2008
Philadelphia Police Involved in Beating of Unarmed Men Change Account of Arrests, Beatings
Barack Obama's Middle Names Factors into Hamas' So-Called Endorsement, According to Michael Goodwin
Another storm is brewing on the horizon for Barack Obama. Some in the mainstream media, like New York Daily News columnist Michael Goodwin, who wrote a long winded op-ed about why terror thugs like Obama. Are people so shallow-minded that we continue to stress that his middle name--Hussein--somehow ties him to the Muslim world and the terrorists? Is it a new reality that we face today that your name defines who you are and who you will be associated with? I guess Obama may have given the media some ammunition to use against him, at least in Goodwin's eyes. He said that Obama has said he understands why Islamic terror group Hamas looks at his middle name and trusts him. Ditto for his plan to meet with Iran's madman president and other rogue leaders. Obama sees his open-door policy as evidence he will end President Bush's "cowboy diplomacy." When Bush slammed that plan Thursday as "appeasement," Obama accused him of a "false political attack." The question in my mind, is why did President Bush, who no-one takes serious, as evidenced from his popularity rating, had to air his dirty laundry in Israel? Wasn't that meant to show people on the international stage that who-ever he was talking about would not be as "resolute and decisive" as he? President Bush should be the last person to talk about political attack and foreign policy. He and his cronies have managed to bungle such issues during his entire term in office.
Goodwin says that Bush's attack was a legitimate one, because Obama's kumbaya foreign policy is dangerous. And his name, including the Hussein part, is fair game because Obama has declared it an international advantage. I guess the trouble started when Hamas adviser Ahmed Yousef said, "We like Mr. Obama" and added, "we hope he wins the election." That's an endorsement, plain and simple. Was that Obama's doing? How about Ahmed Chalabi fed President Bush a load of crap that aided his decision to invade Iraq? Wasn't Chalabi wanted in Jordan for theft and wasn't his relations with Iran questionable? Funny, now the government wants nothing to do with him.
Michelle Obama once said anyone using her husband's full name is throwing the "ultimate fear bomb. When all else fails, be afraid of his name." So Goodwin says, maybe we should be afraid. Consider what Obama says in an interview in the current Atlantic magazine. Asked by writer Jeffrey Goldberg if he was "flummoxed" by the Hamas support, Obama responds no and says: "It's conceivable that there are those in the Arab world who say to themselves, 'This is a guy who spent some time in the Muslim world, has a middle name of Hussein and appears more worldly and has called for talks with people, and so he's not going to be engaging in the same sort of cowboy diplomacy as George Bush,' and that's something they're hopeful about." He adds: "That's a perfectly legitimate perception as long as they're not confused about my unyielding support for Israel's security." You be the judge in how you interpret this. The problem I have with Obama is that he has no foreign policy experience and it shows a great deal. But does that mean that he went out and asked Hamas to back him? Didn't President Clinton have a fairly decent relationship with PLO head Yasser Arafat? Didn't Sinn Fein leader Jerry Adams meet with Clinton on many occasions? So, what's the big deal? We have to talk to our enemies at some point.
Enter Rev. Jeremiah Wright. Goodwin says that in fact, there is confusion about Obama's positions on Israel. I suppose he had first hand knowledge of Obama's dealings with Rev. Wright. He said that some of it goes to his long relationship with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, whose church magazine printed anti-Israel views. There is no evidence Obama objected. There is also no evidence that Obama agreed. He said that one question has been answered in this whole issue, though. Now we know why Hamas prefers Barack Hussein Obama. He's told us himself. One question I have to ask Michael Goodwin is: hasn't the Israelis and the Palestians been fighting from as far back as anyone can remember? Actually, I have another question.... Didn't more than one U.S. president try to broker peace agreements with these people and to no avail? So, I scarcely think that saying that Hamas endorses Obama infers that he will side with terrorists. I think what he should have talked about was what Obama would bring to the table in terms of foreign policy in general, which I actually find a little troubling. I really don't know where he stands. Actually, we really knew where President Bush stood and it will undoubtedly leave America in a financial quagmire. The sad reality is that Rival John McCain is not a big improvement over George Bush either. Just my thoughts, you be the judge.....
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Jacksonville Councilwoman Glorious Johnson Responds to Her Appearance at Sons of Confederacy Event
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
When I decided to run for office, I did so because it was my firm conviction, that the average citizen and taxpayer was not getting adequate or fair representation from their local government. I also knew that I could not rely on the long standing power structure in Jacksonville to help me win a seat on the City Council. Their support and money was generally reserved for the candidates they knew would likely do their bidding. If I were to win, I would have to appeal to the everyday people of Jacksonville, the small business owners, teachers, construction workers, secretaries, working moms and dads of all economic levels, of every race and every religion. My campaign would be one of boots on the ground. That is what I needed to do and that is what I did.
My desire was to represent all the people including those who felt they were without a voice in local city government. The ones who felt their needs and desires were being overrun by big business and large corporate enterprises. There were many people who felt that no one was listening to them. So I spoke with and embraced everyone. I did more than kiss babies. I went to the communities themselves. I embraced the diversity of the citizenry of Jacksonville and the citizens embraced me. I visited the young and elderly, went to their homes, their clubs, ate dinner with them, attended their churches and as a black woman I took it upon myself to make sure that I reached out to all racial groups up to and including the self proclaimed "Red Necks" of Jacksonville.
They were perhaps the group most surprised by my willingness to know them, reach across perceived racial boundaries and take to heart their concerns. As a result they embraced my candidacy, worked for my campaign and in a light hearted move of friendship; they made me an "Honorary Redneck". I am just as proud to represent them as every other hard working citizen in the city. I will never forget how hard the average citizen, worked for me.
Now as a City Councilwoman At Large, I remember the ones I am fighting for and will always respect their time and efforts to get me elected, no matter who they are. From welfare moms to small business owners, to every man, woman and child in Jacksonville. We must all work together in understanding to create the best possible world for us all. My world is one of inclusion, not exclusion. I have no desire to deny the memories of any ones history of their ancestors and I will not deny the memories of my heritage to acknowledge others. Mutual acceptance of these past personal pains, not eradication of them, will lead to mutual understanding.
As Dr. Martin Luther King stated, "Cowardice asks the question, "Is it safe?" Expediency asks the question, "Is it politics?" Vanity asks the question "Is it popular?" But conscience asks the question "Is it right?" And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but because conscience tells one it is right."
We must teach our children to think, not what to think. We talk about diversity, but we do not put forth the action to truly learn from other cultures. We say we are Christians and that we love God. But God loves all of us, not some of us. Hate does not solve the problem, it ignites it. We can not meet the challenges that our children and our children’s children will face, if we refuse to break those bearers that confronts us. I, personally, do not want my child or my grandchild to go through what I did as a child – The Jim Crow Laws. Their life is supposed to be better because of what we do to make that happen. We are not different races of people; we are one race – ‘The Human Race,’
LET’S MAKE A POSITIVE DIFFERENCE IN OUR CITY, OUR STATE AND OUR COUNTRY
Note regarding the song "Dixie:"
As a former music teacher. I would study the history of various songs and share the information with my students. "Dixie" was one of them. The song originated in the 1850s, telling the story of a freed black slave pining for the plantation of his birth. The song was adopted during the Civil War. Lew and Ben Snowden, who were black banjo players collaborated with Daniel Emmet (writer of the song), The Snowden Family were a well known traveling family around the southern and northern region. On the grave marker for Ben and Lew Snowden, set in 1976 by the black American Legion Post, reads, "They taught "Dixie" to Dan Emmett. They were born is Mount Vernon, Ohio.
Frank Roth, Nashville 911 Operator, Fired After Telling Caller Offline He 'Didn't Give a Sh**'
This has got to be the most insulting thing a 911 operator could have every done to a caller. Frank Roth, a Nashville operator, told a woman that he didn't "give a shit" about what happened to a woman who had just called to report her ex-boyfriend was threatening her. Roth was in training during the February incident and was fired a month later. So, why is this just being released?
Roth made the comments after promising police would arrive soon for a woman who called saying her ex-boyfriend held her at knife point and later was threatening her. After hanging up with her but while still being recorded, he said, "I really don't give a shit what happens to you." The bigger question is why it led to a three-hour delay to respond to the emergency call. I believe the woman got some response after she called the Mayor's office.
"Certainly this particular caller didn't receive the service she deserved," a department spokesperson said. Take a look at the caller's zip code and you will see why she wasn't taken seriously. Yes, it is absolutely indicative of how they treat citizens. I recall an incident in Michigan where a child called 911 because his mother was ill and the operators gave him a hard dime and dismissed his calls. It turns out that his mother died. Thank God this woman's boyfriend did not stab her or even kill her. The bottom line is that her civil rights were violated and there's no telling what could have happened to her because of their inaction.
Embattled Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, Christine Beatty Share Brief Hug
Embattled Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick must have a thicker skull than the average person. That is the only way one can explain his lack of comprehension of the gravity of the situation he faces. He and his former chief of staff, Christine Beatty, who is also facing criminal charges stemming from an illicit affair, exchanged a brief hallway hug Tuesday after hearings in 36th District Court. You would think given the circumstances he would stay as far away from her as possible, but no, he had to go over and hug her. I am pretty sure this is not sitting pretty with his wife.
According to media reports, the mayor also appeared to give her a quick peck on the cheek before departing. The brief exchange was a departure from their courtroom appearances on felony charges of perjury and obstruction of justice, where they have kept their distance.
During the hour and 15 minutes of legal hearings and arguments, defense attorneys and public relations handlers maneuvered to keep Kilpatrick and Beatty well separated in the small courtroom. When she arrived, Beatty nodded to the mayor's plainclothes bodyguard, but she and Kilpatrick did not acknowledge each other. I bet you all he kept thinking about was Christine Beatty while he was sitting there. Was he whipped or what?
After the hearing, Kilpatrick was headed toward a private exit outside the courtroom when the mayor veered toward Beatty and embraced her as she waited for a public elevator. He offered her a peck, and she returned the quick hug. While under normal circumstances this may not have been a big deal, but given the reason why they are in this predicament, his action was not smart and will come back to haunt him. It speaks volumes to his judgment and acceptance of what is really happening to him. I wish he would step aside and let the city continue to run without all this drama. Just my thoughts, you be the judge.....
John McCain's Wife Cindy McCain Sells Holdings in Companies Doing Business in the Sudan
Well, isn't this a little hypocritical coming from Mr. Nice Guy, John McCain. Cindy McCain, whose husband has been a critic of the violence in Sudan, sold off more than $2 million in mutual funds whose holdings include companies that do business in the African nation. The sale on Wednesday came after The Associated Press questioned the investments in light of calls by John McCain, the likely Republican presidential nominee, for international financial sanctions against the Sudanese leadership. Did she not know what her mutual funds invest in?
Last year, at least four presidential candidates divested themselves of Sudan-related holdings.According to McCain's personal financial disclosure, Cindy McCain's investments include two mutual funds — American Funds Europacific Growth fund and American Funds Capital World Growth and Income fund — that are listed by the Sudan Divestment Task Force as targets for divestment.
"Those have been sold as of today," said McCain spokesman Brian Rogers. Both funds have holdings in Oil & Natural Gas Corp., an India-based company that does business in Sudan. The American Funds Capital World Growth & Income Fund also has holdings in Petrochina, a Chinese government-owned oil company with vast investments in Sudan.
Words have a way of coming back to haunt people. Last year, in a speech on energy policy to the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, McCain cited China's investments in Sudan as an example of regimes that survive off free-flowing petro dollars."The politics of oil impede the global progress of our values, and restrains governments from acting on the most basic impulses of human decency," he said. "There is only one reason China has opposed sanctions to pressure Sudan to stop the killing in Darfur: China needs Sudan's oil." On Wednesday, Rogers said that Senator and Mrs. McCain remain committed to doing everything possible to end the genocide in Darfur."Oh, I guess they figured out that it was fine to talk out of two sides of their mouths and hope no one would notice that his wife was investing indirectly in the Sudan.
For the McCains, the Sudan-related investments are among scores of different investments listed in his financial disclosure documents. Cindy McCain is heiress to a Phoenix-based beer distributing company whose fortune is in the $100 million range. Why hasn't she been called out on her decision not to release her tax returns? Didn't they literally ride John Kerry's wife for not doing so? How fair is that?
Well, I guess Obama may not use this against McCain because a year ago, several presidential candidates divested themselves of Sudan-related holdings. Among them were Democrats Barack Obama and John Edwards and Republicans Sam Brownback and Rudy Giuliani. An interesting side note is that in 2006, Brownback was among members of Congress who wrote 44 governors to urge them to divest their employee pension funds from businesses linked to Sudan. He is now serving as a top adviser to McCain's campaign. So clearly, shouldn't the McCain have known that this was going to come back to bite them in the ass? Oh, I guess they lost their bearings!
I guess the nugget on advice in this for everyone is to take a look at the companies your mutual funds invest in and also research where these companies do business. Or just ask your financial advisor, but many of us aren't running for public office, so the extra scrutiny in our financial affairs by others are relatively low. Just my thoughts, you be the judge.....
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Veteran TV Anchor, Sue Simmons, Drops F-Bomb On Live Newscast
I found this really funny. Veteran television anchor Sue Simmons, shocked New York's NBC Channel 4 viewers with a four-letter tirade yesterday. Co-workers have said that potty-mouth Simmons is famous for her liquid dinners between broadcasts and zany behavior, former co-workers. Ms. Simmons delivered the blow last night as she read a teaser for her 11 p.m. newscast, prompting an on-air apology from the veteran anchor a half-hour later.
Simmons anchors Channel 4's 5 p.m. newscast, and then has time to pass until 11 p.m. According to the NY Post, those hours are regularly spent at Midtown watering holes like Gallagher's steakhouse and Jean Georges, witnesses said. An employee at Jean Georges at Columbus Circle said Simmons isn't shy about drinking with her meals - and then heading back to work. "She's been here and she's had drinks with her dinner," a Jean Georges employee said. "She's had a cocktail or two, yes, between shows, with dinner."
So, last night, she stepped up to the plate and was crowned a total idiot. During the teaser Simmons told viewers to watch at 11 for a story about rising food costs. The screen had been rolling stock footage of groceries, before turning to a cruise boat. Simmons flipped out and shouted: "What the fuck are you doing?" She is a 28 year WNBC veteran who should have known better, though, she may have been a ticking time bomb who just choose to explode or implode, depending on how you look at this. She is famous for her goofball, on-air behavior. She's been known to make funny faces, feign sleep, double over in laughter and poke fun at strait-laced co-anchor Chuck Scarborough.
Let's see what will happen now that she has apologized. Will she be canned? Actually, didn't Bill O'Reilly have a meltdown on air when he worked at a local channel in New York? Hey, he went on to having his own show on Fox News. So, Sue sober up girl or you'll lose your contract.
Sphere: Related Content
California Installs Karen Bass as 1st Black Female Legislative Leader
Drum rolls and much respect to Democrat Karen Bass, who was installed as the nation's first black female legislative leader in Los Angeles yesterday as speaker of the state Assembly. Bass said at the ceremony that she feels the weight of history on her shoulders. "If we could only harness the power of our common humanity, I don't think there's anything we couldn't do for the people of this state," she said. You go girl!
Bass, 54, became the 67th speaker, succeeding fellow Los Angeles Democrat Fabian Nunez. He is relinquishing the post at the end of the year because of term limits. Bass was a physician's assistant before being elected to the Assembly in 2004 and is known for writing legislation on child welfare and social justice issues. As speaker, she will hold what is regarded as the second most powerful post in state government behind the governor. Signs of the times!
Bass takes over the 80-member house and will appoint chairs to legislative committees, set staff budgets and largely control what legislation reaches the Assembly floor. California's Assembly is the first state legislative body in the nation to be led by a black woman, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. In Washington state, Rosa Franklin holds the largely honorary title of Senate president pro tem.
Marietta, GA, Bar Owner Comes Under Fire for Selling T-Shirts of Cartoon Monkey With "Obama in 08' Slogan
Okay, I am sure this will ruffle a lot of feathers. I actually heard it on the news yesterday, but now I saw one of the t-shirts and basically, it is insulting, to say the least. According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Mike Norman, owner of Mulligan's Bar in Marietta, Ga., said that he isn't trying to be racist by selling political T-shirts featuring a picture of Curious George holding a banana above the slogan "Obama in '08."
Critics argue the shirts are offensive and strongly encourage stereotypes based on racism.It is time to put an end to these stereotypes on both sides. A monkey? Couldn't the man find another cartoon? He must have known that it would spark outrage or was this being done to advertise his bar? The Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials was one group planning to join the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the Nation of Islam in a Tuesday rally in front of the bar. We should also show the same type of intolerance to other stereotypes being perpetuated against us and also in the black community.
Norman said people who are upset by the shirts are "hunting for a reason to be mad" and and he intends to give profits from selling them to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. I don't think that people are being narrow minded to be angry about this. It is insulting because blacks were called so many names, including monkey. This imagery has Jim Crow roots, which Mulligan has acknowledged. He said that he sees nothing wrong with depicting a prominent African American as a monkey. We're not living in the (19)40's," Mulligan said. "Look at him . . . the hairline, the ears — he looks just like Curious George."Is this man serious or just dumb? Why offend people in the name of marketing? Some may say that people are being thin-skinned, but in reality, the opposite is true. It ain't funny. If the truth be told, this man could not dare walk in the shoes of Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton, for that matter. The bar is located at 698 Roswell St SE, Marietta, GA 30060-2149. The telephone: (770) 499-1137. If you can't stand Barack Obama, that is fine, but it is repugnant to portray him as a monkey. If someone made fun of the Jews like this, it would be all over the media. Just my thoughts, you be the judge......
UPDATE:
According to the Boston Herald, Curious George may soon find himself in the middle of a courtroom fight. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, the publisher of the children’s books featuring the cartoon monkey character said yesterday that it’s considering legal action against a Georgia tavern owner who’s selling T-shirts comparing Curious George to Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. Houghton said the firm views the T-shirts as “offensive and utterly out of keeping with the values Curious George represents.” The statement added: “We are monitoring the situation and weighing our options with respect to possible legal action.”
Boston’s WGBH-TV, which co-produces a “Curious George” children’s television show, also has denounced the use of Curious George in the controversial T-shirt. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution said Norman is described as a well-known “ultra-conservative” with controversial political signs outside his tavern.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Top Lakota, Ohio, School Official Treva Whitlock, Secretary Linda Alfrey Resign Over Racists Comments
I can only relay this in its entirety from Cincinnati.com. This is utterly ridiculous and shows a pattern of racist behavior. Michael D. Clark of the Cincinnati Enquirer wrote this story. You be the judge......
Treva Whitlock, nutrition director for Lakota schools, had been suspended with pay since March 25. She negotiated a separation agreement with the district as part of her resignation. Whitlock, who is white, was cited by a number of employees in the Lakota nutrition department's office for deriding black central office officials and Lakota's diversity efforts, according to documents provided by Lakota officials after the board vote.
In a March 10 written statement to central office officials, Jonnica Johnson quoted Whitlock as saying, "Hey you guys, we need to be more diverse. I am going to bring in some shoe polish and paint (two white employees') face(s)."
The board also approved a separation agreement and the resignation of Whitlock's secretary, Linda Alfrey, who also is white. Alfrey was cited by another central office employee - Rick Tate - in a written statement on March 12 as having said about African-American Georgetta Kelly, Lakota's director of human resources, "You know George is here only because of the NAACP."
Both Whitlock and Alfrey were cited as referring to another black central office employee - Rhonda White - as "Rhonda White who isn't."
This is the latest in a series of racial incidents in Lakota schools. In March, a social studies teacher at Ridge Junior School was suspended for sending two African-American students into a separate room from their classmates for a test.
In December, the district drew national attention for racial issues raised by a high school play. Lakota officials first shut down the play "And Then There Were None" in the wake of accusations that the play had racist origins, only to reverse themselves and allow it to be performed.
Whitlock's annual evaluations showed no complaints of racial insensitivity. But Whitlock's supervisors had cited the director's need to improve "interpersonal relations and development of insight into people and being more tactful in dealing with others." Alfrey's suspension letter also cited "conduct in the work place."
Unarmed Black Man, Michael Byoune, 19, Shot to Death by Inglewood Police
Another unarmed black man has been gunned down by police. Michael Byoune, 19, was fatally shot and Larry White, 19, was wounded in the leg. Top Inglewood police officials struggled Monday to explain why officers fatally shot the unarmed motorist over the weekend, acknowledging that there was no evidence linking the man or others in the car to the gunfire that drew police to the scene. The explanation is that the officers opened fire because they heard gunshots in the area and saw the vehicle coming toward them. Police said they found expended rounds suggesting that someone was shooting in the area, but they were still trying to determine who was behind it. So, I guess the first thing the cops decided to do was to open fire and kill an unarmed man and wound his friend. One of the officers who opened fire had been with the department 5 1/2 years and his partner had been with the department less than one year.
Preliminarily, they said the incident began about 1:40 a.m. Sunday when the two officers heard gunshots while patrolling the 3000 block of Manchester Boulevard. At least three independent witnesses told investigators that they saw a man pointing a gun in the direction of the officers who had pulled into a Rally's fast-food restaurant parking lot. Expended rounds that did not come from the officers' weapons were found in the parking lot. About the time the officers heard the gunfire, they saw a man run and get into a slow-moving car in which Byoune was riding. The officers said they heard more shots and felt something hit their cruiser, then fired several shots as the vehicle moved toward them, according to police.
Police now believe that the man who entered the vehicle was not connected to the shooting. Byoune was shot at least three times in the torso and died at the scene, said Los Angeles County coroner's investigator Jerry McKibben. White, the driver, was wounded in the leg. Another passenger was not injured.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Inglewood police officials have offered conflicting details and accounts of the shooting since Sunday. They originally said the incident might have been gang-related; hours later, they said none of the three men in the car were suspected gang members. Police spokesmen have focused on the officers' hearing gunshots, and feeling under attack as their car was struck by something. Later they said there was no evidence that the police cruiser had been hit. Asked whether there was any evidence of bullets striking the police cruiser, Seabrooks responded: "No, there were not. Not that we could clearly identify as coming from an external source." But Los Angeles County coroner's Assistant Chief Ed Winter said there were "multiple bullet holes through the front of the windshield" of the police car.
The sad reality is that a mother lost her son on Mother's Day. I do not want to rush to judgment on these cops, but all too often the police uses excessive force. Maybe it is a lack of experience, sensitivity training or just a lack of judgment. It seems that we hear of too many unarmed black men getting shot by police. Yes, there are some black, white and Hispanics that do find them-selves on the wrong side of the law. Maybe that is where this mentality is coming from with the police that once they see a car with black men driving then they are up to no good. This is a flawed way of thinking, as evidenced from Douglas Zeigler, the highest ranking black office in the New York Police Department getting harassed by a white cop. I hope the real truth comes out on what happened in this case so that the young man's family can have closure. If this is a case of police brutality, then it needs to be treated as such and the cops punished to the fullest extent of the law. Again, I am not accusing anyone of committing a crime, but this man was unarmed. He didn't have to be shot to death. Just my thoughts, you be the judge.....
Obama Campaign Workers Encounter Racism on Trail
This has to be dispiriting, to say the least, but I have to add, that I am not surprised at what I read. Kevin Merida of the Washington Post wrote an article detailing the high incidence of racism that the Obama campaign workers have encountered. Are we still living in two Americas? Well, it seems that way from the article, which I will paraphrase. For starters, in the factory town of Muncie, Ind., in the days before the state's primary, Merida said that Danielle Ross and her cohorts were soliciting support for Barack Obama at malls, on street corners and in a Wal-Mart parking lot, and they ran into "a horrible response," as Ross put it — anti-black sentiment that none of them had anticipated."The first person I encountered was like, 'I'll never vote for a black person,'" recalled Ross, a onetime university student who is white and just turned 20. "People just weren't receptive."For all the hope and excitement Obama's candidacy is generating, some of his field workers, phone-bank volunteers and campaign surrogates are encountering a raw racism and hostility that have gone largely unnoticed and unreported.
Doors have been slammed in their faces. They've been called racially derogatory names (including the white volunteers). And they've endured malicious rants and ugly stereotyping from people who can't fathom that the senator from Illinois could become the first African American president.
Isn't this a stark contrast to what we see on the television? We see large, adoring crowds clamoring to shake Obama's hands or to take a picture. The sad reality is that he is largely insulated from the mean-spiritedness that some of his foot soldiers deal with away from the media spotlight. Merida cites another campaign worker: Victoria Switzer, a retired social studies teacher, was on phone-bank duty one night during the Pennsylvania primary campaign. One night was all she could take: "It wasn't pretty." She made 60 calls to prospective voters in Susquehanna County, her home county, which is 98 percent white. The responses were dispiriting. One caller, Switzer remembers, said he couldn't possibly vote for Obama and concluded: "Hang that darky from a tree!"
Documentary filmmaker Rory Kennedy, the daughter of the late Robert F. Kennedy, said she, too, came across "a lot of racism" when campaigning for Obama in Pennsylvania. One Pittsburgh union organizer told her he would not vote for Obama because he is black, and a white voter, she said, offered this frank reason for not backing Obama: "White people look out for white people, and black people look out for black people."Obama campaign officials say such incidents are isolated, that the experience of most volunteers and staffers has been overwhelmingly positive.
On Election Day in Kokomo, a group of black high school students were holding up Obama signs along U.S. 31, a major thoroughfare. As drivers cruised by, a number of them rolled down their windows and yelled out a common racial slur for African Americans, according to Obama campaign staffers. This is a real shame that there are so many hateful people out there. For what it is worth, there are many people who voted for Obama and he has, undoubtedly, made a tremendous contribution to the electoral process. He has managed to infuse a new life into the process and has piqued the interest of many people who would otherwise not even bother to vote in the primary process. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s vision for one America is still a very real possibility if people would just realize that we want the same things out of life and we want better for our families. It is not just about the black guy or the white woman. It is about uniting America and not constantly dividing America. Just my thoughts, you be the judge.....
Monday, May 12, 2008
Chief Douglas Zeigler, the head of the NYPD's Community Affairs Bureau, Highest Black on the NYPD, Victim of Discourteous Behavior by Fellow Cop
I tried to overlook this story, but I just couldn't. It points to a real problem in the New York City Police department. A white police officer was disciplined for acting "in a discourteous manner" when he confronted a black motorist who turned out to be one of the highest-ranking commanders in the New York City Police Department. Chief Douglas Zeigler, the head of the NYPD's Community Affairs Bureau and the highest uniformed black officer on the force, was off duty and sitting in his department-issued sport utility vehicle on a street in the borough of Queens on May 2 when two white police officers approached. According to police spokesman Paul Browne, the encounter turned testy, and one of the officers tried to wrest open Zeigler's door, even after the three-star chief had identified himself. "He dealt with the chief in a discourteous manner, which is unacceptable," Browne said.
Two Top Executives, Alejandro Claiborne, Lee Michaels, Leave Black-Owned Radio One
The fallout at black-owned Radio One continues with the departure of two top executives, Alejandro A. Claiborne, vice president of marketing for the company, who has given his notice and Lee Michaels, national program director for Syndication One News/Talk, who has already left. Their departures come as the company last week also lost another one of its key employees, talk radio star Joe Madison. Madison, who is ranked one of the top 20 talk radio show hosts in the nation and a recipient of Talkers magazine's Freedom of Speech Award, will now be working directly for rival XM 169 The Power starting in June. Ouch! That's is pretty bad, considering that the company just posted a net lost of $18.3 million in its first quarter (two percent revenue dip) and that performance is pretty low. As I wrote in a previous commentary, the losses did not stop the company from providing "substantial" raises for President and CEO Alfred C. Liggins III and his mother Radio One founder and Chairwoman Cathy Hughes last month.
To add insult to injury, earlier this year Radio One ended its more than six-year relationship with XM Satellite Radio's channel 169 because the company had not made enough money on advertising for the joint venture with the primarily subscription-oriented company.
The company has been hit by declining national revenue, which has forced the company to sell stations in non-core markets. The company's stock is now trading well under a dollar after losing more than 85 percent of its value since last year. The company owns and operates 53 primarily black targeted radio stations in 16 markets. Radio One is in the middle of expanding its Internet reach.
Isn't there a problem here? When your executives and your radio personalities start leaving, coupled with a declining stock price as well as a drop in revenue, there is a big problem. I would hate to see Radio One on the market block, but that may just be a real possibility if the company cannot stem the bleeding in its revenues. It seems almost hypocritical that Liggins III and Hughes got rewarded for such horrible performance of the company. Yes, advertising revenues are declining across the board for many newspapers and some media companies, but someone seemed to have dropped the ball on the company's overall performance. There is something very telling when a popular radio personality such as Joe Madison tenders his resignation and two top executives have done the same thing. For what it is worth, Radio One serves a tremendously important position in the black community and many people would hate to see it bought out or fold. Just my thoughts, you be the judge....
