Police Terror Hits NY & Louisiana-73 Year Old Handicapped Man Murdered

Gamalier was brutally beaten in his own home early Saturday morning by six NYPD officers, during a mental health crisis for which his family was seeking EMT assistance. He was beaten while his family listened helplessly to his cries. He has not been charged with any crime. He is currently in Woodhull Hospital . His family has been refused medical reports but has been informed by doctors that he is likely to need facial reconstruction surgery.
There will be a special press conference tomorrow in New York

April 14th 2009 11 am
in front of the 83rd precinct
@Knickerbocker Avenue and Bleecker Street

Meet at MRNY at 10:30am, 301 Grove Street , Brooklyn , NY

Take a close look people cause this is what our tax dollars are paying for.. With each passing day we have more and more Oscar Grants popping up.. Where are the good police officers to take a stand and say this is unacceptable? Are we going to keep making excuses for systemic behavior that with each passing day is undeniable

Black man’s killing by police shakes La. town
By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and MARY FOSTER, Associated Press

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jc5lFviUr1X8LRoylLE50YAIGfdgD97FMKMG0

HOMER, La. – For 73 years before his killing by a white police officer, Bernard Monroe led a life in this northern Louisiana town as peaceful as they come — five kids with his wife of five decades, all raised in the same house, supported by the same job.

The black man’s shooting death is attracting far more attention than he ever did, raising racial tensions between the black community and Homer’s police department.

The Rev. Al Sharpton, who helped organize a massive 2007 civil rights demonstration in Jena after six black teenagers were charged with attempted murder in the beating of a white classmate, planned to lead a Friday afternoon rally in Homer to protest Monroe’s killing.

“The parallel here is that the local community cannot trust law enforcement and cannot trust the process to go forward without outside help,” Sharpton said.

Rendered mute after losing his larynx to cancer, Monroe was a 73-year-old retired power company lineman who was in his usual spot on a mild Friday afternoon in February when events unfolded: A chair by the gate led to his Adams Street home. A barbecue cooker smoked beside a picnic table in the yard. A dozen or so family members talked and played nearby.

All seemed calm, until two Homer police officers drove up.

In a report to state authorities, Homer police said Officer Tim Cox and another officer they have refused to identify chased Monroe’s son, Shaun, 38, from a suspected drug deal blocks away to his father’s house.

Witnesses dispute that account, saying the younger Monroe was talking to his sister-in-law in a truck in front of the house when the officers arrived.

All agree Shaun Monroe, who had an arrest record for assault and battery but no current warrants, drove up the driveway and went into the house. Two white police officers followed him. Within minutes, he ran back outside, followed by an unidentified officer who Tasered him in the front yard.

Seeing the commotion, Bernard Monroe confronted the officer. Police said that he advanced on them with a pistol and that Cox, who was still inside the house, shot at him through a screen door.

Monroe fell dead. How many shots were fired isn’t clear; the coroner has refused to release an autopsy report, citing the active investigation.

Police said Monroe was shot after he pointed a gun at them, though no one claims Monroe fired shots. Friends and family said he was holding a bottle of sports water. They accuse police of planting a gun he owned next to his body.

“Mr. Ben didn’t have a gun,” said 32-year-old neighbor Marcus Frazier, who was there that day. “I saw that other officer pick up the gun from out of a chair on the porch and put it by him.”

Frazier said Monroe was known to keep a gun for protection because of local drug activity.

Despite the chase and Tasering, Shaun Monroe was not arrested. He and other relatives would not comment afterward.

Monroe’s gun is being DNA-tested by state police. The findings of their investigation will be given to District Attorney Jonathan Stewart, who would decide whether to file charges.

The case also has led to FBI and State Police investigations and drawn attention from national civil rights leaders.

“We’ve had a good relationship, blacks and whites, but this thing has done a lot of damage,” said Michael Wade, one of three blacks on the five-member town council. “To shoot down a family man that had never done any harm, had no police record, caused no trouble. Suddenly everyone is looking around wondering why it happened and if race was the reason.”

Homer, a town of 3,800 about 45 miles northwest of Shreveport, is in piney woods just south of the Arkansas state line. Many people work in the oil or timber industries. In the old downtown, shops line streets near the antebellum Claiborne Parish courthouse on the town square.

The easygoing climate, blacks say, masked police harassment.

The black community has focused its anger on Police Chief Russell Mills, who is white. They say he’s directed a policy of harassment toward them.

The FBI and State Police said they received no complaints about Homer police before the shooting.

Mills declined interview requests, saying he retained a lawyer and feared losing his job.

Hours before Friday’s scheduled rally, music blared from Azzie Olds‘ home, where the 53-year-old schoolteacher and her neighbors enjoyed a cookout. Olds, who is black, said she expected a peaceful march despite the anger many were feeling.

“You’ve got a lot of people upset about what happened, not just the black folks,” Olds said. “I hope the national attention can help the town realize that something really needs to be done about the situation.”

Elsewhere in Homer, some white residents expressed concern that Sharpton’s visit could enflame tensions.

“I just hope everybody behaves and don’t use it as an excuse to start trouble,” said Vanessa Efferson, 49, whose bookstore is one of the shops ringing the courthouse.

 

Bernard Monroe was killed by police in Homer, LA. he was unarmed and handicapped. I know for many who don’t wanna belive this can happen, they are hoping against hope that this handcapped elder did something wrong. Oh I know he didn’t speak when the officers asked him to talk..Does that sound like a fgood excuse? From unarmed young men with their hands behind their back to handicapped elders, police terror continues..and still we have deafening silence from the good men and women on the force.. We need more officers like the Chief in dalls who spoke up and condemned the actions of his officer when they terrorizzed the footbal player

After seeing these pictures and hearing the heartwrenching stories of police terror.. I guess the song by Zumbi of Zion I ‘Cops Hate Kidz’ makes more and more sense..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQFajNZMxM8

Why We Don’t Condemn Our Pirates in Somalia by Knaan

Why We Don’t Condemn Our Pirates in Somalia
By K’Naan , URB Magazine. Posted April 14, 2009.

Can anyone ever really be for piracy? Well in Somalia, the answer is: it’s complicated.

http://www.alternet.org/story/136481/why_we_don%27t_condemn_our_pirates_in_somalia/?page=entire

Can anyone ever really be for piracy? Outside of sea bandits, and young girls fantasizing of Johnny Depp, would anyone with an honest regard for good human conduct really say that they are in support of Sea Robbery? Well in Somalia, the answer is: it’s complicated. The news media these days has been covering piracy in the Somali coast, with such lopsided journalism that it’s lucky they’re not on a ship themselves. It’s true that the constant hijacking of vessels in the Gulf of Aden is a major threat to the vibrant trade route between Asia and Europe. It is also true that for most of the pirates operating in this vast shoreline, money is the primary objective. But according to many Somalis, the disruption of Europe’s darling of a trade route is just Karma biting a perpetrator in the butt. And if you don’t believe in Karma, maybe you believe in recent history. Here is why we Somalis find ourselves slightly shy of condemning our pirates.

Somalia has been without any form of a functioning government since 1991. And despite its failures, like many other toddler governments in Africa, sprung from the wells of post-colonial independence, bad governance and development loan sharks, the specific problem of piracy was put in motion in 1992.

After the overthrow of Siyad Barre, our charmless dictator of twenty-some odd years, two major forces of the Hawiye Clan came to power. At the time, Ali Mahdi, and General Mohamed Farah Aidid, the two leaders of the Hawiye rebels were largely considered liberators. But the unity of the two men and their respective sub-clans was very short-lived. It’s as if they were dumbstruck at the advent of ousting the dictator, or that they just forgot to discuss who will be the leader of the country once they defeated their common foe. A disagreement of who will upgrade from militia leader to Mr. President broke up their honeymoon. It’s because of this disagreement that we’ve seen one of the most devastating wars in Somalia’s history, leading to millions displaced and hundreds of thousands dead. But war is expensive and militias need food for their families, and Jaad (an amphetamine-based stimulant) to stay awake for the fighting. Therefore a good clan-based Warlord must look out for his own fighters. Aidid’s men turned to robbing aid trucks carrying food to the starving masses, and reselling it to continue their war. But Ali Mahdi had his sights set on a larger and more unexploited resource, namely: the Indian Ocean.

Already by this time, local fishermen in the coastline of Somalia have been complaining of illegal vessels coming to Somali waters and stealing all the fish. And since there was no government to report it to, and since the severity of the violence clumsily overshadowed every other problem, the fishermen went completely unheard. But it was around this same time that a more sinister, a more patronizing practice was being put in motion. A Swiss firm called Achair Parterns, and an Italian waste company called Progresso, made a deal with Ali Mahdi, that they could dump containers of waste material in Somali waters. These European companies were said to be paying Warlords about $3 a ton, where as in to properly dispose of waste in Europe costs about $1000 a ton.

In 2004, after Tsunami washed ashore several leaking containers, thousand of locals in the Puntland region of Somalia started to complain of severe and previously unreported ailments, such as abdominal bleeding, skin melting off and a lot of immediate cancer-like symptoms. Nick Nuttall, a spokesman for the United Nations Environmental Program, says that the containers had many different kinds of waste, including “Uranium, radioactive waste, lead, cadmium, mercury and chemical waste.” But this wasn’t just a passing evil from one or two groups taking advantage of our unprotected waters, the UN Convoy for Somalia, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, says that the practice still continues to this day. It was months after those initial reports that local fishermen mobilized themselves, along with street militias, to go into the waters and deter the Westerners from having a free pass at completely destroying Somalia’s aquatic life. Now years later, that deterance has become less noble, and the ex-fishermen with their militias have begun to develop a taste for ransom at sea. This form of piracy is now a major contributor to the Somali economy, especially in the very region that private toxic waste companies first began to bury our nation’s death trap.

Now Somalia has upped the world’s pirate attacks by over 21 percent in one year, and while NATO and the EU are both sending forces to the Somali coast to try and slow down the attacks, Blackwater and all kinds of private security firms are intent on cashing in. But while Europeans are well in their right to protect their trade interest in the region, our pirates were the only deterrent we had from an externally imposed environmental disaster. No one can say for sure that some of the ships they are now holding for ransom were not involved in illegal activity in our waters. The truth is, if you ask any Somali if they think getting rid of the pirates only means the continuous rape of our coast by unmonitored Western vessels, and the production of a new cancerous generation, we would all fly our pirate flags high.

It is time that the world gave the Somali people some assurance that these Western illegal activities will end, if our pirates are to seize their operations. We do not want the EU and NATO serving as a shield for these nuclear waste-dumping hoodlums. It seems to me that this new modern crisis is a question of justice, but also a question of whose justice. As is apparent these days, one man’s pirate is another man’s coast guard.

K’naan is a Somali-Canadian poet, rapper and musician.

Below are links to the interviews we did with Knaan a couple of weeks before all this drama unfolded

In the first clip he talks about Somali Pirates

In the second clip he talks about the US attempts to classify Somalis here in the US as Terrorists

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

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i67euACNhmA

A Tale of Two Reverends-Jeremiah Wright & Edward Pinkey

A Tale of Two Reverends -Jeremiah Wright & Edward Pinkey

By Ted Glick

On this Easter weekend, it is appropriate to write about Rev. Jeremiah Wright and Rev. Edward Pinkney, two African American ministers in the upper Midwest who have made a good faith effort to live their lives as Jesus of Nazareth lived his, and who have suffered for it as a result.

Rev. Wright, of course, is much more well known. He was Barack Obama’s minister for 20 years at Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago . In his book, “Dreams From My Father,” Obama describes the personal impact of attending a Sunday morning church service in the mid-80’s presided over by Rev. Wright:

“I imagined the stories of ordinary black people merging with the stories of David and Goliath, Moses and Pharaoh, the Christians in the lion’s den, Ezekiel’s field of dry bones. Those stories—of survival, and freedom, and hope—become our story, my story; the blood that had spilled was our blood, the tears our tears; until this black church, on this bright day, seemed once more a vessel carrying the story of a people into future generations and into a larger world. Our trials and triumphs became at once unique and universal, black and more than black. . . I felt for the first time how that spirit carried within it, nascent, incomplete, the possibility of moving beyond our narrow dreams.”

Last year, however, right around this time, Barack and Michelle Obama decided that they would leave this church that, unquestionably, had been a major influence on their lives. They did so, it is very clear, because they felt that there was no chance Barack would ever become President if he didn’t. The corporate and right-wing media had distorted comments made years before by Rev. Wright, and the media frenzy forced Obama into choosing between his Presidential ambitions and loyalty to a man who had been a friend, a mentor, an inspiration and more.

Wright understood what was going on. He said at the time, “I do what pastors do. He does what politicians do. I am not running for office.” He also said, presciently, referring to Obama, “November 5th, I’m coming after you, because you’ll be representing a government whose policies grind under people.”

He hasn’t changed those views. In an Associated Press interview on March 5th, 2009, Wright was quoted as saying in Selma , Alabama , that “he’s like any other president. He’s a politician and he’s got to do what politicians do.” During a speech that day in Selma , he is quoted as saying, “Barack’s name ain’t Jesus. There are things we’ve got to do on our own.”

To his credit, Rev. Wright seems to have handled well the tremendously negative, essentially racist attacks on his character and credibility. He retired last year as minister of Trinity church, but he has been traveling the country speaking, letting people see and hear for themselves. He continues his life of prophetic witness on behalf of the least of these, the victims of imperialism, a word he doesn’t hesitate to use, in opposition to oppressors and on behalf of the oppressed.

So has Rev. Edward Pinkney of Benton Harbor , Michigan , doing so effectively, and as a result he has been under indictment, under house arrest, in prison, and/or fighting ridiculous charges for over three years.

Benton Harbor is a town of about 11,000 people on the southwestern side of Michigan , 90% black and overwhelmingly poor. It burst onto the national scene in 2003 when its young people rose up in response to a series of local police killings and beatings.

Rev. Pinkney and a local community organization, BANCO, have been involved for years working to change the conditions of life for Benton Harbor’s residents. In 2005 he helped lead a successful recall election of a notoriously racist and abusive city commissioner. The local white-dominated power structure had that result overturned and then went after Rev. Pinkney with false charges of paying people to vote the right way. They failed to gain a conviction in their first trial in 2006, so in their second trial they made sure that there were no blacks on the jury, and in March of 2007 an all-white jury convicted him. He was sentenced to one year in prison and five years on probation. From May to December of that year he was kept under house arrest on an electronically monitored tether.

Reverend Ed Pinkey was sent to jail for 3-10 years for quoting a Bible verse that a judge found offensive

In December of 2007 Rev. Pinkney wrote an article in the People’s Tribune newspaper in which he quoted a part of the Bible in reference to the judge, Berrien County Chief Judge Alfred Butzbaugh, who had presided over Pinkney’s trial. The Bible quotation said, in part, “The Lord shall smite thee with consumption and with a fever and with an inflammation and with extreme burning.”

For writing this article, Butzbaugh revoked Pinkney’s probation and sent him to jail, and in June of 2008 another Berrien County judge added a three to ten year sentence for Pinkney’s literary “crime.”

After a year in jail, and after his case was taken up by the American Civil Liberties Union, he was released on bail just before Christmas, 2008, once again confined under house arrest. Just recently, a June 9th date was set for a hearing on his case before the Michigan Court of Appeals in Grand Rapids .

Just prior to that hearing, ex-President George Bush will make what may be his first domestic post-presidency speech to the Economic Development Club of Southwestern Michigan in Benton Harbor on May 28th. The primary corporation of this “club” is the Whirlpool Corporation, headquartered in the Benton Harbor area and a major force behind plans to build a private golf course in the city’s lakefront park. In the words of The Michigan Messenger, “Last year, after heavy lobbying from local Republican congressman Fred Upton, the National Park Service approved a plan to swap public lakefront and dune property for a series of inland parcels that are contaminated with industrial waste. In an ongoing federal suit locals are suing to reverse federal and state approval of the project.”

Rev. Pinkney is not keeping quiet about this land grab. He and BANCO are calling for a world-wide boycott of Whirlpool. In a letter sent out recently, he explains:

“We must stop Whirlpool, Rep. Upton, and Harbor Shores developers. We are calling for an International Boycott of all Whirlpool Products to begin May 1, and all stores which sell Whirlpool products.

“We appreciate any effort you can make to spread the word: BOYCOTT WHIRLPOOL AND ALL SUBSIDIARIES, MAY DAY, 2009”

On this weekend when hundreds of millions of people worldwide celebrate the continued inspiration of a man who, 2,000 years ago, threw the corrupt money-changers out of the Jerusalem temple, we would do well to remember and appreciate our present-day prophets, people like Reverends Wright and Pinkney.

More information on the boycott and the Benton Harbor struggle can be found at http://www.bhbanco.blogspot.com. Rev. Pinkney can be contacted directly at 269-925-0001 or banco9342@sbcglobal.net.

Ted Glick has been a progressive social change organizer since 1968. More information and past writings can be found at http://www.tedglick.com.
 

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A Response to Marvin X from The Ansars About Askari X & Lovelle Mixon

TO MARVIN X #1 4-10-09

The Difference with AEM is the Muslim name: Ansar 

Anyone can call themselves by a Muslim name such as Ansar.  However, the Muslim Name; Ansar is not a mere Nick name.  In fact the Holy Quran states; evil is a bad nick name after faith.  Muslims must take a Shahada to truly receive an Attribute [Name] of ALLAH.

The name Ansar comes from the history of Islam and Life of Prophet Muhammad.  The Ansar were/are the Helpers of Muhammad.  The Ansar [of Arabia] had a reputation of being warriors.  Today many groups loosely apply the name to their movement or organization.   

Thee True Ansar of This day sign a covenant kept in a Temple Registry in order to officially wear the name Ansar.  They also change all of their ID’s legally.  It is most notable to acknowledge that all throughout the world there are groups using the name Ansar.  There is even a city in Palestine bearing the name Ansar. 

Important to note also is, that there are some differences of beliefs of those Orthodox Muslims in the Middle East, and the Black (s/c African American Muslims) in the Nation of Islam.  One most significant difference is the belief in a spook or invisible god, and a heaven in the sky. 

This fact is; a most important point for reflection as we investigate the motive for Marvin X’s false presumptuous, slanderous, defaming, reckless, careless and potentially deadly  writings [where he attempts slandering the Ansar by Associating them with the Deadly shooting of Police Officers in Oakland].  To do this Marvin X purposely misapplies and confuses several tenets of the teachings and ignores vast differences between the ideology or interpretation of eastern Muslims and those of the Nation of Islam.  As well Marvin X totally fabricated portions of his writing to suite his bogus claim. 

Not only are there differences in the Islamic teachings of the Middle East and those of The Nation of Islam here in the West.  There is also a difference in the manner in which the majority of members inherit the faith.  Most in the Middle East are born into Islam and facing a slightly different form of oppression than we “currently” face.  While the young original Black American s/c Negroes inherit the faith by discovery, often this discovery happens in stages. 

Anyone vaguely familiar with the plight of the American s/c Negros knows that 85% are steeped in the western stereo-typical image and hip hop/thug culture, which in many cases, is deemed as glorifying guns, drugs, sex and violence. 

Regardless to an individual’s affinity, curiosity or fascination with any organized religious group, we should not assume they are properly espousing that group’s doctrine without research and proof, nor should we assume that they are registered members of that group without research and proof.  In addition, there is also the fact of a persons membership standing.  Aside from fairy tales etc, reality proves that some make resolutions, commitments, and join churches, synagogues, mosques etc, and later fall back to their old, weak, or evil ways.  Should the Movement they at one time sought to become a part of, be guilty for their actions after their fall from grace?  Think on it [we’ll come back to that].

There is much obvious evidence that Mr. Mixon was not an Ansar El Muhammad, nor even influenced by Islam whatsoever.  Marvin X Himself whereas the X popularized by the Nation of Islam, yet certainly does not hold any official membership in the Nation of Islam, nor is the Nation of Islam responsible for his slanderous writings, simply because he somewhat falsely where’s an X.  Most Muslims do not hide there faith as TV shows have popularized the term [Taqiyah] as Americas atmosphere against Muslims has not risen to that level of severity, however statements, false slanderous reckless penmanship as done by Marvin X could start or speed America up on this downward trend.

Even the DC Sniper gave his name as Muhammad, though he had no current, valid, or true affiliation with the Nation of Islam.  Clearly Mixon utilized the name Mixon. 

Askari X, as a young black man growing up in Oakland faced the same societal influences that most s/c African American males face, with a fascination into the Thug Life, He, Askari X was later introduced to The Socialist Ideology of The UHURU movement, and later to Islam as taught by Ansar El Muhammad.  The neighborhood 72^nd and Lacey Street was popularized in Askari X songs only after he was influenced by His fellow group Members RBG.  That neighborhood is where some of them grew up.  As young Black males, they began searching for knowledge at a young age, which is how they came to espouse some of the ideology of the UHURU Movement.  They later and began unofficially studying some Ansar El Muhammad literature in 1988-89.  At this time the only bona-fide Ansar El Muhammad study groups were in the prison, besides [of course] those students who were released from prison and reported to Richmond to meet and follow the Baldhead Man.   

Askari experienced many of the growing pains as any other young Blackman searching to find himself, and upon finding Islam as taught by Ansar El Muhammad, He sought to be restored and reestablished on his righteous square.  RBG released a five song maxi single in 1989, which influenced Askari to Later write the Album, Ward of The State, which boost him into neighborhood stardom.  The neighborhood [72^nd and Lacey] was somewhat effected, yet nothing near the ridiculous relation given by Marvin X.  Many young African American males fascinated with the hip hop phenomenon, will conform to whatever will give them access to stardom.  In addition many young black people naturally gravitate to Islam as it frees them from the deceptive false religions that evolved out of the Nicean Council.  

Askari X espouses a mixture of ideologies, one being that of a revolutionary, who uses carnal weapons and guns to obtain freedom, along the lines of the Black Panthers and the Afrikan Peoples Socialist Party.  The other being that of s/c Black Islam [Teachings of thee Nation of Islam] as taught by Ansar El Muhammad, Thee Select One, thee ALLAH Master J, which is foundated on the teachings of Thee Messenger, Thee Glorious  Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, which strictly forbids the use of or even possession of guns or carnal weapons of any sort.  Askari Also mixes in various levels glorifying the Thug culture, slang, even drug use at times, all with an intent of capturing the imagination of African American youth with audio imagery similar to the conditions they grow up in.  As any movie script writer, director, or producer, He [AskariX] without double standard could be innocent of any negative influence his songs may have on those who listen to his songs.

In addition, those who hear his songs may adopt some of his slogans, and even begin loosely referring to themselves by the name he promotes in the songs [Ansar or RBG].  Does this mean they are Official Members? 

Of course this question relies heavily on the fact, of whether or not there is any such thing as an “Official Membership Organization.”  Once an Official membership Organization is Established, a clear distinction can be easily made.  Marvin X mentions the Founder of Ansar El Muhammad, yet mentions nothing of the fact that many students learned direct from the founder at a home in Richmond [which is considered the Holy City by Thee True Ansar.  The neighborhoods around, 72^nd and Lacey are not by any stretch of the imagination an Ansar Stronghold.  Very few if any in or around that neighborhood know anything about Ansar El Muhammad, other than the name itself and the greeting “Sajada Lahu.” 

A true Scholar, or good journalist, especially one who cares for black people would never, write such slanderous things about a group trying to help our struggling communities, and would never make such potentially deadly false associations in the weeks and aftermath of so many police killings. 

A True scholar researches before rushing to try to catch the next trend of Popularity.  

As with any Religious Ideology, there are those falsely claiming the faith, there are others who are purposely placed saboteurs, while others are innocently confused, then there are those sincere yet snared by societal addictions, yet with any good calling there are those who have achieved degrees of success in being restored to righteousness.  You go tell that fox I do miracles today and tomorrow I am perfected, as Jesus stated, A friend of Politicians and sinners, yet wisdom is justified by the children.  

Thee True Ansar El Muhammad students of Ansar El Muhammad Thee Select One Thee Allah Master J, were blessed to Established J’s Temple of Islam as a bona fied religious non profit organization in 2005, after serving our people since 1966 following the instruction of Thee Holy Spirit of Truth Ansar El Muhammad Thee Select One Thee Allah Master J. 

To make a clear distinction between anyone who claim the name and are yet involved in the societal influence of crime etc.  For anyone who seek clarification of our teachings, or would like to receive more information about our history please contact J’s Temple of Islam at 510-238-2883.  You can also write us for an invitation to J’s Temple of Islam at P.O. Box 3406, Oakland, CA 94609 

Yours Truly Ansar El Muhammad [True Founder of RBG]

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Knaan Speaks the Real Truth About Somali Pirates

 A Conversation w/ Knaan About the Somali Pirates pt1

Knaan Speaks the Real truth about Somalian Pirates pt2

Cops Hate Kidz & Kidz Hate Cops-Zumbi of Zion I Responds to Police Brutality

ZUMBI (OF ZION I) AND THE ARE RESPOND TO
POLICE KILLINGS WITH “COPS HATE KIDZ”

Last week The BURNERZ (Zumbi of Zion I and the Are of the Trackmasters) recorded the track “Cop Hate Kidz,” a tribute song in response to the murder of Oscar Grant by a Bart Police Officer, as well as the murder of four Oakland officers last week.

“The tragedies that we are witnessing can be attributed to the long history of police brutality experienced in the black and brown communities,” notes MC Zumbi, who adds that this is a different song than people might be used to from the Zion I member, but that is point. “It’s supposed to make cats feel uncomfortable and get people thinking.”

The track is definitely dope.. and makes you pause.. Yours truly..Davey D took some footage and put together a video (not the group’s official) video, but one to add to the discussion..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQFajNZMxM8

peace out for now.

Davey D

3 officers Killed 2 Wounded in Pittsburgh, PA Over Domestic Violence Dispute

Police officers stand by at the scene near Fairfield Street where
as many as three officers were killed this morning when they responded to a domestic call.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09094/960660-100.stm

At least three Pittsburgh police officers were believed to be dead and two others were wounded after a man began firing at them when they responded to a domestic call this morning at his family’s home in Stanton Heights.
The gunman, identified as Richard Poplawski, surrendered to police around 11 a.m., more than three hours after the standoff began at 1016 Fairfield St. His condition was not immediately available, but he told neighbors who spoke with him on the telephone that he also had been shot.

For much of the morning, the standoff forced police to lock down much of the neighborhood as scores of police officers converged on the house where Mr. Poplawski had barricaded himself with at least one family member.

The incident began around 7:30 a.m. when a team of officers went to the address to serve a warrant and the suspect opened fire on them, police said. One of the officers reported was shot in the back, another in the chest and a third in the hand.

Some of the wounded officers remained in positions where they could not be removed immediately for treatment, according to Diane Richard, Pittsburgh Police spokeswoman.

A state police helicopter hovered over the location where more than 100 officers from Pittsburgh, the state and Port Authority converged along with neighbors and other onlookers.

Authorities as well as members of the suspect’s family also were reportedly in contact with him by phone. Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl is among the officials at the scene.

Mr. Poplawski, who is in his early 20s and lives in the house, according to neighbor and longtime friend Joe DiMarco. Mr. DiMarco and his mother, Darlene, said they spoke to Mr. Poplawski on the telephone this morning.

“He told me he loved me and that he’d been shot in the chest and leg,” Ms. DiMarco said.

She also said Mr. Poplawski’s mother and possibly his grandmother were in the house with him.

Another neighbor, Brian Merlina, said he was getting out of the shower at 7:30 a.m. when he heard bursts of rapid-fire shots. About 30 minutes later, he heard at least two dozen more shots fired.

Shortly thereafter, a state police helicopter landed in a field near his house. He drove a trooper from the helicopter.

Utility crews cut off power to the house at 10:45 a.m. because they believe Mr. Poplawski had been monitoring media reports.

Drew Stadler, 34, who lives nearby on Oglethorp Street, said he heard loud bangs around 8 a.m. From his window, he saw Mr. Poplawski pointing what appeared to be an automatic rifle and shooting at officers from a window over the garage of the Fairfield Street house.

SWAT officers were pinned down, with their protective shields up, at an adjacent house.

At one point, the SWAT officers pulled away a wounded officer and dragged him down the street, Mr. Stadler said. He also said he heard potentially hundreds of shots fired through the incident.

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Public Slight-A Lost Opportunity for Oakland-OPD Disses Dellums & Lee

Public Slight-A Lost Opportunity for Oakland
by Attorney John Burris (lawyer for Oscar grant family)

by Attorney John Burris (lawyer for Oscar grant family)

As an Oaklander watching the memorial services for the four slain Oakland police officers, I was astonished and disturbed when Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums did not speak at the service. I could not imagine a situation where the entire nation is watching and law enforcement officers are attending in force yet the Mayor of the City in mourning does not speak. I later came to understand that several of the officers’ families requested that the Mayor not participate in the ceremony and that the Mayor honored their wishes. It was disappointing to learn that such a request was made.

At a time of such public tragedy, it is unfortunate that the families and or members of the Department would encourage and condone such a public humiliation of the Mayor. After all, this was a public event, paid for with public funds attended by thousands many of whom came from across the country to pay respect for their fellow officers. To expressly preclude the Mayor, whose eloquence is unmatched, from speaking was essentially a public slap in the face. How could this happen, particularly when comments from family, friends and fellow officers stated how much the fallen officers loved being Oakland police officers.

I can only imagine that the men must have expressed their discontent with the Mayor’s policies toward the Department. Notwithstanding such expressions, this was truly a time for healing and not for carrying out political and personal vendettas. The better angels in those families and their advisors should have ensured that this is a time for healing, and that everyone in the City, especially the Mayor should be embraced.

This public slight was even more pronounced when state-wide political leaders such as Attorney General Jerry Brown, and Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer were given prominent speaking roles during the ceremony yet Oakland’s highest ranking public officials, the Mayor and Congresswoman Barbara Lee did not speak. To add insult to injury, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, the Chairperson of the Congressional Black Caucus, was present on the platform yet she also did not speak, nor was she even acknowledged. To their credit both the Mayor and the Congresswoman stayed for the entire ceremony.

The memorial service was a fine tribute to the officers’ who lost their lives while working for the people of Oakland. Of course the planners of the event were certainly entitled to have the ceremony of their choice, particularly if it was paid for with private funds; but to the extent that public funds were being utilized there should have been acknowledgment of the City’s leaders who made it possible.

This was a golden opportunity to bridge the gap between the Oakland police department, the community and Oakland public officials, particularly at a time when everyone in the city is feeling the pain of this tragedy. Ron Dellums is Oakland’s Mayor in both the good and bad times and he should have been allowed to bring greetings and to express his thoughts on behalf of the residents of Oakland. Unfortunately this was a lost opportunity.

John Burris,
Attorney and Oakland Resident
Burris@lmi.net; john.burris@johnburrislaw.com

 

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Diddy’s Dumb Deed-Gets Elbowed by Black Women As he Seeks Lighskin Sistas

Diddy’s Dumb Deed-Gets Elbowed by Black Women As he Seeks Lighskin Sistas
By Pearl Jr.
Author, Black Women Need Love, Too!

Another attack on Black Women by one of our own! Diddy’s CIROC vodka sent out a cattle call looking for and I quote, “White, Hispanic and Light-skinned African American” women to represent his vodka. The arrogance to specify the type of Black woman has reached back to racism of the early 1900’s brown paper bag mentality.

The brown paper bag test was for admittance to Black social societies and certain, so-called, upscale parties. If a WOMAN was darker than a brown paper bag, she was disallowed to join certain social groups. This can be verified by watching old Black movies (usually in black and white) and you’ll see that nearly ALL females are light-skinned. Diddy’s Dumb Deed let’s us see that, even though, some progress has been made, real CHANGE has not occurred.

Imagine the mental abuse Black women must be going through thinking well, if I wear light foundation or bleach my skin through the night, I might be able to pull off being light-skinned, or dang I’m too dark; leading to self-hatred. Then imagine the thought processes in the waiting room with all the White and Hispanic women feeling superior because they are NOT melanin enriched and Black women feeling less confident because they are in doubt about their beauty and worth because of the color of their skin.

Furthermore, what would Diddy and/or his staff do when a dark-skinned woman showed up? Would “they” be rude and angrily reiterate that the requirement was for light-skinned Black women ONLY, and then she’d be shamed and embarrassed in front of the crowd of other women because she was told she wasn’t good enough due to her dark-skin?

What would Diddy do if Haley Berry showed up? She is technically a dark-skinned bi-racial woman. What about the beautiful Gabrielle Union, or modeling pioneers Grace Jones, Beverly Johnson, or Imaan? Would they be turned away because their skin was too dark?

And the biggest slap in the face would be the denial of our First Lady, Michelle Obama! She would, too, be turned away because she is not light-skinned, White or Hispanic.

There are so many racist ways of Hollywood, and yes, Diddy qualifies as a part of “Hollywood” because he is a celebrity. The propaganda in movies that seems to always match a Black man (with any useful skills) with a non-Black woman in videos, TV shows, and even blockbuster movies be THE catalyst for the lack of Black love within the Black race family? This propaganda campaign is using the age-old trick of dividing in order to conquer. How long are we going to keep falling for the same old tricks???

The only solution is to boycott racism in all forms, which means that under the devastating circumstances of the high amount of single Black woman/mothers, Black women should NEVER support anyone, especially Black men, that want to keep that status quo unchanged. The media and marketing executives will soon learn that to continue to devalue Black women will NOT render them much sought after profits.

And please, no one use the “it’s all about the money” excuse. Hell, slavery was “all about the money” and how many of us condone that behavior? Racism is racism, even when it’s racism within the same group, now called self-hate.

Well let’s use their own motivation to our favor, “if it don’t make dollars, it don’t make sense (cents)!” Don’t allow your hard-earned dollars to be used from anything that divides the Black race and weakens our already weaknesses.

There’s no acceptable denial for Diddy. In fact, he purposely omitted dark-skinned women and there’s proof. On the black and white TV ad for Diddy’s vodka already airing, it only includes light-skinned women. Diddy’s ignorance is astounding because his twin daughters are dark-skinned. He MUST not connect the dots that he is devaluing his own daughters and insulting his own momma!

Now, this falls right in line with the marketing of Diddy’s perfume too. As I was shopping in Macy’s over a year ago, I saw a large advertisement for Diddy’s perfume with Diddy in the middle of two non-Black women. I thought to myself, I guess my money isn’t good enough for him because that ad didn’t speak to me; as a matter of fact, it was insulting that he CHOSE NOT to use, AT LEAST, one Black woman in his ad.

Don’t these fools realize that Black women are their MAIN market and will support a Black male, especially one in the music industry, in a quick second IF THEY FELT CARED FOR? Well according to the US Census Bureau, there are about 112 million White females and only 20 million Black females, so if this marketing of Black men with non-Black women WORKED, then why is today’s Black music sales by Black men so dismal and declining fast and in a hurry? If non-Black women were truly ALL INTO BLACK MEN, then why are these types of marketing strategies NOT rendering much higher sales figures? There are about 130 million non-Black women and I just don’t see the omitting of Black women in the lives of Black men working and equating to 7X more sales. It seems MOST of “them” don’t realize Black women are Black men’s BIGGEST supporters. As a matter of fact, sales figures are doing the opposite, they are declining!

BlackMediaReview.com has been reviewing and tracing the sales figures of so-called Black movies and record sales for the past two and a half years religiously every week. Spike Lee, who is usually a shoe-in for making a profitable movie, failed miserable with his Miracle at St. Anna’s, where he promotes the heck out of Black men swooning over White women; so much so that I simply walked out the movie in disgust. The movie is his biggest loser to date.

Then examine the careers of Taye Diggs, Cedric the Entertainer and many others after they made shows/movies featuring non-Black women. They, too, are huge flops! Terrence Howard, who in an interview in Essence Magazine, a Black female publication, dissed Black women. Then when he released his debut album, his record sales were so low that many didn’t even check to see if he could sing or not. Black women just didn’t care and apparently, neither did non-Black women. His sales didn’t reach 60,000.

And since many people failed to realize that Michael Jackson suffers from the skin depigmenting disease, vitiligo, and seemed to have few Black friends, his sales have been declining for decades. And since he hired the Nation of Islam bodyguards during his trial, had a Black female publicist, was rumored to marry a Black African female, attended James Brown’s funeral and Jesse Jackson’s birthday party, he sold out nearly a million tickets in the United Kingdom in a matter of hours.

It seems even Whites respect people who respect themselves. Check out who Americans elected the President with the most votes in Presidential history? It’s a Black couple named Barack and Michelle Obama. The “sell-out” doesn’t work well for Black folks! Damn it, even proud sell-out Larry Elder, got cancelled due to his low TV and radio ratings.

Yes, people watched Will Smith’s movie, Hancock in large numbers, but he didn’t end up with that White girl at the end of the movie; besides the special effects and the magic of Will Smith’s charm works under nearly every circumstance, except for the movie, SEVEN POUNDS, where he is matched up with self-proclaimed Latina, Rosario Dawson (her last name sounds Black American and she’s quite dark-skinned as well). SEVEN POUNDS is one of his weakest films in recent history!

My “sistas” are finally waking up and no longer making excuses for self-haters. Black women have always purchased Black music, jerseys, and tennis shoes for their sons. Ladies, the proverbial “they” obviously believe we don’t have value, so we can keep our value in our purses. Why give money and power to those who don’t have value for you or, worse yet, don’t like you?

Well, the time has come to make a loud strong statement to celebrities, athletes, executive decision-makers, and anyone else NEEDING to please loads of people, that if you don’t like us, we don’t like you, or better yet, we’ll spend it on people that are showing some signs of support for our community and we’ll pay their bills.

We can forgive, but only with ACTIONS!

So last night a talent management company for Ciroc–Imperative Talent Management–sent out a casting call notice to their mailing list. Ciroc is taping a new commercial on Friday with Diddy and they listed their requirements. And if you fail the paper bag test, you need not apply:

From: info@imperativemgt.com
Subject: Promo girls needed!!!
To:
Date: Tuesday, March 24, 2009, 9:49 PM

Ciroc Promotion

Ciroc promo is this Friday, March 27, 2009
Time: 3:00pm – 7:00pm and 12:00am – 3:00am

Requirements:

Race: White, hispanic or light skinned african american
Height: At least 5’6 or taller
Size 7 or smaller.

This is a cash @ wrap job and the booking will be thru our partner. Please submit asap. Talent will only be contacted if the client is interested in booking you!!!

Compensation: $35.00 per hour

Imperative Talent Management
3500 Lenox Road, Suite 1500
Atlanta, GA 30326
info@imperativemgt.com
http://www.imperativemgt.com
404-419-2565 Office
404-419-2564 Office

Sadly enough, I’m not even surprised. Let the sh*tstorm ensue. Expecting a PTwitty response in 5…4…3…

UPDATE: Ciroc’s PR folks tell TheYBF.com the following:

representative of the company called and sent me two statements that were issued 3/26/09. Ciroc stated:

CIROC Vodka has nothing whatsoever to do with this inappropriate and offensive casting call, which was done without the brand’s knowledge or consent. We are taking action in response to this issue as CIROC has never worked with the company in question. We find this particularly deplorable and outrageous because it goes against everything we stand for as a brand and a company and everything our campaign has been about. CIROC Vodka has created a brand that defines sophisticated celebration for all consumers, and in no way condones this despicable practice.
The talent agency that forwarded the casting call states:

Imperative Talent Management would like publicly clear any confusion that was caused by an email that was sent out to our talent that might have been forwarded outside of our database. We are a management company that books talent for promotional opportunities, and our booking agents aggressively search the net daily for modeling jobs. The promo job in question was found at <http://www.ethnicitytalent.com/castings_search.php> http://www.ethnicitytalent.com/castings_search.php and we forwarded to our talent. We have since learned that this posting was in no way authorized, supported, or endorsed by CIROC or Diddy. It wasn’t our intention to discredit CIROC Vodka in any way, and since learning of the postings inaccuracies, have revised it on our database and alerted everyone in our database to the error.

All of us can see the problem with these two statements: no one at Ciroc or Imperative is taking responsibility for the misconduct. Someone either authorized the casting call or failed to supervise the person(s) who issued the casting call, and those person(s) were not fired. Usually, in these kinds of incidents, a junior person is sacrificed, but even that step wasn’t taken here. No one was held responsible.

As we know, this kind of discrimination happens all the time, but this time someone put it in writing, albeit without Ciroc’s or Sean Combs’ consent.

The talent agency characterized this written posting as containing “inaccuracies” when, in fact, race and color discrimination in employment has been unlawful in New York State since 1962 and nationally since 1964.

Thus, it’s hard to credit statements that appear to:
blame persons unknown
hold nobody accountable, and
do nothing to prevent recurrences.

MMTC is not going to get involved in the matter – it’s not what we do – but I did want to be responsive to our many wonderful and alert members who’ve called and e-mailed today asking for a civil rights analysis of the matter. The bottom line is that this is unlawful. Those who didn’t exercise adequate supervision should be fired, and both the sponsor and the agency should take aggressive steps to ensure that there can be no recurrences.

Regardless of who authorized it or who knows who, this memo from Ciroc was still sent out by this agency as well as many others. And it’s still a mess

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Does The Music Industry Need A Bail Out Plan?

Trials of a Hip Hop Educator:
Accepting Responsibility to Build a New Music Community
Does The Music Industry Need A Bail Out Plan? – Part II

By Tony Muhammad
Hiphopeducator19@gmail.com
http://www.myspace.com/tonymuhammad

In the midst of Congress attempting to pass legislation specifically to recoup $165 million in bonuses that has scandalously gone to AIG executives, the House Judiciary Committee is seeking to pass H.R. 848, the Performance Rights Act. Under this law radio stations would be required to pay royalties to artists for the music they air. According to NAB Radio Board Chairman Steve Newberry, the current economic downturn has already forced radio stations nation-wide to layoff a considerable amount of employees and reduce wages by 5 to 10 percent. He warned in his testimony to the House that if the bill is passed, it will put a whole industry “at risk.” The radio industry currently employs nearly 106,000 people but yet is on the verge of bankruptcy, reporting billions of dollars in losses every year. Newberry adds that if the bill is passed it would force many radio stations to switch to more of a “talk show” format and make them even less diverse in their play lists. Currently radio stations throughout the country, especially ones that are oriented towards “urban” and “pop” music genres are criticized for almost strictly playing from top 25 Billboard chart playlists consistently and monotonously hour to hour. Under current circumstances, local artists receive very little to no play on local stations. The passing of H.R. 848 would most certainly make matters worse.

Most interestingly and most critically, Newberry said in his testimony that “At its heart, this bill attempts to create a conflict between artists and radio stations where no conflict exists. In reality, local radio has been supporting the music industry for decades.” He continued by saying that it “boggles” his mind that “a bill that is supposed to be about benefiting artists, takes 50 percent of the performance fee and puts it into the pockets of the big four record labels, most of which are not even American companies.” These four companies are Warner Music Group, EMI, Sony and Universal Music Group.

He argues that in the end “the record labels actually walk away with more money under this bill than do the featured artists.” “The real problem, which this bill does not address,” according to Newberry, “is between the artists and these mega-record labels. Artists, often find themselves in such difficult financial straights because of the one-sided, unfair contracts they signed with their record label. If these artists had fair contracts with their labels that included fair royalty clauses, they would have benefited from the promotional value of free radio airplay that they should have enjoyed.”

After so many years (especially in the past 10) of the radio industry contributing to the problem of musical monotony in expression and form and moral degradation in the content of not just the music, but on the part of many of its “urban” on-air commentators, why is it expressing all of a sudden such a strong concern for the artists that have received the short end of the stick in the whole process? The answer is because now a threat on its very survival is being made not simply by Congress, but by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) that has pushed the idea of a “need” of such a bill on behalf of the four major record labels.

Truly, the old system is destroying itself from within. These major record labels are collapsing just like the radio industry is; also reporting billions of dollars in losses every year. At this point they seek to “squeeze blood out of a turnip” in any way that they can, wherever they can find it, even if it comes at the expense of hurting relationships with websites that could aid in promoting their music and even its historic prized relationship with the radio industry. For many years the radio industry has benefited from underhanded payola (“pay for play”) deals with the recording industry. Payola deals in other words are bribes that are disguised in the form of (for example) “consulting fees” or “record pools” with radio DJs or sponsorship for the wrapping of radio station vans in exchange for the frequent playing of particular artists’ music.

Between 2005 and 2006 New York State Attorney General at the time Eliot Spitzer prosecuted payola-related crimes in his jurisdiction. Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group each settled out of court with Spitzer and agreed to pay $10 million, $5 million, and $12 million respectively to New York State charitable causes that work in the name of music education and appreciation programs. EMI is still under investigation for such activities. Now, if this was the case just within New York State, imagine all other places where similar activities have taken place and no investigation has ever been conducted. When pop and urban radio sounds almost the same no matter where you travel in the country, contain the same music playlists and in many cases have the same over-consumerist unintelligent expression it means that everywhere someone has been strategically sent behind the scenes to cash in on the peoples’ ignorance.

As I emphasized in PART ONE, many at times the music by-itself is not simply the product for sale; but much more so the jewelry, the apparel and the liquor emphasized in the song lyrics. Do not be surprised if the next stage of commercial-music survival will involve an adapting to brief radio announcements regarding the corporations that are sponsoring the artists showcased. It would sound something like … “And now this artist is brought to you by ….” Don’t think it can’t happen because we are increasingly and rapidly moving towards very desperate economic times. For many of us, especially in the music industry, those times are already here and they are about to get worse. Think about it! Very few artists nowadays make a substantial income on just the music alone. The most successful ones, by and large, depend on endorsement deals in order to live “lush.”

However, with the economy the way that it is, new up-coming artists and all current lime light artists that bind themselves like slaves to corporations (including the major record labels themselves) will fall just as the economy that they are so dependant on will continue to fall. In truth, the new model for artists and generally Hip Hoppers of today and of the future is (as I was discussing with artist NY Oil very recently on a phone conversation) to connect themselves with a cause – just as Wise Intelligent mentors youth in educational and music recreational programs through Intelligent Kidz and MEEN in New Jersey and Philadelphia, PA; just as the art of breaking is preserved through the efforts of Rokafella and Kwikstep of Full Circle Productions as they continuously instruct talented New York City at-risk youth to strive to reach their potential not just in the area of dance but in all aspects of life; just as Jasiri X works diligently towards establishing community justice through One Hood in Pittsburgh, PA; just as Hip Hop journalist and activist Davey D continues to expose the harsh socio-political obstacles we are all faced with byway of his own news website DaveyD.com; just as community organizer Adisa Banjoko is uprooting youth into excellence through The Hip Hop Chess Federation in the California Bay Area –

Locally we all must play our part while having a national and a global vision of unity as to what we want our future to be. As conscientious artists and Hip Hoppers in general increasingly introduce cultural arts and literacy programs in the schools, the community centers and even the juvenile detention halls, they will most certainly cause an effect in the manner the youth perceive both the world and themselves. They will begin to gravitate towards what’s real and beneficial and step by step abandon what’s artificial and detrimental to themselves and others. By putting in the necessary community-oriented work, conscientious artists and their music will naturally build a following and guarantee longevity in the support of their craft. Besides the potential world-wide success that comes with proper Internet promotion byway of ever-growing social networking outlets, the development and maintenance of local relationships is key towards establishing local success. This would entail, as the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan noted nearly 30 years ago at the 4th Annual Jack-The Rapper Conference in Atlanta, GA, the development of alternative music distribution centers in the community (including religious institutions) that support positive expression through music. Dependence on major music stores such as Specs and FYE is fruitless since they are also on the verge of financial collapse and do not serve to promote local and conscientious music much anyway.

By working together we can develop a new model for how a music industry should run; one that would mutually benefit communities and artists. At which point radio stations will have no other choice but to take notice and move the direction community would be moving. This is possible if we desire it to be. We must begin qualifying ourselves to be able to bring it into existence.

More to come next time through Allah’s (God’s) permission!

Tony Muhammad teaches American, African American and African History at an inner-city high school in Miami and is currently involved in efforts to reform The African American Voices Curriculum for Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Tony is most noted for his work as publisher of Urban America Newspaper (2003 – 2007) and co-organizer of the Organic Hip Hop Conference (2004 – 2008).

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