The Greene County Democrat

Category: Newswire

  • President Obama defends Colin Kaepernick’s right not to stand for National Anthem at NFL games

    By: Roland Martin NewsOne

     

    colin-kaepernick-takes-a-knee
    SAN DIEGO, CA – SEPTEMBER 1: Eric Reid #35 and Colin Kaepernick #7 of the San Francisco 49ers kneel on the sideline during the anthem, as free agent Nate Boyer stands, prior to the game against the San Diego Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium on September 1, 2016 in San Diego, California. The 49ers defeated the Chargers 31-21. (Photo by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images)

    Colin Kaepernick joined by teammate Eric Reed take a knee during playing of National Anthem before NFL pre-season game

    President Barack Obama has weighed in on the Colin Kaepernick National Anthem protest controversy and backed the NFL quarterback’s right to protest as being covered under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.

    San Francisco 49ers quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, is vowing to sit during the national anthem in protest over police killings of African-Americans. Is he being anti-American by expressing his right to protest which is covered under the First Amendment of the Constitution?

    Despite the endorsement, Kaepernick’s detractors continue to harbor animosity against him.

    During Monday’s edition of NewsOne Now, Roland Martin and his panel of guests discussed the ongoing Kaepernick saga and the protest action that seems to be slowly picking up momentum amongst other pro-athletes after U.S. Women’s Soccer star Megan Rapinoe, who is a lesbian, also took a knee during the National Anthem before a recent soccer match.

    To add to the support, Kaepernick’s football jersey is the top-selling jersey on the NFL’s www.nflshop.com website.

    Martin said Kaepernick’s protest is resonating with many Americans because “he is making a point that is critically important and he’s not some guy who is clueless” on the issues of racism and police brutality.

    Michelle Bernard, President and CEO of the Bernard Center for Women, Politics & Public Policy, said she was disgusted by many of the comments posted on social media by those who do not agree with Kaepernick’s chosen method of protest.             She explained there is a contingent of Americans who have expressed outrage by saying, “How dare you? You make so much money in the NFL, this is not a problem, you shouldn’t be speaking out on this. Take your money, be happy, and this is so unpatriotic.”

    Bernard then refuted those claims: “We live in a country where you are able to speak your mind and if you’re White … not get shot because you’ve done it.”

    Ralph Chittams, Senior Vice Chairman of the Washington, D.C. Republican Party, said Kaepernick is “well within his Constitutional rights. “He has the right to stand, sit, kneel [or] not even come out of the locker room for the National Anthem,” Chittams said. “We’ve gotten to a point in this country where we don’t value dissenting opinions; we demand agreement and uniformity.”

    Bernard added: “The nation pretends that Black men don’t have minds of their own, that they can’t speak and that if you speak on an issue that is important to you, it means that you’re not patriotic and you don’t like the country.”

    Martin reminded viewers Kaepernick is “ticking folks off” because “America never wants to discuss the why of the protest; they only want to discuss the protest.”

    Before delving into the controversy surrounding the football star, Dr. Jason Johnson gave the NewsOne Now audience a little historical context about the Star-Spangled Banner that many may not know.

    In The Root, Dr. Johnson said: The Star-Spangled Banner, written by Francis Scott Key, because he was bitter about the fact that he had lost to a group of Black soldiers and then those same Black soldiers were coming in and trashing Baltimore on behalf of the British.”

    Johnson continued, “The British had offered runaway slaves — if you come and fight for us against the country that enslaved and oppressed you, we will give you your freedom.”

    The whole song, in essence, according to Johnson, “is basically a diss track about a bitter, rich, pro-slavery White man saying ‘I don’t like that Black people are coming for freedom.’”

  • Trump ally apologizes for Hillary Clinton Blackface Tweet as candidates battle for voters of color

    Another tweet showed her sporting blonde braids.

    Written By Charise Frazier, Newsone

    Tweet of Hillary in Blackface

    Mark Burns that shows Hillary Clinton in Blackface

    Pastor Mark Burns, a Black Trump surrogate, apologized for tweeting out two controversial photos of Hillary Clinton on Monday. One depicted her in Blackface, while the other showed her with blonde braids.

    The tweets accused Clinton of pandering to Black voters and set off a firestorm of reaction, only one month after Burns gave a bizarre benediction at the RNC, calling Clinton “the enemy.”

    The photo caption for the first tweet reads, “Black Americans, THANK YOU FOR YOUR VOTES and letting me use you again..See you again in 4 years.” Clinton is holding a sign that says “#@!** the police,” and is wearing a shirt that says “no hot sauce, no peace,” a reference to comments earlier this year during which the candidate confessed her love for the condiment. Many lashed out at Clinton after, saying she played into the tired stereotype that references Black people and their love for hot sauce. The tweet also played into Burns’ criticism that Clinton’s views don’t side with those who support police.

    Another tweet shows Clinton with blonde braids, with the caption, “When you need the Black vote.”

    Burns initially doubled down on his statements in a fiery interview on MSNBC with Kristen Welker, but then later in the day released an 11-minute Periscope post acknowledging his actions.

    “The last thing I want to do is to offend people. The tweet was not designed to anger or stir up the pot like it did. It was designed to bring how I feel a very real reality as to why the Democratic party and how I view it have been pandering and using black people just for their votes…,” he said on Periscope.

    The tweets come on the heels of Trump’s visit to Detroit on Saturday, where he plans to address the Great Faith Ministries Church and tape an interview with Bishop Wayne T. Jackson, according to a statement Jackson released Monday via The Detroit Free Press.

    Trump’s visit is part of his campaign’s new focus to reach out to Black voters. A recent NBC News poll shows Trump only has 8 percent of the Black vote. In the first few weeks of August, Trump has repeatedly made tone-deaf statements to Black voters at rallies with mostly White audiences, asking them, “What the hell do you have to lose?”

    Jackson also offered an invitation to Clinton in his statement. “The goal for this interview is to get real answers and Trump’s views and plans on policies that affect our community,” he said.

    Burns also weighed in on Trump’s visit, saying the candidate will “answer questions that are relevant to the African-American community, such as education, unemployment, making our streets safe and creating better opportunities for all. He will then give an address to outline policies that will impact minorities and the disenfranchised in our country.”

    Do you think these tactics are helping Trump win self-loathing Blacks and White moderate voters?

  • North Carolina’s Voter ID Law struck down, but questions remain

    By Cash Michaels, Contributing Writer (Carolina Peacemaker, NNPA Member)

    ncvoterid_jdaniels_web120

    Democrats and activists who supported efforts by the N.C. NAACP and others to legally overturn parts of North Carolina’s “Monster Voting Law,” were certainly thrilled to hear that a three-judge federal appellate panel indeed struck down key elements of the 2013 measure, effective immediately.

    “The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court [of Appeals] ruling [Friday] is a people’s victory and a victory that sends a message to the nation,” said Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, II, president of the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP. “The court found — under the sensitive inquiry required by law — that how the law was enacted and its impact made crystal clear that discriminatory intent impermissibly motivated this General Assembly.

    “Under our Constitution, and under the core principles and dictates of the Voting Rights Act…” Rev. Barber continued, “… these provisions have no legitimacy under the law.”

    In its ruling, the federal appellate court stated that the Republican-led N.C. General Assembly was racially-motivated with “discriminatory intent” in passing the 2013 voting restrictions, saying, that African Americans were targeted “…with almost surgical precision.”

    “The Court’s decision reinforces that race-based decision-making in the electoral system will not stand,” said Penda D. Hair, lead attorney for the N.C. NAACP. “We know that voters of color rely most heavily on these voting measures, and that, without this decision, they would have borne the brunt of the burden this November.”

    Unless a timely stay on the ruling is granted by the entire U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals before the November 8th General Elections (something Gov. Pat McCrory and Republican leaders have vowed to seek, but legal experts say isn’t likely), then voters will have their early voting period restored to 17 days prior to Election Day instead of the current 10 days; maintain same-day registration and out-of-precinct provisional balloting; reinstate voting pre-registration for 16 and 17 year-olds; and most importantly, will not have to show a government-issued photo ID in order to vote.

    This means Democrats no longer have to educate voters at rallies or by phone banks about making sure they have some form of official government-issued ID, or legal excuse for not having one. They can continue their door-to-door canvassing of neighborhoods for candidates to “Get Out To Vote” (GOTV). Now, not only should excessive long lines be eliminated during early voting and on Election Day, but voters will still have their ballots counted, even if they go to the wrong precinct.

    But there’s a holdup as to how grassroots activists and others proceed in the aftermath of the momentous ruling. Local Boards of Elections (BOEs) have not met yet to determine how to carry out the appellate court’s mandate.

    When asked about meeting, Gary Sims, director of the Wake County Board of Elections, said, “We need to, and are awaiting direction from the N.C. Board of Elections and the executive director because whatever action does or does not happen, needs to come from their guidance.”

    Ironically, all local BOEs were required to have their early voting sites locked in by July 29th, the same day the federal ruling came down. Sims added, that while the 17-day early voting period is reinstated, the longer hours of operation per early voting location currently in force could be relaxed since the period is being extended from 10 to 17 days. But, exactly what to do with that seven-day extension would be up to local county BOEs.

    One of the other challenges BOEs face is that they are already locked into budgets prior to the July 29th ruling. That reality will also constrain how quickly and adequately local BOE’s will be able to comply. Having only one early voting site open, namely the local BOE office itself and no satellite sites for the seven-day extension, is a possibility.

    Prior to the July 29th ruling, voting rights advocates had been distributing materials educating voters about the photo ID requirement, which went into effect this year during the March and June primaries.

    Now the community must also be clear that not all of the voter ID law was knocked down. They will still be faced with no straight-ticket balloting, meaning that instead of voting for all candidates of a single party with just one mark, voters will have to individually mark, race by race, which candidates they choose.

    Critics of the 2013 law have always said that voters may not be aware of all of the candidates, especially during a presidential election year, and thus, only vote for a few of the major offices, leaving judicial or local races blank.

    Another element of the 2013 “Monster Voting Law” left untouched is the provision that allows anyone from anywhere in the state, to confront any voter on line at a precinct, and challenge their right to vote. That means the challenged voter is required by law to leave the line, and report to the precinct judge’s table with the challenger to answer questions about their voting qualifications.

    Activists say they have to have a strong voter protection plan in place – observers making sure that people are educated, and that they are not intimidated at the polls.

    The Carolina Peacemaker is a member publication of the National Newspaper Publishers Association. Learn more about becoming a member at http://www.nnpa.org.

  • George Curry renowned Black journalist and columnist died suddenly last week at age 69

    georgecurry_bpw14_fallen_web120George Curry, noted Black journalist and columnist in many Black newspapers, including the Greene County Democrat, died suddenly of heart failure last week at the age of 69. A native of Tuscaloosa, Curry was Editor-in-Chief of the new service of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) for many years and was working on the re-development of an on-line Emerge Magazine and news service at the time of his death. A more detailed article commemorating Curry’s life and civil rights involvement appears on page 4, in the space where we ran his beloved column, for the past twenty years.

    Legendary Journalist, Black Press Columnist George Curry Remembered as Champion of Civil Rights…. By Hazel Trice Edney

    (TriceEdneyWire) – Renowned civil rights and Black political journalist George E. Curry, the dean of Black press columnists because of his riveting weekly commentary in Black newspapers across the country, is being remembered this week as a legend. Curry died suddenly of heart failure on Saturday, August 20. He was 69.
    “He stood tall. He helped pave the way for other journalists of color to do their jobs without the questions and doubts,” said the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. with whom Curry traveled extensively, including to the funeral of President Nelson Mandela. “He was a proud and tireless advocate of the Black press, serving two tours as editor-in-chief of the National Newspaper Publishers Association’s news service.”
    Curry’s fiancée Ann Ragland confirmed that the funeral will be held Saturday, August 27, at 11 am at the Weeping Mary Baptist Church, 2701 20th Street, Tuscaloosa, Ala. Rev. Al Sharpton will give the eulogy. A viewing on Saturday will be from 8:30-11 am.
    Ragland said a viewing will also be held on Friday evening, Aug. 26, with Rev. Jackson speaking, also at Weeping Mary Baptist Church.
    Having grown up in Tuscaloosa during the height of racial segregation, Curry often said he “fled Alabama” and vowed never to return when he went away to college. However, Ragland said he always told her to return him home to Tuscaloosa upon his death.
    Shocking rumors of his death circulated heavily in journalistic circles on Saturday night until it was confirmed by Dr. Bernard Lafayette, MLK confidant and chairman of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference shortly before midnight.
    “This is a tragic loss to the movement because George Curry was a journalist who paid special attention to civil rights because he lived it and loved it,” Lafayette told the Trice Edney News Wire through his spokesman Maynard Eaton, SCLC national communications director.
    Curry’s connection to the SCLC was through his longtime childhood friend, confidant and ally in civil rights, Dr. Charles Steele, SCLC president. Steele and Curry grew up together in Tuscaloosa, Ala., where they played football at Druid High School. Curry bloomed as a civil rights and sports writer as Steele grew into a politician and civil rights leader.
    “He was a pacesetter with the pen. He saw things that other people didn’t see,” said Steele. “And once he saw those things, he embraced them and exposed them in terms of putting information into the hands of people who would normally be left out of the process, meaning the African-American community.”
    Ragland, Curry’s fiancée and closest confidant, drove him to the Washington Adventist Hospital emergency room after he called her complaining of chest pains Saturday afternoon. He insisted that she take him instead of calling an ambulance. She said he remained conscience throughout the cardiac tests and the doctor assured her he would be fine. But his heart took a sudden turn. She said the doctor tried to explain to her that the turn was totally unexpected. “He said, ‘He was okay, but then his heart just stopped.’”
    Curry’s closest colleagues knew and respected him for his journalism and his demand for excellence, which was sometimes expressed in a no nonsense, drill sergeant style of communicating. But, Ragland said the one thing that most people don’t know is “how, even though he was so brash sometimes, how compassionate he was for other people.”
    She gave an example of his being at a recent doctor’s appointment and meeting an older man who was having difficulty walking. She said Curry not only helped the man along but bought him lunch.
    Curry began his journalism career at Sports Illustrated, the St. Louis Post Dispatch, and then the Chicago Tribune. But he is most revered for his editorship of the award-winning former Emerge Magazine and more recently for his work as editor-in-chief of the National Newspaper Publishers Association from 2001-2007 at NNPA offices located at Howard University. He returned to leadership of the NNPA News Service in 2012 until last year when he left amidst budgetary issues.
    “It’s hard to believe that George Curry, a giant in the journalism profession is no longer with us. The news of George’s death leaves a tremendous void that will be difficult to fill,” said NNPA Chairwoman Denise Rolark Barnes, publisher of the Washington Informer. “George’s uncompromising journalistic leadership delivered on Emerge’s promise to deliver edgy, hard-hitting, intellectual, well-written and thoroughly researched content that attracted national attention and left an indelible mark on the lives of many.”
    Barnes added, “I was honored to carry George’s weekly column in the Washington Informer and to work with him as he served as editor-in-chief of the NNPA News Wire. George provided so much of his time, energy, wisdom and incredible journalistic genius to the Black Press. His work will stand as a lasting legacy of journalist excellence and integrity of which all of us in the Black Press and in the journalistic field at large can field extremely proud.”
    Jake Oliver, publisher and chairman of the Baltimore-based Afro American Newspapers, who first hired Curry as NNPA editor-in-chief, recalled their long friendship.
    “I’m in total shock. I’ve lost a very close, dear friend,” Oliver said. “I hired him at the NNPA at the turn of the century and even before then we worked remotely on various issues that we had the same point of view about.

    George was a journalist par excellence…He spent a lot of time at his craft and perfected it at a high level. And as a result, he was able to generate national and indeed, international respect,” Oliver said.
    “There was so much that he gave to the Black Press and the gifts that he’s left us are enormous.”
    The name, George Curry, is as prominent among civil rights circles as among journalists. He did weekly commentary on the radio show of the Rev. Al Sharpton. Curry had appeared on the show on Friday, the day before his death.
    “When I started my daily radio show 10 years ago, I asked him to close the final hour every week on Friday,” Sharpton recalls. “About a month ago, he went away for two weeks. He came back last Friday. We teased him [saying] he had rarely missed a Friday. We talked about the elections and everything and the next day he died, which was shocking to me.”
    Sharpton said Curry’s legacy “is integrity, is boldness, is holding people – including Black leaders that were his friends – accountable. And defending us when we deserved it.”
    Sharpton concluded, “George was probably the ultimate journalist and the epitome of a Black journalist. He held us all accountable as he also told our story with no fear and no concern about his own career. He was a man of supreme integrity and boldness that I don’t know if I’ve met anyone that came close.”
    Curry’s reputation was broad and highly esteemed. Democratic Presidential nominee Hillary Clinton also issued a statement upon his death.
    “George E. Curry was a pioneering journalist, a tireless crusader for justice, and a true agent of change,” Clinton wrote. “With quality reporting, creativity, and skillful persuasion he influenced countless people, including me, to think beyond their narrow experience and expand their understanding. George may be gone, but he will not be forgotten.”
    Congressional Black Caucus Chairman G. K. Butterfield (D-N.C.), wrote: “George E. Curry was a giant in journalism and he stood on the front lines of the Civil Rights era and used his voice to tell our stories when others would not.”
    When he died he was raising money to fully fund Emerge News Online, a digital version of the former paper magazine. He had also continued to independently distribute his weekly column to Black newspapers.
    In 2003, he was named Journalist of the Year by the National Association of Black Journalists for his work as editor-in-chief of the NNPA News Service and BlackPressUSA.com, NNPA’s public news website.
    “I am heartbroken to learn that Mr. George Curry has passed. He has been a beacon for so many and a pivotal voice among Black publishers. His strength and pursuit for the truth will carry on in the lives he touched,” said NABJ President Sarah Glover in a statement this week.
    The NABJ release also recalled Curry’s love for working with students and future journalists. It quotes Neil Foote, a friend of Curry’s and president of the National Black Public Relations Society, saying, “George has made so many contributions to journalism – from the high school journalism workshops to his passionate fight for the black press. There’s a generation of journalists – including me – who are grateful to have had the chance to know him.”
    Curry was working to revive Emerge as an online publication at the time of his death. The NABJ statement quotes TV-ONE host Roland S. Martin, a friend, colleague and fellow columnist, who honored Curry during his NewsOne Now television and radio shows this week: “He was still fighting to revive that magazine until his last moment on earth…George Curry died with his boots on, still fighting.”

  • Simone Biles is first woman U.S. gymnast to carry American flag in closing Olympic ceremony

     By Charise Frazier, Newsone

    Team USA selected the Rio Olympics’ “it-girl” Simone Biles to carry the flag into Maracanã Stadium during Sunday night’s closing ceremony.

    Biles is the first woman U.S. gymnast to carry the flag. She’s the second American gymnast to carry the flag in an opening or closing ceremony after Alfred Jochim marched with the American flag during opening ceremonies at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, according to The Huffington Post.

    Mary Carillo, a former Olympian and NBC commentator, called her “the most stunning athlete I’ve ever seen” as the U.S flag towered above Biles’ 4′ 9″ frame.

    Biles leaves Rio with tremendous accomplishments; she’s won a total of five medals – four gold and one bronze. She’s the first U.S. gymnast to win four gold medals in a single Olympics.

    “It’s an incredible honor to be selected as the flag bearer by my Team USA teammates,”Biles said in an interview with TeamUSA.org. “This experience has been the dream of a lifetime for me and my team and I consider it a privilege to represent my country, the United States Olympic Committee and USA Gymnastics by carrying our flag. I also wish to thank the city of Rio de Janeiro, and the entire country of Brazil, for hosting an incredible Games.”

    Biles was a fan favorite on the floor as multiple athletes stopped the gymnast for photos and selfies during the closing ceremony.

     

  • Civil Rights lawyers file suit against alleged Arkansas ‘hot check’ court that entraps poor people

    By Charise Frazier, Newsone

    The campaign against debtors’ prisons continues.

    Earlier today, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the ACLU of Arkansas, and law firm Morrison & Foerster LLP, filed a class action civil rights suit that accuses a Sherwood, Arkansas, courthouse of jailing residents for their inability to pay fines and fees associated with low-level offenses or misdemeanors. The suit also names Hot Check Division

    The case was brought forth less than a week after the DOJ filed an injunction that bars the practice of jailing individuals who can’t post bail.

    Lawyers filed on behalf of four city residents who claim their constitutional rights were violated by the Hot Check Division of the Sherwood District Court after they were jailed for not paying court fines and fees.

    A fifth member, also named as a plaintiff, alleges the revenue generated from the accumulated fees have been misused, which violates concerned law-abiding taxpayers. The city of Sherwood has accumulated over $12 million over the course of five years, which directly benefits the prosecutor and sheriff’s office, according to counsel for the plaintiffs.

    During an early afternoon call that discussed the legality of the case, representatives for the ACLU and the Lawyers’ Committee relayed the far-reaching disparities caused by the alleged illegal practice, one that leads to debtors’ prisons and disproportionately affects people of color.

    “The resurgence of debtors’ prisons have entrapped poor people, too many who are African or minorities,” said Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee. “The court has what we call a hot check courtroom and completely ignores the longstanding principle that a person cannot be punished because they are poor.”

    The case also reveals a severe miscarriage of justice – most of the defendants were repeatedly jailed for their inability to pay or keep up with an unaffordable payment schedule.

    According to Clarke, warrants are issued for defendants’ arrests each time they are unable to make a payment. Members of the Sherwood Police Department then approach the individual’s home and threaten arrest unless said person puts down a small sum to secure a court date.

    Rita Sklar, executive director of Arkansas’ ACLU, said the group has been aware of the issue over the last 25 years. Researchers spent extensive time building a case, observing, and speaking with those affected, including tax-paying Sherwood residents.

    “What we didn’t know was the extent to which this has been going on and all the details–what happens to people when they go to court, or if they miss a payment,” she said. According to Sklar, a bounced $15 check could accumulate over $400 in fines and fees.

    She added that an internal investigation found the court forces defendants to waive their right to a lawyer, with the judge acting as lead prosecutor: “This court is held in secrecy. There’s no transcript kept to find out what’s going on.”

    The ACLU and the Lawyers’ Committee say they are resigned to lead the charge in challenging and exposing debtors’ prisons, and will continue advocating common sense approaches to criminal justice debt.

  • Donald Trump to Black voters: ‘What do you have to lose?’

    By: BBC News

             Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has made a direct appeal to African-American voters, saying “What do you have to lose?”

    Mr. Trump told a nearly all-white audience in Michigan that Black voters “are living in poverty” and their “schools are no good”.

    He promised to “produce” for African-Americans where Democrats had failed. “If you keep voting for the same people, you will keep getting exactly the same result,” he said.

    He said his opponent, Democrat Hillary Clinton, “would rather provide a job to a refugee” than to unemployed Black youths, “who have become refugees in their own country”.

    Mrs. Clinton called Mr. Trump’s remarks “so ignorant it’s staggering”.

    Donald Trump also predicted he would receive 95% of the African-American vote if he went to on to run for a second term in 2020. President Barack Obama, historically the most popular president among African-Americans in US history, received 93% of the black vote in 2012.

    Mr. Trump has suffered from dismal support among African-Americans. Current polls show about 2% of black voters say they will vote for the New York real estate developer.

    The Trump campaign relationship with the black voters thus far can be described as rocky at best. The billionaire businessman has seen strong support among white supremacist groups. Mr. Trump came under heavy criticism after he took days to distance himself from a former leader of the Ku Klux Klan who endorsed him.

     

    On several occasions, African-American protesters have been assaulted by Trump supporters at rallies. A New York Times investigation found supporters frequently use racist language at rallies.

    The Friday speech was the third time this week that Donald Trump sought to appeal to African-American voters. Some analysts say Mr Trump, trailing badly in national polls for weeks, desperately needs to broaden his appeal beyond his base of white working-class voters.

     

     

  • Equal Justice Initiative plans to build a national memorial to the victims of lynching in Montgomery, Alabama

    national-lynching-memorial-2artist rendering of museum

     

    MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA – The Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) plans to build a national memorial to victims of lynching and open a museum that explores African American history from enslavement to mass incarceration. Both the museum and memorial will open in Montgomery, Alabama, in 2017.

    The ‘From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration Museum’ will be situated within 150 yards of one of the South’s most prominent slave auction sites and the Alabama River dock and rail station where tens of thousands of enslaved black people were trafficked. The museum will contain high-tech exhibits, artifacts, recordings, and films, as well as comprehensive data and information on lynching and racial segregation. The museum will connect the history of racial inequality with contemporary issues of mass incarceration, excessive punishment, and police violence.

    The Memorial to Peace and Justice will sit on six acres of land in Montgomery and become the nation’s first national memorial to victims of lynching. The massive structure will contain the names of over 4000 lynching victims engraved on concrete columns representing each county in the United States where racial terror lynchings took place. Counties across the country will be invited to retrieve duplicate columns with the names of each county’s lynching victims to be placed in every county.

    In February 2015, EJI released Lynching in America: Confronting the Legacy of Racial Terror, a ground-breaking report that documents more than 4000 lynchings of black people in the United States between 1877 and 1950. EJI identified several hundred more lynchings than had previously been recognized. For a copy of the full report, please contact EJI. Racial terrorism forced millions of black people to flee the South during the first half of the 20th century and played a major role in shaping the demographic geography of America by creating large black populations in urban communities in the North and West.

    The national memorial to lynching victims will be one of the nation’s most ambitious projects relating to the history of racial terror lynchings. EJI has purchased six acres of land atop a rise that overlooks the City of Montgomery and out to the American South, where terror lynchings were most prevalent.

    The memorial is constructed of hundreds of floating columns on which the names of lynching victims from over 800 counties across the United States will be inscribed. The classical structure will be surrounded by a park, where duplicate columns engraved with the names of lynching victims in each county will be placed until they are claimed by each county and permanently installed in the places where racial terror lynchings took place. The memorial will be dynamic, and seeks to inspire local efforts to make the history of racial terror in America more visible and tangible. The memorial is being designed in partnership with MASS Design Group, an award-winning architectural firm based in Boston.

    After the release of Lynching in America, EJI initiated several cultural projects designed to deepen understanding about racial terror in America. EJI is placing markers at lynching sites across the country in an effort to change the landscape of the American South, which is saturated with iconography and memorials romanticizing the Confederacy and the effort to preserve slavery.

    EJI also launched a project to collect soil at lynching sites and create an exhibit that tells the stories of lynching victims. Hundreds of people have begun to actively engage in community remembrance projects around the era of lynching.

    The museum, From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration, is expected to open in April. It is housed on the site of a former slave warehouse in Montgomery, Alabama, located midway between the former slave auction block and the main river dock and train station where tens of thousands of enslaved people were trafficked during the height of the domestic slave trade.

    The museum will showcase interactive displays about America’s history of racial inequality and present dynamic information and content, including virtual reality films about the domestic slave trade, lynching, segregation and mass incarceration. The museum will house the nation’s most comprehensive collection of data on lynching.

    To connect this history with contemporary issues of mass incarceration, the museum will employ narratives that reveal the racially biased administration of criminal justice, police violence, and wrongful convictions. The museum will feature new art pieces by contemporary African American artists, including Sanford Biggers and Hank Willis Thomas.

    EJI has partnered with Local Projects, whose credits include the 9/11 Memorial Museum in New York City, to build the new museum, which will house reports, films, and other cultural pieces on the history of race in America.

     

  • Boko Haram offers to exchange abducted girls for its captured fighters

    Written By Nigel Roberts, Washington Post

                                                        Bring Back Our Girls

    Bring  Back Our Girls

    The Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram released a video on Sunday blaming Nigerian airstrikes for killing many of the girls it abducted more than two years ago and offering to exchange the survivors for its imprisoned fighters.

    A masked militant appears in the video with a group of about 50 girls behind him, purportedly some of the more than 200 schoolgirls the group abducted from Chibok, in northeast Nigeria. The bodies of those allegedly killed or wounded in government airstrikes also appear in the video.

    Africa’s most populous nation has been at war with the insurgents who are trying to carve out an Islamist state in Nigeria.

    In a statement, Nigeria said it’s in touch with the militants and doing all it can for their release, according to the British Broadcasting Corporation.

    “We are being extremely careful because the situation has been compounded by the split in the leadership of Boko Haram,” Nigerian Information Minister Alhaji Mohammed continued. “We are also being guided by the need to ensure the safety of the girls.”

    Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari told the BBC last year that he’s prepared to negotiate with Boko Haram for the girls’ release, if credible leadership comes forward. But that’s now complicated by reports of a split in leadership.

    The New York Times reported that a spokesman for the Bring Back Our Girls campaign said the video seems legitimate, adding that some family members recognized several of the girls.

    At least one kidnapped schoolgirl was found earlier this year. Nigeria celebrated when a civilian militia found her in the forest with a baby, confirming what many feared – that the girls became sex slaves and married off to Boko Haram fighters.

    Meanwhile, the BBC reported that the Nigerian army is searching for journalist Ahmad Salkida, who has written about the internal workings of Boko Haram. Salkida, believed to be in Dubai, wrote about the video before its release.

  • Simone Manuel’s Olympic win is huge considering swimming’s racist past

    Zeba BlayVoices Culture Writer, The Huffington Post

    2016 Rio Olympics – Swimming – Final – Women’s 100m Freestyle Final – Olympic Aquatics Stadium – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – 11/08/2016. Simone Manuel (USA) of USA reacts after winning the gold and setting a new Olympic record. REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS.
    Protesters demonstrating in the swimming pool of the Monson Motor Lodge in Saint Augustine, Florida scream as motel manager James Brock dumps “muriatic acid” into the water.

    L TO R: Simone Manuel’s  and a Protesters in 1964 demonstrating in the swimming pool of the Monson Motor Lodge in Saint Augustine, Florida, scream as motel manager James Brock dumps “muriatic acid” into the water. (Bettman via Getty Images)

    There are levels to Simone Manuel’s epic Olympic win on Thursday. The 20-year-old has become the first black woman to win a gold medal in an individual swimming competition in the history of the Olympics. Tying for the gold medal with Canadian swimmer Penny Oleksiak, Manuel also set an Olympic record with a time of 52.70.

    What the Texas native has managed to accomplish during her time in Rio is most definitely historic ― but it’s also weighted with meaning that extends far beyond the Olympics.

    There is an infamous photo from 1964, of a motel manager named James Brock pouring acid into the swimming pool of his Saint Augustine, Florida, motel. Below him, black and white protestors attempting to integrate the segregated pool scream in shock and fear.

    The photo is a visceral reminder of the everyday realities of segregation in the United States. Black people weren’t even allowed the dignity of cooling off in a pool or at the beach without being segregated and denied access.

    According to The Guardian, during the 1920s and ‘30s thousands of luxurious public pools were opened all over America. All of them were segregated. When desegregation began in the ‘50s and ‘60s, government officials withdrew funding for desegregated pools. White pool-goers ultimately fled for the perceived comfort and “safety” of private, segregated pools and the rundown public pools left over for black people were gradually closed down.

    Today, there’s a stereotype that many people, including some black people, subscribe to: “Black people can’t swim.” Of course, that isn’t completely true. Many black people, throughout the diaspora, know how to swim.