ColorOfChange Petition Calls on La. Gov. Jindal for Investigation of White Vigilantes' Killing of Blacks in Katrina Aftermath

Here is a special request from ColorOfChange:

A new report in The Nation[1] documents what many have claimed for years--for some Black New Orleanians the threat of being killed by White vigilantes in Katrina's aftermath became a bigger threat than the storm itself.

After the storm, White vigilantes roamed Algiers Point shooting and, according to their own accounts, killing Black men at will--with no threat of a police response. For the last three years, the shootings and the police force's role in them have been an open secret to many New Orleanians. To date, no one has been charged with a crime and law enforcement officials have refused to investigate.

The report is helpful, but given Lousiana's horrible record on protecting its Black citizens, justice will only come if we demand it.

I've joined ColorOfChange in calling on Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, Louisiana's Attorney General Buddy Caldwell, and the U.S. Department of Justice--to conduct a full investigation of these crimes and any police cover-up. Will you join me? It takes only a moment:

http://www.colorofchange.org/nation/?id=1780-175369

In the two weeks after Hurricane Katrina made landfall, the media created a climate of fear with trumped-up stories of Black lawlessness. Meanwhile an armed group of White vigilantes took over the Algiers Point neighborhood in New Orleans and mercilessly hunted down Black people. "It was great!" said one vigilante. "It was like pheasant season in South Dakota. If it moved, you shot it."

The Nation's article tells the story of Donnell Herrington, Marcel Alexander, and Chris Collins--a group of friends who were attacked by shotgun-wielding White men as they entered Algiers Point on September 1, 2005. As they tried to escape, Herrington recalls, their attackers shouted, "Get him! Get that nigger!" He managed to get away. Alexander and Collins were told that they would be allowed to live on the condition that they told other Black folks not to come to Algiers Point. Herrington, shot in the neck, barely survived.

And there's the story of Henry Glover, who didn't survive after being shot by an unknown assailant.[2] Glover's brother flagged down a stranger for help, and the two men brought Glover to a police station. But instead of receiving aid, they were beaten by officers while Henry Glover bled to death in the back seat of the stranger's car. A police officer drove off in the car soon afterward. Both Glover's body and the car were found burnt to cinders a week later. It took DNA analysis to identify the body.

These are only a few of the stories of Black folks who were accosted in Algiers Point, and you can read more in The Nation. But unless you speak out, we may never learn the full extent of the violence. Journalists have encountered a wall of silence on the part of the authorities. The coroner had to be sued to turn over autopsy records. When he finally complied, the records were incomplete, with files on several suspicious deaths suddenly empty. The New Orleans police and the District Attorney repeatedly refused to talk to journalists about Algiers Point. And according to The Nation journalist A.C. Thompson, "the city has in nearly every case refused to investigate or prosecute people for assaults and murders committed in the wake of the storm."

The Nation article is important, but it's just a start. For more than three years now, these racist criminals have by their own admission gotten away with murder while officials in New Orleans have systematically evaded any kind of accountability. We have to demand it.

Please join me in calling on state and federal officials to investigate these brutal attacks and the conduct of Orleans Parish law enforcement agencies, and please ask your friends and family to do the same.

http://www.colorofchange.org/nation/?id=1780-175369

Thanks.

------

1. "Katrina's Hidden Race War," The Nation, 12-18-2008
http://www.colorofchange.org/link/?id=1780-175369&cat=nation&link=1

2. "Body of Evidence," The Nation, 12-18-2008
http://www.colorofchange.org/link/?id=1780-175369&cat=nation&link=2

Cross-posted at the Francis L. Holland Blog.

BlackPerspective.net Calls For World AIDS Day Action

World AIDS Day Is Coming

World Aids Day is December 1st every year and last year we did a week of Black Blogging To End AIDS. This year it's just going to be Blogging to End AIDS, and we'll do something Black specific surrounding National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day on February 7th.

I think it worked out well last time, and a lot of you participated so we'll keep the same format.

The purpose will be to raise AIDS awareness, most particularly to help prevention of the spread of the disease.

It will be a week long event starting December 1st and going through the 7th; which means you can do your post (or multiple post would be even better) at anytime during the week, as opposed to just on one specific day. How many post you do is optional, but you need only do one to participate.

Please sign up in the comments here, with your name or net handle and FULL clickable url so that I can keep track and do a wrap up post highlighting all the bloggers that participate.

Example: Yobachi http://www.blackperspective.net

There’s plenty of information on the web that you can research about AIDS, including the particular issues for the Black Diaspora, so it’s not necessary that you have a great amount of AIDS knowledge to participate. You can be effective by simply pulling together some information from others sources and putting it in front of people.



From the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services

About the Day
World AIDS Day is observed every year on December 1st. The World Health Organization established World AIDS Day in 1988. World AIDS Day provides governments, national AIDS programs, faith organizations, community organizations, and individuals with an opportunity to raise awareness and focus attention on the global AIDS epidemic.

The Facts
In 2007, the estimated number of persons living with HIV worldwide was 33.2 million and there were 2.7 million people newly infected.

Help Black Bloggers Raise Money For School Projects

Some Black Bloggers in the Afrospear , spurred on by science educator The Urban Scientist, have recently come together to help raise money for various students and school projects.

You may already be familiar with the Donor's Choice website. As describe at the site:

"DonorsChoose.org is a simple way to provide students in need with resources that our public schools often lack. At this not-for-profit web site, teachers submit project proposals for materials or experiences their students need to learn. These ideas become classroom reality when concerned individuals, whom we call Citizen Philanthropists, choose projects to fund."

Well during October, Donors Choice is holding a blogger challenge; a friendly competition, as it is described, to raise some early school year funds for kids.

Various Afrospear bloggers have come together under the group Black Bloggers for Education. They have set up pages at the site promoting different projects that you can choose from to donate to.

BlackPerspective.net and the Eddie Griffin blog are helping to promote the effort.

So if you have even five bucks to spare, please go by and give to education; and show that Black folks do indeed care about more than just athletic achievement or kicking a flow.

Last Day To Register Voters In Some Key States

Neveda and West Virgina are very close, and Wisconson is still kind of in play. Do what you ccan to push registration of our folks.

State by state polling analysis

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 14th
Maine (or on Election Day at polling place)
Maryland
Nevada
New Jersey
Oregon

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15th
Massachusetts
West Virginia
Wisconsin (or on Election Day at polling place)

A Lady's Perspective has the rest of the registration dates

In conjunction with the Afrosphere Action Coalition, Black Bloggers are asked to continue working to encourage voter registration until the last state's deadline.

Register People To Vote - Oct 6 Last Day In 19 States

Get everyone you know or may come in contact with registered on time.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 6th
Arizona
Arkansas
Colorado
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Indiana
Kentucky
Louisiana
Michigan
Mississippi
Montana (or same day at elections office)
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Tennessee
Texas
Utah (or in person Tuesday, October 28th)
Virginia

A Lady's Perspective has the rest of the registration dates

In conjunction with the Afrosphere Action Coalition, Black Bloggers are asked to continue working to encourage voter registration until the last state's deadline.

Sign Petition for National Health Care Now!

The Afrosphere Action Coalition (AAC) calls upon the Government of the United States to take such steps as are necessary to guarantee that all those in the United States who are in need of medical treatment shall promptly receive such treatment and care as is medically necessary, without being required to pay for it beforehand, at the time of service, or individually thereafter.

Please sign the petition now.

The Afrosphere Action Coalition calls upon the US Government to institute a national system of medical care that guarantees that medically necessary treatment, pharmaceuticals and other related medical goods and services are readily available, accessible and provided through a Government-operated system of doctors, hospitals, pharmacies, clinics and private providers, paid for from the US Treasury, and redirecting as necessary such funding as is now spent on medical care in order to achieve this purpose, and provide subsidies as necessary for such care in the private system.

Please sign the petition now!

The AAC further calls upon the US Government to cease and desist obstructing medical patients from seeking and receiving quality medical care, pharmaceuticals and treatments wherever they may be most economical, refraining in particular from prohibitions on the importation of identical or essentially similar pharmaceuticals from foreign low-cost pharmacies and manufacturers overseas.

Please add your voice now!

The Afrosphere Action Coalition urges that NO PERSON OR PERSONS BE COMPELLED TO RECEIVE SERVICES UNDER THE ABOVE PROVISIONS, but that such services be available as of right to those who request them, in every region and portion of the United States and its territories and dependencies, without intentional, accidental, or incidental discrimination on the basis of skin color, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, religion, reproductive treatment necessities, psychiatric requirements, or on any other basis or pretext.

Please click here to sign now!

US Supreme Court to Weigh Troy Davis' Death Sentence

Supreme Court To Decide Fate of Troy Davis:

Does Innocence Matter?

Wednesday, 24 September 2008

by Black Agenda Report Managing Editor Bruce Dixon Yesterday, with less than two hours left till his scheduled execution, The US Supreme Court intervened in the case of Troy Anthony Davis of Savannah GA. Davis was convicted of murder in the killing of a policeman in 1989. Seven of the nine non-police witnesses have recanted their testimony against Troy, all alleging threats and coercion from prosecutors and/or police. The question raised by the campaign to free Troy Davis, which the Supreme Court will decide soon --- does innocence matter? Supreme Court To Decide Fate of Troy Davis: Does Innocence Matter? by BAR Managing Editor Bruce Dixon With hundreds of supporters of Troy Anthony Davis gathering at the state capital building in Atlanta, and multiple suburban locations as well as Savannah and Athens GA and outside the prison where the execution had been scheduled, and less than two hours remaining before the execution, the U.S. Supreme Court Tuesday overruled Georgia authorities and granted a stay. The execution will be delayed at least a week, while the Supreme Court decides whether or not to consider his case. Should they decline to do so, Georgia authorities will set a new date for speedy execution, and the death watch will begin again. And of course if the Supreme Court decides to consider the case all bets are off until their deliberations are completed. Keep up the pressure! Over the past few weeks there have been several public meetings and demonstrations in Atlanta atended by thousands of people, including a sit-in outside the governor's office demanding a new trial for Davis, convicted in the 1989 slaying of a cop in Savannah. Last Friday, about a thousand people marched from Atlanta's Woodruff Park to historic Ebeneezer Baptist Church to pray and demand a new trial for Troy Davis. “Dr. King opposed the death penalty, and it's only appropriate that we meet here at his church to pray for and to demand justice for Troy Davis,” offered Rev. Timothy McDonald of Atlanta's First Iconium Baptist Church. “The seven out of nine witnesses repudiating their own stories, that should have been enough by itself to merit a new trial,” he declared. The slogan of the demonstrators is “innocence matters”. Black Agenda Report asked Martina Correia, Davis's sister what this meant. “They're telling us that recanted testimony is not as important as trial testimony. What's happening is that my brother Troy is being denied access to the court. They're saying that if you had a 'fair trial' evidence proving your innocence that comes to light afterward does not matter... That's why our campaign is called 'Innocence Matters.'” The Atlanta Progressive News reported that seven of the nine non-police witnesses against Davis went before the GA Bureau of Pardons and Paroles to recant their testimony on the basis that they were coached and threatened by police and prosecutors into lying. The Bureau, all former prosecutors and law enforcement personnel, are appointed by the governor, and have the power to set aside death penalties and to order a new trial. But despite seven of nine witnesses alleging threats on the part of police to coerce their testimony, and despite a commitment from the US Supreme Court to rule on whether it will take the case in early October, judges from lower courts up to the GA State Supreme Court have refused to reopen the case. Evidence of innocence that surfaces after a trial, they have effectively ruled, is inadmissible and irrelevant. The parole board ruled likewise, and set the September 23 execution date, which the high court has now delayed. “We were the only news agency that was talking about the witness recantation” Cardinale pointed out.. “You would just see in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the corporate TV and newspapers that Troy Davis was about to be executed, that he killed a cop, and that was it... particularly the TV stations. They'd run a one minute clip, the same as they do before every execution. But in the media we have a responsibility to treat a claim that comes from the government as a claiM, rather than as an established fact. They did the same thing with Katherine Johnson, the 92 year old woman (shot to death by police in her Atlanta home) who we were told was dealing marijuana out of her house. It turned out of course, that the police were the criminals in that case, but the corporate news media for days uncritically defended them.” Before the stay of execution, we asked the sister of Troy Anthnoy Davis what else people could do who wanted to see justice in this case. “You can call or fax letters to the governor's offce and the GA Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. You can visit Amnesty International's web site and www.troyanthonydavis.org. You can send a text message “troy” to 90999.” For his part, it is reported that Troy Anthony Davis was calm and composed in the hours and minutes leading up to his last minute stay of execution. He remains hopeful and optomistic, and grateful for the support he has received from people of conscience in Georgia, acrss the country, and around the world. And as always, the Atlanta Progressive News remains the best and most reliable source for ongoing breaking news about the case of Troy Anthony Davis, and much more. BAR Managing Editor Bruce Dixon is based in Atlanta, and can be reached at bruce.dixon(at)blackagendareport.com

Join the AAC's National Black Voter Registration Push

Afrosphere Action Coalition
National Voter Registration Push

Black folks, we need to register our people to vote, and there's not much time left. From what I can tell October 6th is the beginning of voter registration deadlines in many states; including the all important battle ground states of Pennsylvania and Florida.

The Afrosphere Action Coalition is calling upon our partners in net-activism to help rally our folk to the cause of getting our people registered; especially in the important battle ground states where our voices can make a difference. As recently as August 20th, it was reported that a third of eligible Black voters (8 million) still aren't registered. http://proudblackvoter.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2008-08-27T16%3A26%3A00-05%3A00&max-results=7

We need a persistent push for the next month, as all the voter registration deadline dates that I've seen are between October 6th and 15th. We are asking bloggers not to just blog on it, but to organize registration in their communities, and when they do blog, to ask their readers not to only register themselves, but to at least pass the word on to people in their circles, volunteer with local groups do registration, or even organize their own efforts.
See here: http://proudblackvoter.blogspot.com/2008/09/state-by-state-voter-registration-links.html

and here: http://proudblackvoter.blogspot.com/2008/09/tennesseepennsylvania-you-have-til.html

For some information on voting deadlines.

Will you commit to use your medium, from here through October 15 (the last day of registration deadlines); to urge readers in people in your sphere to not only register themselves but to participate in registering others as noted above?

Will you commit to a combination of 3 post or mass emails a week for these next 4 weeks? (note: these do not have to be elaborate productions. As a matter of fact, functional and informative is more important than poetic appeals. How much time does it take to jot down a few lines of reminder, and a couple of links to resources? The point is to keep beating the drum).

Also, will you commit yourself to register voters, if it's nothing more than carrying around some voter registration cards in your car, and keeping some at you office, or with in your books as you go to class, and registering the people that you run across and know?

Of course, nobody can force you to stick to the commitment, it will be up to you to follow through. But here is where we can put our politics to work. Here's an opportunity to make a tangible difference by doing. If enough of us follow through we can use this medium of the internet to affect and outcome. We can do more here than blog about a problem or it solutions; we can create a solution.

If you're with this commitment please comment with your email letting me know so that I can have you on our list of participants and make sure you receive information updates as the campaign goes forward.

Or, email Yobachi at lionrunner777 @ yahoo dot com

Contribute To Voter Supression Wiki

Baratunde Thurston of Jack and Jill Politics has created this place to log incidents of voter supression throughout the U.S.

Thurston writes:

the point

1. Learn what voter suppression is
2. Report incidents of voter suppression
3. Act to combat and prevent it

You can go to the Voter Supression Wiki here.

Intro blog posts:

On Jack & Jill Politics
http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2008/09/announcing-the-launch-of-t...


On DailyKos (recommend!!)
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/9/18/13101/8066/280/602811


On Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/baratunde-thurston/announcing-the-launc...


And a great intro from Jon Pincus who helped a lot with the concept and setup
http://www.talesfromthe.net/jon/?p=209


YouTube video intro
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0aMMqvZ69s


THANK YOU ALL for your suggestions and connections. This was done in
about 24 hours. I love the Internet. Let's go protect some votes!


- saving democracy one wiki at a time

Help Haitian Hurricane Victims

Yobachi of BlackPerspective.net sends out personal call

A Little Help Can Go A Long Way



I’ve been telling you the last couple of weeks about the absolute devastation in Haiti from being hit by 4 tropical storms and Hurricanes with in less than three weeks. If you missed that, you can read here and here as well.

This morning I made a donation to Food For The Poor, directed to Haitian relief. It was only a mere 20 dollars, it’s what I have for the time being. It’s not much, but I understand that things add up.

If you have a few bucks you can spare, and you’ll put your 20 dollars with mine, and on and on then it won’t be just $20.

Some 1,400 of you read this blog every week. If I could get just 10% of you to make the same donation to which ever relief effort of your choosing; collectively it would be 2,800 dollars we would be providing in relief.

If everyone just does a little, a lot can be accomplished.

~Yobachi

Other donation information

Food For The Poor, Inc:

Pan America Relief

You can check out charities and how they spend donations at Charity Navigator

Get The Word Out About Voter Registration

In most places you have less than a month to get registered.

Get the word out to all you know. Send your entire email inbox the link.

From Pround Black Voter Blog:

State-by-State Voter Registration Links

Brothers and sisters ... TIME IS GETTING SHORT for you to register to vote in the November 2008 election! Some registration deadlines are just a few weeks away. Please encourage people to visit the new VOTE FOR CHANGE website.

At this site people will be able to find out if they are registered to vote; get registered to vote; apply to vote absentee; plus find early vote locations.

Registering someone can be a pretty quick and simple process. It literally takes about two minutes to get a registration form completed. If, you’re going to try to register voters, be sure to find out registration requirements for your area and also please remind people about the IMPORTANCE OF BRINGING PROPER I.D. WITH A CORRECT ADDRESS ON VOTING DAY.

Below is the link for each state's Voter Registration Site with information on the requirements to get registered. Also, with so much voter "trickery" many of these sites allow you to check to ensure that you are still registered and to check your polling place.

• Alabama


• Alaska


• Arizona


• Arkansas


• California


• Colorado


• Connecticut


• Delaware


• District of Columbia


• Florida


• Georgia


• Hawaii


• Idaho


• Illinois


• Indiana


• Iowa


• Kansas


• Kentucky


• Louisiana


• Maine


• Maryland


• Massachusetts


• Michigan


• Minnesota


• Mississippi


• Missouri


• Montana


• Nebraska


• Nevada


• New Hampshire


• New Jersey


• New Hampshire


• New York


• North Carolina


• North Dakota


• Ohio


• Oklahoma


• Oregon


• Pennsylvania


• Rhode Island


• South Carolina


• South Dakota


• Tennessee


• Texas


• Utah


• Vermont


• Virginia


• Washington


• West Virginia


• Wisconsin


• Wyoming


• Vote From Abroad

Please share this information with others. We want to increase voter participation by everyone in the 2008 election cycle.

Finally, check the link for your state to ensure that it is still accurate!

Hurricane Crisis In Haiti Needs Your Attention and Your Help

The second disaster to what is transpiring in Haiti, is the disaster that is, again, America's major media giving little attention to this developing humanitarian crisis that is just 700 miles off of our own shores. Of course they need the airtime to talk about what Britney was wearing at the VMA's.

After Hurricane Hanna caused floods and mudslides at the end of last week, Ike dumped more water on the besieged island Monday.

Last week I asked people to donate, and you should still give what you can; if it's just $10 or $20 dollars. But we should also ask our government to help, via cargo helicopters that can airlift in supplies and so forth.

We need to target someone for focused intensity. You should always contact your own legislative representatives; but there needs to be a single entity hit by everyone who would participate, and I think House Speaker Nancy Pelosi makes the most sense.

See the bottom of the page for contact info and donation info

Humanitarian disaster unfolds in Haiti
By Jacques Guillon in Gonaives, Haiti
September 10, 2008 10:01am

HAITI'S third largest city is at the centre of a humanitarian disaster after being hit hard by four major storms in less than a month.

Supplies slowly trickling into waterlogged Gonaives, but they were nowhere near the amount needed for flood victims who have gone for days without food or clean water.

The UN Mission in Haiti said 101 bodies have been found in Gonaives, the Haitian city hardest hit by Tropical Storm Hanna and Hurricane Ike, since yesterday.

Four major storms, two of them hurricanes, have struck Haiti in less than four weeks.

More than 600 Haitians have died and the disaster is still unfolding due to the challenge of delivering aid in the impoverished and waterlogged Caribbean country.

"If we don't find a way to deliver massive humanitarian aid, we will see fights and riots that will kill more people than the cyclone did," warned UN spokeswoman Vicky Delore-Ndjeuga.
Gonaives was flooded when Tropical Storm Hanna lashed the low-lying northern city surrounded by deforested hillsides at the beginning of the month.

Across Haiti, 800,000 people are in urgent need of humanitarian aide, almost half children…

go here for the rest of news.com.au's story

An AP Story on the issue


Congressional Contact and Donation Information

House Democratic Leadersip:
Nancy Pelosi - House Speaker 202-225-4965 / AmericanVoices@mail.house.gov, sf.nancy@mail.house.gov

General Switch Board for the House of Representatives, where you can get anyones number 202-224-3121

House website: www.house.gov/ (can find anyones website to get emails and other contact info).


Food For The Poor, Inc:

Pan America Relief

You can check out charities and how they spend donations at Charity Navigator

As the information in this article demonstrates the U.S. military has provided a decent amount of airlifted aid and medical support; but the issue is that the asset resources need to match the size of the crisis. We can do more, so why not do what we can to relieve human suffering?

From www.blackperspective.net

Action Alert: On 9/23, Georgia to Execute Wrong Man in Killing of Police Officer

Afrosphere Action Alert

Villager at the AfroSpear’s Electronic Village blog urgently brings to our attention the case of Troy Davis, a Black man who is scheduled to be executed just twelve days from now in Georgia, “even though his serious claims of innocence have never been heard in court.”

Amnesty International USA says, “The case against him consisted entirely of witness testimony which contained inconsistencies even during the trial,” and Amnesty urgest us to write automated letters online to the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles. They provide a sample letter. The European Parliament says, “there is abundant proof of his innocence, material evidence against him has never been produced and seven witnesses for the prosecution have retracted their testimony.”

The evidence presented by Amnesty International and the European Parliament indicated that police arrested and charged the wrong man, and Georgia will now execute an innocent man while a police killer goes unpunished for his crime.

The AfroSpear's Eddie G. Griffin (BASG) informs us that:

Georgians for the Abolition of the Death Penalty and Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) will hold a rally for Davis on September 11, 2008, from 6 to 8pm on the steps of the Georgia Capitol. (Source: http://www.atlantaprogressivenews.com/news/0372.html)

This is just one of the many activities that will surely occur between now and September 23 to stop or postpone the execution of a man who many informed human rights organizations say must not be guilty.

Monday, September 8, 2008: Day of Blogging for Community Organizing Justice: "I Am a Community Organizer"

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The AfroSpear and afrosphere announce a Day of Blogging for Community Organizing Justice: "I Am a Community Organizer", to be held on Monday, September 8, 2008.

AfroSpear and afrosphere bloggers involved are encouraged to each contact five additional bloggers and request their participation.

"The AfroSpear and afrosphere have heeded the call for community organizing within the Black community, both online and in our day jobs, as teachers, church deacons, and in other community building efforts. We condemn statements that criticize community organizing - statements that challenge the value of the "one thousand points of light" volunteerism, non-profit and charitable work that George H. W. Bush made a centerpiece of his social programs.

Rather than attempt to score political points by attacking charitable and non-profit sector efforts, those who seek to lead America should join those community organizers in churches, schools, PTA's, Girls and Boys Clubs, and all those who work tirelessly to make America a better place, every day of the week.

We in the AfroSpear and afrosphere therefore dedicate this Monday, September 8, 2008 to highlighting the crucial community-organizing efforts online and in our own communities. Even a church choir is a community organization and no one should belittle such efforts simply to score political points."

Francis L. Holland, Esq.
Coordinator
Afrosphere Action Coalition
francislholland@yahoo.com

September, 2008: Register to Vote and Request Absentee Ballots

Reposted from the AfroSpear's Proud Black Voter Blog.

The Truth About Absentee Ballots -- They Count!

Crosspointed from Vote From Abroad Campaign Blog.

Living abroad, absentee ballots are a pain in the butt - but they're all we have. And they DO count.

Too often, we hear "Oh, they don't even count absentee ballots unless it's close." WRONG! Every ballot validly cast is counted. That is a fact. Your vote will count whether you
cast it in Paris, France, or Paris, Texas.


OK, so it's true that a victor is usually called before every last vote has been tallied. But that's true for hometown voters, too! On election night, the networks are naming winners with just a small fraction of votes counted. Absentee ballots are all counted before an election result can be "certified". Remember the Florida fiasco? The vote count must be certified by the Secretary of State before it is official. That is the law.

Your vote WILL count. And if it's a very close race, the whole world will be waiting to know how YOU voted.

Here's a list of states and when they count their absentee ballots.

Action Alert: Wednesday, July 30, 2008 - Day of Blogging for Justice Against Extra-Judicial Electrocutions

First published at the Afrosphere Action Coalition blog.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Afrosphere Action Coalition

July 31, 2008

Contact: Francis Holland 55 (73) 3288-1716, Yobachi Boswell 615-478-5204, L.N. Rock africanamericanpoliticalpundit@gmail.com

Stop Police Pre-Trial Extra-Judicial
Electrocutions and Executions

On Wednesday, July 30th 2008, the Afrosphere Action Coalition; which helped organize bloggers for the Jena march last year, began conducting a taser abuse awareness campaign which kicked off with "A Day of Blogging for Justice - Blogging Against Pre-Trial Extra-Judicial Electrocution (Tasers)". Several dozen Black blogs, as well as others of diverse communities nationally and internationally are participating.

See the linked list of participating bloggers here: http://electrocutedwhileblack.blogspot.com/2008/07/partial-list-of-participants-day-of.html

The use of tasering on even nonviolent persons who are often those who are incoherent, hallucinating, wheelchair bound, suicidal, unarmed, deaf, handcuffed, blind, pregnant, foreign non-English speakers, or just didn’t move fast enough for an officers liking; is continuously growing not only in volume, but in the level of how liberally, unwarrantedly, and excessively tasering is being used across the country.

Both Black and White, poor and middle-class, & others have been subject to such abuse, and sentenced to death on the street. Yet, we cannot let go unnoticed that Black and the disadvantaged are even most subject to ‘electrocute first, ask questions later’.

Many Americans have seen the outrageous police tasing of an unarmed suicidal man; causing him to fall OFF AN OVERPASS AND ONTO THE HIGHWAY, in clear violation of tasing instructions! Phillip McDuffy was suicidal before, but with the help of his local police, he is now in critical condition.

Or, the 9-times tasering to death of the cousin of Jena 6 defendant Mychael Bell, Barron “Scooter” Pikes, while he was handcuffed; killing him in the back of a patrol car.

The blog Tasered While Black has been tracking the issue of black folks being tased for some time now. Amy Goodman of Democracy Now is tracking the death of Mr. Pikes. We are blogging today against police and other security entities across America, Canada and around the world involved in Extra-Judicial Electrocution by Tasers. African American political Pundit has called it a campaign against "on the spot pre-trial electrocution" of members of the public.

Francis L. Holland, Esq., a coordinator of the Afrosphere Action Coalition (AAC)says,

The Francis L. Holland Blog is calling for a moratorium on the pre-trial, extra-judicial electrocution of members of the public, at least until it can be demonstrated that these electrocutions are not potentially lethal, are not being used to torture subjects in custody, and are not being used disproportionately and gratuitously on Black people as a form of modern-day lynching.

http://francislholland.blogspot.com/2008/07/calling-for-moratorium-on-police-pre.html

The U.N. says: Tasers Are A Form Of Torture.

Today we want to give you and other members of the general public, awareness on the issue of taser abuse by police. It's important that the general public understand the 'use of force continuum' used by law enforcement officials, and how it is abused by many in the law enforcement community. (See the use-of-force-continuum provided by Villager at Electronic Village: http://electronicvillage.blogspot.com/2008/02/use-of-force-continuum.html) Although there is a Justice Department Review of TASER-related Deaths the on-the-spot pre-trial electrocutions continue.

###

Francis L. Holland, Esq.

Coordinator, Afrosphere Action Coalition

francislholland@yahoo.com
55 (73) 3288-1716
http://francislholland.blogspot.com

D. Yobachi Boswell
Coordinator, Afrosphere Action Coalition
lionrunner777@yahoo.com
615-478-5204
http://www.blackperspective.net/

Daz Wilson
Coordinator, Afrosphere Action Coalition
Purple Zoe
http://purplezoe.blogspot.com/

L.N. Rock
Anti-Electrocution Coordinator, Afrosphere Action Coalition
http://africanamericanpoliticalpundit.com/

Additional Information:

Top 13 Cases of Pre-Trial Electrocution, Execution Via Taser

Here are thirteen of the worst cases involving black Americans receiving pre-trial electrocutions, including the outrageous police tasing causing a suicidal Black man to fall 15 feet off a bridge.


Case #1
It's the case of the black man getting tased to death in Georgia (while in police custody) with almost a dozen police holding him down as he is tased.

Here is an actual video (below) of a black man who received "Extra-Judicial Electrocution" (tasered to death) in Georgia.

Acceptable Use of Torture in the USA [Gwinnett County, Georgia] The use of electric shock as a method of torture was first documented in Nazi, Germany, but today it is still used as an acceptable use of force. Why? WATCH THIS VIDEO IF YOU DARE!

Case #2
Pregnant Black Women Tasered In Ohio Hat Tip: Villager at Electronic Village for breaking this story to the afrospear.November 29, 2007 TROTWOOD, Ohio --

The FBI is investigating after a Trotwood police officer used a Taser on a pregnant woman. Trotwood Public Safety Director Michael Etter said the incident happened on Nov. 18. He said the woman arrived at the police department asking to give up custody of her 1-year-old son. Etter said an officer spoke with the woman as she held onto the child outside the police department. "(He) attempted to obtain information on both the mother and the child, at which time the mother refused to give any information and became very agitated," Etter said. Surveillance video from the police department shows the woman trying to leave with the child. The officer then grabs her coat in an effort to get her to stop. Etter said the officer was doing what he thought was in the best interest of the boy.The video shows the woman struggling with the officer, who then takes the child from her and gives the boy to another officer. The first officer then forces the woman down on her stomach, and he then uses a Taser on her neck. Etter said the officer did not know the woman was pregnant."She did not disclose, even after she was arrested, that she was pregnant," Etter said. He said the woman was wearing a large winter coat and had her child on her lap when she was talking to the officer. Etter said the department is cooperating with the FBI investigation, and there is also an ongoing internal investigation to see if the use of force was warranted for the situation.Etter said the officer involved is still on duty. Trotwood's policy on use of force states that officers should "greatly evaluate each situation with discretion when anticipating the deployment of the Taser on young children, elderly persons and pregnant females."The woman involved in the case declined to make a statement, saying only that she feels "unjustly served," the television station reported. Officers said the 1-year-old boy was put into the custody of a family member after the incident.

Case # 3 - 17-year-old Darryl Wayne Turner - Killed While at Work Over Argument with Supervisor at grocery Store. Release the surveillance videotape - Stop The Coverup! Why did the 17-year-old Black Kid Bagging Groceries have to die?

Source: The Charlotte Observer

Here's what we know about how 17-year-old Darryl Wayne Turner died: He had cardiac arrest after a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer shot him with a Taser gun.
Yet what we don't know about that shooting is just as important. Police and prosecutors should say how many times Mr. Turner was shot and make public a surveillance videotape that captured much of the confrontation. That's the only way to settle questions about what happened.

Prosecutors announced last week that Police Officer Jerry Dawson acted appropriately when he shocked Mr. Turner during a March confrontation at a north Charlotte grocery store. Officials said Mr. Turner was shocked more than once after he advanced on the officer.

Yet police and prosecutors have refused to reveal how many times the officer shot Mr. Turner and refused to air a videotape that showed what happened leading up to the shooting.
That secrecy doesn't make sense. If the investigation cleared the officer, those key details would only reinforce that finding.

For one thing, knowing how many times Mr. Turner was shot gives the public a way to evaluate the officer's response in light of some disturbing facts.

A June study by the U.S. Department of Justice reviewed Taser deaths and found that many of them are associated with repeated shocks. It cautioned law enforcement agencies against repeated shockings, saying the medical risks are unknown.

Mr. Turner's autopsy showed the teen's heart was pumping so fast and chaotically from the Taser shot and the confrontation that it stopped pumping blood properly.
In addition, sharing the surveillance video with the public would resolve conflicting accounts of what it shows. A lawyer representing Mr. Turner's family has viewed videotape. He disputes the police account that Mr. Turner walked or advanced aggressively toward the officer before he was shot. More HERE

Case # 4 - 21 year old Barron Scooter Collins,

Tased to death nine times over the course of 30 minutes
www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-taser_witt-web-jul19,0,2201847.story First cousin to Mychal Bell, of the Jena Six, killed after being tased nine times over the course of 30 minutes.
He was in restraints- in police custody when he died. And the certificate labels the death a homicide.A News Broadcaster reports, "The two other Winnfield Officers who were involved in the incident: Alan Marsdin and Cargyle Junior Branch-- Both are still on the force. Neither one has been disciplined."What's up with the News Channel 5. Check out the report they make on the death of of a black man. They start of the report saying, "It's been five and a half months since the death of 21 year old Barron Scooter Collins, a convicted drug dealer. News Channel 5 has learned Collins birth name is Barron Pikes. And he was first cousin to Mychal Bell, of the Jena Six. Scooter died after being in police custody and being tased. The incident prompted over 100 blacks in Winnfield to protest downtown.
Video
Photos

Tasered While Black says: Why was it so important to say:
"The 21 year old Barron Scooter Collins, a convicted drug dealer. "

OK, so News Channel 5 says it has learned Collins birth name is Barron Pikes. And he was first cousin to Mychal Bell, of the Jena Six. Scooter died after being in police custody and being tased. The incident prompted over 100 blacks in Winnfield to protest downtown. The Winn Parish Coroner, Dr. Randolph Williams, actually concluded his report 3 weeks ago and for the past 3 weeks News Channel 5 has been trying to get a copy of the report. Dr. Williams has refused to release anything to the media. But Radio Talk Show Host Tony Brown has provided News Channel 5 a copy of the death certificate. Tony Brown has been in close contact with Scooters relatives. The Pikes gave Brown the death certificate—and permission for him to give it to us.

Tasered While Black: big hat tip to Tony brown for standing in the gap with this family.
That document explains Scooter died after being tased nine times over the course of 30 minutes. He went into cardiac arrest. The certificate also confirms Collins was in restraints- in police custody when he died. And the certificate labels the death a homicide.

This is Scott Nugent, son of former Winnfield Chief of Police Gleason Nugent. Scott Nugent is the officer who tased Scooter after a foot chase. Nugent says Scooter was resisting arrest. But relatives of Scooter told NC5 that Nugent and Scooter went to high school together in Winnfield and had a bumpy personal history that they never liked each other. By the way, Nugent's record with Winnfield PD also has a major bump. In 2007 Nugent arrested a man for DWI--while the man was in Nugent's custody he somehow managed to steal Nugent's police cruiser—he crashed the car and died in the wreck.

Because the coroner was taking such a long time with his investigation, the Winnfield city council held an emergency meeting back in May. Nugent had been on paid suspension since the incident. But under an officer's bill of rights, there's only so much time that can pass until the officer is either allowed back to work or fired. The deadline was fast approaching so the city council voted 3 to 2 to terminate Nugent.

Nugent can appeal his termination to the local civil services board to try to get his job back. But job aside, Nugent could be facing criminal charges for the death. State Police Investigators are reviewing the incident and will present a report to the Winn Parish District Attorney. After that the case could go before a grand jury and then possibly a trial. Meanwhile Scooter's family is consulting with a lawyer about a lawsuit. Scooter had a 4 year old son named Kadarien.

Case # 5 - Black Man Tasered, Dies After Asking For Help From Police
Man dies after being Tasered by police
FayObserver.com - Fayetteville,NC,USA

A man died early this morning after being Tasered by Fayetteville Police Department officers.
The dead man's name has not been released. The State Bureau of Investigation has been called in to investigate. Fayetteville police also are conducting an internal investigation.
According to the Fayetteville police, a black male flagged down an officer at 5525 Murchison Road about 12:51 a.m. and said that he had overdosed on crack cocaine. When the officer tried to help, the subject fled.About 10 minutes later, officers responded to 5555 Murchison Road in reference to a business alarm. According to police, it was the same man. He became combative and officers tried to Taser him, but did not strike him with both darts. More HERE
FAYETTEVILLE (WTVD) -- The State Bureau of Investigations in looking into the death of a man after being tasered by a Fayetteville Police officer.

Otis Anderson's family members say he was released from prison Sunday.
The incident between police and Anderson happened around midnight Wednesday at a convenience store on Murchison Road. More HERE

Case # 6 - Black Man pepper-sprayed, punched then Tased from behind by Seattle Police even after he complied with their orders and he was down on his knees. SEATTLE - The King County Sheriff's Office is investigating a scuffle that erupted when Seattle police tried to make an arrest on New Year's Eve.Police officers ended up using a Taser on the man who, at that time, was on his hands and knees.

A KOMO 4 News photographer captured exclusive video of the arrest as officers were struggling with Marcel Richardson. Nearly a dozen police officers and at least one firefighter chased and tackled the man. (Watch the raw video of the arrest) Police say Richardson, 23, had a simple choice -- comply or get arrested, and he chose the latter. But Richardson's aunt claims the police took it one step too far when they didn't have to, with her nephew already on the ground.The scuffle broke out in the packed streets near the Space Needle when a computer glitch suddenly stopped the planned fireworks, sending the excited crowds on the ground over the edge.The footage shows Richardson being pepper-sprayed, punched then Tased from behind while he was down on his knees."He was beat in the back of the head with a baton, he was kicked, he was punched in the face (and) for what?" said Michelle King, his aunt.King, who works for Seattle's Municipal Court, says she knows the justice system and is sure the officers went too far."To me, the police department is nothing but a licensed gang and I stand by my son. And no matter what happens after today, I'm going to stand by my son and my nephew until the end," she said.Case

# 7 - Pregnant Black Woman Tased Here is a older report but still relevant. Why are men still being allowed to abuse black woman like this and get away with it. Black Pregnant Woman 'Tasered' by police is convicted

She was rushing her son to school. She was eight months pregnant.
By HECTOR CASTROSEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
Police used Taser on pregnant driver

She was rushing her son to school. She was eight months pregnant. And she was about to get a speeding ticket she didn't think she deserved.
So when a Seattle police officer presented the ticket to Malaika Brooks, she refused to sign it. In the ensuing confrontation, she suffered burns from a police Taser, an electric stun device that delivers 50,000 volts.

"Probably the worst thing that ever happened to me," Brooks said, in describing that morning during her criminal trial last week on charges of refusing to obey an officer and resisting arrest.

She was found guilty of the first charge because she never signed the ticket, but the Seattle Municipal Court jury could not decide whether she resisted arrest, the reason the Taser was applied. To her attorneys and critics of police use of Tasers, Brooks' case is an example of police overreaction.

"It's pretty extraordinary that they should have used a Taser in this case," said Lisa Daugaard, a public defender familiar with the case. Law enforcement officers have said they see Tasers as a tool that can benefit the public by reducing injuries to police and the citizens they arrest. Seattle police officials declined to comment on this case, citing concerns that Brooks might file a civil lawsuit. But King County sheriff's Sgt. Donald Davis, who works on the county's Taser policy, said the use of force is a balancing act for law enforcement.

"It just doesn't look good to the public," he said. Brooks' run-in with police Nov. 23 came six months before Seattle adopted a new policy on Taser use that guides officers on how to deal with pregnant women, the very young, the very old and the infirm. When used on such subjects, the policy states, "the need to stop the behavior should clearly justify the potential for additional risks." "Obviously, (law enforcement agencies) don't want to use a Taser on young children, pregnant woman or elderly people," Davis said. "But if in your policy you deliberately exclude a segment of the population, then you have potentially closed off a tool that could have ended a confrontation." Brooks was stopped in the 8300 block of Beacon Avenue South, just outside the African American Academy, while dropping her son off for school. In a two-day trial that ended Friday, the officer involved, Officer Juan Ornelas, testified he clocked Brooks' Dodge Intrepid doing 32 mph in a 20-mph school zone. He motioned her over and tried to write her a ticket, but she wouldn't sign it, even when he explained that signing it didn't mean she was admitting guilt. Brooks, in her testimony, said she believed she could accept a ticket without signing for it, which she had done once before. "I said, 'Well, I'll take the ticket, but I won't sign it,' " Brooks testified.
Officer Donald Jones joined Ornelas in trying to persuade Brooks to sign the ticket. They then called on their supervisor, Sgt. Steve Daman. More HERE

More about this story below:
Pregnant Woman tazered after being pulled over for speeding in ...If Andrew Meyer Was Bad Then a Pregnant Black Woman is Worse
Death by Taser - TalkLeft: The Politics Of Crime
half a bubble off plumb: Taser it before it grows

Case # 8 - Sunday, December 9, 2007
59 Year old black Veteran dies of spinal cord fracture after being "Tasered While Black." Another Black American Veteran Dead at the hands of Law EnforcementWill one of your family members be next?
Samuel Baker
Hat Tip: Community Freespeech.org

What really happened? We the people may never know. Where were the Chief of Police and other elected officials during the meeting on October 9, 2007? They had promised to be there to provide answers. Is it because our Republic is quickly becoming a Police State?
A state, Wherein the news media refuse to report the truth, and where investigative reporting has become a thing of the past—in the so-called land of the free, and the home of too many graves?

News Media Whiteout machines, and Law Enforcement reports are all similar. This death of a 59-year-old American Veterans is no different from hundreds of others by the hands of Law Enforcement for whatever reasons. More HEREResults are expected to be finalized Friday, investigators said. The results will now be turned over to the district attorney's office, which will determine whether charges are filed against anyone involved in the incident. More HERE
According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Baker, who passed away during an altercation with a Quitman Police officer, died from a spinal cord fracture and dislocation he suffered when he fell to the ground after being tased. Additionally, the GBI said that Baker's enlarged heart, due to hypertension, played a role in his death.
Hundreds of Quitman Residents March for Samuel Baker


Case # 9 -Tasered While Black, and Sleeping in North Braddock, Pittsburgh
Tasered at his own home: The Shawn Hicks Story By Tony Norman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette -

When Shawn Hicks returned to his North Braddock home on Stokes Avenue after a Saturday night out on the town with friends, he didn't bother turning on the lights. Instead of heading to his bedroom, Mr. Hicks, a 29-year-old business major at Point Park University, plopped himself face down and fully dressed on his cream-colored leather sofa in his living room. He also neglected to deactivate his home security system, which has a silent alarm. Surrounded by the darkness and familiar comforts of his home, Mr. Hicks was asleep within five minutes. He didn't know it at the time, but he was not destined to have sweet dreams that night. "I felt a lot of voltage going through my body," Mr. Hicks said recalling the events of that late July weekend. "That's what woke me up." Jumping to his feet, Mr. Hicks was aware of an intense sensation between the shoulder blades of his 150-pound body. It didn't stop there. His whole body felt as if it were on fire. When his eyes finally adjusted to the light, his heart skipped yet another beat. Two North Braddock police officers, Gerard Kraly and Lukas Laeuricia, were standing in his living room. To this day, Mr. Hicks still doesn't know which is Kraly and which Laeuricia. The shorter of the two officers did most of the talking. His mustached partner was a burly over-6-footer in his late 30s or early 40s. He held the Taser, the prongs of which were sticking in Mr. Hicks' back. The polite family newspaper version of what Mr. Hicks said in response to being electrified translates roughly as "What's going on here?" The shorter cop, whom Mr. Hicks remembers as blond, asked him to calm down. The officer said that North Braddock police received a call from the security company monitoring Mr. Hicks' home. They believed a break-in was in progress More HERE. There is still more. The FBI reviewing Tasering of sleeping man. Hat Tip blogger Another Opinionated Youth who reports, Back in September, a man living in North Braddock, Pittsburgh, was tasered in his own home, while sleeping on the couch. The story is summed up below: Shawn Hicks had come back from a night out and plopped down on his own couch in his own home. Unfortunately, he failed to deactivate the silent alarm on his home security system. According to Hicks, two police officers responded to the alarm, entered his home, and woke him with a taser between the shoulder blades. When Hicks tried to explain that the whole thing was a misunderstanding, and that the officers were in his own home, they tasered him again. They next checked his wallet and ID, which confirmed his name and address. Then they tasered him again. The police then removed the taser pellets from Hicks' bloody back, refused to get him medical treatment, and arrested him for "being belligerent." They threw him in a holding cell until 5 am the next morning, when they released him without filing any charges. More HERE

Case # 10 - Retired Black Police Lt. Son Tasered While Black

Tasered while Black - NYPD StyleH/T Police Brutality Blog for reporting on the 17-year old Alex Lombard, III still has burn marks from the stun gun. He was stun-gunned four (4) times in one incident. His father, a retired police Lieutenant from the same New York City Police force, said, "I was just hurt by what happened, to think that members of the service, of the police department I worked on, could do this to my son." More HERE

Case # 11 - Woman Dies After Being Handcuffed, Tasered By Police
Here is another one. This happened back in May of 2007 in Oklahoma.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ A mentally ill homeless woman died after she was arrested outside a shelter and stunned with a Taser while she was on the ground in handcuffs, authorities and witnesses said. An autopsy was performed on Milisha Thompson, 35, but her cause of death has not been determined pending toxicology tests, police Sgt. Paco Balderrama said Tuesday. One witness, Edwin Davis, said onlookers began yelling, ``You killed her! You killed her!'' as Thompson slipped out of consciousness during Saturday's confrontation outside the City Rescue Mission. But Balderrama said Thompson repeatedly kicked and attacked officers, even after being stunned with the Taser. After she lost consciousness, officers began CPR and she was taken by ambulance to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead. More HERERelated coverage below:
5/20/2007 Woman Dies After Police Shoot Her With Taser
5/22/2007 Woman Dies After Being Handcuffed, Stunned With Taser By Police 5/31/2007 Police Release Video, Answer Questions In Taser Death

Case # 12 - Wichita Police Taser deaf man who could not hear verbal commands
Wichita NAACP Holding Wichita Police Department AccountableWPD Officer uses a Taser gun on a deaf man who could not hear verbal commands On November 20th, a man by the name of Donnell Williams, 39, was at home alone . Mr. Williams is hearing impaired, has a glass eye, and walks with a slight limp. He was taking a shower when 4 officers responding to a call of 'shots fired' knocked on his door. Mr. Williams did not (and could not) hear them and he continued to shower.When he exited the shower, he walked into his living room, dressed only in a towel to find 4 Wichita Police Officers, one of which was carrying a bullet proof shield. Mr. Williams saw the officers gesturing to him, but could not hear what they were saying so he motioned towards his hearing aid which was sitting on his dining room table.When Mr. Williams turned to get his hearing aid from the table, he was shot with a taser gun by one of the officers. (remember; he was wearing only a towel, and motioning towards his hearing aid which was sitting on the table) more HERE and HERE - Hearing Impaired Man Tased by Police more HERE

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Case # 13 - Don't forget the tasing of black folks is international. "Taser Profiling" or being "Tasered While Black" is not limited to the U.S. - Enter Digby (Nova Scotia) .