VOICE OF DETROIT: The city's independent newspaper, unbossed and unbought

From the Mayoral Campaign of Krystal A. Crittendon

March 28, 2013

While some candidates were up in Mackinac, rubbing elbows with the people who designed the current attack on Detroit residents’ fundamental right to vote, candidate for Mayor of Detroit, Krystal Crittendon is here in the D, reminding Detroit residents of the importance of the August 6^th primary election.

In the video below, Atty. Crittendon explains why she feels running for mayor is important despite the Emergency Manager takeover by the state, which enables EM Kevyn Orr to overrule all branches of city government.

Mayoral candidate Tom Barrow and his supporters at earlier appeals court hearing on his challenge to the 2009 mayoral election which put Dave Bing (and eventually EM Keyvn Orr) in office.

 Mayoral Candidate Wages Court Battle Seeking a “Legal, Not Political, Decision”

May 30, 2013

Contact: Tom Barrow, 9-BARROW (922-7769), Opt 4

http://www.BarrowforMayor.com

DETROIT (May 30) — Mayoral candidate Tom Barrow, in just minutes, will take the next step in his fight to remove opponent Mike Duggan from the August 6th primary election ballot by going directly to the Wayne County Circuit Court. Barrow filed suit this morning seeking a Mandamus order to force the Detroit Elections Commission to remove Mike Duggan’s name from the primary ballot.

“Last week all we got was a ‘political’ decision,” said Barrow, 64. “No one is above the law, so this week we are seeking a ‘legal’ decision based on a plain reading of our city’s Charter, the case law and legal precedents, not political trickery.”

Mayoral candidate Mike Duggan earlier celebrating his turnover of the DMC to the for-profit Vanguard Health System, 70 percent owned by a Wall Street hedge fund. Duggan bailed out as CEO of the remaining governance agency recently, before hundreds of lay-offs of DMC workers were announced. He also recently left the board of Gov. Rick Snyder’s Educational Achievement (Apartheid) Authority.

Barrow has asked for an emergency hearing on the residency issue and a declarative judgment to settle the plain language interpretation of the Detroit’s charter meaning of the words “at the time of filing” which means the moment an office seeker files documents to become a candidate (Barrow’s plain reading) or does it mean “by a filing deadline date which could be weeks later [May 14]”, which is the position of the Duggan campaign.

Barrow, joined by Citizens United Against Corrupt Government and led by community activist Robert Davis is challenging the 2-1 vote by the Detroit Election Commission. The city’s election board is comprised of the Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey, City Council President Charles Pugh and the Interim Corporation Counsel Edward Keelean. Pugh was the only dissenting vote citing the “plain language of the City Charter”.

Detroit’s Corporation Counsel Edward Keelean, who took the place of Krystal Crittendon after she was fired due to her stance against Miller Canfield and other legal contracts.

Unlike the political opinion delivered by the Corporation Counsel and presented at the Detroit Election Commission last Thursday, containing no citations to Michigan law or legal precedents, Barrow’s court filing presents a detailed legal argument complete with multiple supporting Michigan case law and statutes.

Barrow’s original complaint, filed on May 14, 2013, cited Duggan’s deficiency as a candidate when he failed to fulfill the requirement that he be a registered voter in the city of Detroit for one full year “at the time of filing.” Duggan registered to vote on April 16, 2012 after moving from his home in Livonia, but filed his nominating petitions on April 2, 2013, some 14-days before he was eligible (his one year fell on April 16, 2013).

“This is wrong that there is no objective administrative appeal process which could have avoided any candidate having to spend their own dollars to go to court,” stated Barrow, an accountant ,”but the political elite counts on these barriers and fake polling to maintain their status quo power and influence, but I am committed to defeat that set-up and create a new paradigm for our city, which is what we all believed the new City Charter would do in plain English, not legalese, double-speak and coded political terms. Duggan is not above the law and we’ll ask the judge.”

According to the Third Judicial Circuit Court website, oral arguments on Barrow’s lawsuit are to be heard Tues. June 11 at 2 p.m. in front of Judge Lita Popke.

Fisherman Park, Benton Harbor, owned by the city.

By the Rev. Edward Pinkney 0f  BANCO (The Black Autonomous Community Network Organzation)

banco9342@sbcglobal.net 

May 29, 2013

Rev. Edward Pinkney speaks to rally against EM and Whirlpool takeover of Benton Harbor, during protest against the PGA tournament May 26, 2012.

Every American ought to have the right to vote and their vote should mean something. Everyone ought to have the right to clean air and clean water, to integrity and transparency in a democracy, but the citizens of Benton Harbor, Michigan, do not have a democracy. Public land is about to be stolen by corporate power.

Eminent domain—the power to take private property—is often used by the government or by a corporation that works hand and hand with the government to steal property from the citizens. In Benton Harbor, the Whirlpool Corporation, through the city’s new Emergency Financial Manager, Tony Saunders, (who represents Whirlpool, not the citizens) has come up with a scheme. It is to set up a Conservancy Board or Committee that will steal land without the knowledge of the citizens.

Riverview Park, Benton Harbor

They plan to privatize all of Benton Harbor’s 16 parks and outsource all remaining land that Whirlpool does not control. The main parks they want have waterway access. Fisherman Park has a roadway straight to Lake Michigan. Hall Park lies along Ox Creek. Riverview Park is on the corridor along the St. Joseph River. This is simply a land grab. Whirlpool can’t buy the parks outright, so they are setting things up where everything goes through a board that they control. The Conservancy board would be the new owners of the parks. The Conservancy board doesn’t have to go through the City Commissioners. This is an underhanded way to get the rest of the land. The citizen’s will not have a say.

Youth march by Whirlpool office during May 26, 2012 protest against PGA.

There are many questions that need to be answered: How many parks are recognized in the city of Benton Harbor? Where are the parcels located? What parks would be under the jurisdiction of the Conservancy? Will Jean Klock Park, beach and Fishman’s Park be included? How many acres of land do the parks equal? Will all of the parks’ land be under a lease and for how long? The Board must be a 501C3 but it is not. Why? The City Charter requires 2/3 or six votes to sell, lease or vacate roads or alleys. When will this process be introduced or implemented? Will there be a deed transfer? If so who will sign for the land to be released?

Mr. Tony Saunders: Are the city parks considered assets? Is there a budget for the Conservancy? Are their jobs associated with this initiative? If so, how many? Will the specifications go through the Planning Commission or the Planning Economic Development Committee? How will the park Conservancy board, which is made up of all Whirlpool supporters and Benton Harbor haters, comply with the charter, as it relates to the Benton Harbor elected officials and the citizens?

It is exceedingly important that this initiative be vetted and filtered through the Public Safety and Parks and Recreation Committee so that the people will have a say. Right now the people do not have a say. It is time for the people to take a stand. Get involved. Save your community from complete corporate takeover.

Listen to Rev. Pinkney every Sunday at 5pm

on www.blogtalkradio.com/rev-pinkney ‎ 

Call in at 347-994-3644

The Automotive Components Holdings plant in Saline, formerly Visteon, was Washtenaw County’s largest employer.

Workers say they helped Ford survive, but continue to be exploited

By Pat Meyer

http://www.disputethis.org/

Pat Meyer, retired postal worker and union representative, is now working to help UAW members.

Recently AXS-TV broadcasted a show dealing with American workers who have been displaced by foreign workers in this country. The issue we are dealing with is the “temporary” workers of the ACH (Automotive Component Holdings) Corporation who helped Ford Motor Company to make such a miraculous recovery at the expense of their pay and benefits. Unlike the workers in their piece being from foreign countries, it was the corporation which was brought in from another country to lower wages and benefits. The Ford Motor Company seems to have benefitted greatly by “leasing the business” to another company while maintaining control of property, equipment, process, and workers.

These so called “temp” workers have in fact been working in Ford facilities for seven years, many putting in 10 and 12 hour days, six and seven days a week. Of course being a temporary qualifies them to no insurance, half price pay, and no written contract covering them until the September 2011 contract. They have been dues-paying union members the entire time with no representation or contract of their own. Even the barest essential of bereavement pay has been refused to them under the name of helping Ford survive. All along these temporaries have been promised to have preferential hiring rights to Ford, after the new buyer gives consent to releasing them. It seems these temporary employees had been “sold” along with the business to guarantee the new owner could take over with a skilled workforce that would insure the new company could maintain the productivity and quality of Ford standards.

ROBERT CHASE, THE ANN ARBOR NEWS
Workers at the Milan Automotive Components Holdings LLC plant in Milan take “mules” off the line where bumper covers are made. The mules hold the covers in place as they go through painting and sealing. Buyouts are expected to trim even more auto manufacturing jobs in Washtenaw County in 2007.

Debi Muncy, a Ford worker, has been proud to pay union dues for almost 30 years. She has given of her family time and financial donations to help support many activities that were and still are of importance to raising standards for working people. She feels that the temporary workers have been treated like second class union workers. She has not paid union dues to support this kind of treatment. Debi is ashamed to see that both Ford corporate execs and union “exec” leadership have prospered in pay rates and bonuses while standing on the back of these workers. At some point the union has stopped representing workers and become the employment agents for this corporation. Any objections to this is met with intimidation by both union and company officials.

As we approach the holidays that say how great America is I’m saddened to know how devalued the American workers have become. Debi states, “I love this country and I loved my union, but until it lives up to its guiding words I feel that all workers have been sold out.”

Click on http://www.disputethis.org/debi-muncy-letter-regarding-saline-plant.html

American workers’ lives are better for having had good paying jobs and benefits, but we must recognize that our workers have worked hard to achieve these goals. Do companies stay great because of their plan of operation alone, or do they become great because of the operation plan along with the hard working people who get up every day and come to work and do a good job? How much profit can a corporation make when it decides it doesn’t need to pay their own workers enough to be able to afford the product they make?

Rob Starks, left, and Dave Breitenwischer discuss the situation of the ACH plant in Saline remaining open after they transferred to other plants.

We feel our country needs to know at what price some of our corporations have prospered. We at the LAWS, INC. have been attempting to find some kind of justice for these workers and have been reminded that many things are wrong even though they are not considered illegal. We feel that it certainly should be illegal to profit from workers’ loss.

I would encourage you to contact viewer@axs.tv immediately and let Dan Rather and his associates know what is happening to you and your fellow workers. If you have any questions or comments feel free to contact me at kimshee97@att.net or at 269-998-4609.

MILAN WORKERS of A C H

This is written to clearly show how the Milan membership was set aside from any offers presented to other locations. International UAW officials attended meetings here to explain to the membership what their choices would be upon the sale of the Milan location. They were told by rep Jody Dunn that there was no offer of employment to Ford locations. If they wanted to continue to be employed they could choose to sign up with the INERGY AUTOMOTIVE SYSTEMS. If this was not acceptable, they could be terminated. No offer of work at other ACH locations, still operating at this time. It was not until other ACH plants reached sale agreements that these workers realized that they had been excluded from offers made to other locations. Pay and benefits were affected for these dues-paying members of the UAW.

THE STORY OF ACH WORKERS Continue reading →

Mass grave of Koreans slaughtered in 1945 by U.S.-imposed government.

 By Jay Janson 

May 27, 2013, Memorial Day 

Jay Janson

This veteran is waiting for the year in which the Veterans For Peace, in its Memorial Day Press Release, states that Veterans mourn first, the lives America took in poor countries, both the civilian men, women and children, and the patriots that fought our illegal and criminal invasions since 1945. 

Only then should they come bitterly mourning GIs who were duped by our elected officials and the CIA and Pentago- fed, corporate-controlled war-promoting media cartel fooling them with lies, misinformation, disinformation and psy-op techniques that deceived them into proudly following homicidal criminal orders, for which they obviously liable for prosecution. 

Orders given, as Martin Luther King Jr. cried out, “for atrocity wars and covert homicide meant to maintain unjust predatory investments overseas.”[see Beyond Vietnam – a Time to Break Silence sermon] 

U.S. soliders in Korean War 1950.

Your writer’s four buddies from basic training, whose corpses are somewhere in North Korea, would have wanted this kind of a press release. They were normal guys, still kids really. We thought going into the army was just something everyone had to do. They would have been pissed off to see cruelly ignorant Americans praising them on Memorial Day for their sacrifice. Jesus knows they did not want to die for any reason, let alone while killing others for lies. They loved waking up in the morning, loved children, all children, cute Korean children, especially. They were asking themselves, why are we killing Koreans in their own country? 

David Patraeus, formally CIA Director and 37-year military veteran who commanded U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

If these four young men knew what I know now, whew! If they could rise up, they would surely be going after those high ranking military with lots of colorful ribbons on their smart uniforms, surrounded by flags and glorifying the US war in Korea and in all the dozens of countries since. 

Damn! In 1945, the US Army landed in a Korea that America had recognized as Japanese territory since 1905 and during a forty year brutal occupation, in return for Japan’s acceptance of the US claim to own the Philippines and other islands in Asian waters. [see Diplomacy That Will Live in Infamy, New York Times, James Bradley, 12/5/2009. See also the Taft-Katsura Agreement.] 

State Department officials quickly shut down the democratic all-Korea government the Japanese commanding general had allowed Koreans to form, once Japan was defeated. Knowing this Korean government would not be pro-US., they set up in its place, a US Army military government; cut the nation in two and installed a brutal Korean from Washington as President. His special services and secret police would account for massacres totaling up to nearly 200,000 men, women and their children, in the years before the army of North Korea invaded and united the peninsula in five short weeks as the army of the Southern dictator defected or went home. 

UNCOVERING THE HIDDEN HISTORY OF THE KOREAN WAR: THE WORK OF SOUTH KOREA’S TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION from Eric Sirotkin’s Ubuntuworks on Vimeo.

These massacres of communists, socialists, unionists and people that did not accept the US partition of their country kept secret by American media have now been fully documented by a Truth and Reconciliation Commission set up by the South Korean Congress. [Korean Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Wikipedia] The US has recently officially apologized for its own massacres of civilians in the South. 

The amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) fires a Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) during a live-fire exercise, Jan. 26, 2013. Kearsarge is conducting amphibious squadron/Marine expeditionary unit integration in preparation for a scheduled deployment this spring. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Tamara Vaughn/Released)

North Korea today is the most militarized nation on the planet because it was leveled twice by merciless bombing, threatened with atom bombs, and for sixty-three years has suffered US-arranged international sanctions meant to cripple it, and a continual campaign of slanderous attack in US media and never ending threats from Washington.

Twice a year, great war game exercises go on so near its coast that the booms of US naval ships’ cannon and missiles are clearly heard in its capital city. Last month saw the largest naval live-fire exercise in history, reportedly with North Korean flags painted on targets. What else could be the explanation of its leader threatening to hit the US with the few nuclear weapons it has, knowing the America that menaces it has 20,000, and the most powerful armed force in the history of the world. 

But we have seen “the crazy North Korean leader story” on prime time for a month. Last year right after US-South Korean war games, a South Korea warship was blown in two, probably by a US mine, but what is believed all over the Western media-dominated world is that was an old North Korean torpedo. Who knows or cares that the Chinese, the Russian Navy and a Japanese investigation found the accusation not credible, that the US and its UN Secretary General stooge refused to consider a North Korea request for a UN investigation of what it was accused of. [see N. Korean Torpedo Accusation Fizzles: Strong Probability of US Mine Strike Investigated, Counter Currents 6/11/2010] No, the torpedo story was featured for weeks to justify tighter that ever sanctions and stronger threats than before, and Libya was a frightening example of what may be awaiting it. 

The U.S.-ordered assassination of Col. Muammar Gadhafi, leader of Libya and the Organization of African Unity.

If the media features for nine months, weaponized pick-up trucks run by tough looking hombres as peaceful demonstrators against the government of oil wealthy Libya, a nation with a living standard higher than nine European countries, it becomes “truth.” The liberator of what was the poorest country in Africa, and leader of African Unity against continuing European exploitation, winds up with a blade up his backside, after being cornered by British and French warplanes. No matter the president of Italy told media, “Gadhafi is loved by his people.” 

Not until US world hegemony is overthrown, will ordinary people come to know that almost one million Libyans, out of a total country population of six, were desperately demonstrating for their government and leader outside Tripoli as British and French high tech war planes were finishing off their nation’s army. [http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=1dc_1314116137 or google for many articles and videos] 

In this March 19, 2011 file photo, supporters of besieged Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi cheer as they rally in support of him in the city of Bamako, Mali. While Western powers herald the death of Gadhafi, killed Thursday, Oct. 20, 2011, many Africans are mourning a man who poured billions of dollars of foreign investment into desperately poor countries. Tens of thousands are now gathering at mosques built with his money and are remembering him as an anti-colonial martyr, and as an Arab leader who called himself African. (AP Photo/Harouna Traore, File)

Note to US media personalities: Among the generals who were imprisoned or hung after trail at Nuremberg, were five media celebrities. 

There are either similar absurd media concocted stories, or no story at all, that excuse US crimes against humanity in the dozens of nations US designated local bad guys have been mass murdered to help a little country out, and protect the American way of life in the US. America is so good to invade and bomb and overthrow violently governments all for the benefit of nearly a billion people. 

Greece, Korea, Guatemala, Congo, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Iran, Dominican Republic, Indonesia, Lebanon, Cuba, Somalia, Sudan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Pakistan, Serbia/Kosovo, Bosnia, Libya; the list of countries covertly attacked and government overthrown is longer and contains almost every nation in Latin America, many times over if crimes against peace Nuremberg Principle VI are included. 

Remember, invading little countries was nothing new for the US before World War II – Mexico, Nicaragua, Haiti, Philippines, China, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and more. 

Again, this veteran is hoping that the Veterans For Peace Memorial Day Statement Press Release will say that VFP, or at least many if not all VFP, mourn the patriots of US invaded countries that fell fighting against overwhelming odds, and their civilian countrymen and children who also fell in harm’s way of those US invading forces.  Continue reading →

Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix sponsors DO NOT include the City of Detroit, or benefit its residents.

 Race sponsored by banks, corporations which caused EM takeover, devastated Detroit with debt and foreclosures

Run by phony non-profits, brings no benefits to Detroit residents

Portends state theft of island, city 

By Diane Bukowski 

Roger Penske, king of the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix and CEO of a multi-billion dollar corporation.

May 25, 2013 — Since at least March, Roger Penske and his allies in the banking and corporate sector have seized control of a large section of Detroit’s world-renowned Belle Isle, banning public access and despoiling the island’s natural  beauty, all to prepare for the “Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix” June 1 and 2, 2013. 

Penske is chair of Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix, Inc. (DBIGP), a non-profit which claims in its IRS filings that it “1) promotes the revitalization of economically depressed areas of the City of Detroit by conducting motor vehicle racing and 2) raise[s] funds for the preservation and improvement of Belle Isle Park.” Therefore it pays no taxes.

Jennifer Britt, whose family including children and uncle were foreclosed by Flagstar Bank after the death of her husband.

He is also CEO of Penske Corporation, which according to its website “manages businesses with revenues in excess of $16 billion, operating in more than 1,800 locations and employing more that 36,000 people worldwide.”  

This is the first time the DBIGP has returned to the Island since 2007 and 2008. Subsequent races were allegedly cancelled due to the “economic crisis of the automotive industry.” 

DBIGP’s Form 990 for 2009, the earliest available on Guidestar, indicate that revenue for 2008 was $10.6 million, with expenses of  $11.3 million. There is no declaration of any expense paid to the City of Detroit for rental of the island or the use of public employees from the recreation, police, fire and other departments. 

Flagstar Bank, one of many banks and corporations sponsoring the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix. Flagstar put Jennifer Britt among thousand of others out of their homes, and was featured in protest signs at the May 4 rally for a moratorium on Detroit’s debt to the banks.

In fact, the form shows “exempt purpose rental” of $909,099 under “Program Service REVENUE,” with an identical amount for concession sales. Nothing is listed under the category “Grants and other assistance to governments and other organizations in the U.S.” in either the 2009, 2010 or 2011 Forms 990 for DBIGP. (Click on DBIGP 2009 990.)

So where are the funds raised for “the preservation and improvement of Belle Isle Park?” 

Detroit’s overall economic condition declined from 2007 to 2008, according to the city’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Statements for 2008. In 2008, the city had a total general fund defict of $219 million, up from $155.6 million in 2007. So evidently the city as a whole did not benefit from the races Penske held in 2007 and 2008. 

Cadillac and Quicken Loans on fenced-off race course.

VOD has submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the city asking for

1. A city budget involving projected city revenues and expenses for the Grand Prix. 
2. A copy of the contract(s) with Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix, Inc. and any related agencies such as the Downtown Detroit Partnership, both non-profits, involving use of city-owned public land on Belle Isle for the event. 
3. A complete list of charges to the event’s sponsors from the City of Detroit for allowing the presence of this event on city property, e.g. rent, charges for use of police, fire, recreation and other city personnel during and around the Grand Prix, to prepare for the event, to operate it, and for shutdown. 
4. A list of what improvements to Belle Isle that Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix, Inc. has made or plans to make to the island, pursuant to its report to the IRS . . .
5. The cost of those improvements or planned improvements, projected for this year, and during past Grand Prix events.
6. The amount of funds the company has contributed to the preservation and improvement of Belle Isle for this year’s race, as well as previous races held on the island.

Fences and barricades protect the wealthy coming to see the Grand Prix. Here, signs for Penske Corp. and the DMC, which just laid off hundreds of workers after Vanguard Health Care, 70 percent owned by a Wall Street hedge fund, took it over as a for-profit chain. Current Detroit Mayoral candidate Mike Duggan, who was DMC CEO and led the charge for the Vanguard takeover, bailed out just before the disastrous lay-offs. Patients have reported difficulty in obtaining care since the takeover, according to advocacy groups.

There is no indication the situation will change this year, even though Detroit is in such dire distress, running a deficit allegedly exceeding $360 million, that Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr flew in on vulture wings to save the city. 

During a bicycle tour of the island May 21, this reporter took photos of sponsor signs on the raceway from the same banks and corporations which have devastated Detroit with predatory lending to its residents and government, as well as massive illegal foreclosures that have driven 275,000 people out of the city. 

Chase Bank, which counts itself among many of the City of Detroit’s creditors, and has also been responsible for thousands of foreclosures in the metro area and nationally.

 The entire section of the island west of the police station near the beach was cordoned off,  looking like a “concentration camp for the wealthy,” considering three-day ticket prices of up to $155 for adults and $110 for children.  The photos were taken through fences and barbed wire, over concrete blockades lining the raceway, as no other access was available. 

Alma Counts, an 82-year-old Detroit stroke victim, faced foreclosure by Chase after it refused to honor a modification granted by the original owner of her mortgage.

A guard said the public could not even walk on the grassy side of the island next to the river on the other side of the barricades. Fences were set up from the barricades all the way to the water. Photos were taken anyway after the reporter slipped though an open gate, which was locked on her way back, forcing her to straddle the fence in the water to get back to her bike. 

A pair of geese and poor little goslings, not yet able to fly, were however trapped by that fence. Wildlife on the island has been traumatized by destruction due to the races and other incursions on their native habitat for years now. Recently, another family of geese with babies was seen crossing East Jefferson against the traffic. dodging cars, clearly having been displaced from their original nesting place on the island.

Geese and baby goslings were trapped by fences outside of barricades.

Fence blocking public access all the way to the river itself.

Signs for Dan Gilbert’s Quicken Loans dominated the island as well. The wealthy mortgage baron, worth $1.9 billion,  also owns the Cleveland Cavaliers.

NBA star LeBron James.

He was fined $100,000 by the NBA Commission for remarks he made criticizing LeBron James’ decision to leave the Cavaliers for the Miami Heat. The Rev. Jesse Jackson said Gilbert’s feelings “personify a slave master mentality,” and that he was treating James as “a runaway slave”.

The Quicken Loan headquarters in downtown Detroit migrated from the virtally all-white Detroit suburb of Livonia, also the home of current Mayoral candidate Mike Duggan until he moved to Detroit less than one year before he filed to run.

Gilbert is competing with Mike Illitch, worth $2.7 billion and owner of the Detroit Tigers and Red Wings, to buy up huge tracts of land in downtown Detroit and the Cass Corridor at bargain basement prices. 

Residents of Berwin Apartments in Detroit’s Cass Corridor, evicted by mystery buyer who may be Dan Gilbert.

It’s a toss-up which of them is responsible for the recent eviction of extremely low-income residents of three apartment buildings on Henry. Both have plans for the area, urged on by the appointment of EM Orr. 

According to a recent New York Times article, Gilbert has spent around $1 billion acquiring nearly three million square fee of real estate, and is negotiating to buy the Greektown Casino Hotel. Earlier, he bought the historic Dime Building in downtown Detroit for a paltry $15 million.

Dan Gilbert’s Quicken Loans is one of the DBIGP’s sponors. The billionaire may be responsible for the recent evictions of hundreds of poor folks in the Cass Corridor.

The Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix is of course also sponsored by Chevrolet, Cadillac and Corvette, brand names of cars manufactured by that great ally of Detroit’s population, General Motors.  

GM auto worker before massive lay-offs hit.

After devastating the city of Detroit with plant closures through the 1980’s, GM closed 14 factories across the U.S., including seven in Michigan, as part of its bankruptcy and government bail-out/restructuring plan in 2009. Of the company’s remaining 62,000 hourly workers, 21,000 lost their jobs.

Those closings further devastated the majority-Black city of Pontiac, which now also struggles under the whip of an EM, who has sold off a large amount of the city’s assets, including its 11 water department plants. The company has gone on to close plants, most recently in Flint, another majority-Black city run by an EM. It has also hit suburban plants throughout Michigan and the country.

Firestone and Corvette signs adorn the barricades at the 2013 DBIGP.

MGM Grand and Motor City Casino banners were prominent at the DBIGP concentration camp for the wealthy as well. While the casinos have provided jobs for some grateful Detroiters, they have also impoverished a great many more who have become gambling addicts.

Motor City Casino proudly sponsors the DBIGP as well.

Additionally, Detroit’s tax revenues from those casinos now go directly to U.S. Bank NA, which acts as a trustee to make sure its debts to the banks get paid off from that income. The primary creditor is UBS AG, which loaned the city a whopping $1.5 BILLION in pension obligation certificates in 2005, a predatory loan which the city defaulted on twice after the global economic collapse of 2008, costing it another $1 billion in fines.

Improverished family waits for housing assistance.

Despite those factors, the Rev. Wendell Anthony, head of Detroit’s NAACP chapter, recently held its membership meeting at the MGM Grand Casino hotel.

Earlier, after hundreds of thousands of Michigan residents, mainly women and children, were thrown off public assistance, the Rev. Jesse Jackson of Rainbow PUSH came to Detroit to join a protest by the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization. He refused, however, to call a boycott of Michigan businesses and proceeded to hold a Rainbow PUSH Automotive Summit at the same hotel the next week, attended by auto executives from across the globe.

Shinola sponsorship signs on raceway.

 A newcomer to the Grand Prix sponsorship is Shinola, LLC, a white-owned start-up company given an award by City Council President Charles Pugh at the beginning of its session April 9, 2013. The company evidently has quite a bit of money available, since its signs, next to the historic Dodge Fountain, also blocked from public access, were as prominent as those of the major corporations.

Charles Pugh with partners of Shinola, LLC, including CEO Randy Montgomery (3rd from left) at City Council meeting April 9, 2013.

Shinola CEO Randy Montgomery and his partners are making watches, bicycles and other  paraphernalia at the College for Creative Studies, but have not said how many Detroiters they are  hiring. 

Pugh said he met Montgomery at a meeting of the  Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, a corporate front for privatization. The company bought the rights to the name from the makers of Shinola shoe polish, which ran racist ads featuring a Black child shining shoes.

The daily media is currently running outraged articles regarding EM Orr’s alleged announcement that paintings and other art at the Detroit Institute of Arts, which are owned by the City, may be sold to pay off the city’s debt. They make no mention of the earllier loss of actual human beings, city workers who lost their jobs when the DIA was handed over to the management of the Founders Society, run by wealthy suburbanites.

OCCUPY WALL STREET PROTESTERS BLOCK THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE IN NEW YORK CITY IN 2011.

It is more likely that treasures like Belle Isle, which is used primarily by Black Detroiters, particularly Black youth who have few other places for recreation, and the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department, run across a six-county area largely by Black city workers, will face the EM’s ax if Detroiters do not rise to defend their home.

VOD RECOMMENDS THAT DETROITERS AND THOSE WHO SUPPORT THEM BOYCOTT THE GRAND PRIX TO PROTEST THE EM TAKEOVER OF THE CITY.

• DO NOT BUY TICKETS.
• DO NOT ATTEND THE FREE DAY WHICH GIVES THE DBIGP THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW OFF BLACKS IN ATTENDANCE, WATCHING WEALTHY WHITE RACE CAR DRIVERS.
• DO NOT VOLUNTEER! DETROITERS NEED PAID JOBS!
• CONDUCT A MASS PROTEST AT THE BRIDGE! BLOCK TRAFFIC! INTERFERE WITH COMMERCE! SAVE OUR CITY!

Some related articles:

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/05/16/detroit-em-orrs-report-envisions-a-nightmare-future/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/05/09/people-demand-moratorium-on-detroit-debt-reparations-as-em-readies-attack/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/05/04/privatizating-detroit-residents-evicted-and-displaced-by-corporate-interests-hearing-with-feds-may-20-4-p-m-uaw-local-600/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/04/18/detroit-city-council-says-yes-to-banks-in-jones-day-vote-people-say-no/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/04/08/only-wall-street-wins-in-detroit-crisis-reaping-474-million-fee/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/03/31/detroit-council-to-vote-on-jones-day-contract-firm-represents-criminal-banks-holding-citys-debt/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/03/27/detroiters-march-in-cleveland-tell-jones-day-and-banks-get-out/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/02/03/bing-will-hurt-detroit-kids-shutting-parks-to-retaliate-for-belle-isle-lease-failure/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/01/27/people-rise-up-against-lease-of-belle-isle-committee-votes-no-council-still-to-meet-mon-jan-28-2-pm-tues-jan-29-9-am/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/01/26/belle-isle-is-black-land/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2012/09/27/peoples-rally-hands-off-belle-isle-council-hearing-thurs-oct-4-1-pm/

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2012/09/15/90-yr-belle-isle-lease-entry-fees-go-to-state-fedstate-cops-to-patrol-council-hearing-mon-sept/

Angela Crockett, fighting eviction of herself and her son.

From Detroit Eviction Defense

5pm -11pm, UAW Local 1700 hall
Have fun, help a neighbor

 Detroit resident Angela Crockett has defended herself valiantly to keep her family from being evicted. This dinner-dance will raise funds to help save her home. The hall is located at 8230 E. 8 Mile Rd.

 Ms. Crockett and her son were foreclosed on by Citibank while participating in the Home Affordable Unemployment Program, in complete violation of the rules.

She has been fighting in court and through a public campaign to pressure Citibank to stop foreclosure actions and negotiate a fair solution that reflects the real market value of the home and a low interest rate loan.

 Sliding scale donations are $10 to $25, including food.

 For more information, contact Detroit.save.a.home@gmail.com.

Related story:

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/02/19/stop-government-foreclosures-of-our-homes-hurricane-fannie-freddie-pack-hearing-wed-feb-20-2pm-u-s-judge-nancy-edmunds/

Crowd applauds testimony from S. Baxter Jones at Metro Detroit hearing against foreclosures May 20, 2013. Photo by Jim West

BY DETROIT EVICTION DEFENSE

May 24, 2013

Website: http://detroitevictiondefense.net/

• 200+ people came out to hear testimony May 20
• Homeowners determined to stay and fight

(l-r) S. Baxter Jones and Dave Sole were among the 22 people who testified at hearing.

‘I really wanted you to view me and acknowledge me as a living, breathing, human being and not just another statistical casualty. I guess because you’re not represented here today, I can’t accomplish that. I guess when you don’t have to face me it makes it easier for you to not feel compassion for me or to account for your actions towards me.
“You can just continue business as usual, taking away my home and pushing another faceless person out into the streets.” — S. Baxter Jones, at May 20 hearing on federal agencies evicting homeowners

UAW VP Cinda Estrada. Photo by Jim West.

DETROIT– After months of negotiations with UAW Vice President Cindy Estrada and some stalling, the government-owned Fannie Mae/ Freddie Mac agencies had agreed to send 20 officials to town on May 20 and see first-hand how their hard-hearted policies are devasting our communities.

“Fannie and Freddie, which own or insure more than half of all residential mortgages in the country, have foreclosed on more than 15,000 families in Wayne County since the government takeover by the Federal Housing and Finance Agency [in 2008],” UAW V.P. Cindy Estrada told the Metro Times. “Thousands more have lost their homes in Oakland and Macomb.”

Fannie and Freddie’s empty seats at May 20 hearing.

But after months of planning, just days before the hearing, the officials from our government backed out, saying it would be “awkward” for them to be in the same room with homeowners who are battling them in court to save their homes from eviction. The hearing went on without them.

They can’t hide from the truth — the powerful testimony was being taped, and we’ll make sure it gets to the Feds. Stay tuned for more on that, & more powerful messages from the hearing.

More information:

• During the bank crisis, the U.S. government took over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which insure and buy mortgages from banks.
• At the hearing, 22 homeowners, neighborhood activists, and members of the legal defense team gave powerful testimony on how Fannie and Freddie are relentlessly evicting families who have trouble paying inflated mortgages. The testimony was broadcast live-to-tape by Tony Trupiano that evening on his “Night Shift” program (WDFN, AM radio, 1130, 7pm). Our new report, “A Hurricane Without Water: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Foreclosure Crisis in Metro Detroit” was distributed at the hearing and can be downloaded from this site at
• Check out Curt Guyette’s story in Metro Times, and be sure to add your comments, at http://metrotimes.com/news/news-hits/news-hits-1.1493699.

We are fighting for three things the federal government can do:

1) Halt Foreclosures & Evictions: Fannie Mae has declared moratoriums for hurricane victims. The 75,000 Michigan families foreclosed on in the last year are also victims— of mass unemployment and mortgage banking fraud.

2) Principal Reduction: Fannie and Freddie should help families in need by by reducing mortgage principal to reflect current market values. Families facing foreclosure can hear from homeowners at the rally who have successfully resisted.

3) Due Process for All: As government agencies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are now governed by the 5th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which says that no person shall be “deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.” The case opened Feb. 20 in Detroit.

(VIDEO ABOVE, EXPLAINING ROLE OF FANNIE MAE AND FREDDIE MAC IN FORECLOSURE HURRICANE, IS FROM MORATORIUM NOW! WEBSITE at http://moratorium-mi.org/ )

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Cancel Appearance At Metro Detroit Foreclosure Hearing

By David Sands

David SandsBecome a fan

david.sands@huffingtonpost.com

May 18, 2013

DETROIT – Officials from the mortgage financing giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have withdrawn from a Detroit event where homeowners are set to talk about the impact foreclosures have had on their lives and communities.

The group Detroit Eviction Defense claims the last-minute cancellation of the May 20 hearing comes after officials for the government-backed agencies told organizers it would be “awkward” to hear testimony from homeowners who are currently litigating against them.

Steve Babson, a spokesman for Detroit Eviction Defense, said organizers received word of the cancellation through a series of phone calls with employees of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which oversees Fannie and Freddie.

“They said, ‘Well, we’ve decided it would be pretty awkward for us to be in the same room in a public event with homeowners who are in litigation against Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac over potential evictions,'” Babson told The Huffington Post. “This was a phone conversation, as it had been for several months, but this was unfortunately at the 11th hour saying they were pulling out.”

Meg Burns, senior associate director of the Office of Housing and Regulatory Policy, sent a statement to The Huffington Post confirming that officials from FHFA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac had earlier committed to attending the hearing but now would be unable to do so.

“We are disappointed we can’t be at the event but we look forward to hearing the concerns of the homeowners and seeing the impact the housing crisis has had on the affected residents,” she wrote. “This information will serve as the basis for the follow-up policy discussion that we remain committed to having with the UAW and other interested parties.”

A spokesperson for Burns said that FHFA would hold a policy discussion with the United Auto Workers and other groups after the event, though no official date has been set. 

In 2007, Metro Detroit led the nation with nearly 5 percent of properties in some stage of foreclosure. Although those rates are declining, 20,000 foreclosed properties in the city of Detroit were auctioned off by Wayne County last year.

About 20 homeowners are expected to speak to an audience of community activists, housing advocates and others. There will also be an open mic session for others who wish to comment. Organizers plan to videotape the testimony and deliver it to Fannie Mae at a later date.

Babson called the mortgage giants’ concerns that testimony at the event would compromise ongoing legal cases a “phony argument,” noting that officials were invited to listen, not to speak, and knew of the event’s format ahead of time.

“I think it’s outrageous,” Babson said. “We find it very insulting and we think it’s pretty transparent that what they find ‘awkward’ is the prospect of being with people who are victims of a foreclosure policy that we think is doing serious damage to Metro Detroit.”

The Detroit Eviction Defense coalition has been working with the UAW and the AFL-CIO on foreclosure issues for about two years. The group defends homeowners against foreclosure and eviction through a variety of methods, including non-violent direct action. The organization is calling for a moratorium on foreclosures by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in Metro Detroit, similar to the one instituted for regions affected by Hurricane Sandy, and a reduction of principal for “underwater” loans that have balances higher than a home’s market value.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were taken over by the government during the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis. They have received more than $187 billion in taxpayer funds and have paid $58 billion in dividends to the U.S. Treasury. The two government-sponsored enterprises provide a secondary market for mortgages, purchasing them from originating lenders, and sometimes selling them as guaranteed securities.

After two recent court decisions, the two lenders may be forced to pay real estate taxes and extend due process to foreclosed homeowners in Michigan.

  UPDATE MAY 9, 2013: Rest in Power, Malcolm el Shabazz

TATEMENT CONCERNING THE HARASSMENT FROM THE POLICE/FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION WHICH RESULTED IN MY UNJUST ARREST & DETAINMENT IN FEBRUARY 2013, AND PLACED A HALT ON MY TRAVEL TO TEHRAN, IRAN TO PARTICIPATE IN THE INTERNATIONAL FAJR FILM FESTIVAL.

Published by Cynthia McKinney

MALCOLM X at London Airport, July 9, 1964. (Photo by Express Newspapers/Getty Images)

I sincerely appreciate the care & concern of the People over my well-being after Press TV’s report of the most recent events which have transpired regarding the F.B.I.’s harassment of me.

Given the storm of lies, and half-truths that come with being associated with being the descendant of El Hajj Malik el Shabazz, also known as Minister Malcolm X, any and everything that I do; great or small, good or not so good, real or imagined is subject to controversy. However, in this missive I will take this opportunity to properly & fully disclose what transpired.

In the beginning of 2012 I had been informed that I was under investigation by the F.B.I.’s Counter Terrorism Task Force Unit located in Goshen, N.Y.

The agents of this division-and in collaboration with others-have visited several residences of which I was known by them to frequent. However, they would never come when they knew me to actually be there. They would leave their cards with the residents asking them to tell me to call them, and then would tell surrounding residents to observe the house and to notify them if they saw me.

These are the homes of long-time friends, and very close supporters. Yet, when federal agents begin knocking on someone’s door on multiple occasions to snoop, and ask questions, whether one is guilty of an offense or not, it’s enough to coerce people into distancing themselves from you. This cheap tactic employed by the F.B.I. is a means of agitation & harassment. They seek to neutralize my networking abilities.

They have visited locations in California, Chicago, Miami and most aggressively in New York.

Attorney William Kunstler, right, escorts Qubilah Shabazz to the Minneapolis Federal Building Monday morning, May 1, 1995, where a settlement was reached in the murder-for-hire case against Shabazz, a daughter of the late Malcolm X. Shabazz was scheduled to go on trial Monday on charges of plotting to kill Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan. At left is family attorney Percy Sutton. (AP Photo/Jim Mone) The charges were later exposed as an FBI frame-up and Ms. Shabazz was acquitted.

People were advising me that if I had nothing to hide, then I should just contact them as requested and cooperate. Though I must say that in these kind of matters I am of a particular ethic. For one, I have been engaged in no criminal activity of their concern, and they could have located me if they so chose. Secondly, I don’t recognize the authority in them beckoning me.

It wasn’t even until my mother [Qubilah Shabazz] informed me that they had been contacting her that I truly became agitated. She advised me to see what they had to say, and so I obliged the next time they came around looking for me. My encounter was with 2 federal agents of Goshen, N.Y.’s Counter Terrorism Task Foci Unit. The primary agent identified himself as Special Agent Tom Brozicky.

Former U.S. Congresswoman and Presidential candidate in Detroit Aug. 27, 2011 during tour against US/NATO war on Libya. Photo: DIane Bukowski

They expressed concern over-as they put it-my “international travels”; I have lived & studied in Damascus, Syria for over a year, and now the U.S. is instigating conflict within the very same region; I went on ex-congresswoman/former presidential candidate Cynthia Mckinney’s delegation along with Dr. Randy Short to Libya, and met with Leader Muammar Gadhafi one week prior to N.A.T.O. intervention and I was most recently getting ready to travel to Tehran, Iran to be a participant of the International Fajr Film Festival and give a lecture addressing the issues of Hollywood and violence: – Modern Violence & Terrorism-– Provoking clashes between religions & populations.

Logo for International FAJR Film Festivan in Tehran, Iran.

I was picked up by authorities after I filed for a visa to Iran, and 2 days prior to my departure, a detective squad from the City of Middletown Police Department surrounded me in the street about 2 blocks from where I was residing. They asked me my name, and I gave them an alias, but they were already well aware of who I actually was. I didn’t tell them my real name because I didn’t know what was going on. When I was brought before a Judge of City of Middletown court I was surprised to be informed that I was being charged with Grand Larceny, and False Impersonation charge. Then I was sent to jail, and told to appear again 7 days later. Then following court date the bogus charge of Grand Larceny, which they only put to justify stopping me in first place, was dropped. And they left me to face the False Impersonation. I was offered 90 days for the offense of giving the authorities the wrong name which I declined before bailing out after 2 weeks.

When I was being held within the belly of the beast on trumped up charges, to my rescue came the journalist at Press TV based in Iran. My relationship with powerful & progressive news outfit began in April of 2012, and prior to that I had discussions with their journalist regarding current events internationally. I developed a positive rapport with some of them, and as a result was invited to travel to Iran to discuss the impact of Hollywood in stereotyping Muslims, Iranians and African people.

“Betty and Coretta,” film which slandered Malcolm X and NOI, starring Angela Bassett and Mary J. Blige.

From January 15th through 18th, 2013, I was a featured interviewee for the Press TV documentary “The Façade of the American Dream”. And prior to my date of departure to Iran, Lifetime television released a television bio-picture called “Betty & Coretta” which was a sensationalistic misrepresentation of my grandparents, my mother and me. This film aside from being poorly acted, and shallow in depth also threatened to inflame old controversies, and open unhealed wounds and to remind the public of sad outcomes without ever identifying B.O.S.S.I., the C.I.A., F.B.I. and other forces that set the climate for my grandfather’s assassination, and made my family a long-suffering casualty of COINTELPRO, and other anti-Black repression programs. Naturally, anything done to stir up old hatred of The Shabazz Family will impact me as the name-sake, and first male heir of Malcolm X, and whether I am high or low in fortunes does not exempt me from this reality.

Betty Shabazz interviewed after the assassination of her husband El Hajj Malik El Shabazz (Malcolm X) Feb. 21, 1965.

The formula for a public assassination is: the character assassination before the physical assassination; so one has to be made killable before the eyes of the public in order for their eventual murder to then deemed justifiable. And when the time arrives for these hits to be carried out you’re not going to see a C.I.A. agent with a suit & tie, and a badge that says “C.I.A.” walk up to someone, and pull the trigger. What they will do is to out-source to local police departments in the region of their target, and to employ those that look like the target of interest to infiltrate the workings in order to set up the environment for the eventual assassination (character, physical/incarceration, exile) to take place.

For several months prior to my arrest in late January, 2013 I faced a pattern of harassment from law enforcement which is usually reserved for important figures. On Thursday, November 1, 2012 @ 11:53pm in the park circle area of Middletown, N.Y. I was stopped by officers of the Middletown Police Department, and given a ticket for “J-Walking” (crossing in the middle of the street), which then escalated into a “Disorderly Conduct” supposedly because of the exchange of words that I had with the officers.

I told them that they couldn’t possibly be serious for writing me a “J-Walking ticket”, that I didn’t appreciate how they were treating me and that they shouldn’t be looking at me as less of a man because they were in police uniform. For this I was arrested, the officers stole the little amount of money that I had on me, they then stripped me and threw me in a freezing precinct cell for the remainder of that early morning. I was finally taken before the “Judge Steven Brockett” around 1:30pm. He gave me an unreasonable bail, and then ordered that I be remanded to the Orange county Jail.

Middletown auxiliary police.

This penalty may seem a bit extreme or harsh to most of you, but here is where it gets worse: On Tuesday, October 30th, exactly 2 nights prior to this incident, the same officer “J Berman” who wrote me the ticket for “J-Walking” & “Disorderly Conduct” stopped me coming from out of a store in the same area, and questioned me as to what I was doing.

I told him that I was coming out of the store. He asked to see what I bought which was a pack of sun flower seeds. I had actually just so happened to be eating a few while he was talking to me, and I spit one of the shells on the ground. At this point officer “J Berman” threatened to write me a ticket for littering. Needless to say, I was dumbfounded, but I went home that night.

Middletown police cars.

Yet, it still doesn’t even begin there. I had an encounter with other officers of the Midletown Police Department one week prior to officer “J Berman’s” threats to write me a ticket for spitting a sun flower seed on the ground: I was coming out of a restaurant with my mother, and her friend. As the 3 of us entered the car to leave 2 police cars converged on our vehicle, and boxed us in. My mother was petrified. With guns drawn I was then ordered to step out of the back seat. I asked them why to which they replied that I had several warrants for my arrest. I told them that they were mistaken, but I still complied with their request. Humiliated in front of all on-lookers I was then thrown on the car while the officers ripped through my pockets. After they were done they said that it was my lucky day because I actually didn’t have any warrants at all, and so I was free to go! One of these officer’s name was “R. Ribeiro”…

You may wonder if it could possibly get any worse than this. Well, it does! Approximately 3 weeks prior to the public humiliation of my mother, and me by “R Ribeiro” and another officer of the Middletown Police Department I found myself subject to the discriminati

Middletown Mayor Joseph DiStefano.

on & prejudice of Mayor Joseph M. Destefano of Middletown, N.Y. himself. A friend, and I went out to eat at a restaurant in Middletown, N.Y. which is owned by the Mayor, and to our surprise he appeared from nowhere and asked us to leave. When we inquired as to why he stated that officials of the Middletown Police Department told him not to let us patronize his establishment. Mind you that this goes without incident.

As I stand for the people, God-Willing, I would pray that the same people wouldn’t hesitate to stand for me. If these unjust & heinous actions are tolerated & allowed to be done to me without recourse, then no one is safe. Just as Huewy P Newton of the Black Panther Party stated that police are in the white community to protect & serve, yet occupy ours like a foreign troop… I tell you that we shouldn’t fall victim to the conditioning of feeling inferior or fearful at the presence of law enforcement for no apparent reason.

With that being said, I was not arrested by federal agents. I was taken in by a squad from the City of Middletown, N.Y.’s Police Department. I was not being held in an “undisclosed location” so to speak. I was actually being held in the Orange County Jail in Goshen, N.Y. However, from the time that I was booked at the precinct, to standing before a Judge the next day who told me to come back in 7 more, to being processed at the Orange County Jail and up until 7 days later I was not permitted to make any calls to notify anyone of my status; as though I had just been kidnapped from of the street.

BELOW: PRESS TV INTERVIEW WITH MALCOLM-LATIF SHABAZZ

Unfortunately, until this day my family hasn’t been fully abreast of my situation as I haven’t had the opportunity to properly consult with any of them. Dr. Randy Short who notified Press TV of my situation is a close comrade of mine who was on our delegation in Libya. Media reports from Press TV about my situation were not intended to create controversy. In reality, I have a few associates that are affiliated with this reputable International media outlet, and they had expected to meet with me in Iran.

So when I disappeared, and rumors spread, the inability to get concise information from a credible source prompted them to rouse public attention on my behalf, for which I am grateful. In April of 2012 I had the opportunity to be a guest analyst/contributor on Press TV. This network has a large following all over the world, and millions find it’s news, documentaries and programming to be both an educational, and insightful alternative to the conglomerated, and highly biased mainstream American & British news media. Regarding the Source magazine, nothing that they published was vetted by me, and was made by persons, at best, vaguely familiar with my situation. Further, I have never had an affiliation or relationship with The Source, nor have they ever directly consulted with me about anything.

Also See:
COINTELPRO 101 & COINTELPRO Documentary|
COINTELPRO: The Untold Story
All Power to the People!
SILENCING DISSENT
SUPPLEMENTARY DETAILED STAFF REPORTS ON INTELLIGENCE ACTIVITIES AND THE RIGHTS OF AMERICANS – FINAL REPORT BOOK III
THE COINTELPRO PAPERS BY WARD CHURCHILL AND JIM VANDER WALL

 Spoke earlier at EM supporter Horace Sheffield’s church

Advocates city pastors coalescing to buy land on behalf of the people

Published on May 18, 2013

Honorable Louis Farrakhan, NOI, At Detroit’s City Council Meeting – – A No Struggle, No Development Production! By KennySnod * *

Most of Detroit’s vacant lots are in the neighborhoods, due to predatory lending and fraudulent bank foreclosures.

Minister Farrakhan called on the Detroit community yesterday and today to buy the valuable property that’s now for sale in Detroit. About the importance of uniting, he said, we could choose what part of downtown we want to own.

Farrakhan pointed out that there shouldn’t be any division between Islam and Christianity. Urging African people to develop more African pride, he said, “You’re the people of God. … You’re the builders of civilization.”

He preached about the important of self-reliance and family values, the importance of “Black Empowerment” saying we, Detroiter’s can rebuild Detroit if we ground ourselves in good morals.

This was the first time Minter Farrakhan has been to Detroit since 2007. He pointed out the Nation of Islam was started in Detroit, and he felt an obligation to help!  (The majority of the City Council audience were members of the Nation of Islam, unlike at the evening rally.)

A No Struggle, No Development Production! By Kenny Snodgrass, Activist, Photographer, Videographer, Author of :

1} From Victimization To Empowerment… www.trafford.com/07-0913  eBook available at www.ebookstore.sony.com
2} The World As I’ve Seen It! My Greatest Experience! {Photo Book}
3) YouTube: I have over 405 Video’s, over 148,000 hits averaging 5,000 a month on my YouTube channel @ www.YouTube.com/KennySnod

Rev. Horace Sheffield III

VOD editor Diane Bukowski, who also writes for the Final Call, the newspaper of the Nation of Islam, attended Minister Farrakhan’s evening lecture at Fellowship Chapel. Story is coming on that. Meanwhile, it is noted that Rev. Horace Sheffield’s church, where the Minister spoke May 16, occupies a former Detroit public school in a city where more than half the public schools have been closed. Sheffield has advocated that the state limit on charter schools be lifted.

Other city ministers such as Rev. James Holley  of Little Rock Baptist Church, who was acknowledged at the evening hearing, have bought multiple city properties including recreation centers, privatizing them. Workers at these properties are not unionized, and are not being paid union wages and benefits.

Rev. David Bullock speaks at MLK Day, 2012 march on Gov. Rick Snyder’s house, with Rev. Charles Williams II at his left. Also present (top) Rev. Charles Williams, Sr. (r) Rev. Edward Pinckney.

Sheffield has openly supported Detroit’s Emergency Manager, Kevyn Orr, appointed by racist right-wing Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, on his radio show. Sheffield additionally attacked Revs. David Bullock and Charles Williams II, who along with Council members JoAnn Watson, Brenda Jones, and Kwame Kenyatta, have been in the leadership of the struggle against the emergency manager acts and the takeover of Detroit by the state and the banks.

That takeover has been facilitated by the other six members of the Detroit City Council, Charles Pugh, Gary Brown, Saunteel Jenkins, James Tate, Kenneth Cockrel, Jr., and Andre Spivey. The first five voted for the disastrous PA4 consent agreement, and all six voted for contracts with consultants including EM Orr’s law firm, Jones Day. Jones Day represents nearly all the banks that have laden Detroit with an unmanageable burden of debt. It was Spivey who invited Minister Farrakhan to speak. Councilwoman Watson requested his presence earlier, in February before Orr’s appointment by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder March 25, 2013.

Council Sell-out Six: (l to r) Cockrel Jr., Jenkins, Brown, Pugh, Spivey, Tate.

Related article:

http://voiceofdetroit.net/2013/05/16/detroit-em-orrs-report-envisions-a-nightmare-future/