Drop All Charges on ‘Occupy Wall Street’ Arrestees!
Stop Police Attacks & Arrests! Support ‘Occupy Wall Street’!
SIGN THE ONLINE PETITION AT http://bailoutpeople.org/dropchargesonoccupywallstarrestees.shtml to send email messages to Mayor Michael Bloomberg, NYC City Council, NYPD, the NY Congressional Delegation, Congressional Leaders, the NY Legislature, President Obama, Attorney General Holder, members of the media YOU WANT ALL CHARGES DROPPED ON THE ‘OCCUPY WALL STREET ARRESTEES!
IN NYC, DEMONSTRATE on MONDAY OCTOBER 3 at 5 PM at New York City Hall – 250 Broadway at Park Place, Manhattan and on WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5 join the Community Labor March to Wall St./Zuccotti Park – gather at 4:30 pm Gather at City Hall – 250 Broadway
AROUND THE COUNTRY, Solidarity Occupations have begun in over 100 cities! Find the one near you at www.facebook.com/OccupyWallSt
The arrest of over 700 people on Saturday, Oct 1 on the Brooklyn Bridge by the New York City Police Department is an outrage and an injustice. Numerous videos clearly show top NYPD police officials actually leading the demonstration on to the roadway of the bridge, not the pedestrian walkway. Then they blocked further movement and started arresting hundreds of activists. This is entrapment.
A loose network of organizations and individuals called the occupation named “Occupy Wall Street”. It started 15 days ago. It has no ending date. No one knows how long it will last. But it is now attracting growing and enthusiastic mass support giving voice to the widespread hatred of the banks.
Brooklyn Bridge occupation
The protesters are opposing the domination by the top banks and corporations of every aspect of life in the U.S. today. The only interest of the banks is in maximizing profits, not in meeting people’s needs in the U.S. or anywhere in the world. The protesters are mostly youth, who have heroically congregated by the tens of thousands to “occupy Wall Street” protesting the authority of a small elite over the rest of humanity, “the 99%.”
They have been met with brutality, harassment, and oppression for the crime of raising their voices and fighting for justice.
This brutality is just another instance of the NYPD’s usual standard behavior. The racist murders of Sean Bell and Amadou Diallo, the brutal attacks on all kinds of peaceful protestors from centuries ago, to the police attacks on the demonstrators just one week prior to the October 1 mass arrests, the hundreds of thousands of “stop and frisk” searches on youth of color, and the efforts to attack immigrant workers, all show who the NYPD serves to protect, from whom they recieve their orders.
Wall Street protesters are publishing their own newspaper, The Occupied Wall Street Journal
We demand that those arrested be immediately released, and that all charges be dropped. We also demand that the NYPD pay reparations to all those they unjustly arrested.
The most violent criminals on this earth are not those protesting Wall Street, but those who sit on Wall Street, and own the world’s wealth. In their ruthless drive for greater profits, lower pay and to keep us divided they foment racism, sexism and LGBT bigotry and attacks on immigrants and Muslims. They close thousands of industries and lay off millions of workers here in order to pay 1/10 the wages in oppressed countries abroad. While speaking empty words of democracy they occupy and bomb countries and carry out drone attacks, while shutting down protests here. They profit from endless wars, militarism, environmental destruction, millions of foreclosed homes and the largest prison system in the world.
Media center at Occupy Wall Street
The youth, rallying against them, and crying for justice are heroes and should not be subject to harassment, arrests, and other abuses for their righteous actions.
Emergency protests are called for Monday 5pm at NYC City Hall against the mass arrests and on Wednesday, Oct 5 a mass labor rally of support for Occupy Wall Street.
The arrests of 700 people on Brooklyn Bridge over the weekend have only strengthened the resolve of anti-Wall Street protesters as the campaign entered its third week.
Los Angeles occupation
The protests against corporate America, which began in New York City two weeks ago, have already spread across the country, with demonstrations starting up in Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago, Denver and Seattle. Continue reading →
The big crooks who belong in the toilet: (l to r) beginning with the two Bushes, Carlyle Group co-founders Frank Carluccia and David Rubinstein, Synagro exec James Rosendall, former Kilpatrick aide Michael Tardif, investigated but not charged in Synagro and Systematic Recycling Council votes, Synagro legal counsel Alvin Thomas II, current Synagro CEO and "Underdover Boss" Dave Massa, and Synagro operative Pamela Racey, still employed despite numerous allegations that she originated bribery deals.
Fox 2 report attacks small Black water contractor Bankston in favor of wealthy white Homrich
September 30, 2011
By Diane Bukowski
U.S. District Court Judge Sean Cox, appointed by Carlyle member former Pres. George W. Bush, used Carlyle/Synagro scandal as excuse for DWSD takeover
DETROIT — One week before U.S. District Court Judge Sean Cox issued his Sept. 9 order taking over the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD), Detroit’s Fox 2 News featured an attack on a small Black-owned water department contractor and virtually every Black official connected with the Water Department contracting process.
It was clearly no accident. One of the problems Cox cited in court filings on the 32-year-old DWSD federal lawsuit was that the city has contracting procedures benefiting resident-owned businesses.
In the piece, aired Sept. 1, Fox 2 reporter Charlie LeDuff interviewed wealthy white suburban contractor Roger I. Homrich, who is contesting the city’s grant of a two-year sludge hauling contract to Bankston Construction, a Black-owned, Detroit-based business. According to AFSCME Local 207 President John Riehl, Bankston has had DWSD ash-hauling contracts for many years.
Roger I. Homrich, suburban CEO of numerous Homrich companies; Fox 2 shows him here in front of Homrich trucks demolishing the historice Cass Technical High School building.
“Remember Synagro, the company that greased more fingers in Detroit than a short order cook?” Fox 2 asked. “It’s the scandal that rocked Detroit city hall, sent Monica Conyers to federal prison and threatens to send disgraced former mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his daddy Bernard to lengthy prison stays themselves.”
The comparison of Bankston Construction to Synagro is a giant stretch. According to the business search site Manta, Bankston’s annual revenues run $1 to $2.5 million.
Synagro is a national white-owned technologies corporation owned by the Carlyle Group, an international cartel run by, among other former world leaders, George Bush and son George W. Bush. Carlyle, the world’s largest private equity firm, has $88 billion under management, and another $59.6 billion in equity investments, in 72 countries, according to Dan Briody, author of “The Iron Triangle.”
Fox 2 News reporter Charlie LeDuff
The Fox 2 report (below) featured photos of former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, his father Bernard Kilpatrick, former City Council President Monica Conyers, consultant Sam Riddle, and others being flushed down a toilet. All but one of the officials in the toilet were Black. The sole white was James Rosendall, the Synagro executive who entrapped Black city officials and residents in a bribery scheme to obtain a $1.2 billion incinerator contract for his bosses.
Fox 2 made no allegations that Bankston similarly bribed city officials to get his contract.
The photo at the top of this story shows who really belongs in the toilet, among numerous others.
They are: George Bush and George W. Bush, Carlyle co-founders Frank Carlucci (U.S. Defense Secretary under Ronald Reagan) and David Rubinstein, Rosendall, Michael Tardif, a former Kilpatrick aide who was investigated by the federal government with respect to the Synagro and Systematic Recycling contracts, current Synagro CEO Bill Massa (for lack of available photos of former CEO Robert Boucher, Jr.), Synagro General Counsel Alvin Thomas II, and Synagro Vice-President of Business Development Pamela Racey (back to camera, hand in front of face).
Both this reporter and later, Jennifer Dixon of the Detroit Free Press, did articles exposing the fact that these Synagro top executives, as well as J. Paul Withrow, whose photograph was not found, KNEW of the bribery scheme. Articles by this reporter in The Michigan Citizen said Synagro had similarly entrapped Black officials in Philadelphia and elsewhere.
Former Kilpatrick aide Michael Tardif, married Michigan Citizen publisher Catherine Kelly in Aug. 2010; they are shown here at a benefit for the privatized Detroit Insititute of Arts
But only Rosendall went to prison, for 11 months. Meanwhile Rayford Jackson, a Black Detroit entrepreneur Rosendall used, got five years because he would not cooperate with the FBI in naming others. Meanwhile the federal government is busy taking down other Black officials involved, including former Kilpatrick aide Derrick Miller and Emma Bell.
Mysteriously, former Kilpatrick aide Michael Tardif, who is white and was alleged by Detroit Free Press writer David Ashenfelter among others to have been investigated for his connections to Rosendall and Synagro, dropped from sight until he quietly married the publisher of The Michigan Citizen, Catherine Kelly, in August, 2010. There is still no mention of his being charged in current articles naming Miller and Bell.
Synagro CEO Bill Massa (appropriate name) in series "Undercover Boss"
Neither Synagro nor Carlyle as corporate entities were ever charged in the deal THEY set up.
In fact, Massa was recently featured on the reality show “Undercover Boss,” indicating his company’s continued acceptance in the world of corporate finance and big media.
In the center of the toilet photo above is Homrich, president of numerous companies bearing the Homrich name. After Synagro canceled its $1.2 billion contract to build a new private incinerator amid the scandal, the city kept using DWSD incinerators. Mayor Ken Cockrel, Jr. let a contract to haul the sludge to Homrich and Waste Management, Inc. The second company is well-known for federal investigations of its ties to organized crime.
Ken Cockrel Jr. and Dep. Mayor Saul Green at press conference announcing giveaway of Cobo Hall
WMI was a significant contributor to Cockrel’s campaign for Mayor. (Click on KEN CASH CONTRACTS DB MC to read this author’s story on THAT questionable Sludgegate deal, which none of the daily media in Detroit raised a stink about.)
But LeDuff reported Sept. 1, “Both the mayor’s office and the city council – bent over backwards to give Bankston Construction the $47 million contract – despite state law, city law and custom. Despite tax liens, law suits, lack of insurance and bonds and a credit score of 2 out of 100, Bankston got the deal.”
LeDuff proceeded to attack Vincent Bankston personally, claiming he had several drunk driving arrests. (So has Oakland County Chief Executive L. Brooks Patterson, one of the moving forces in the DWSD takeover.)
Patterson stopped for DUI, let off by Oakland County cop; cartoon from Metro Times
According to records obtained from the City Council Research and Analysis Division (click on Bankston contract for full account of contract from RAD), the figure of $47 million was deliberately inflated. The contract is for $23.5 million over two years, with a possible additional two years that Council has not yet voted on. Bankston was the low bidder. Homrich bid $29 million. The city’s Purchasing Division said the contract would save the city over $4 million.
This is not the first time Bankston has experienced problems in the generally mob-dominated sludge-hauling business. Bankston filed suit in 2000 against the city, a suit which was dismissed at all levels. (Click on Bankston lawsuit v Detroit to read Court of Appeals ruling.) However, the language in the COA opinion is illuminating:
Anthony Soave (with guests) sold City Management to Waste Management, Inc.
“Specifically, plaintiff asserted that its offer to haul solidified stabilized sludge was implicitly accepted by the defendant after it submitted the low bid in July 1997, (VOD ed: it is common practice for city departments to have contractors begin work before City Council approval.)and that because the offer was accepted it was entitled to begin hauling solidified stabilized sludge immediately thereafter. Plaintiff contends that it had an output contract with defendant that entitled it to haul a specific amount of sludge, and that defendant’s award of emergency contracts to City Management in 1997 and 1999 to haul raw sludge breached its contract with defendant by reducing the sludge available for plaintiff to haul to an amount less than that established by the contract, causing damages to it by diminishing the revenues that plaintiff was able and entitled to earn under the terms of the contract.”
Wonder why Bankston workers might have sued the company for non-payment, as alleged by Fox 2?
City Management’s owner Anthony Soave (rumored to be part of the mob underground), also a contributor to Ken Cockrel and numerous other city officials’ campaign finances, later sold the company to Waste Management, Inc. Click on http://www.forensic-intelligence.org/waste/cttrash.htm to read “The Offensive, Odorous Underbelly of Trash,” published in the Cheboygan Daily Tribune.
Bankston is certified by the City of Detroit’s Human Rights Department as a Detroit-headquartered business, a small business, and a minority-owned business, while Homrich is certified as a Detroit-based business. Bankston, Homrich, and the Humand Rights Department director did not return calls for comment on this article.
Oasis Trucking Center at 4195 Central
According to state records, Homrich’s only “Detroit base” appears to be Suite H at 4195 Central Street, the address used for the company’s certification. But no Homrich signs or equipment are visible there. This reporter was not able to obtain entry to Suite H on Sept. 28 because no one was in the office that day.
Manta says Homrich employs two people there, and has $98.000 in revenues annually.
But according to State of Michigan records, Roger I. Homrich owns numerous companies using the Homrich name, based mainly in Carleton and LaSalle Michigan.
Located at 12856 Allenhurst Rd. in LaSalle, Michigan, are Homrich Contracting, Homrich Environmental Remediation Services. LLC, andHomrich Industrial Services, LLC.
Aerial view Homrich LaSalle address on Allenhurst, appears to be lakefront property
Located at 200 Matlin Rd, Carleton, Michigan, are Homrich Management Corporation and Homrich Enterprises, as well as Regulated Resource Recovery, another company owned by Roger I. Homrich.
According to Manta, Homrich Wrecking has $7.1 million in revenues, with a staff of 60. It identifies Homrich Inc. at the Detroit address, but also says Homrich Inc. in Carleton rakes in $20-$50 million annually and has a staff of 100 to 249. Resource Recovery, which operates the land-fill on Matlin, has annual revenues of $5 to $10 million and employs 50 workers according to Manta.
Homrich was contractor on Hudson demolition
Homrich already has a huge share of both the City of Detroit and Detroit Public Schools contract pies, among them the notorious demolition of the J.L. Hudson Building, which caused a huge cloud of pollution to blanket downtown Detroit, the implosion of the Jeffries Projects to replace them with “market-rate” housing, only 20 percent for low-income individuals, and the current demolition of the historic Cass Technical High School building.
Of course, Fox 2’s fly-by-night attack on Bankston and Detroit is not surprising, given that Fox is owned by Rupert Murdoch, known for his obscene wealth, anti-unionism, and corruption.
Four towers of the Jeffries Projects demolished by Homrich on April 29, 2011
According to Wikipedia, “Murdoch has been listed three times in the Time 100 as among the most influential people in the world. He is ranked 13th most powerful person in the world in the 2010 Forbes’ The World’s Most Powerful People list. With a personal net worth of US$7.6 billion, he was ranked 117th wealthiest person in the world in March 2011.
“In July 2011 Murdoch faced allegations that his companies including the News of the World, owned by News Corporation, had been regularly hacking the phones of private citizens. He also faces police and government investigations into bribery and corruption in the UK and FBI investigations in the US.”
Rupert Murdoch, owner of Fox News and world's second largest media conglomerate
So, Charlie LeDuff and Fox 2 News Detroit, when are you going to flush Rupert Murdoch’s photo down the toilet? Or are you afraid of being fired like other Fox outlet officials who reported on the Murdoch phone hacking scandal?
Murdoch of Fox News Admits Manipulating the News
Rupert Murdoch of News Corp / Fox News Admits Manipulating the News for Agenda – Admits he supported the Bush Agenda in Iraq – He is part of the Bilderburg group
Also click on http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bin%20talal to for account of the Carlyle Group’s connection to Rupert Murdoch’s news empire. Turns out a major partner in the Carlyle Group owns the remaining stock in Murdoch’s News Group, parent company of Fox News.
The reality is, the majority of people in France do not even know they are at war with Libya, the crown of Africa. I met a young Belgian lady who is a professional architect, and cares about Peace and Love, and yet, even though NATO is headquartered in Belgium, she has never heard of NATO, nor even by its French acronym OTAN. That is the reality. The youth of Europe, do not even know they are at war.
We therefore have to change tactics. It is not enough to talk about NATO, NATO-rebels, and NATO supported terrorism. We must stop talking about NATO, because, even those how have heard of it, then consider it as some abstract or separate entity, and do not even connect it to what it is: the command of the North American (USA, Canada) and west European military forces.
Instead, we must now talk of US-European, or even WHITE countries. The white countries are at war with Black Africa, and Black, includes all Libyans, even those of light skin. We have to elevate the struggle to the ground level, to take it up to the consciousness of the bright educated “westerners”, no, not westerners, whites.
We have to call it as it is, and risk offending a few whites, in our experience, the good ones are not offended, as they realize they are but a tiny speck, an insignificant minority in a sea of millions. For every million whites, there is only one or two, or maybe a half dozen or so, who are “clued up” in any way about reality. Facebook does not educate them, nor the tell-lie-vision.
This is a white war against Black Africa, and the Black people of the world. Let the term Black be political: this includes the true greens, not the fake “environmental” greens of the green parties. Black does not include Obama, nor any other coconuts such as Conomsleeze Lice. Black includes the oppressed poor whites who have a consciousness.
Let us all be Black people then. Otherwise, how are we going to get through to these dumb whites, the millions of them, who refuse to even budge, a handful of them, 3 or 4 to be precise, demonstrated in Berlin against NATO and in support of Libya, and then turned against Mathaba when we reported their demonstration, as they wished people to read about it only on their blog.
White, means selfish. White means racist. White means reactionary. White means slave master. White means devil. Let us take the struggle to this level, for, where are the educated whites, what are they doing about this? Nothing. Only those who are here at Mathaba. What are we going to call ourselves? Black sheep, that is what, as we are the black sheep of this world.
Now it is imperative that we stop being sheep, and that we actually become pro-active, and lead the way, take the initiative. This means, in ever neighbourhood around the world, there must be a local MATHABA where people Meet And Talk Helping All Become Aware. Those committees, no matter what they call themselves, must make up a world wide Green Charter Movement.
Below is a video to educate those a little who don’t know what is going on:
Two bus loads of Detroiters traveled to Washington D.C. going to House Speaker John Boehner’s house to tell him to stop procrastinating and pass President Barack Obama’s projected $447-billion “Jobs Bill.” That would create hundreds of thousands of jobs for Americans and jet start our stalling economy getting it back on track!
A No Struggle, No Development! Production
By Kenny Snodgrass. Activist, Videographer, Author of From Victimization To Empowerment – The Challenge Of African American Leadership – The Need of Real Power
We are about 30 days from filing a class action lawsuit against the M.D.O.C. (Michigan Department of Corrections) and PCS (Prisoner Communication Services), in an attempt to enforce SB 138 Section 272, or completely void the contract due to a suspect bidding process. (Click on PCS prisoner letter to read letter to Attorney General Bill Schuette. It explains our position in depth.)
We have also sent letters and attached the letter we wrote to the A.G. to many groups, including the Detroit Chapter of the NAACP, MI-CURE, AFSC, and CAPPS. We are looking to send that letter to all the Senators and House members.
Last we set up a P.O. Box so family members and inmates alike can send their stories of how the Special Equipment Fund has hurt their relationship with the people they love and care for. It’s at:
The Coalition to Lower Phone Rates
c/o C. Bachus
P.O. Box 2154
Holland, MI 49422
We are determined to fight this money grab by the MDOC. Now is not the time to being Double Taxing those who have loved ones in prison. This is the time we need to focus on building family bonds, not destroying them. I even set up our legal team here to fight this fraudulent Special Equipment Fund. We realize that this will not be undone until we take legal action. Yet, after watching the Arab Spring in the Middle East, we realized the importance of using Social Media to spread the truth, grow our support base, and consolidate the families and friends of those beyond these walls. Social Media allows us to strike back and have our voices heard via our loved ones who have computers, and expose the age-old dirty practices of the MDOC.
MDOC/PCS phone rates in contract; Special Equipment Fund adds most to the cost, can be used for any purpose by both MDOC and PCS
We are not afraid to use our names and stories. We are not afraid, nor will we stop fighting. The team I set up consists of:
·Carl Ashley, #136985, he is the lead paralegal, he will be writing and formatting the brief, and in the past has won a few suits against the MDOC. He is well known throughout the system. He is a Lifer, and well-respected by inmates and staff alike.
·Josh Puckett #250645 will be assisting with any Oral arguments, as well as handling media relations so we can keep the buzz going and grow positive support for our position. He is a Lifer who is well known throughout the system for using Social Media to grow support for his Commutation. (See http://freejoshpuckett.com. ) He is serving on the Warden’s Forum, and is well respected by Staff. He works closely with C. Bachus, to create the sites, and stay in contract with the outside groups and media contacts.
·John English #174718 works with Carl in legal research and analysis of the Bills, and as well as prisoner relations. He will assist also at trial. He is also a Lifer who is well respected by Inmates, and seen as an agent for positive Change on the Warden’s Forum.
·Michael Cheatham-Bey #172290 also assists with obtaining legal documents and provides needed insight into our legal strategies. He only has four more years left, but is still willing to stand against this injustice by the MDOC. He is well respected by his fellow inmates and staff alike.
·Anthony Fawcett #183991 is also a well known “Legal Begal” who got involved with the fight after starting a previous suit against the MDOC on behalf of another inmate who was not being allowed to call his family in the Middle East. He has detailed knowledge of the last phone contract as well as Michigan Compiled Law (MCL). He has argued in court on behalf of himself in a previous lawsuit against the State. He maintains a good relationship with staff and inmates alike.
·Jerry Lashuay #176424 helps with media relations as well as legal analysis. He is the Co-Founder of Juveniles Against Incarcerations for Life (J.A.I.L.) He has a good relationship with staff, works on the Warden’s Forum and is also currently pursuing a Commutation.
Yadira Hiciano (photo from Twitter)
·Yadira Hiciano: she is an experienced paralegal living and working in New York. Her firm is a real estate law firm but her skills allow her to assist in finding obscure laws, researching the Bills, and providing insight into team strategy. She is a good friend of Josh Puckett, and the site administrator of http://freejoshpuckett.com. Being from New York, she saw this same company kicked out of New York and replaced with a far cheaper system where calls are approximately $1.30 for 30 minutes.
·C. Bachus is the free world lead for media relations. She is the significant other of a Lifer, and a well-known community organizer in the fight for fair phone rates. She blogs on behalf of the Coalition and works closely with Josh Puckett to get the word out and write the families and friends of the inmates. She is also the Administrator for the Facebook page.
We are currently looking for a few more family members, as well as someone from the women’s prisons to add to the team. These men and women deserve their recognition for all the long hours of work they are doing to right this wrong. They are the ones who will have to pay the filing fees and who will suffer the staff retaliation when this is filed.
All of them have given me the o.k. to use their names. We hope by putting their names out there it will curtail future retaliation. As well, showcase the diverse group of people working on this cause, thus inspiring hope in those waiting for this to be corrected. They also deserve our thanks for all they are doing and have done on this road.
It will be a long road to come. The MDOC will not easily relinquish the $787,000 a month that they are making [from the Special Equipment Fund of the PCS contract].We expect this fight to take 7-10 months, so we are also asking the court for an initial preliminary injunction to lower the rates back to the Embarq rates of 10-15 cents a minute, which will still make the MDOC $350,000 per month at the minimum level of minutes listed on the contract sample payout chart. If the court grants this it will give some relief to the inmates and their families until the suit is resolved.
So, we have a plan, now we need to get that plan public support, we need to get these websites out there, and we need to get support for our team. We may even need to raise funds if the cost of this suit gets too high. We would even love to have a real Lawyer to help us,but the fact remains if you want something done right you must do it yourself.
Josh Puckett can be reached by mail, Jpay.com, or his own email at:
THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE 1967-1975 mobilizes a treasure trove of 16mm material shot by Swedish filmmakers, after languishing in a basement of a TV station for 30 years, into an irresistible mosaic of images, music, and narration chronicling the evolution one of our nation’s most indelible turning points, the Black Power movement. Featuring candid interviews with the movement’s most explosive revolutionary minds, including Angela Davis, Bobby Seale, Stokely Carmichael, and Kathleen Cleaver, the film explores the community, people and radical ideas of the movement. Music by Questlove and Om’Mas Keith, and commentary from and modern voices including Erykah Badu, Harry Belafonte, Talib Kweli, and Melvin Van Peebles give the historical footage a fresh sound and make THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE 1967-75 an exhilarating, unprecedented account of an American revolution.
“The Black Power Mixtape” Is Getting A Theatrical Release!
It’s been awhile it seems since I last wrote about this film; Goran Hugo Olsson’sThe Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975, the documentary that premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, and was recently acquired for distribution by Sundance Selects.
I’ve seen it twice already – first at Sundance, and later at the New Directors/New Films Festival here in NYC, a couple of months ago. I also reviewed it on the old S&A site, and you can read it HERE if you haven’t already. Needless to say, I liked it!
Until today, I assumed that, given that it was acquired by Sundance Selects, it would only air on cable TV, on the Sundance Channel; however, I received an email from the PR firm handling the film’s release, inviting me to upcoming press screenings in anticipation of a theatrical release that will happen later this year – specifically, as the email states, it’ll open in limited release, in New York and Los Angeles (of course), in mid-September. It doesn’t give exact dates, just “mid-September. Although, I assume we’ll have a specific date soon enough.
That’s good news! Not that it’s a film that demands to be seen on the big screen, but, it certainly does enhance the experience; and I’m guessing the theatrical release is to ensure that the film qualifies for awards consideration once that season begins.
I should also note that when it eventually makes its way to TV, it’ll be on PBS’ Independent Lens.
Danny Glover is one of the film’s producers by the way.
(note new link for BAMN –click on link for website and to sign up for email alerts)
Appeals Court to Review Ruling in Favor of Affirmative Action This Winter
For five years, the Prop 2 ban on affirmative action in Michigan has excluded thousands of qualified black, Latino/a and Native American students from Michigan’s premier public colleges and universities.
The University of Michigan has seen a 36% decline in the number of underrepresented minorities in the undergraduate school of Literature, Science and Arts and a 26% decline in the undergraduate School of Engineering since 2006. The doors to graduate and professional schools have been shut even tighter – in Dentistry a 44% decline; in Medicine a 48% decline, in Law a 56% decline.
We now have our best chance in years to reverse those attacks. On July 1, 2011, theSixth Circuit struck down Michigan’s Proposal 2 because it violated the Fourteenth Amendment. Further evidence of the turning tide on affirmative action occurred on July 8, when California Governor Jerry Brown filed a brief in the Ninth Circuit supporting BAMN’s claim that Proposition 209, an identical anti-affirmative action law, violates the Equal Protection Clause.
Our victory at the Sixth Circuit was appealed by our opponents and will now be reviewed by the full panel of Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals judges. This en banc hearing will likely be scheduled for late January or February of 2012 in Cincinnati.
Protest against Proposal 2 in Lansing, Michigan
To persuade the Court to reaffirm last summer’s ruling and uphold the real meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment, we need a broad, united PUBLIC campaign in support of these challenges. The 2003 demonstration of 50,000 people outside the U.S. Supreme Court was a crucial factor in the victory for affirmative action in Grutter v. Bollinger. Mass action will play no less a role in this round.
Proposal 2 nullified the Grutter victory for the people of Michigan. But now we have the opportunity to regain the ground that was lost.
2. Circulate Petitions demanding that the Regents and Presidents of the University of Michigan and Wayne State end their “neutrality” and stand with us in court saying these proposals are unconstitutional.
3. Organize conferences, forums, and campus rallies to mobilize support from minority students, from the black, Latino/a, and Native American communities, and from every supporter of civil rights. Call 855-ASK-BAMN (855-275-2266) to schedule a speaker.
To be delivered to: Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, Detroit Mayor Dave Bing, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and U.S. President Barack Obama
IMMEDIATELY CHARGE DETROIT POLICE OFFICER JOSEPH WEEKLEY AND ALL OTHERS INVOLVED FROM THE CITY’S POLICE DEPARTMENT AND GOVERNMENT, AS WELL AS A&E AND THE FIRST 48, WITH FIRST-DEGREE MURDER FOR THE KILLING OF 7-YEAR-OLD AIYANA STANLEY-JONES ON MAY 16, 2010.
On May 16, 2010, a Detroit police Special Response Team, being filmed by A&E’s First 48 reality show, firebombed the home of seven-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones in Detroit, and shot her in the head, killing her. There has been world-wide outrage at this murder, but to date, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy has brought no charges against Police Officer Joseph Weekley, who fired the fatal shot, or anyone else from the police department and city government (which had contracted with The First 48), in this child’s death. This qualifies as a first-degree murder because police had ample opportunity to arrest the person they were seeking, who did not live in Aiyana’s home, previously the same day, but waited until the cameras were rolling. Weekley fired immediately upon entrance into the home in a poor Black east-side neighborhood.
There are numerous other articles on Aiyana’s case on the Voice of Detroit, just put her name “Aiyana” in the search engine; be sure to keep going to older posts at the bottom of each page that comes up.
Bill Clinton signed law that hastened Troy Davis' execution
As Alton Maddox’s words confirm, if we’re not costing these people a big amount of money they don’t get it. I am trying to encourage an enjoining of what he has written (below) together with what Mary Neal has also been organizing on Facebook. My aim is (Bill) Clinton, who I see all over the news this week, especially after his hand in Troy’s death. What do you think?
Below are different aspects from myself, Mary Neal and Alton Maddox, Jr.
[Agnes Johnson] Yes we worked very hard to try to save Troy’s life and stayed glued to Democracy Now on WBAI that horrible night. I was sickened every time the Gang of Three came on the mic.
Now below is something I am trying to get off the ground. We must not forget Troy Davis, WE must get US out of those cells and get the police out of our children’s lives and WE must hold accountable the people who caused Troy’s Death.IN THE NAME OF TROY DAVIS – THIS IS A MESSAGE I WOULD LIKE TO PUSH TO THE FRONT – AND THAT IS:
A BOYCOTT OF ANYTHING CLINTON!!
COMING IN OCTOBER 2011
[How Clinton Law Hurt Troy Davis’ Chance At Life]
A law signed by former president Bill Clinton called the “Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996,” reduced new trials for convicted criminals and sped up their sentences by restricting a federal court’s ability to judge whether a state court had correctly interpreted the U.S. Constitution.” The law has been cited as one of the major obstacles that prevented Davis from being granted a new trial.
Former President Clinton will host the following awards show, which will be broadcast on Hulu.com on Saturday, October 1, 2011:
A Decade of Difference (Clinton Foundation Event)
Bill Clinton is about to have a TV event honoring his foundation’s giving to the world. Usher is one of the artists. This should be called to a halt. Usher should pull his artistry away from this and this needs to be denounced immediately.
CONTACT THEM AND LET THEM KNOW WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT Clinton’s CONTRIBUTION!!
OCT 1ST Corp of Public Broadcasting –
Media Contact
Nicole Mezlo press@cpb.org
Georgia state flag adapted from original Confederate flag
Sister MARY NEAL has this on the burner seen below.
KILL GEORGIA BUSINESSES IF TROY DAVIS DIES. BANKRUPT THE STATE. CANCEL YOUR CONCERTS, CONVENTIONS, VACATIONS, AND PRODUCT SHIPMENTS FROM COMPANIES THAT DO NOT PUBLICLY DENOUNCE THE EXECUTION. BOYCOTT GEORGIA BUSINESSES IF TROY DAVIS DIES – cancel RIGHT NOW – even if you have none pending.
When we were transported against our will from Africa to the other side of the world, we, nonetheless, cherished our African system of governance. In the “New World” our value system changed from a gerontocracy to an eventual morontocracy. In Africa, our elders were valuable assets. Today, “empty wagons” rule the roost. They get the gold.
I cherish the teachings of Dr. John Henrik Clarke. Gems rolled off of his tongue. In a speech he made at the Slave Theater, he said that Black people must learn to listen. This is one of the five senses which is underemployed.
When you say something to someone who you suspect is not listening, the refrain is invariably, “I hear you”. Since “listening” and “hearing” are not synonymous, the refrain is an admission that the person has turned a deaf ear to the advice.
On this Thursday evening, I had an opportunity to “listen” and not “hear” “Democracy Now”. The host was Amy Goodman and the guests included Rev. Al Sharpton, NAACP President Benjamin Jealous and Rev. Jesse L. Jackson. They sounded as though they were talking with food in their mouths. Indians call it speaking with a “forked tongue”.
In addition to the guests, there were supporters in Butts County, Georgia of Troy Davis. They were being flim-flammed by the U.S. Supreme Court and, particularly, by Associate Justice Clarence Thomas who had to decide an emergency appeal under Rule 23 of the U.S. Supreme Court which, when added to the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act [ed: signed into law by former Pres. Bill Clinton], mandates a “Rule of Five” instead of a “Rule of Four”. The “first Black president” [Clinton] sponsored this Draconian legislation.
President Barack Obama made no comment on Troy Davis execution; he has endorsed death penalty in "heinous" cases
Since Justice Thomas may have been laboring with an inherent bias, it would have been appropriate for him to recuse himself especially if the “Rule of Four” was appropriate and Justice Thomas would only have to find four justices, excluding himself, to claim that the petition was cert-worthy. Of course, Justice Thomas would personally oppose any stay.
The Black leaders –Sharpton, Jealous and Jackson– only had half-hearted complaints against the death penalty, and no complaints against President Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, a fierce death penalty advocate like Justice Thomas. (VOD ed.: click on http://globalgrind.com/news/kim-kardashian-has-more-pull-president-obama-photos#ixzz1YsiPmhkM for further commentary on Obama’s lack of comment on Troy Davis’ execution.)
They had no solutions nor answers. On the other hand, Davis supporters not only had grievances but they also had answers and solutions that they were ready to employ to redress grievances. Unfortunately, the tail is wagging the dog.
The first solution by the angry masses was to bring Georgia down to its financial knees. Economic warfare invariably precedes military warfare. They pointed to Georgia’s cash crops; namely, for example, peaches and peanuts. A boycott of all conventions, especially those in Atlanta, could be added to the list.
Moreover, Blacks should vacate the Democratic Party and start a two-party movement. Currently, the United States is a one-party system with two wings that invariably act in concert to form a criminal conspiracy. Blacks are caught in the middle and are endorsing their own oppression. In short, Blacks are political pawns.
Since Sharpton, Jealous and Jackson are eating from corporate troughs, none of these remedies are acceptable. It is forbidden to “bite the hand that feeds you”. This means that unsuspecting and gullible Blacks are following “Judas goats”. “Those who fail to learn from the lessons of history are condemned to repeat them.”
Listen! In short, Black masses and Black leaders are not on the same page.
(UAM has had to suspend its weekly, Black-led and Black-financed political assembly which is the only Black political assembly in the nation. It also has suspended its daily news service which provides the best legal and political analysis of issues that particularly affect the Black community.)
UAW workers at mass labor rally in Lansing April 13 2011
LOW EXPECTATIONS ARE MET IN GM-UAW DEAL
Labor Notes
by Jane Slaughter | Mon, 09/19/2011 – 4:39pm
Update: For an analysis of the contract by UAW bargaining committeeperson Gary Walkowicz, click here.
For an analysis of the contract’s “lowlights” by the Autoworker Caravan reform group, click here.
The United Auto Workers settled the first of the Detroit 3 contracts Friday night with an agreement that appeared to meet the low expectations union bargainers had worked hard to instill in members.
Although the union has not disclosed details, it appeared that second-tier workers at GM, who make $14-$16 an hour, will go up $2-$3 by 2015. They comprise about 5 percent of the workforce. While welcome, the raises will leave them far behind first-tier workers, whose $28 wage will remain frozen, as it has been since 2005.
Diego Rivera mural: autoworker at central, portraits on side include Karl Marx; the original version of this mural was destroyed in New York City but restored in Mexico
A $5,000 signing bonus will sweeten the deal, and the union promised a more “transparent” profit-sharing formula. One GM worker writing on a website for reformers fumed, “We lost that much since the ’09 giveaway.”
UAW President Bob King has said that each Detroit 3 worker has given up a total of $7,000 to $30,000 since 2005. He stated repeatedly over the course of negotiations that he wanted to keep costs for the automakers down, to help them compete with non-union companies.
Nick Waun, an outspoken reformer at GM’s Lordstown, Ohio, plant, says his strategic location—near the restroom—means that workers usually stop to chat.
Lordstown Ohio Complext East plant
“I haven’t talked to anybody who says they’ll vote yes,” Waun said. “The main reason is that it doesn’t look like they get anything back at all. And it doesn’t sound like there’s any kind of bridge between tier two and tier one—it’s total separation.”
NO CONTRACT CAMPAIGN
Unlike many unions, the UAW runs no contract campaigns to pressure the companies during bargaining—no buttons, T-shirts, rallies, or even clear demands. Rank and filers and local officials glean snippets from the newspapers, and wait to see what bargainers will bring back. Under the terms of the 2009 government bailouts, neither GM nor Chrysler workers are allowed to strike.
At Ford, the most profitable of the three companies, workers face no such restriction. Yet rather than go to the strongest company first to set the pattern, as was the union’s strategy in pre-concessions days, King bargained first with GM and Chrysler.
Ford workers turned down concessions 3-1 in fall 2009, and workers there are seen as more restive and willing to vote “no” again.
Ford made $6.6 billion in 2010 and GM $4.7 billion. Chrysler saw an operating profit but posted an overall loss of half a billion because of interest on its loans paid to the American and Canadian governments.
The tentative agreement is said to reopen GM’s closed Saturn assembly plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee. Reformers who’d campaigned for “equal pay for equal work”—ending the two-tier system—are watching to see whether those jobs will be at the lower pay.
They note the Saturn plant is one of 14 factories and three warehouses the company has announced for closure since 2009, costing almost 22,000 hourly jobs.
Over the summer reformers sold T-shirts and circulated flyers by the thousands that demanded equal pay and restoration of the cost-of-living allowance. At Detroit’s Labor Day parade, workers held banners demanding “End 2-Tier” and got thumbs-ups from UAW marchers. They will post an analysis of the tentative agreement at autoworkercaravan.org.
Gary Walkowicz, a bargaining committeeperson at Ford, said workers need to look for hidden concessions or loopholes not explained in the union’s “Highlights” handout.
At GM in 2009, for example, a seemingly harmless clause said the parties “will work together…to arrive at innovative ways to staff [small car] operations.” That language was used to justify slashing wages at a Michigan small-car plant, where 40 percent of the workforce was placed on permanent second-tier wages—without a vote.
Local informational meetings will take place next weekend, followed by ratification votes. A UAW talking points memo said, “Once again the UAW has shown that it is completely committed to helping the U.S. auto companies succeed.”
UAW brothers and sisters, I got word tonight that the UAW will go to Ford next. If we want to get a better contract than GM, we have to get ready for a fight. I think the Ford contract will be similar to GM, except that they will probably put the money for the grievance into our contract. The money for the grievance may even seem like a large amount. They may hope that it will be enough to get us to vote for the contract. People need to think about how much money we have lost over the last several years of concessions and how much more money we would lose if we don’t get back our raises, COLA and all the other concessions we have lost.
From Gregg Shotwell
GM CEO Dan Akerson and UAW President Bob King
The problem with UAW contracts is that the “parties” as the UAW and the companies like to call themselves frequently get together and change the contract after it is ratified by the members. Thus, I am more concerned about things the UAW doesn’t say about a tentative agreement than what they do say. If you read the “white book” you will see language that is crossed out. This indicates old contractual language that has been deleted. When new language is added it is underlined.
As I cited before: in June GM reported that its pension was $10.8 billion underfunded.
GM VP Stephen Girsky who is also a UAW-VEBA trustee (that’s right, he negotiates with himself which is why he doesn’t experience any conflict of interest) told investors, “We want to take the pension risk off the table.”
UAW sign at April 13 labor rally in Lansing
In the 2011 UAW-GM pension supplement under the title Pension De-Risk it states:
“The parties further discussed the possibility of amending the Plan to provide additional options for certain current retirees that would help GM manage its pension risk and benefit such retirees that voluntarily agree to participate. To this end, the parties agreed that the National Parties may mutually agree during the term of this Agreement to amend the Plan to add retirement options for some or all existing retirees that help GM reduce the volatility and risk related to the Plan and benefit existing retirees by providing an additional voluntary option.” — Pension De-Risk Consideration : 2011 UAW-GM Supplemental Agreement Exhibit A (Pension Plan) page 161.
What is troubling is that the “parties” have given themselves legal cover “to amend the Plan” during “the term of this Agreement.” Perhaps, dear reader, you are comforted by the word “voluntary.” It denotes a certain safety for those who don’t wish to walk the plank. In my experience parties that seek volunteers are inclined to influence choice with persuasive tactics that resemble a sword in the back. But the point is: if members ratify this contract, the “parties” have legal justification to amend the pension plan.
