Attorney Lizz Brown, columnist for the St. Louis American, spoke with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow about applying for a job in the County Attorney’s office. Lizz Brown stated the County Attorney’s office were interested in her and wanted to hire her so they stated “Lizz, if you want this job, you have to understand”, “you may hear people using the n****r word” and are you ok with that?
Keep in mind this conversation did not take place with the current prosecutor but his boss. Birds of a feather..
How can a prosecuting Attorney’s office be objective in the Michael Brown case when it’s been admitted people in the office use racial slurs?
Yes; it appears that Bob McCulloch’s office asked that questions of Lizz Brown as though it was natural, even ACCEPTABLE for the attorney’s office staff to engage in RACIST remarks.
This here is the makings of a HOSTILE and TOXIC environment. And the prosecuting attorney’s office felt their only responsibility in such an environment is to make Lizz Brown aware of it.
Basically, what was said is, nobody’s going to change their racist behavior for you, lady, so if you’re gonna work here, take it like a good lil negro.
For Prosecuting Bob McCulloch this is problematic for him to investigate and prosecute the Michael Brown case. Remove Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch from the Michael Brown investigation. A special prosecutor needs to be appointed so justice can be served.
If prosecuting attorney’s office thinks its acceptable to work with folks who spew racial epithets, he has no business prosecuting RACIALLY CHARGED MURDERS of Black people! Step aside, McCulloch. Your’e not credible and cannot be trusted.
from africa over at TOD:
http://theobamadiary.com/2014/08/16/the-signs-of-babes/#comment-1112106
Melissa Harris-Perry’s Searing Tribute To Black Men Killed By Police
The Huffington Post | By Jack Mirkinson
Posted: 08/16/2014 2:31 pm EDT
In a short but powerful segment on Saturday, Melissa Harris-Perry connected the recent police killing of Michael Brown to the deaths of other black men at the hands of police — and to America’s history of injustice towards black people.
Harris-Perry read the names of some of the hundreds of men who were killed by police across the country “in the past decade alone,” from Sean Bell to Oscar Grant to Eric Garner to Brown. All of the men she mentioned were unarmed at the time of their death.
In the past decade alone, these men and hundreds of others have lost their lives to police.
“From 2006 to 2012 a white police officer killed a black person at least twice a week in this country,” she said.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/16/melissa-harris-perry-black-men-killed-by-police_n_5684588.html?utm_hp_ref=tw
Bobfr @Our4thEstate
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Dear @GovJayNixon Just Rule: Order the MO Nat’l Guard to PROTECT the #Ferguson protestors’ 1st Amendment Rights. That’s Leadership. cc @vj44
7:45 PM – 16 Aug 2014
https://twitter.com/AntonioFrench/status/500787718415474688/photo/1
SheriffFruitfly @sherifffruitfly
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Huh haven’t heard shit about the curfew from the white don’t tread on me libertarians. Color me shocked.
6:16 PM – 16 Aug 2014
Lisa Bloom @LisaBloom
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Did Governor Nixon think we wouldn’t notice that he entirely refused to answer so many questions? Baffled by the disrespect of this.
4:08 PM – 16 Aug 2014
https://twitter.com/blackpolbuzz378/status/500710524850814976/photo/1
Nancy LeTourneau @Smartypants60
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Its clear local Ferguson PD are waging a battle – not just against their own community – but against Capt. Johnson, FBI & DOJ. .
10:42 AM – 16 Aug 2014
itgurl @itgurl_29
@PragObots Hip-hop used 2 b about something. It’s amazing that 2day, rappers r the biggest COWARDS & least socially conscious entertainers.
itgurl @itgurl_29
@PragObots J Cole’s the only rapper who’s come out 2 defend Mike Brown Everyone else is SILENT or on some new black shit #davidbanner #nelly
@GrooveSDC
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Gov. Nixon declares state of emergency and curfew. So basically #Ferguson PD won. And everybody else’s Constitutional rights lost
3:23 PM – 16 Aug 2014 Middletown, NJ, United States
Yep!
Harold Itzkowitz @HaroldItz
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What Nixon doesn’t realize is that justice and openness and fairness will bring the peace he thinks a crackdown will bring. #Ferguson
3:32 PM – 16 Aug 2014
Truth!
https://twitter.com/BusquedaJess/status/500708766208114690/photo/1
Yes!
A perfect way to honor the memory of Michael Brown!
A change is going to be insisted upon!
https://twitter.com/chrisgeidner/status/500742034001772544/photo/1
Alycee @jazziz2
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@ChiefBlackwell Appears Chief Jackson embarrassed by peaceful protest on Thurs due 2 Capt Johnson’s rapport with community. #Ferguson 2/4
4:48 PM – 16 Aug 2014
I wrote and posted this somewhere else this morning. I would like to share it here now (I used many of your retweets posted on your blog yesterday at the end of what I have written here.):
…..
This week I have witnessed the Smoke and Mirrors that Police Chief Thomas Jackson has used attempting to change the focus of the issue at hand.
The Ferguson Black community as well as the nation’s Black community HAS stayed focused on the burning issue: the execution-style killing of an unarmed Black teen while he held his hands up surrendering. According to eyewitnesses, Ofc. Darren Wilson, who had the upper hand and was under NO threat, cold heartedly disregarded Michael Brown’s surrender and shot multiple bullets into Michael Brown’s body.
Diverting attention from this coldblooded killing, Police Chief Tom Jackson attempted to play on the racist mindset of many whites who negatively stereotype Blacks and to play on the history of White fear of Blacks.
This year Blacks carrying signs “My Skin Color is Not a Crime” and “Am I Next?” know ALL TOO WELL about unfounded White fear of Blacks. In Ferguson this week a Black lady carried a sign that said, “I DON’T APOLOGIZE FOR MY BLACKNESS AND YOUR FEAR.”
And, no doubt, so does the Police Chief of Ferguson know quite well about unfounded White fear of Blacks. Instead of publicly releasing the ME’s autopsy report which would have revealed the number of bullets (and their trajectory) discovered in Michael Brown, Chief Tom Jackson released surveillance video footage of what appears to be Michael Brown shoplifting and pushing the store clerk on his way out. Instead of using words like “shoplifting” and “pushing”, the police chief used the emotionally charged words “strong armed robbery” to play on the emotions of the White community which has had a history of stereotyping Blacks negatively.
During THAT press conference the police chief left out the very important fact that the “strong armed robbery” was NOT the reason that Ofc. Wilson focused on Michael Brown. Questioned later in the day (and actually in a statement one of the days before) the Police Chief said that the initial contact between Ofc. Wilson and Michael Brown had nothing to do with the robbery at the store:
ABC News @ABC NEW: Chief: Officer didn’t know Michael Brown was a suspect in robbery when stopped; was stopped for walking in street, blocking traffic.
2:19 PM – 15 Aug 2014
One tweeter (Aaron Talley) wrote, This is about the assumed inherent criminality of Black People. This is about systemic racism murdering our people in the streets.”
Another person (Only4RM) tweeted, “Do (some) journalists not understand that #Ferguson PD has a vested interest to protect their officer/force? They are the #DEFENDANTS now.”
Also, Shaun King tweeted, “5 attorneys just wrote me privately & said it was ABSOLUTELY CLEAR that the Police Chief ONLY released that video to taint public sentiment.”
Someone at the press conference pointed out to Chief Jackson, “Seems like you’re only answering questions that demean the character of Mike Brown.”
In his tweet, Alex Little observes, “The selective release of information by #Ferguson PD tells us nothing about the shooting. Instead appears to be a basic smear job.”
The following article is helpful in understanding sentiments that have carried over from the past into present day St. Louis:
“Echoes of Michael Brown’s Death in St. Louis’s Racially Charged Past”
http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/08/how-an-integrated-swimming-pool-incited-race-riots-in-st-louis/375943/2/
https://twitter.com/HalDockins/status/500734835607236608/photo/1
Nerdy Wonka @NerdyWonka
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#Ferguson PD was quick to release the store video but can’t release autopsy and incident report. Yet they wonder why people are outraged.
3:49 PM – 16 Aug 2014
Nerdy Wonka @NerdyWonka
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What Gov. Nixon will demand: Curfew on #Ferguson residents. What Gov. Nixon won’t demand: Autopsy, ballistics, incident/shooting report.
3:44 PM – 16 Aug 2014
Nerdy Wonka @NerdyWonka
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Jay Nixon’s responses seem to convey that he thinks it’s silly for the #Ferguson community to demand transparency and #JusticeForMikeBrown
3:34 PM – 16 Aug 2014
Nerdy Wonka @NerdyWonka
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Great point by the woman in the audience. Who lets a person who murdered an unarmed young man, skip town?! Explain that, #Ferguson PD.
3:23 PM – 16 Aug 2014
Nerdy Wonka @NerdyWonka
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Nixon says he’s declared a state of emergency and has implemented a curfew in #Ferguson. Says, “this is not to silence the protesters” Hmm
3:20 PM – 16 Aug 2014
Shaun King @ShaunKing
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This is going to be the defense story of Darren Wilson. It’s confirmed multiple times over. It’s COMPLETELY different than ALL eyewitnesses.
1:46 PM – 16 Aug 2014
……………………….
Shaun King @ShaunKing
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Officer Wilson is saying that Mike Brown ran 30 feet away from the car, yelled “You ain’t doing nothing” then RAN FULL SPEED AT THE OFFICER
1:48 PM – 16 Aug 2014
………………………………….
Shaun King @ShaunKing
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Darren Wilson is saying that Mike Brown kept charging toward him, even when shot, until he finally shot him in the head from just feet away.
1:50 PM – 16 Aug 2014
……………………………………..
Shaun King @ShaunKing
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I’m working on some audio now. This is going to be the Wilson defense. Knowing this, now you know why NO incident report has been released.
1:51 PM – 16 Aug 2014
Jamil Smith ✔ @JamilSmith
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It isn’t so much about the enforcement of the curfew as the message it conveys. It says, Ferguson, you’re to blame for this. Not police.
https://twitter.com/Our4thEstate/status/500718274565259265/photo/1
Russell Brand: Ferguson Makes Bill O’Reilly’s Racism ‘Come Bubbling Out’
by Matt Wilstein | 1:49 pm, August 16th, 2014
Actor Russell Brand delivered yet another searing takedown of Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly this week, this time tackling his coverage of the unrest in Ferguson, Missouri following the fatal shooting of 18-year-old unarmed Michael Brown by police.
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“Bill’s racism comes bubbling out all the time,” Brand said after playing clips of him saying he trusts Attorney General Eric Holder to handle the situation appropriately “in this case.”
“It’s almost, Bill, like f you’re living in a really unequal, unfair society that hasn’t recovered from the massive wounds of slavery and the continued inequality subjugation of the non-white population,” Brand said later, responding to O’Reilly’s apparent surprise over the looting and rioting in Ferguson. “Eventually, inevitably, there will be flare ups.”
http://www.mediaite.com/online/russell-brand-ferguson-makes-bill-oreillys-racism-come-bubbling-out/
Alycee @jazziz2
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@GovJayNixon there will be no security until the people believe there will be a full and fair investigation, and justice for #MikeBrown
3:31 PM – 16 Aug 2014
South Jersey Bro @SouthJerseyBro
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Huge industry “@docrocktex26: The private for-profit prison is the 21st century plantation. The war on drugs is how they catch the slaves.”
2:34 PM – 16 Aug 2014
From ZIZI:
Free in America? Bundy Ranch Militias, Open-Carry Ammosexuals, or Ferguson Black Residents?
Consider the photographs above of events that happened this year less than six months apart? There is no comparison. That is the point. They all involve American citizens in protest over perceived affront to their rights. But can the people in those photographs be interchanged with the same outcomes? Can the Ferguson MO black residents stage their protest armed like the Bundy-ranch militias or the open-carry ammosexuals flaunting their AR-15s in stores in public? Would they be covered by the media with fawning deference as we saw during the standoff in Nevada or in the narratives spun about open-carry advocates?
~~~~
Of course no. It is not hyperbole to say the streets there would already have been littered with many more black bodies being gunned down by platoons of SWAT teams pouring in to maintain “law and order.” They would not be retreating like the BLM and law enforcement did outside the Bundy ranch in Nevada in order to safeguard “public peace” and NOT escalating the potential for violence. The media would have whipped up the fear factor to the rafters, not the love-in we saw when the Bundy ranch militias had federal officials locked in their gunsights and bragged they were ready to “water the tree of liberty”.
~~~~
Likewise, the language of inherent criminality being used now to describe Ferguson’s black residents’ protests would not be invoked in similar actions by white protestors. It is like clockwork, the types of thesauri with stock phrasing that get whipped out to describe public behavior of American citizens depending on their race and class. White Militias are “patriots” defending the “constitution”, not “lawbreakers, or thugs, or looters.” White youths’ public misbehavior and even serious felonies are given benefit of the doubt as “feisty pranks” or aberrant “lone wolves” or “mentally challenged” individuals.
~~~~
Blacks and Latinos are described as criminals-in-the-making and bearers of regressive group cultural traits who should be “feared” and removed from civilized society. There is an insistence that their citizenship can only rest on approval of their morality, something that is not required of any other groups. The statistics from our criminal justice system glaringly show the disparities in who gets convicted for similar crimes and who gets slapped on the wrist.
~~~~
Therein lies the dirty underbelly of American creed of “Freedom” and “justice”. It was always a lie, from the nation’s founding. But it was a powerful lie that sewed together a nation populated by peoples of disparate backgrounds ever re-making themselves anew with infinite optimism in this vast land. City on a Hill, it was. Even if built on the blood of shackled slaves. Frederick Douglass described this foundational hypocrisy so astutely in his famous speech “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”
http://theobamadiary.com/2014/08/16/free-in-america-bundy-ranch-militias-open-carry-ammosexuals-or-ferguson-black-residents/
Jeff Gauvin @JeffersonObama
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This Ferguson police chief Is a classic southern 1960s style segregationist who views the FBI and DOJ as the enemy
10:45 AM – 16 Aug 2014
Erica Smith @ericasmith
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#MichaelBrown’s cousin Todd Pruitt is helping cleanup in #Ferguson. “You will not use my family’s name as a way to display ignorance.”
8:44 AM – 16 Aug 2014
Greg Pinelo @gregpinelo
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Where are: Darren Wilson’s picture HIs service record #FergusonPD incident report and radio traffic Michael Brown’s autopsy report ?
12:59 PM – 15 Aug 2014
Greg Pinelo @gregpinelo
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Under what circumstances did Darren Wilson leave the nearby Jennings PD four years ago. What was his record there?
9:16 AM – 16 Aug 2014
https://twitter.com/ryanjreilly/status/500728103363428353/photo/1
from POU:
Jamil Smith ✔ @JamilSmith
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Justice should not be conditional upon the behavior of the aggrieved.
3:33 PM – 16 Aug 2014 Manhattan, NY, United States
Tell.it. You do know Nixon’s issued a curfew. Just call it “sundowning” MOFOS. Ferguson, MO leadership is still inept and out of control.
This has to be one of the BEST statements of the WHOLE week!
https://twitter.com/ryanjreilly/status/500653926602252288/photo/1
Why #BlackTwitter Was Essential to Media Outrage Over Ferguson
by Amma Marfo
PublishedAugust 16, 2014, 9:13 AM EDT
The outrage in #Ferguson was brought to the attention of the nation in part through the power of “Black Twitter,” the powerful online community of African-American users of the social media platform. But what is it about the microblogging platform that makes it the gathering place of choice for the African-American community?
This Wednesday, I opened my morning by working on a book review for a colleague of mine on social media. His piece cited a Pew Internet and American Life statistic that gave me literal pause: while Twitter is a less commonly used social media platform than Facebook within the general population, it is used significantly more by black youth than white (31 percent of black youths in 2011 and 39 percent in 2013, versus 12 percent in 2011 and 23 percent in 2013 for whites). I had no idea how vividly that divide would play out later in my day, as I sought counsel and information from voices on Twitter about the unfolding unrest in Ferguson — mostly black voices. When I expressed concern about the lack of coverage by mainstream media at that time, I was instructed by a fellow black colleague to “Stay engaged on Twitter like with everything else.”
As a heavy Twitter user in a predominantly white work environment, I understood the sentiment but couldn’t help but think about the relative silence that my non-tweeting Caucasian counterpoints were surrounded by as a result. The question that consumed me, as I watched the horror play out through automatic refreshes, was why? With the ubiquity of other platforms like Facebook or Instagram, why has Twitter become the place for the African-American community to have these conversations?
Speed
First, foremost, and most necessarily, Twitter is fast. Crafting a 140-character message is a quick task, and such short statements on other platforms can get lost in a sea of cat memes or videos of cascading ice water. Twitter is also fast in its refresh speed; little is required of those wishing to follow breaking news like this — automatic refreshes and notifications of new messages come quickly. It is this breakneck pace of information sharing that led briefly apprehended Washington Post journalist Wesley Lowery, one of the two journalists arrested that night, to tell a colleague in the moment after he was slammed against a soda machine, “Tweet that they’re arresting me.”
Short Reporting Structure
Wesley Lowery and Huffington Post reporter Ryan Reilly’s ability to share their own stories in their own words is another strength of Twitter. Not only could “regular folk” concerned about Lowry’s status share their worries with him personally, but he was able to respond. Twitter’s ability to connect the disenfranchised with voices of power in their communities (revered and respected activists and journalists such as Al Sharpton, Don Lemon, and Roland S. Martin routinely respond to messages that “mention” them) means that otherwise silenced voices are magnified in real time. Similarly, news outlets and others with a responsibility to speak out on issues of concern have more access than ever to those who critique their work. David Weigel’s Slate piece on laying of blame says as much:
Decades ago, when unrest and police responses broke out in cities, the measurable civilian response was limited to what the media could capture. Local Philadelphians talked to reporters about what it was like to live near the MOVE siege; residents of Cincinnati did the same when their neighbors protested the killing of Timothy Thomas. The reaction to Ferguson (or #Ferguson) is happening on social media, everywhere, shaped by conservatives who want to blame Democrats, police state critics who want to talk about militarization, and foreigners who wonder what the hell is wrong with America.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/cafe/why-blacktwitter-was-essential-to-media-outrage-over-ferguson
Well don’t this beat ALL? A curfew in a town with a historical reference to SUN DOWN TOWN. N****r, Don’t Let The Sun Set On YOU. Got dammit!
The conference is B.S.
Will someone tell Gov Jay Nixon people will be calm when the murderer is arrested? It’s not rocket science.
HOLLA! We got your curfew, Gov.Nixon. It’s an INSULT to Ferguson’s black residents
These fools in Missouri are really not very smart. How are you gonna impose a fucking curfew in an area of the country that has a history of “SUNDOWNING”
BREAKING: Gov Jay Nixon declares a state of emergency and a curfew in Ferguson.
thread in the making!
Interesting. I wonder if any of them ever brought this to the attention of the higher up officers who may have done something about it.
But but the chief told us Darren Wilson was “gentle” & “quiet”.
I don’t know any gentle and quiet men with an habitual habit of telling kids to STFU! Or that pump bullets into unarmed kids surrendering with their hands up and then stand over them and pump more bullets in them while they lie dying in the streets.
SMGDH “Loose cannon.” Ya think? Of course his peers never reported it. My understanding is they don’t write up disciplenary actions.
Allow me to clear up some misinformation you have posted. My name is Lizz Brown and I appeared on the Rachel Maddow show. I NEVER WORKED FOR THE COUNTY PROSECUTING ATTORNEY’S OFFICE as you posted. As a matter of fact I became a Special Public Defender. And when I became a Public Defender I kicked their butts and was a constant thorn in their sides—so much so that they attempted to have me arrested. Please correct your blog entry and your criticism of me for doing something I never did. In addition I never said I had this conversation with the current Prosecutor I stated I had this conversation with Bob’s equally awful boss. Please correct we are on the same side of the issue but your statement about me is wrong.
Welcome to 3ChicsPolitico, Lizz Brown!
Same team! Same team! Forgive us. The misinformation has been removed. So happy to hear you kicked their butts. I saw you on Rachel Maddow and your interview was wonderful. 3ChicsPolitico have nothing but love for you! We’re all on the same team fighting for justice for Michael Brown. Mad Props!
Apology accepted and thank you for moving so quickly to correct—I agree we are on the same team. Peace & love Lizz
Apologies, Lizz. We certainly do appreciate all your efforts and support. We are on the same team.
Thank you!
Ametia
Breaking News:
I’m sure papa’s proud of ole Darren’s latest asignment too, that is the murder of Michael Brown Jr.
St. Louis prosecutor has faced controversy for decades
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/article_cdd4c104-6086-506e-9ee8-aa957a31fee5.html#.U–FKPwGIS0.twitter
ST. LOUIS • Robert McCulloch isn’t known to back down.
For decades, the St. Louis County prosecutor has been in the spotlight for everything ranging from his prosecution of Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose to questions about his deep police roots. And for decades county voters have kept him in office.
On Friday, McCulloch faced calls from political foes to step aside in the investigation of the fatal shooting death of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown at the hand of a white police officer. State Sen. Jamilah Nasheed wrote a letter to McCulloch saying prior prosecutorial decisions and his heavy support of Steve Stenger in his defeat of St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley in this month’s Democratic primary scarred the black community.
And U.S. Rep. William Lacy Clay, D-St. Louis, assailed McCulloch on Friday night on a visit to Ferguson: “We don’t have any confidence in the St. Louis County prosecuting attorney’s office.” He went on to accuse McCulloch of attempting to influence a potential jury by the release this morning of the robbery video at the same time the officer’s name was released.
“Bob McCulloch tried to taint the jury pool by the stunt he pulled today. I have no faith in him, but I do trust the FBI and the justice department.”
Ha. What’d I say?
YOU bring it and lay the smack down.
:)
Of course FPD did. they had to get that video out, before the feds came in and It’s a slap in the face to the Black Attorney General. Two -fold.
Bulls-eye!
MHP, if you and other black academics don’t report the whole picture on the whos, wht’s whens…
President Obama is not our SAVIOR!
How about holding the MAYOR, GOVERNOR, SENATOR, POLICE DEPT. AND THE PEOPLE OF FERGUSON RESPONSIBLE for what is happening in that town?
States rights gone awry. The locl government is CORRUPT & RACIALLY divided
A town with people in the majority who DON’T VOTE! Ask them WHY?
Ferguson Justice LIVE
ge shaw @mini_you
@truthrose1 mind u the dem gov who was against desegregation Which tells u all u need 2 know bout nixon follow @MariaChappelleN
ProgressiveInMO @AnthonyColumbia
@truthrose1 @cberrl People don’t vote, don’t run for office. It’s killing us all across America. It allows fascists to rule with impunity.
PragmaticObotsUnite @PragObots
#Follow @AntonioFrench for info on what happened last night in #Ferguson
T @truthrose1
Did Black people miss the DEMOCRAT GOV of Missouri sitting around twiddling his thumbs as the military was about to slaughter people?
T @truthrose1
@RedEyesPage @MichaelEDyson 1500 people out 20k voting in elections is not a PBO issue
DNLee @DNLee5
According to #ferguson store owner, the Police didnt issue warrant for video or Visit store until Friday, before the Press conference
Saturday, August 16, 2014
The Inevitable ‘Niggerization’ of Michael Brown by the Ferguson Police Department and the Right-Wing Hate Media
The niggerization of Michael Brown has begun in earnest. The police and the Right-wing media have decided that like all other black people who have been killed by the police and white (identified) vigilantes, Brown is guilty of causing his own execution-style murder.
Writing about the behavior of the police department in Ferguson, Missouri and their efforts to derail, obfuscate, lie, and dissemble about the murder of Michael Brown is an experience akin to Bill Murray’s in the movie Groundhog Day. It is a cultural script that plays out repeatedly in the United States–the events of which are only a surprise to the naive, willfully ignorant, dishonest, and/or stupid.
Those of us who write about race and work the “racism beat” have to struggle to find something new to say about the seemingly endless parade of black unarmed men killed by police and other white-identified authorities. Being a truth-teller on such matters is tedious, not easy, and mentally exhausting.
Cornel West’s use of the word “niggerization” to describe how black people are robbed of their humanity by the White Gaze and White Supremacy is cited and mentioned so frequently for a reason: it is one of the most precise and sharp ways of describing both the institutional as well as the ethical and moral violence visited upon black people by centuries of white racism in the United States and the West.
While “Black Twitter” developed a meme designed to point out the twin lying nature of the White Gaze and racial paranoia in how it selectively frames black people’s humanity, Right-wing hate media such as the Drudge Report, Fox News, and other conservative sewers defaulted to the black rapist “Bigger Thomas” frame, wherein Michael Brown is a “thug” who got “what he deserved”:
http://www.chaunceydevega.com/2014/08/the-inevitable-niggerization-of-michael.html
Go Chauncey! Love W.A.R.N…
THIS: “Those of us who write about race and work the “racism beat” have to struggle to find something new to say about the seemingly endless parade of black unarmed men killed by police and other white-identified authorities.
Being a truth-teller on such matters is tedious, not easy, and mentally exhausting.”
from hopefruit over at TOD:
http://theobamadiary.com/2014/08/16/early-bird-chat-325/#comment-1111443
Michael Brown could have been walking home from church where he had been praying in front of the vigil candles for the last hour and he would still be dead and for the same reason.
Bring it, Liza! Check!
Liza can throw DOWN! Loves her!
Liza’s a WARRIOR for TRUTH.
Thank you, Chicas. :)
Friday, August 15, 2014
Pressure Cooker
Can we all get along?
– Rodney King, 1992 Los Angeles riots
I don’t like being cynical.
Especially about the United States of America.
I’m not particularly good at that kind of pessimism, because I’m generally an optimist when it comes to my country.
And I’d like to say I’m surprised.
I’d like to say that I’m shocked.
I’d like to say that I’m surprised and shocked at the violence and the rage in Ferguson, Missouri.
But I’m not.
Of course I’m not.
I’m not surprised or shocked in any way whatsoever.
And I doubt you are either.
Oh we’re appalled, sure. Some of us are disgusted with the behavior of the rioters and the looters and the protesters. And some of us are disgusted with the behavior of the police and the various governments. Like Israel and Gaza, we’ve all got our usual suspects to blame for the conflict, our side to root for and cheer on. But still, whatever side we’re on, we’re all disturbed by the images on our screens.
But we’re not surprised. Are we?
And, you know, that’s the worst part, isn’t it? That, right there. None of us are shocked or surprised. No. This is exactly what we expect in America.
We’re used to it.
I’d like to say I’m outraged, and I am to a certain extent, but not nearly as much as I should be, because the violence, on both sides of the street, cops and protesters, is the norm and not the exception.
I’d have been surprised if it didn’t happen.
This is part and parcel of The Big Lie we Americans tell ourselves. That one about our vaunted exceptionalism. Heh, heh, exceptionalism. Riiiiight. Exceptionalism isn’t even a real word, but then that’s par for the course. Tell me, America, what’s so damned exceptional about fearing the police? About living in fear of authority? What’s exceptional about armed troops in the streets? About armored vehicles and automatic weapons on the corners, in the playgrounds, guarding the schools and the store and the police stations? About blockades and showing your papers? What’s exceptional about being shot down without trial or due process? What exactly is exceptional about dead kids in the street? What’s exceptional about tear gas and rubber bullets – or lead ones for that matter? But then what’s so exceptional about an armed population? About citizens who solve their differences with pistols and assault weapons? What’s exceptional about racism and inequality and disparity and naked hate? What’s exceptional about crime and riot? What’s exceptional about the arrest and detainment of journalists and reporters? What’s exceptional about political division that verges on civil war? These things are all too common around the world.
Come now, tell me, America.
Compare the images from Ferguson, Missouri to Gaza, to Moscow, to Tiananmen Square, to Brazil, to any of a hundred supposedly inferior Third World places we see on our TVs every single day and tell me again about our great American exceptionalism.
If you want to be exceptional, America, then you have to be the exception. Q.E.D.
The events of Ferguson, Missouri over the last week are the norm in America.
http://www.stonekettle.com/2014/08/pressure-cooker.html?spref=tw
Friday, August 15, 2014
No, it isn’t only libertarians who care about civil liberties
by digby
So I’m hearing some nonsense that only libertarians have been talking about the militarization of the police. I am not a libertarian. I’m a liberal and a civil libertarian which isn’t the same thing. And I’ve been talking about this for a very long time. So have a lot of other liberals.
The fact is that civil liberties are rarely a priority in either political party. The libertarians in America tend to gather in the GOP while the civil libertarians like me tend to vote Democratic. We’re a minority either way, but the civil libertarian liberals outnumber the libertarians substantially.
Here’s a story from prolific Daily Kos diarist Liberty Equality Fraternity and Trees dated June 20th of this year that illustrates the party differences in this regard:
During the amendment voting for “defense” appropriations last night, Alan Grayson (FL-09) introduced an amendment to prohibit the use of funds to transfer aircraft (including unmanned aerial vehicles), armored vehicles, grenade launchers, silencers, toxicological agents, launch vehicles, guided missiles, ballistic missiles, rockets, torpedoes, bombs, mines, or nuclear weapons through the DOD Excess Personal Property Program established pursuant to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1997.
There was a great article in the New York Times last week on the militarization of local police. Giving military weapons to local police departments is at best a colossal waste of money. At its worst, it can ruin–or end–innocent lives.
The amendment failed 62 to 355. 19 Republicans and 43 Democrats voted for it. 210 Republicans and 145 Democrats voted against it.
http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2014/08/no-it-isnt-only-libertarians-who-care.html
Friday, August 15, 2014
Must Credit The Right
People who live in communities most affected by police militarization are, you know, Democrats and liberals. Also, poor people and black people who no one ever listens to. Still it’s always those cool kids on the right who are out in front on all of the important issues.
http://www.eschatonblog.com/2014/08/must-credit-right.html
The Ferguson Police Chief’s Statement Is Only Making Things Worse
By Brian Beutler
Five days after a police officer fired multiple rounds at and killed 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, we now know that the officer’s name is Darren Wilson. Thanks to Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson, we also know that officers believe Brown had just strong-armed a convenience store clerk for a $48.99 box of Swisher Sweets cigars. Jackson provided the incident report from that robbery to reporters in Missouri this morning. He took no questions, suggesting reporters take some time to “digest it.”
Having read it and re-read it and digested it, I find the Ferguson police department’s behavior over the past week even more baffling than I did before.
For the sake of argument let’s assume (a huge assumption) that the Ferguson police are not trying to build a public case for Wilson’s innocence by assassinating a dead man’s character.
Why did it take five days for them to release this information, none of which has anything to do with the circumstances of Brown’s death?
What happened to the box of Swisher Sweets?
Per Matt Yglesias, if Brown was a suspect in a robbery, why wasn’t his accomplice Dorian Johnson arrested and charged rather than allowed to escape and appear in multiple television news interviews?
Was Johnson lying when he claimed that Wilson approached him and Brown not to question or arrest them for robbery but to tell them to “get the fuck onto the sidewalk”?
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We don’t know because Jackson says he “cannot discuss the investigation about the attempted apprehension of the suspect in that strong-arm robbery. That goes to the county prosecutor’s office.”
I’m sure there are more questions. This is just for starters. But it smells very bad when a police department refuses to release any information about a deadly officer-involved shooting, unleashing five days of madness, and then reverses course to assure the public that Brown was a menacing, cigar-stealing thug.
I’ve seen a number of people online entertain an obvious but important hypothetical series of events like the ones in Ferguson, only with races reversed. Among the reasons such a scenario is so hard for so many people to fathom is that we instinctually believe protests would be unnecessary if a black officer killed a white kid because justice would be meted out swiftly and transparently.
Do a quick Google search for news stories about a black police officer killing a white teenager and the internet will spit back dozens of stories about precisely the opposite scenario. Michael Brown after Michael Brown.
But you’ll also find the Orange, Texas case of Captain Robert Arnold, a black Ranger who wrongfully killed James Whitehead, a white former Marine. Whitehead barked racial slurs at Arnold, who was responding to an altercation at an auto parts store, but the police insisted the slurs had nothing to do with the use of force. Arnold’s name was released to the press immediately. He was placed on administrative leave following the shooting. A Grand Jury said it lacked sufficient evidence to recommend a prosecution, but Arnold was nevertheless suspended indefinitely because, as police chief Sam Kittrell told Arnold in a letter, “alternative measures on your part would have prevented the necessity of the use of deadly force
http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119109/ferguson-police-michael-brown-incident-raises-more-questions
Is Race An Issue In Ferguson? Depends On Whom You Ask
Brown’s death and fiery rallies exposed two cities that exist in one. Some residents say, “It’s one of the most racist places there is.” But the mayor insists, “There’s not a black-white divide in Ferguson.”
posted on Aug. 15, 2014, at 11:07 p.m.
Joel AndersonBuzzFeed Staff
FERGUSON, Missouri — From his neatly-manicured front yard, Peter Tries could hear sirens in the distance. But the armored vehicles bristling with officers wielding assault rifles, the large cable TV news trucks, and all the other scenes that flooded America from his hometown of Ferguson — none of that happened in his neighborhood. And he objects to the view of his hometown as a cauldron of racial tension.
“I think this whole thing is getting blown out of proportion,” said Tries, who is white and 35 years old. “There’s never been any kind of race thing here. It’s something I never even think about.”
Over at the Prime Time Beauty & Barber Shop, a social hub in the black part of town, folks see it differently. “They treat us like criminals,” said barber Branden Turner, who’s worked at the shop for a few years. They described officers routinely waiting for customers to leave so they could give them traffic tickets, search for drugs, or ask them for identification so they could run a background check.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/joelanderson/is-race-an-issue-in-ferguson-depends-on-who-you-ask
FULL BLOWN WHITE PRIVILEGE ON DISPLAY HERE
““I think this whole thing is getting blown out of proportion,” said Tries, who is white and 35 years old. “There’s never been any kind of race thing here. It’s something I never even think about.”
Facepalm!
orUS50 @FORUS50
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.@stevenlwalker Ferguson PD uses tanks& tear gas & against peaceful protesters but not 1 there to stop looters. #ObviousFPDincitesViolence
7:01 AM – 16 Aug 2014
https://twitter.com/k_psi/status/500529489235828738/photo/1
https://twitter.com/wesleylowery/status/500528268517572608
There are six federal agencies investigating in Ferguson according to a reporter on Up with Steve Kornacki.
Anyone want to remotely believe that any other President would have them in Ferguson?
https://twitter.com/Yamiche/status/500452907595354112/photo/1
LOL You got it, sister. There will be NO Oscars for this crew.
Jessica Pieklo @Hegemommy
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Worth repeating: if shooting officer didn’t know Brown was a robbery suspect that story likely not admissible. That was for the jury pool
2:51 PM – 15 Aug 2014
I was thinking about that. It is not admissable, but it’s media fodder intended to exonerrate the cop in the court of public opinion.
The cop’s harassment that escalated to murder would have happened regardless of what happened previously. Timing was a strange coincidence, but Michael Brown is dead because the cop didn’t like where he was in the street.
Yes; again, it’s Sanford/Zimmerman palybook.
Hoping they’ll get another white B37 juror.
Imani ABL @AngryBlackLady
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In what world do you let a cop who killed someone leave town? http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/report-ferguson-officer-darren-wilson-skipped-town … #Ferguson
2:59 PM – 15 Aug 2014
Oliver Willis @owillis
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shorter #ferguson pd: “damn, we thought we could dirty up this guys name, we didn’t think you guys would CHECK”
2:21 PM – 15 Aug 2014
Okay, I have a question.
Why did Ferugson Police Chief call the stealing of cigars a “strong armed robbery” instead of just saying that the store clerk was PUSHED when he tried to stop them?
Was it to get the words “armed” and “robbery” right next to each other?
Why not say he was shoplifting and pushed the store clerk on the way out?
This words choice is very telling as to the Police Chief’s agenda. It is a “word game” strategy….. “buzz” words at play here.
Taint the potential jury pool. Just like Mark O’Mara did by posting a black hand holding a gun.
That was just so cleverly EVIL. He wanted to convey to the racist white jurors that BLACK PEOPLE SHOULDN’T EVEN OWN A GUN.
Amy Goodman interviews Radley Balko, author of the book, “Rise of the Warrior Cop: The Militarization of America’s Police Forces.” Good interview. Scary. Our taxes pay for this.
Video at link
Cops or Soldiers? Pentagon, DHS Helped Arm Police in Ferguson with Equipment Used in War
The events in Ferguson over the past week have sparked a national debate over racial profiling and the militarization of local police forces. On Thursday, Attorney General Eric Holder said, “I am deeply concerned that the deployment of military equipment and vehicles sends a conflicting message.” What Holder did not mention was the federal government’s role in supplying local police forces with military-grade equipment. The New York Times reports Department of Homeland Security grant money paid for the $360,000 BearCat armored truck on patrol in Ferguson. Most of the body armor worn by officers responding to the Ferguson protests was also paid for with federal money. We speak to Radley Balko, author of the book, “Rise of the Warrior Cop: The Militarization of America’s Police Forces.” “When we take domestic police officers and we train them like soldiers and we give them military gear and we dress them up like soldiers and we tell them they’re fighting a war — a war on crime or a war on terror — they’re going to start to see themselves as soldiers,” Balko says.
http://www.democracynow.org/2014/8/15/cops_or_soldiers_pentagon_dhs_helped
Is there any live INTERNET feed from Ferguson tonight?
check out this feed, Yahtc.
http://new.livestream.com/accounts/9035483/events/3271930
Live Feed From Ferguson Here: http://redeyesfrontpage.blogspot.com/2014/08/just-because-some-media-reported-police.html
Hey RedEye! Nice to see you. Thank you so much.
Thanks RedEye and Ametia :)
Thanks for shining the spotlight on Bob McColloch with your article, SG2.
We have to get him removed. He has no business prosecuting racially charged murders.
His entire prosecutorial history should be reviewed.
LOL
AND
On point, Liza & SG2. Bobby boy ain’t got to go home, but he gots to get the hellout of that prosecution’s office.
LOL! I couldn’t help from laughing.
Report: Ferguson Cop ID’d As Unarmed Teen’s Killer Left The Area Days Ago
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/report-ferguson-officer-darren-wilson-skipped-town
Darren Wilson, the Ferguson, Mo. police officer who was identified Friday as the cop that killed an unarmed black teenager last weekend, reportedly skipped town with his family days ago.
USA Today reported that no one answered the door Friday at Wilson’s Crestwood, Mo. home. A police officer keeping watch over the home told the newspaper that Wilson had left town with his family days ago.
A neighbor told USA Today that she’d had no idea that Wilson was the cop who shot 18-year-old Michael Brown until Friday morning, when Crestwood police informed residents that Wilson was involved in the incident and their neighborhood would draw attention.
It’s unclear exactly when Wilson left the area. The fatal shooting occurred Saturday.
*tears*
So heartbreaking.
My gosh, one needs thigh high boots to slog through the corruption in that town.
I can smell the stench of Ferguson here in MN.
The Ferguson police chief Jackson needs to STEP DOWN. He keeps changing his story. He’s making it up as he go.The public deserves better than this.
Bob McCulloch has to go. He cannot be trusted. A special prosecutor needs to be appointed to ensure justice is served.
STEP ASIDE, Mccolloch! Ewww, check out his head piece. Looks like the fronts braided. LOL
Talk about a CESSPOOL. ST. Louis, Missouri is a HOT MESS. A cesspool of corruption and racial bigotry.
How on earth can you have fa air jury of peers when black people are intentionally and systematically kept off a jury? thus the high % blacks being convicted.
If the folks in St. Louis, particularly Ferguson haven’t learned that as a majority they have power to vote their best interest by now…
This is a wakeup call for everyone who can vote, to get registered if they aren’t and get to the POLLS FOLKS!
Yes.
And, we need to find out if there are any difficulties or efforts to suppress the vote in that area. Have any of you seen any articles or studies on the voting conditions in Ferguson and greater St. Louis?
I was wondering about that, Yahtc.
I found this article this morning that addresses the voting situation:
“Around St. Louis, a Circle of Rage”
AUG. 16, 2014
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/17/us/ferguson-mo-complex-racial-history-runs-deep-most-tensions-have-to-do-police-force.html?_r=0
Excerpt (but whole article should be read) :
Although about two-thirds of Ferguson residents are black, its mayor and five of its six City Council members are white. Only three of the town’s 53 police officers are black.
Turnout for local elections in Ferguson has been poor. The mayor, James W. Knowles III, noted his disappointment with the turnout — about 12 percent — in the most recent mayoral election during a City Council meeting in April. Patricia Bynes, a black woman who is the Democratic committeewoman for the Ferguson area, said the lack of black involvement in local government was partly the result of the black population’s being more transient in small municipalities and less attached to them.
There is also some frustration among blacks who say town government is not attuned to their concerns.
Aliyah Woods, 45, once petitioned Ferguson officials for a sign that would warn drivers that a deaf family lived on that block. But the sign never came. “You get tired,” she said. “You keep asking, you keep asking. Nothing gets done.”
So Mr. PROSECUTING ATTORNEY, Bob McColloch conspired to keep BLACK PEOPLE off the jury. Isn’t this RICH?
Tim Wise article:
Resurrecting Apartheid: White Police and Politicians are Waging War on Black America”
Posted on August 15, 2014
http://www.timwise.org/2014/08/resurrecting-apartheid-white-police-and-politicians-are-waging-war-on-black-america/
But but but…. Mo Brooks says differently!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPKitcoKuEo
http://3chicspolitico.com/2014/08/06/republican-mo-fo-brooks-says-dems-have-declared-war-on-white-people/
Have you seen this video from yesterday?
http://youtu.be/9_icVWKO4_o&rel=0