White supremacists vicious assault on Deandre Harris in Charlottesville

Posted on August 15, 2017 by

A savage attack on a counter-protester during Saturday’s violent “Unite the Right” rally in Virginia evoked memories of the ugliest days of the civil rights movement, an original Freedom Rider said Monday.

Among the victims of the Charlottesville violence was a local resident who joined his friends to demonstrate against the organizers of the white nationalist event in the city’s Emancipation Park.

Deandre Harris, 20, was attacked in a parking lot by a group of white supremacists who kicked him, punched him and pummeled him with metal poles.

Daniel “Dan” Borden
Michael Ramos
Michael Tubbs Chairman of Florida League of the South
This guy pulled a gun on the people who tried to help Deandre Harris

On August 12th, 2017 there was a “Unite the Right” march of white nationalist and other right-wing groups (KKK, Neo-nazis, and white supremacists) that took place in Charlottesville, Virginia. These individuals were protesting against the removal of local confederate monuments, primarily the Robert E. Lee Statue in Emancipation Park. I arrived at Emancipation Park around 11 AM as a counter-protester to voice my opinion on racial tensions and to literally stand up for what I believe in. I was only there for a few minutes before I was hit with water bottles, maced with pepper spray, and had derogoratoy slurs hurled at me. Just forty-five minutes in to the rally our Gov. Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency to aid state response to violence. About fifteen minutes or so after that I was brutally attacked by white supremacists in the parking garage right beside the Charlottesville Police Station. I was chased and beat with metal poles. I was knocked unconscious repeatedly. Every time I went to stand up I was knocked back down.

If it was not for my friends that I came with I would have been beaten to a pulp. No law enforcement stepped in to help me. Once I was dragged off to some near by steps I was taken to the designated area for injured protesters & counter-protesters. My injuries were too extensive to be treated at the scene so I was taken to the ER at Martha Jefferson Hospital. I was diagnosed with a concussion, an ulna fracture, and had to receive eight staples in my head. I also have a laceration across my right eyebrow, abrasions on my knees & elbows, and a chipped tooth. I’m so blessed to be alive to tell my story and to show the world that racism is very much still alive.

Alt right guy, Michael Tubbs appears to order the violence.

Posted in Black Lives Matter, crime, Current Events, Murder, News, Open Thread, Protests, Violence, White Supremacy | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 82 Comments

Tuesday Open Thread | Voter SUPPRESSION is REAL….Voter FRAUD is NOT

Posted on August 15, 2017 by

Case in point, Indiana.

Republicans limiting early voting in Marion County, letting it bloom in suburbs
Fatima Hussein, fatima.hussein@indystar.com
Published 6:00 a.m. ET Aug. 10, 2017

State and local Republicans have expanded early voting in GOP-dominated areas and restricted it in Democratic areas, an IndyStar investigation has found, prompting a significant change in Central Indiana voting patterns.

From 2008 to 2016, GOP officials expanded early voting stations in Republican dominated Hamilton County, IndyStar’s analysis found, and decreased them in the state’s biggest Democratic hotbed, Marion County.

That made voting more convenient in GOP areas for people with transportation issues or busy schedules. And the results were immediate.

Most telling, Hamilton County saw a 63 percent increase in absentee voting from 2008 to 2016, while Marion County saw a 26 percent decline. Absentee ballots are used at early voting stations.

Population growth and other factors may have played a role, but Hamilton County Clerk Kathy Richardson, a Republican, told IndyStar the rise in absentee voting in Hamilton County was largely a result of the addition of two early voting stations, which brought the total to three.

“It was a great concept to open those (voting stations),” Richardson said, adding that the turnout might have increased with the addition of even more voting machines.

Other Central Indiana Republican strongholds, including Boone, Johnson and Hendricks counties, also have added early voting sites — and enjoyed corresponding increases in absentee voter turnout.

But not Marion County, which tends to vote Democratic, and has a large African-American population.

During that same 2008-16 period, the number of early voting stations declined from three to one in Marion County, as Republican officials blocked expansion.

So, let’s make it absolutely clear.
They EXPANDED Early Voting in REPUBLICAN COUNTIES.
They REFUSED TO EXPAND Early Voting in DEMOCRATIC COUNTIES.
THIS IS VOTER SUPPRESSION.

Posted in 2016 Elections, Black Voter Suppression, Black Voters, Department of Justice, Open Thread, Politics, Voting Rights | Tagged , , , , | 87 Comments

Monday Open Thread | The State of Our Country

Posted on August 14, 2017 by

Been thinking about what happened on Saturday.
Some have said that they were saddened by what happened on Saturday.

Me?
I’m just mad as hell. Because, there’s no reason why we should be at this point in time. We should be beyond this mess.
Yet, it seems as if we’re not. But, we are.

While the march was disgusting.
And, the non-response of the Attorney General was disgusting.
And, the non-response of the President of the United States was disgusting. Uttering that garbage all the while having Bannon, Miller and Gorka working IN the White House.

The outrage by decent people was heartening.
The investigations by Twitter warriors to expose those bold enough to march without a hood is heartening.
The diversity of the anti-alt-right crowd marching is heartening.

God bless that young woman, Heather Heyer. May her family be enveloped with support as they go through their loss.

For those of us, on the side of right..never said it would be easy, but we must stand for right.
We must call out those that coddle those that would peddle hate.
Even if we don’t believe a word they utter, folks like the Attorney General and President must have their feet held to the fire.
We must bring every receipt.

For everyone who doesn’t understand why the statues- those symbols of hate- must be taken down, I give you the Mayor of New Orleans:

Posted in 2016 Elections, History, Open Thread, Politics, Racial Bias, racial hate, Racial Oppression, racial terror, Racism, US Department of Justice, Violence | Tagged , , , , , | 103 Comments

Sunday Praise & Worship | Amazing Grace

Posted on August 13, 2017 by

Prayers to the family of the woman who died and the people injured in the terrorist attack in Charlottesville Virginia. My heart hurts for them all.

Wintley Augustus Phipps (born January 7, 1955) was born in Trinidad and Tobago. Phipps is an ordained Seventh-day Adventist minister, world-renowned vocal artist, and innovative initiator of special projects such as the US Dream Academy.[1]

He also founded Songs of Freedom Publishing Company and Coral Records Recording Company. Mr. Phipps has been the featured speaker and performer at many notable occasions around the world.

Wintley Phipps, at an early age, moved to Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He attended Kingsway College, a Seventh-day Adventist Christian Academy, and later Oakwood University in Huntsville, Alabama where he received a Bachelors of Arts degree in Theology. Phipps would later go on to earn a Masters of Divinity degree from Andrews University in Berrien Springs, Michigan.

Posted in Christianity, Current Events, Gospel, Honor, News, Open Thread, Politics, Praise, Worship | Tagged , , , , | 44 Comments

Breaking: VA Gov has declared a state of emergency: White Supremacy Rally

Posted on August 12, 2017 by

Posted in Current Events, News, Protests, White Supremacy | Tagged , , , , , , | 216 Comments

Saturday Open Thread | GSA accidentally posted Trump hotel data on gov’t website

Posted on August 12, 2017 by

The  General Services Administration (GSA) pulled unredacted documents from its website Thursday that revealed President Trump’s Washington hotel has made $1.97 million in profits so far in 2017.

“The documents were posted inadvertently and have been removed from the website,” Pamela Dixon, a spokeswoman for the GSA, said in a statement.

Trump International Hotel, which sits blocks away from the White House, was expected to lose more than $2 million in its first four months, according to the documents.

But the hotel raised its room rates after Trump took office, charging an average of $652.98 per night from January to April and resulting in a sizable profit.
Comparable luxury hotels, according to The Washington Post, charged an average of $495 per night, putting Trump’s hotel among Washington’s most expensive.

The Trump Organization leases the building in which the hotel is located from the GSA, the agency that acts as the federal government’s landlord.

The hotel has also become a point of controversy for the president, with ethics watchdogs questioning whether Trump is using the presidency to drum up business at the hotel.

Trump himself has made occasional appearances at the property since taking office. He held a high-dollar fundraiser for GOP campaigns at the hotel in June and has dined there several times.

Posted in Current Events, News, Open Thread | Tagged , , , , , | 39 Comments

Friday Open Thread | Lawrence: Paul Manafort Raid Means ‘Probable Cause’ Crime Committed

Posted on August 11, 2017 by

ALTERNET: Here are some of the most significant clues about the Russia probe revealed in reporting on the Manafort raid:

The former Trump campaign chairman had been voluntarily producing documents to congressional investigators — but the search warrant indicates investigators told a federal judge they had reason to believe Manafort could not be trusted to turn over all records sought by a federal subpoena or might even destroy some of the evidence.

That suspicion alone isn’t enough to justify a search warrant. Prosecutors must persuade a judge there is probable cause to believe evidence of a crime will be found during a search. In other words, “FBI agents had to swear to their belief that fruits of a crime would be found in Manafort’s home,” former federal prosecutor Kenneth Julian told Business Insider — and the judge had to agree.

It’s not clear what crime FBI agents expected to uncover at Manafort’s home, but a New York Times report on the raid offers a clue. The search warrant seeks tax and foreign banking records — which suggests that investigators may look to charge Manafort under the federal Bank Secrecy Act requiring Americans to report their foreign bank accounts.

The wide-ranging search warrant included documents Manafort had already provided to Congress, and he also turned over 400 pages to meet an Aug. 2 deadline. But the raid prompted fears that Mueller was trying to build a case against Manafort unrelated to the campaign to pressure him into turning on other Trump associates. “(I) would add that a raid coming months into a probe when subject’s attorneys have been talking to the Department of Justice also suggests something serious,” said Matthew Miller, former communications director for the Justice Department and spokesman for former attorney general Eric Holder.

Posted in Foreign Agent Registration Act, News, Open Thread, Politics, Russia | Tagged , , , , , | 89 Comments