Showing posts with label Ferguson Riots. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ferguson Riots. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Monday, March 16, 2015
Missouri Dem Rep. Clay: Ferguson PD Criminalizing People Based on Their Skin Color
Mar. 15, 2015
CLAY: It’s possible. If that’s what justified the existence of the police force, then, yes. The police force probably should be dismantled and allow the St. Louis County police a better trained force, a more qualified force, a larger force to actually come in and conduct policing in a totally different way that restores the trust of the people, that shows respect to the people who pay their salaries and to start and to stop judging people by the color of their skins and criminalizing it because of what color they are, which is evident — is what was happening up to this point in Ferguson and surrounding communities.
Mar. 15, 2015
CLAY: It’s possible. If that’s what justified the existence of the police force, then, yes. The police force probably should be dismantled and allow the St. Louis County police a better trained force, a more qualified force, a larger force to actually come in and conduct policing in a totally different way that restores the trust of the people, that shows respect to the people who pay their salaries and to start and to stop judging people by the color of their skins and criminalizing it because of what color they are, which is evident — is what was happening up to this point in Ferguson and surrounding communities.
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Sunday, March 15, 2015
ICYMI: Billionaire George Soros Spent $33MILLION Bankrolling Ferguson Demonstrators To Create 'Echo Chamber' And Drive National Protests
 |
Protestors march and hold their fists aloft as they march
during ongoing demonstrations in reaction to the shooting
of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri August 16, 2014.
(Reuters/Lucas Jackson) / rt.com
|
Liberal billionaire George Soros donated $33million to social justice organizations which helped turn events in Ferguson from a local protest into a national flashpoint.
The handouts, revealed in tax filings from Soros's private foundation, were given to dozens of different groups which weighed in on the crisis.
Organizers from professional groups in Washington, D.C., and New York were bussed into the Missouri town to co-ordinate messaging and lobby to news media to cover events using the billionaire's funding.
The flood of donations were uncovered in an analysis of the latest tax return by Soros's Open Society Foundations by the Washington Times.
The cash was reportedly funneled into keeping up numbers of protesters in the community over a period of months by bringing in outside activists.
Meanwhile papers from think tanks were disseminated to bring in extra coverage of the civil unrest, also linked to the police killings of Eric Garner in Staten Island and Tamir Rice, 12, in Cleveland, Ohio.
Outlets which covered the research, and the movements themselves, included one, Colorlines, which Soros himself has funded.
Read more: www.dailymail.co.uk
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Saturday, March 14, 2015
Sen. Roy Blunt: Media Reporting Made Ferguson ‘Worse’ than it Would Have Been Otherwise
Mar. 13, 2015
HEMMER: “Have the politicians made this worse than it would have been otherwise?”
BLUNT: “I think a lot of the reporting made it worse than it would otherwise. I think people —”
HEMMER: “Sorry, sir, are you suggesting the media?”
BLUNT: “Both the media and people explaining things in ways that just were not reality. People talking about armored vehicles as if they were armed vehicles. You know, there is difference in the armored car that goes to the bank and a Sherman tank. But in a lot of this discussion you would thought police were out there with equipment that was designed for some kind of a warfare when it was only designed to protect the police and others. In some cases in Ferguson, people who were shot themselves — and these aren’t the first people shot in Ferguson, Bill. They are the first police that have been shot in Ferguson during these protests. People shot during the protests. The police on occasion had to take armored vehicles in as the only way to get the protesters who were shot out of the situation they were in. That was never reported, I think, in the way that it should have been in a lot of discussion about should they have military equipment? Almost any equipment that they had came not from the military but from homeland security. People would have said, ‘Homeland security equipment? Gee, that’s fine.’ But that wasn’t the discussion”
HEMMER: “Come back to the point about the politicians in the media—and I fully respect your opinion on all of this. That’s why we have you on today. But what the sheriff in Milwaukee is suggesting is that the president and the attorney general need to talk to the people who are living in these communities and remind them to respect authority. That was one of his main points last night. What about that?”
BLUNT: “It was one of his main points. I thought yesterday the president and the attorney general both were on point in talking about how unacceptable this activity was; how—as the attorney general called these people punks. I think both referred to these attempts as ambushes; not a very — that’s a cowardly way to approach anybody. I think they were right there. But I’m not at all sure –“
HEMMER: “Sorry, but it was deeper than that senator. It was about reminding people in these communities long before incidents with Michael Brown took place, that you need to respect the authority and the law, and send the reminders repeatedly so we can avoid the next incident.”
BLUNT: “I don’t disagree with that. I think the both president and the attorney general could have been more helpful in Ferguson and around the country as this division began to develop about policing tactics. There is nothing wrong with people looking at a force to see if pattern and practice could be better. In fact, the St. Louis County force which—one of the officers was in that 1,100 person force— voluntarily has been working with the Justice Department to be sure that all of their practices are what you’d hope they would be. I think when the Justice Department completes that we will find that they are.”
Mar. 13, 2015
HEMMER: “Have the politicians made this worse than it would have been otherwise?”
BLUNT: “I think a lot of the reporting made it worse than it would otherwise. I think people —”
HEMMER: “Sorry, sir, are you suggesting the media?”
BLUNT: “Both the media and people explaining things in ways that just were not reality. People talking about armored vehicles as if they were armed vehicles. You know, there is difference in the armored car that goes to the bank and a Sherman tank. But in a lot of this discussion you would thought police were out there with equipment that was designed for some kind of a warfare when it was only designed to protect the police and others. In some cases in Ferguson, people who were shot themselves — and these aren’t the first people shot in Ferguson, Bill. They are the first police that have been shot in Ferguson during these protests. People shot during the protests. The police on occasion had to take armored vehicles in as the only way to get the protesters who were shot out of the situation they were in. That was never reported, I think, in the way that it should have been in a lot of discussion about should they have military equipment? Almost any equipment that they had came not from the military but from homeland security. People would have said, ‘Homeland security equipment? Gee, that’s fine.’ But that wasn’t the discussion”
HEMMER: “Come back to the point about the politicians in the media—and I fully respect your opinion on all of this. That’s why we have you on today. But what the sheriff in Milwaukee is suggesting is that the president and the attorney general need to talk to the people who are living in these communities and remind them to respect authority. That was one of his main points last night. What about that?”
BLUNT: “It was one of his main points. I thought yesterday the president and the attorney general both were on point in talking about how unacceptable this activity was; how—as the attorney general called these people punks. I think both referred to these attempts as ambushes; not a very — that’s a cowardly way to approach anybody. I think they were right there. But I’m not at all sure –“
HEMMER: “Sorry, but it was deeper than that senator. It was about reminding people in these communities long before incidents with Michael Brown took place, that you need to respect the authority and the law, and send the reminders repeatedly so we can avoid the next incident.”
BLUNT: “I don’t disagree with that. I think the both president and the attorney general could have been more helpful in Ferguson and around the country as this division began to develop about policing tactics. There is nothing wrong with people looking at a force to see if pattern and practice could be better. In fact, the St. Louis County force which—one of the officers was in that 1,100 person force— voluntarily has been working with the Justice Department to be sure that all of their practices are what you’d hope they would be. I think when the Justice Department completes that we will find that they are.”
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Friday, March 13, 2015
O’Reilly Goes After Method Man’s ‘Colossal Ignorance’ on Ferguson
Mar. 12, 2015
O’REILLY: “[Last night, a similar situation occurred in] Ferguson, Missouri, but the officers have survived. At 2:45 Central Time yesterday afternoon, Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson resigned. That’s what the protesters wanted. He and the city manager are now out thereof and a new power structure for Ferguson will emerge. However by 8:00 p.m. last night, an estimated 150 protesters had gathered outside the Ferguson police station. About 70 cops there to keep order. At 9:00 p.m.a protester was arrested for blocking a public street. 10:30 another protester also arrested for that. 45 minutes later a third protester taken into custody. All the while, there was some physical altercations. You can see them there within the crowd, but nothing dramatic. At 11:45 p.m. police say there were about 75 protesters left. But 15 minutes later, three or four shots rang out.”
[clip starts]
[Gunshots]
[Shouting]
NN FEMALE: “There was just gunfire and now cops have guns drawn.”
[clip ends]
O’REILLY: “Two police officers shot and wounded. They have now been released from the hospital. Now, I believe the protesters did not — did not — shoot the officers. This was a calculated ambush by an anarchists, people who want to create violent situations inside the USA. The total population of Ferguson is just over 21,000 people, so less than 1 percent of residents were protesting last night. Why the low number? Because there was nothing to protest. The city’s changing, trying to put the Michael Brown shooting behind it. But anarchism is growing in America. Whenever controversial situations arise, these people show up looking for trouble. And they are not always condemned. Listen to rapper Method Man going unchallenged on MSNBC.”
[clip starts]
METHOD MAN: “This thing that happened I guess in Ferguson just now with the two officers — sad, very sad. I hate to say that FBI report kind of played into this and these things shouldn’t be happening, but you reap what you sow, in a sense.”
[clip ends]
O’REILLY: “So, according to Mr. Method Man, because the FBI did an honest investigation, supervised by Attorney General Eric Holder, the two police officers reaped what they sowed? That kind of colossal ignorance drives violence and the NBC anchor sits there and says nothing? Good grief. Talking Points does not believe the police shootings last night were racial in any way. Again, they’re an anti-American play. And it is the job of the press to expose the haters, not lump them in with legitimate protesters. Right now, that job not being done. And that’s ‘The Memo’.”
Mar. 12, 2015
O’REILLY: “[Last night, a similar situation occurred in] Ferguson, Missouri, but the officers have survived. At 2:45 Central Time yesterday afternoon, Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson resigned. That’s what the protesters wanted. He and the city manager are now out thereof and a new power structure for Ferguson will emerge. However by 8:00 p.m. last night, an estimated 150 protesters had gathered outside the Ferguson police station. About 70 cops there to keep order. At 9:00 p.m.a protester was arrested for blocking a public street. 10:30 another protester also arrested for that. 45 minutes later a third protester taken into custody. All the while, there was some physical altercations. You can see them there within the crowd, but nothing dramatic. At 11:45 p.m. police say there were about 75 protesters left. But 15 minutes later, three or four shots rang out.”
[clip starts]
[Gunshots]
[Shouting]
NN FEMALE: “There was just gunfire and now cops have guns drawn.”
[clip ends]
O’REILLY: “Two police officers shot and wounded. They have now been released from the hospital. Now, I believe the protesters did not — did not — shoot the officers. This was a calculated ambush by an anarchists, people who want to create violent situations inside the USA. The total population of Ferguson is just over 21,000 people, so less than 1 percent of residents were protesting last night. Why the low number? Because there was nothing to protest. The city’s changing, trying to put the Michael Brown shooting behind it. But anarchism is growing in America. Whenever controversial situations arise, these people show up looking for trouble. And they are not always condemned. Listen to rapper Method Man going unchallenged on MSNBC.”
[clip starts]
METHOD MAN: “This thing that happened I guess in Ferguson just now with the two officers — sad, very sad. I hate to say that FBI report kind of played into this and these things shouldn’t be happening, but you reap what you sow, in a sense.”
[clip ends]
O’REILLY: “So, according to Mr. Method Man, because the FBI did an honest investigation, supervised by Attorney General Eric Holder, the two police officers reaped what they sowed? That kind of colossal ignorance drives violence and the NBC anchor sits there and says nothing? Good grief. Talking Points does not believe the police shootings last night were racial in any way. Again, they’re an anti-American play. And it is the job of the press to expose the haters, not lump them in with legitimate protesters. Right now, that job not being done. And that’s ‘The Memo’.”
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‘Enough Is Enough’: Megyn Kelly Slams ‘Rush to Judgment’ on Ferguson
Mar. 12, 2015
“At this hour police officers across the city of Ferguson, Missouri, are searching for the shooters, assumed to be armed and dangerous, knowing at any moment they may find this person or persons and face a deadly confrontation.
You would think the risk they are facing is the focus of the national conversation today—would be the focus on the national conversation. You would be wrong. Today the conversation consisted of a quick expression of sympathy for the injured officers, followed by a long justification for a protest movement based upon a lie.
For months a segment of our political leaders and pundits attacked cops across this country based on the myth that 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, was shot in the back by a cop while surrendering with his hand up. Wrong! Totally wrong!
We saw members of Congress on the steps of the U.S. Capitol hands in air saying, ‘Hands up. Don’t shoot.’ And if one of them has so far apologized for misleading America, we haven’t heard it. Enough is enough!
Institutional racism is a real problem but fanning flames, rushing to judgement, failing to provide context is problematic and dangerous. And it needs to stop. Everyone needs to be more responsible…”
Mar. 12, 2015
“At this hour police officers across the city of Ferguson, Missouri, are searching for the shooters, assumed to be armed and dangerous, knowing at any moment they may find this person or persons and face a deadly confrontation.
You would think the risk they are facing is the focus of the national conversation today—would be the focus on the national conversation. You would be wrong. Today the conversation consisted of a quick expression of sympathy for the injured officers, followed by a long justification for a protest movement based upon a lie.
For months a segment of our political leaders and pundits attacked cops across this country based on the myth that 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, was shot in the back by a cop while surrendering with his hand up. Wrong! Totally wrong!
We saw members of Congress on the steps of the U.S. Capitol hands in air saying, ‘Hands up. Don’t shoot.’ And if one of them has so far apologized for misleading America, we haven’t heard it. Enough is enough!
Institutional racism is a real problem but fanning flames, rushing to judgement, failing to provide context is problematic and dangerous. And it needs to stop. Everyone needs to be more responsible…”
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Monday, March 9, 2015
Fmr. Atty General Gonzalez Defends Holder’s Role in Ferguson Case
Mar. 9, 2015
SMERCONISH: “[Nondiscriminatory] explanation for this data, such as economics?”
GONZALES: “Not to the percentage that we’re seeing here, that’s why the numbers are very troubling to me, and I believe that the Department of Justice was correct in raising this as a civil rights violation system wide in the police department, in municipal courts in Ferguson. And so I believe that this is something that needs to be — has been identified as a major problem and now a corrective action needs to take place.”
SMERCONISH: “Do you wonder, general, if we went to police department anywhere USA if we would find a similar finding?”
GONZALES: “I would hope not quite honestly. We obviously made significant progress in race relations since Selma, and obvious — and there are a number of — I don’t want us to paint with such a broad brush in terms of what happened in Ferguson that we ignore the very positive work that’s being done by police departments and community leaders all across the nation, but we still have racial problems in this country. That’s why we have civil rights law, that’s why we have a civil rights department at the Department of Justice to address these kinds of issues. But I do think it’s important for people to understand that our laws cannot change people’s hearts. Our laws can’t change people’s behavior. It’s going to take grace. It’s going to take communication and understanding before we change people’s hearts. I’m hopeful that we can do that soon. We’re making progress. I’m hopeful this country will have a leadership to take us there.”
SMERCONISH: “How do you rate Attorney General Holder’s response to the situation in Ferguson and his handling of this case?”
GONZALES: “I think that, you know, he received some criticism about the fact that he went there and perhaps raised expectations about — with respect to civil rights prosecution. But again the Department of Justice, the feds were invited into that community after the shooting of Michael Brown occurred and I think his presence there — General Holder’s presence there, I think, sent a soothing message to very (indecipherable) feelings in that community. So, I don’t fault him for that. The only concern that I might have is, again, acknowledgment that all around the country every day police officers put their lives on the line irrespective of the color of the victim or the person that might be involved in the committing of a crime. And I think we need to acknowledge the very fine work that is ongoing but also understand more work needs to be done.”
SMERCONISH: “I agree with you. By the way an irony of this particular case is that — but for the shooting and the killing of Mike Brown, we wouldn’t know what we know about Ferguson and yet in that particular instance, Police Officer Darren Wilson will not be charged by virtue of the conclusion reached by the attorney general’s office.”
GONZALES: “Not only by the attorney general’s office, but also by the grand jury there on the ground. So obviously going in, my understanding was based upon the civil rights laws and the expectations that we have in the Department of Justice, that’s a very tough hurdle to try to meet. But now the facts have been looked at and now we need to see what we can do to address system wide problems here in Ferguson.”
SMERCONISH: “[Nondiscriminatory] explanation for this data, such as economics?”
GONZALES: “Not to the percentage that we’re seeing here, that’s why the numbers are very troubling to me, and I believe that the Department of Justice was correct in raising this as a civil rights violation system wide in the police department, in municipal courts in Ferguson. And so I believe that this is something that needs to be — has been identified as a major problem and now a corrective action needs to take place.”
SMERCONISH: “Do you wonder, general, if we went to police department anywhere USA if we would find a similar finding?”
GONZALES: “I would hope not quite honestly. We obviously made significant progress in race relations since Selma, and obvious — and there are a number of — I don’t want us to paint with such a broad brush in terms of what happened in Ferguson that we ignore the very positive work that’s being done by police departments and community leaders all across the nation, but we still have racial problems in this country. That’s why we have civil rights law, that’s why we have a civil rights department at the Department of Justice to address these kinds of issues. But I do think it’s important for people to understand that our laws cannot change people’s hearts. Our laws can’t change people’s behavior. It’s going to take grace. It’s going to take communication and understanding before we change people’s hearts. I’m hopeful that we can do that soon. We’re making progress. I’m hopeful this country will have a leadership to take us there.”
SMERCONISH: “How do you rate Attorney General Holder’s response to the situation in Ferguson and his handling of this case?”
GONZALES: “I think that, you know, he received some criticism about the fact that he went there and perhaps raised expectations about — with respect to civil rights prosecution. But again the Department of Justice, the feds were invited into that community after the shooting of Michael Brown occurred and I think his presence there — General Holder’s presence there, I think, sent a soothing message to very (indecipherable) feelings in that community. So, I don’t fault him for that. The only concern that I might have is, again, acknowledgment that all around the country every day police officers put their lives on the line irrespective of the color of the victim or the person that might be involved in the committing of a crime. And I think we need to acknowledge the very fine work that is ongoing but also understand more work needs to be done.”
SMERCONISH: “I agree with you. By the way an irony of this particular case is that — but for the shooting and the killing of Mike Brown, we wouldn’t know what we know about Ferguson and yet in that particular instance, Police Officer Darren Wilson will not be charged by virtue of the conclusion reached by the attorney general’s office.”
GONZALES: “Not only by the attorney general’s office, but also by the grand jury there on the ground. So obviously going in, my understanding was based upon the civil rights laws and the expectations that we have in the Department of Justice, that’s a very tough hurdle to try to meet. But now the facts have been looked at and now we need to see what we can do to address system wide problems here in Ferguson.”
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Saturday, February 28, 2015
Holder’s Parting Shot: It’s Too Hard To Bring Civil Rights Cases
ALLEN: “Trayvon Martin’s mother says George Zimmerman got away with murder. You’re writing a letter to Trayvon’s mother, his parents, what will it say?”
HOLDER: “Well, I’m going to try to — it’s yeah — I’m going to pen a letter to them. I’ve worked on it already, and I think I’d like to kind of keep that personal. But one of the things it’s certainly going to talk about is my admiration for the way in which they have conducted themselves. The loss of a child is not something that we are biologically engineered to handle, and the dignity with which they have carried themselves, the determination that has been generated in them to make something positive out of the tragedy that they have had to endure has created in me a great deal of admiration for them.”
ALLEN: “Now, the Ferguson inquiry will be resolved before you leave?”
HOLDER: “Yes.”
ALLEN: “And it looks like no federal charges in Ferguson or Trayvon. I’m a young African-American. What do I think?”
HOLDER: “Well, I would say, first, I would note I have not announced anything with regard to — to Ferguson. “
ALLEN: “Yeah, it looks like it, yeah.”
HOLDER: “But what I said to the people of Ferguson is what I think people ought to understand, is that we have done independent, thorough investigations in all of the matters that we have examined, and we have brought record numbers of cases against police departments around this country. I don’t think anybody would be able to look at this Justice Department over the last six years and say that we’ve been anything other than aggressive in trying to root out inappropriate police conduct while, at the same time, trying to establish, or re-establish bonds of trust between communities of color and people in law enforcement.”
ALLEN: “Mr. Attorney General, are the standards of the civil rights laws too high for you to make cases in instances like this?”
HOLDER: “I mean that’s certainly something that I’m going to want to talk about before I leave. I think some serious consideration needs to be given to the standard of proof that has to be met before federal involvement is appropriate, and that’s something that I am going to be talking about before — before I leave office.”
ALLEN: And in what sense have you come to realize that the standards in the civil rights laws are too high?
HOLDER: “Well, I think that if we adjust those standards, we can make the federal government a better backstop, make us more a part of the process in an appropriate way to reassure the American people that decisions are made by people who are really disinterested, and I think that if we make those adjustments, we will have that capacity.”
ALLEN: “And what is the biggest adjustment you’d like to see?”
HOLDER: “Well, I’m not going to go into it right now, but I’m going to talk about that before I leave.”
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Thursday, December 4, 2014
Charles Barkley Calls Ferguson Rioters ‘Scumbags,’ Supports Grand Jury Decision
Jaime Uribarri, Dec. 1, 2014, New York Daily News
"Those aren't black people, those are scumbags," the NBA Hall of Famer and TNT basketball analyst said of the rioters, who targeted mostly minority-owned businesses.
"There is no excuse for people to be out there burning down people's businesses, burning down police cars."
Read more: www.nydailynews.com
"Those aren't black people, those are scumbags," the NBA Hall of Famer and TNT basketball analyst said of the rioters, who targeted mostly minority-owned businesses.
"There is no excuse for people to be out there burning down people's businesses, burning down police cars."
Read more: www.nydailynews.com
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| Credit: Tannen Maurey/EPA www.dailynews.com |
Is it relevant that St. Louis, near Ferguson, recently had the third-highest per capita murder rate of any large city (with 250,000 or more residents) in America, ranking behind New Orleans and Detroit? And, according to an analysis of 2011 FBI crime stats, St. Louis had the second-highest overall crime rate among large cities.
Is it relevant that the state of Missouri ranks second among states in per capita black homicide victimization rate? According to the Violence Policy Center, only Nebraska has a higher per capita murder rate for black victims, based on 2011 FBI data. Last year, according to FBI statistics, more than 6,300 blacks were homicide victims, or almost 18 per day, almost all at the hands of other blacks. Even more disturbing, a decreasing number of murders are "cleared" (solved). In 1961, 93 percent of all homicides were cleared. That number now is down to 64 percent in 2013, primarily because of drug and gang-related murders where people don't talk because of a "no snitch" culture or fear of retaliation.
Is it relevant that while the world watched the Michael Brown case, two black teenagers and one Hispanic teenager were arrested for murder in a deadly hammer attack against a St. Louis man?
As to the Michael Brown/Darren Wilson case, is it relevant that the forensic evidence shows a trail of blood leading away from Officer Wilson's car and then back toward Wilson, corroborating Wilson's version that Brown charged him? Also, several witnesses, including black witnesses, confirmed Wilson's version.
One witness described Brown charging toward Wilson in a "full charge": "(Mike Brown) stopped. He did turn, he did some sort of body gesture, I'm not sure what it was, but I know it was a body gesture. And I could say for sure he never put his hands up after he did his body gesture; he ran towards the officer full charge. The officer fired several shots at him, and to give an estimate, I would say roughly around five to six shots was fired at Mike Brown. Mike Brown was still coming towards the officer, and at this point I'm thinking, wow, is this officer missing Mike Brown at this close of a range? Mike Brown continuously came forward in the charging motion, and at some point, at one point he started to slow down and he came to a stop. And when he stopped, that's when the officer ceased fire, and when he ceased fire, Mike Brown started to charge once more at him. When he charged once more, the officer returned fire with, I would say, give an estimate of three to four shots. And that's when Mike Brown finally collapsed."
Yes, several "pro-Michael Brown" pundits point to the greater number of witnesses who apparently saw Michael Brown with his hands up. But when witnesses don't agree, with physical evidence that doesn't line up, this isn't even probable cause, let alone reasonable doubt -- if the matter ever reached a jury.
Is it relevant to those crying "injustice" that the Department of Justice is conducting two investigations, one to determine whether Michael Brown's civil rights were violated and the other a top-down review of the Ferguson Police Department? Or that our top law enforcement officer -- the President of United States -- is black, as is the attorney general, the secretary of the department of Homeland Security and Obama's national security advisor? Or that all of this suggests an extremely thorough investigation, with absolutely nothing swept under the carpet?
The media, led by CNN, covers Ferguson as a civil rights story -- rather than focusing on the simple question of whether Officer Wilson responsibly used lethal force. Incredibly, Harvard's Charles Ogletree, once Barack Obama's law professor, called Ferguson "just like the assassination" of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Ogletree said: "This reminds us of exactly what happened years ago when I was a young kid to the great man Emmett Till, the young kid who was killed in Mississippi for allegedly whistling at a white woman. This is even worse, because Michael Brown did not break in any law at all, in terms of the police officer."
Many say Ferguson suffers because its police force "doesn't look like the city." Meaning what? That white cops can't police black areas? That when people call 911, they want an officer who "looks like them"? What do the "activists" think Dr. King would say if we assumed cops were bad because of the color of their skin? He'd call it what it is: racially profiling white cops.
So much for evaluating people, including police officers, not on the basis of their color -- but on the content of their character.
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Tuesday, December 2, 2014
CNN Is Lying When They Say Ferguson Protests Were ‘Peaceful’
Naomi Schaefer Riley, Nov. 29, 2014, New York Post
Where are these peaceful protesters? The reporters can’t seem to find any. Instead, they turn to outside experts and some carefully vetted religious leaders to talk about “the real message” of the protests.
On Tuesday night, CNN correspondent Jason Carroll was reporting, “Most of the protesting we saw in front of the Ferguson Police Department tonight was peaceful.” Then as he started trying to explain the fires burning behind him, he was approached by three of the protesters, who proceeded to get in his face and yell at him because he was promoting a “certain narrative” — the police narrative. “You don’t understand!” one screamed.
Read more: www.nypost.com
Where are these peaceful protesters? The reporters can’t seem to find any. Instead, they turn to outside experts and some carefully vetted religious leaders to talk about “the real message” of the protests.
On Tuesday night, CNN correspondent Jason Carroll was reporting, “Most of the protesting we saw in front of the Ferguson Police Department tonight was peaceful.” Then as he started trying to explain the fires burning behind him, he was approached by three of the protesters, who proceeded to get in his face and yell at him because he was promoting a “certain narrative” — the police narrative. “You don’t understand!” one screamed.
Read more: www.nypost.com
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Monday, December 1, 2014
Farrakhan Calls For Violence To 'Tear' U.S. Over Ferguson
By Joe Newby, Nov. 30, 2014, Examiner.com
While speaking at Morgan State University, a black college in Baltimore, Maryland, Louis Farrakhan, leader of theNation of Islam, called for violence when he said Saturday that if protesters demands aren't met, “we’ll tear this (expletive deleted) country apart!” He also claimed violence is justified because the grand jury chose not to indict Darren Wilson.
“We going to die anyway (sic)," he told the crowd. "Let’s die for something.”
Farrakhan, however, wasn't finished. He instructed parents to teach their children how to throw Molotov cocktails. “Teach your baby how to throw the bottle if they can. Fight,” he added. He imitated throwing the explosive device after making his comments, Scott Greer said.
According to Farrakhan, white people -- who he classifies as "the enemy" -- will only listen if blacks rise up in violence. He also claimed violence is justified by a “law of retaliation” he claims is in both the Bible and the Koran.
“In this book, there’s a law for retaliation,” he said, holding what appeared to be the NOI version of the Koran. “A law for retaliation," he repeated.
“As long as they kill us and go to Wendy’s and have a burger and go to sleep, they’ll keep killing us,” he said. “But when we die and they die, then soon we’re going to sit at a table and talk about it! We’re tired! We want some of this earth or we’ll tear this (expletive deleted) country up!” The crowd reacted with wild applause and cheers.
By Joe Newby, Nov. 30, 2014, Examiner.com
While speaking at Morgan State University, a black college in Baltimore, Maryland, Louis Farrakhan, leader of theNation of Islam, called for violence when he said Saturday that if protesters demands aren't met, “we’ll tear this (expletive deleted) country apart!” He also claimed violence is justified because the grand jury chose not to indict Darren Wilson.
“We going to die anyway (sic)," he told the crowd. "Let’s die for something.”
Farrakhan, however, wasn't finished. He instructed parents to teach their children how to throw Molotov cocktails. “Teach your baby how to throw the bottle if they can. Fight,” he added. He imitated throwing the explosive device after making his comments, Scott Greer said.
According to Farrakhan, white people -- who he classifies as "the enemy" -- will only listen if blacks rise up in violence. He also claimed violence is justified by a “law of retaliation” he claims is in both the Bible and the Koran.
“In this book, there’s a law for retaliation,” he said, holding what appeared to be the NOI version of the Koran. “A law for retaliation," he repeated.
“As long as they kill us and go to Wendy’s and have a burger and go to sleep, they’ll keep killing us,” he said. “But when we die and they die, then soon we’re going to sit at a table and talk about it! We’re tired! We want some of this earth or we’ll tear this (expletive deleted) country up!” The crowd reacted with wild applause and cheers.
Read the full story: www.examiner.com
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Saturday, November 29, 2014
Black Ferguson Residents Arm Themselves and Descend Upon White-Owned Business — The Reason Why Is Front Page Worthy
Jason Howerton, Nov. 28, 2014, The Blaze
A group of four black Ferguson residents reportedly armed themselves and descended upon a white-owned business following a grand jury’s decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson in the fatal shooting of Michael Brown. But unlike many of the Ferguson demonstrators, the armed men were there to protect the business, not destroy it in protest.
The men told the Las Vegas Review Journal that they feel indebted to the white store owner, Doug Merello, who has given them employment over the years.
Read more: www.theblaze.com
A group of four black Ferguson residents reportedly armed themselves and descended upon a white-owned business following a grand jury’s decision not to indict police officer Darren Wilson in the fatal shooting of Michael Brown. But unlike many of the Ferguson demonstrators, the armed men were there to protect the business, not destroy it in protest.
The men told the Las Vegas Review Journal that they feel indebted to the white store owner, Doug Merello, who has given them employment over the years.
Read more: www.theblaze.com
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The Nuclear Option -- Call Ferguson Demonstrations What They Are: 'Obama Riots'
Charles Hurt, Nov. 28, 2014, Breitbart
President Barack Obama will forever rightly hold a distinguished place in American history. That can never be taken away from him.
But it is also true that he owns every single bit of these riots over the tragic killing of unarmed teenager Michael Brown. He owns the discontent. He owns the ignorance. He owns the mayhem. He owns the looting.
This rioting, it's not about Ferguson. It's not about Michael Brown. It's not about Darren Wilson.
Read more: www.breitbart.com
President Barack Obama will forever rightly hold a distinguished place in American history. That can never be taken away from him.
But it is also true that he owns every single bit of these riots over the tragic killing of unarmed teenager Michael Brown. He owns the discontent. He owns the ignorance. He owns the mayhem. He owns the looting.
This rioting, it's not about Ferguson. It's not about Michael Brown. It's not about Darren Wilson.
Read more: www.breitbart.com
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Time Contributor: 'In Defense Of Rioting'
Darlena Cunha, Nov. 25, 2014, TIME
Riots are a necessary part of the evolution of society. Unfortunately, we do not live in a universal utopia where people have the basic human rights they deserve simply for existing, and until we get there, the legitimate frustration, sorrow and pain of the marginalized voices will boil over, spilling out into our streets. As “normal” citizens watch the events of Ferguson unfurl on their television screens and Twitter feeds, there is a lot of head shaking, finger pointing, and privileged explanation going on. We wish to seclude the incident and the people involved. To separate it from our history as a nation, to dehumanize the change agents because of their bad and sometimes violent decisions—because if we can separate the underlying racial tensions that clearly exist in our country from the looting and rioting of select individuals, we can continue to ignore the problem.
Read more: www.time.com
Riots are a necessary part of the evolution of society. Unfortunately, we do not live in a universal utopia where people have the basic human rights they deserve simply for existing, and until we get there, the legitimate frustration, sorrow and pain of the marginalized voices will boil over, spilling out into our streets. As “normal” citizens watch the events of Ferguson unfurl on their television screens and Twitter feeds, there is a lot of head shaking, finger pointing, and privileged explanation going on. We wish to seclude the incident and the people involved. To separate it from our history as a nation, to dehumanize the change agents because of their bad and sometimes violent decisions—because if we can separate the underlying racial tensions that clearly exist in our country from the looting and rioting of select individuals, we can continue to ignore the problem.
Read more: www.time.com
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Most Businesses Destroyed In Ferguson Minority Owned
Kerry Picket, Nov. 25, 2014, Breitbart
KMOV-TV reports that the majority of stores that were damaged or completely destroyed during Monday night's violent riots in Ferguson were minority owned. Fire Departments around the St. Louis County Area put out 25 structural fires caused by vandals and looters following the announcement from the grand jury that Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson would not be indicted in the death of Mike Brown.
Read more: www.breitbart.com
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| Source: www.dailyslave.com |
KMOV-TV reports that the majority of stores that were damaged or completely destroyed during Monday night's violent riots in Ferguson were minority owned. Fire Departments around the St. Louis County Area put out 25 structural fires caused by vandals and looters following the announcement from the grand jury that Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson would not be indicted in the death of Mike Brown.
Read more: www.breitbart.com
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Thursday, November 27, 2014
From the very beginning, this was much ado about an aberration, a tragic aberration to be sure, but an aberration nonetheless.
Michael Brown was shot and killed by Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson on Aug. 9, 2014. Immediately, according to St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch, witnesses began to give different versions of what happened.
The apparent would-be star witness, Dorian Johnson, was with Brown when the shooting occurred. He gave a dramatic account of a trigger-happy bigoted cop who shot "my friend" in the back and gunned him down despite the victim attempting to surrender by placing his hands up. Other alleged eyewitnesses came forward with similar, if not identical, descriptions of an aggressive, out-of-control cop.
Several witnesses, according to McCulloch, later changed their testimony, with some admitting that they really didn't see the incident -- just heard about it and so filled in the blanks in their own mind. And some witnesses were simply proven wrong by the physical evidence. Others corroborated the officer's account.
McCulloch explained why more information wasn't released in a "timely" fashion: "Those closely guarded details, especially about the physical evidence, give law enforcement a yardstick for measuring the truthfulness of witnesses." McCulloch explained that a trail of Brown's blood led from the police car, and was found 25 feet farther away from where Brown's body lay -- suggesting Brown turned and came toward Wilson, as the officer said. "Physical evidence," said McCulloch, "does not change because of public pressure or personal agenda."
After summarizing the evidence, McCullough ended his press conference with a note of hope. He said don't let this "fade away ... we have to keep that discussion going."
But the "discussion" we should have is one we rarely do -- that is, about absentee black fathers, poor education and urban crime.
Ironically, in Wisconsin just three weeks ago, Milwaukee police Chief Edward Flynn was being criticized for inappropriate and disrespectful behavior. Flynn, during a police commission meeting related to an officer-involved shooting, was on his cell phone. Didn't he appreciate the gravity of this hearing? Later, at a press conference, he was asked why he was rude.
The chief said: "Well, I was on my phone, yes. That is true. I was following developments with a 5-year-old girl sitting on her dad's lap who just got shot in the head by a drive-by shooting. If some of the people gave a good goddamn about the victimization of people in this community by crime, I'd take some of their invective more seriously.
"The greatest racial disparity in the city of Milwaukee is getting shot and killed -- hello! Eighty percent of my homicide victims -- every year -- are African-American; 80 percent of our aggravated assault victims are African-American; 80 percent of our shooting victims who survive their shooting are African-American.
"Now, they know all about the last three people who have been killed by the Milwaukee Police Department over the course of the last several years. There's not one of them that can name one of the last three homicide victims we've had in this city. ... But this community is at risk all right, and it's not because men and women in blue risk their lives protecting it. It's at risk because we have large numbers of high-capacity, quality firearms in the hands of remorseless criminals who don't care who they shoot.
"Now I'm leaving here to go to that scene. I take it personally, OK? We're going up there, and there's a bunch of cops processing a scene of a dead kid. And they're the ones that are going to be out there patrolling and stopping suspects that may have guns under the front seat. They're the ones that are gonna take risks to their lives to try to clean this thing up, all right?
"We are responsible for the things we get wrong, and we take action. We've arrested cops, we've fired cops and so on. But the fact is, the people out here, some of them -- who had the most to say -- are absolutely MIA when it comes to the true threats facing this community. It gets a little tiresome, and when you start getting yelled at for reading the updates of the kid who got shot, yeah, you take it personally, OK?"
Meanwhile, in an exchange with black MSNBC pundit Michael Eric Dyson, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani called the Ferguson killing a rarity. He argued that the "heavy policing" in black areas results from the need to address black crime: "I find it very disappointing that you're not discussing the fact that 93 percent of blacks in America are killed by other blacks. We're talking about the exception. ... I would like to see the attention paid to that, that you are paying to (Ferguson). ... It is the reason for the heavy police presence in the black community. ... The white police officers won't be there if you weren't killing each other."
Dyson's response? "This is a defensive mechanism of white supremacy at work in your mind." Well, at least we're "keeping the discussion going."
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