Post by bistro on Jan 7, 2015 19:12:30 GMT -5
A New Year's Resolution: Don't Call the Police
Dec 26, 2014 / TRUTH-OUT.ORG www.truth-out.org/news/item/28215-a-new-years-resolution-don-t-call-the-police
Looking for a New Years resolution? If you haven’t already, there's never been a better time to resolve not to call the cops.
This resolution is more than a boycott or a political protest. It's the beginning of a thought process and a dialogue, both internal and external, that challenges us to build new relationships with our friends, family and neighbors. It's a spark in the imagination that leads us to dream about a free world.
For those of us who weren't already aware, the events of 2014 made it clear that the police do more harm than good, especially in communities of color. From the streets of Ferguson, Missouri to Berkley and New York City, people from all walks of life have been loudly resisting the power of police who, all too often, prove themselves to be racist, armed and dangerous. At our rallies, we chant the names of the dead: Mike Brown, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner and countless others.
Some cops just bully people, but others kill, and the justice system lets them get away with it. In 2012, a study by the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement found that police summarily executed more than 313 black people - an average of one every 28 hours.
This is not a new problem. Police routinely target certain people - particularly people of color (especially men) and gender-nonconforming people - for minor crimes such as drug possession or loitering, or for no crime at all, simply stopping them for "driving while black" or "walking while woman."
Last year, the American Civil Liberties Union found that blacks were 3.7 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites, despite similar rates of drug use. In some counties, that number reaches 30 times higher.
More at the link above.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8z7NC5sgik Don't talk to the cops! Mr. James Duane, a professor at Regent Law School and a former defense attorney, tells you why you should never agree to be interviewed by the police.
Dec 26, 2014 / TRUTH-OUT.ORG www.truth-out.org/news/item/28215-a-new-years-resolution-don-t-call-the-police
Looking for a New Years resolution? If you haven’t already, there's never been a better time to resolve not to call the cops.
This resolution is more than a boycott or a political protest. It's the beginning of a thought process and a dialogue, both internal and external, that challenges us to build new relationships with our friends, family and neighbors. It's a spark in the imagination that leads us to dream about a free world.
For those of us who weren't already aware, the events of 2014 made it clear that the police do more harm than good, especially in communities of color. From the streets of Ferguson, Missouri to Berkley and New York City, people from all walks of life have been loudly resisting the power of police who, all too often, prove themselves to be racist, armed and dangerous. At our rallies, we chant the names of the dead: Mike Brown, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner and countless others.
Some cops just bully people, but others kill, and the justice system lets them get away with it. In 2012, a study by the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement found that police summarily executed more than 313 black people - an average of one every 28 hours.
This is not a new problem. Police routinely target certain people - particularly people of color (especially men) and gender-nonconforming people - for minor crimes such as drug possession or loitering, or for no crime at all, simply stopping them for "driving while black" or "walking while woman."
Last year, the American Civil Liberties Union found that blacks were 3.7 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites, despite similar rates of drug use. In some counties, that number reaches 30 times higher.
More at the link above.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8z7NC5sgik Don't talk to the cops! Mr. James Duane, a professor at Regent Law School and a former defense attorney, tells you why you should never agree to be interviewed by the police.