Concerned Blogosphere Launches Virtual March In Support Of Jena 6

For Immediate Release

 Concerned Blogosphere Launches Virtual March In Support Of Jena 6

Contact: Daz Wilson theultravioletunderground@gmail.com or Yobachi Boswell 615-478-5204.

Afrospher Jena 6 Coalition – Worldwide Web — September 17, 2007
The Blogosphere recently took matters into their own hands when they saw the lack of coverage for the Jena 6 case in mainstream media. A day of blogging was coordinated with the intent of magnifying the voices of ‘the people’, while also requesting that the mainstream media share the story of miscarriage of justice that has taken place in the Jena 6 case, with their mass audiences. A press release was issued to notify the media, and on Thursday August 30, 2007 the Day of Blogging for Justice (http://www.pr.com/press-release/50358) took place. On the very same day of the event, MSNBC stepped up and aired a 5 minute segment on the Jena 6 case. They also continued to cover the story online.

The Blogosphere is again coordinating another show of support and concern with an online Virtual March which will act as an unofficial companion and alternative to the Michael Baisden and Al Shaprton lead March in Jena Louisiana on September 20, 2007, for those who cannot make it to the physical March and also for those who wish to double and triple their efforts.

Interested bloggers, webmasters, and social networking profile owners are asked to take a picture of themselves holding a sign that reads ‘Free the Jena 6′ and other messages. As an added measure, if possible, Virtual Marchers are asked to wear black as Marchers will be doing on September 20th. The digital photos can then be posted to visible sidebar areas on their blogs, sites, profiles and anywhere else they feel it will send a constant message that ‘the people’ are standing against racism in the justice system and elsewhere. Virtual Marchers are asked to keep displaying the pictures on their profiles until true justice has been served for all of the Jena 6, as a show of solidarity.

Those who don’t have digital cameras can check with their local office supply stores. Most office supply stores will scan a photo and save it to a disk that can hold the file needed to upload to the internet. After that, Image hosting services like Imageshack.us can  store the photos and generate a code Virtual Marchers can use on their profiles. If there are no office supply stores in the area, other Virtual Marchers who have access to scanners will likely accept photos through the mail, scan them, then email them back.

‘The hope is that the Virtual March in addition to other acts of solidarity will stand as a message that ‘the people’ are aware of the evils these young men have encountered, and are also aware that theirs is not truly an isolated incident. This March is therefore symbolic of our refusal as aware individuals to allow these evils to befall people of color, or people targeted for any reason of systematic prejudice. Many have shed blood and stood strong against tyranny, and it is up to us to honor those sacrifices,’ Advises Daz, a coordinator of the Virtual March. Go Here for some blogs that may participate in the campaign: http://www.blackperspective.net/index.php/jena-6-page/day-of-blogging-for-justice/

More information can obtained by typing ‘Virtual March’ in search at: www.ultravioletunderground.com , and also by visiting www.blackperspective.com

– Recommended *-*

Afrosphere Accurate Images Campaign

For Immediate Release

The Solutions Blog

http://solutionsforourpeople.wordpress.com/

Black Bloggers Are Sick of BET and ‘Gangsta Crap’ Music

(New York): Black Bloggers have united to battle mainstream music and entertainment fat-cats who profit off the stereotypical, sexist, and racist exploitation of African American people. Their main targets are Black Entertainment Television (BET), who they call ‘Black Exploitation Television’, and gangsta rappers such as 50cent, Snoop Dog, The Game, and Cam’ron. These artists produce music bloggers have branded ‘gangsta crap’. Gangsta rap regularly glorifies sexism, the n-word, profanities, violence, drug use and dealing, sexism, and the dehumanization of Black men and women. Gangsta rap videos and stereotype-filled shows are the programming staples of BET.

“BET and hip hop have gone down hill. They were once inspirations. Now they purvey some of the most harmful anti-Black sentiments you will ever see or hear, and this has become a representation of mainstream Black culture,” says Bronze Trinity of the Afrosphere Bloggers Association (ABA). ABA is coordinating the Afrosphere Accurate Images campaign against BET and gangsta rap.

ABA member, Wayne Hicks criticized, “BET was an inspirational idea when it was first created. Tremendous shows providing news and information for the Black community. Today, BET is an embarrassment for the Black community. It is something that we hide from our children. Enough is enough”.

ABA bloggers want widespread changes in the television and music entertainment industries. They want BET to stop airing videos where half-naked women are objectified, Black men are shown as ‘thugs’ and ‘pimps’, and street violence, illegal drugs, and gang activity is glorified. The want the n-word and sexist epithets to be be censored when children under 18 are likely to be watching. ABA also wants radio stations to stop playing racist, violent, and sexist music, for mainstream record labels and artists to stop producing such music, and for positive/conscious hip hop to become the mainstream. “It’s time to rise above the corrupted caricatures painted onto the Black community, and reach within ourselves with self love and respect”, says ABA blogger Daz Wilson.

However the bloggers understand the fine line between artistic expression and free speech. Carole took a pledge against racist and sexist hip hop on her blog but stated, “I believe that artists and performers are free to speak their own minds. I’m not against free speech. But honestly, I wish there are folks who were a bit more responsible in their speech to kids because most kids are pretty undiscerning”.

The non-profit blogger group is battling media executives and multi-millionaire artists using internet activism in the form of blogs, message boards, email, and online petitions. On the ABA website http://solutionsforourpeople.wordpress.com, the group suggests taking a pledge against sexist and racist hip hop, buying conscious hip hop from artists like Common, Mos Def, and Talib Kweli, advertising conscious artists on blogs, and requesting more radio play time for these artists. They also provide anti-BET stickers, instructions to boycott radio, television, and website sponsors, and numerous petitions so bloggers can show their support.

This is not just an American concern according to ABA member Adrianne, “Living overseas allows one to see how influential American pop culture is. Even in Sweden I see the young kids listening to and emulating the hip hop performers. Black artists do not need to export negative images of Black women around the world”. Other international members have reported stereotypes and negative behaviors caused by gangsta hip hop and television programming that is broadcast around the world.

ABA strongly supports recent activism of other groups such as What About Our Daughters blog, the Enough is Enough Campaign, and the National Action Network’s Day of Outrage Against the Music Industry. “The time has come for us to take back our image and for Black people to accept responsibility for the role they play in denigrating our own image,” proposed Bronze Trinity.

Contact Information: The Solutions Blog http://solutionsforourpeople.wordpress.com
Bronze Trinity at bronzetrinity@hotmail.com
Adrianne at http://blackwomenineurope.blogspot.com/
Carole at http://www.darkparables.blogspot.com
Daz Wilson at http://www.ultravioletunderground.com
Wayne Hicks at http://electronicvillage.blogspot.com/

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_________________________________________

There are things you can do to help fight BET and the racism and sexism in hip hop

1) Post My Hip-Hop Sexism and Racism Denunciation (see below) on your blog or website or create your own version. Email it to everyone you know and to the media. Contact the media contacts on this list and tell them your opinion and what you want changed.
2) Post an-anti BET sticker on your blog or website. You can even make one yourself.

3) Learn about positive/conscious artists on the web or on Wikipedia. Maybe you will prefer this type of hip hop and you can tell others that there is an alternative to gangsta crap. You can also learn about the history of hip hop from PBS.
4) You can promote positive/conscious hip hop artists on your blog by writing about their music or advertising their new album releases. For instance, you can post this slide show of positive artists on your blog:

View or Get this slide show

Or you can promote the choice of positive/conscious artists by posting this image.

5) Sign these petitions to show your support: Change BET, Transform BET, Mainstream Media and Hip Hop Petition, Stop the racism in hip hop, and Stop the ban of real and intelligent hip hop on BET.

6) Watch the commercials aired during offensive programs or advertised on offensive web sites. Contact the sponsors and inform them that they are supporting racist and sexist material so that they stop sponsoring the program.
7) Stop buying racist and sexist music and ask others to do the same.
8 ) Do whatever you can to stop the racism and sexism purveyed by the mainstream media and gangsta rap music. If you are doing something that isn’t on this list please tell us about it!

My Hip-Hop Sexism and Racism Denunciation

I hereby solemnly declare that I will no longer purchase, listen to, endorse, watch, or in any other way consume anything from musicians or comedians who continue to denigrate women of African descent by calling them hoe, slut, whore or any other misogynist epithet.

I also solemnly declare that I will no longer purchase, listen to, endorse, watch, or in any other way consume anything from musicians or comedians who continue to denigrate people of African descent by using the N-word or condoning Black-on-Black violence.

I believe with all my heart that artists and performers who engage in such business do not respect women, people of African descent, or themselves. Their minds have been corrupted to a point that they accept and further the history of oppression that has been enacted upon women and People of Color for centuries. These people are corrupting our minds and our culture and I WILL NOT BE A PART OF IT!

From this moment on I will ONLY purchase, listen to, endorse, watch, or in any other way consume the works of musicians and comedians who present positive, uplifting, humorous, romantic, silly, interesting, creative, emotional, groundbreaking, remarkable, unusual, thought-provoking, challenging, or in any other way enjoyable content that DOES NOT debase women or people of African descent.

We Will Free the Jena 6!

ColorOfChange.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact: Mervyn Marcano, 510-903-1809

Friday, September 14, 2007

Black activist group ColorOfChange.org praises court decision vacating “Jena 6” conviction

Group will continue to press for all charges to be dropped

ColorOfChange.org applauded Louisiana’s 3rd circuit court of appeals’ decision to throw out the conviction of Mychal Bell, one of six black teenagers known as the “Jena 6.” “Today’s court decision vacating Mychal Bell’s conviction is a huge step towards justice in this case,” said James Rucker, executive director of ColorOfChange.org. “We will continue to press for all charges to be dropped on all of the young men who have become known as the Jena 6.”

More than 200,000 people have signed ColorOfChange.org’s online petition calling on District Attorney Reed Walters to drop the charges against the Jena 6, and have called on Governor Kathleen Blanco to intervene in the case. Thousands of ColorOfChange members are planning to attend a rally in Jena on September 20th. Also that day, ColorOfChange members across the country are participating in a national day of action, using the group’s website to organize small gatherings, distribute flyers about the case, and make phone calls to put pressure on Governor Blanco to intervene.

We Have Had Enough Of BET!!!

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! CAMPAIGN TO RALLY OUTSIDE HOME OF BET EXECUTIVE

September 07, 2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact:  Julia Pollard -  301 238-4826 ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! CAMPAIGN TO RALLY OUTSIDE HOME OF BET EXECUTIVE Washington DC — Determined to stop the entertainment industry from portraying negative images of black men and women, the “Enough is Enough!” Campaign will hold its first rally and demonstration at the Washington DC residence of Debra L. Lee, Chairman and CEO, Black Entertainment Television Networks. The demonstration will take place this Saturday, September 15th, at 1:00 p.m. A press conference will be held at the site of the rally, 2800 McGill Terrace, NW, Washington, DC at 2:00 p.m. Community leaders are fed up with derogatory media images of black men and women.  People of conscience and concern are encouraged to come out in support of this effort. The global marketing of negative images and stereotypes has created an environment in which portrayals of black men as “pimps, players, gangsters, thugs, drug dealers, etc…,” and black women as “strippers, whores, and objects for sexual exploitation” are becoming mainstream, acceptable images in the American popular imagination. The purpose of the campaign is to protest the commercialization and marketing of negative and derogatory images of black men and women in the entertainment industry.  Rev. Delman L. Coates, Ph.D., Organizer is championing this action.  Coates said, “The movement recognizes the power of media and entertainment corporations to shape American attitudes, opinions, behaviors, and even policies by and about people of color. Music companies do not equitably apply standards of obscenity for music that is offensive to blacks as for other groups.” The campaign contends that many American corporations sponsor, through endorsements and by advertising on radio and television outlets, artists who promote negative messages about black people, but would not provide sponsorship for artists who degrade other interest groups.  The campaign seeks to urge the entertainment industry and their corporate sponsors to be better corporate citizens. Weekly demonstrations will be held on Saturdays. ### For more information or to schedule an interview with Rev. Delman L. Coates regarding this campaign, visit the www.enoughisenoughcampaign.com website or send an email to: <!– var prefix = ‘ma’ + ‘il’ + ‘to’; var path = ‘hr’ + ‘ef’ + ‘=’; var addy69239 = ‘enoughisenoughcampaign’ + ‘@’; addy69239 = addy69239 + ‘hotmail’ + ‘.’ + ‘com’ + ‘.’ + ”; document.write( ‘‘ ); document.write( addy69239 ); document.write( ” ); //–>\n enoughisenoughcampaign@hotmail.com. <!– document.write( ‘‘ ); //–> This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it <!– document.write( ” ); //–>

Afrosphere Bloggers Ask Media To Cover Jena Six Story

The Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition “ask that the mainstream traditional media step forward and discharge their duty to provide coverage of this vitally important event to their viewers and readers and act as “the fourth institution” of governmental “checks and balance” that constitutional framers intended the press to be.” To further this effort the Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition will embark on a ‘Day of Blogging for Justice’ on Thursday August 30th.

Jena, LA, August 29, 2007 –(PR.com)– There is growing concern surrounding the Jena Six case in Jena Louisiana. Yet, inexplicably, the national media, most particularly on television, has been abysmally silent on an occurrence of grave social, political and legal importance.

The ‘common folk’ media of the blogosphere, has stepped up to the plate in the absence of adequate traditional media coverage. Bloggers have taken to hanging banners to blog side-bars and placing them in blog entries at an increasing rate; displaying the words ‘Free the Jena 6′ accompanied by the evocative symbolism of a noose hanging from a tree. On these blogs strategies that can assist in bringing awareness to these young targets of racist psychological abuse are finding willing participants in discussion, and action; but they need the media’s help.

This issue, like Katrina, highlights how some people receive deference in treatment over others. “The Jim Crow style racism and government negligence, reflected in the Jena 6 case, are both quite worrisome. Unfortunately, the case is another incident that points to the entrenched racial and socio-economic disparities in the South, which this country has yet to fully confront,” says political scientist Dr. Sekou Franklin of Middle Tennessee State University. As the Congressional Black Caucus has noted “…we must speak out against injustice and inequality. This tale of two standards depicts a pattern of gross violations.”

The Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition “ask that the mainstream traditional media step forward and discharge their duty to provide coverage of this vitally important event to their viewers and readers and act as “the fourth institution” of governmental “checks and balance” that constitutional framers intended the press to be.”

In furtherance of this effort the Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition will embark on a ‘Day of Blogging for Justice’ on Thursday August 30, where dozens of the coalition’s members (and all else who wish to join with them) will write entries in their blogs on behalf of these six young men who are victims of racially motivated civil rights abuses. A list of bloggers who’ve signed on to participate can be seen here:

Along with blogger support, a united front of more than 300 concerned community members gathered at the steps of the courthouse in Jena on July 31, 2007, in a show of support for the African-American youth civil rights victims who were imprisoned after reacting to the provocation of Caucasian students who received only a school suspension of 3 days for hanging nooses from a ‘whites only’ tree in the schoolyard that all students share.

In addition to online and in-person support, those who could not travel to join others at the steps of the courthouse have added their signatures and comments, some 45,000, to petitions generated by individuals globe-wide who are appalled enough to take action.

A coalition of civic groups has formed www.freethejena6.org as a standing central location, providing solutions for those who are seeking information with intent to take action.

Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition Advisory Group:
Wayne Hicks electronicvillage.blogspot.com
D. Yobachi Boswell www.BlackPerspective.net
Francis Holland afrospear.jconserv.net/
Daz Wilson http://purplezoe.blogspot.com/

Primary Contact: D.Yobachi Boswell * 615-478-5204 * lionrunner777@yahoo.com

Volunteers Needed to Rebuild Gulf Coast

Local coordinators and/or honorees available for interview…

_________________________________________

NCBCP PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 15, 2007

Contact: Edrea Davis (edmedia@dogonvillage.com)
Phone: 818.613.9521
NCBCP: 202.659.4929

COALITION MAKES URGENT CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS TO AID IN GULF COAST REBUILDING EFFORTS

Full day of community service events planned the day before massive demonstration in New Orleans

In an effort to trigger a new wave of volunteerism in the Gulf Coast region, the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation (NCBCP) is making an urgent call for local and national groups to join them Tuesday, August 28, for A Day of Service to help rebuild hurricane damaged communities in New Orleans.

“We’re calling on all able-bodied citizens to join forces with other national and local organizations, celebrities, and individuals to help with rebuilding and clean up efforts in New Orleans,” says Melanie L. Campbell, executive director and CEO of the NCBCP. “While it is imperative that we send a message to the government that they need to act immediately to help survivors of the hurricane, we also want to underscore the need for every individual to do their part as well.”

A Day of Service precedes “8/29, A Day of Presence,” a massive demonstration that will be held on the second anniversary of Katrina intended to force the government to create a Marshall Plan to restore New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region.

On A Day of Service, the NCBCP will join the Louisiana Unity Coalition, National Urban League, AFL-CIO, NAFEO, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, International Association of Black Firefighters, The Peoples’ Agenda, The Advancement Project, The Praxis Project, Saving Our Selves Coalition and volunteers from across the country to: conduct an environmental clean-up and remove contaminated top soil from damaged communities; help to paint and pressure wash buildings; repair the playground in a local public school; and help in the restoration of a historic African American church. Volunteers will also visit the sick and elderly in the few nursing homes that have reopened.

“The people of the Gulf want immediate action from the government,” says Vincent Sylvain, Convener, LA Unity Coalition and Katrina survivor. “But, the world needs to know that the folks in the Gulf Coast have not been sitting and waiting for the government. We’re all doing our part to clean up the city and could not do it without the help of the generous volunteers from across the country.”

Campbell adds, “If you can’t make it to help rebuild a Gulf Coast community, volunteer where you are. There are ‘lower ninth wards’ across the country. ‘A Day of Service’ is to highlight community service and self empowerment.”

The evening of August 28, from 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM, the NCBCP’s Black Women’s Roundtable will host “Celebrating Our Sisters of the Gulf Coast Dialogue & Recognition Ceremony,” honoring women from the region who have worked tirelessly to assist hurricane survivors and advocate for comprehensive recovery and rebuilding of the Gulf Coast. The event will include dinner, music, poetry, comedy, and the presentation of certificates of recognition. Speakers include, Susan Taylor, editorial director, Essence magazine, and Iyanla Vanzant, author, radio host and spiritual leader.

A Day of Service is being organized by LA Unity Coalition, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice at Dillard University, Mount Zion United Methodist Church, African American Leadership Project, Urban League of Greater New Orleans, Rainbow PUSH New Orleans and Millions More Movement. To volunteer contact RosariaBeasley@bellsouth.net or call the Urban League of Greater New Orleans at (504) 620-2332.

# # #

NOTE TO MEDIA: To schedule an interview with national, state, and local organizers contact Edrea at 818.613.9521. FOR “8/29: A DAY OF PRESENCE” PRESS RELEASE go to: http://tinyurl.com/36h7qr

What About Our Daughters is Outraged Over Horrific Rape

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Austin, TX – August, 5 2007- Fresh off a battle with Black Entertainment Television, Gina McCauley isn’t slowing down on her blog, What About Our Daughters? McCauley is outraged over Al Sharpton’s planned ” Day of Outrage” scheduled for August 7, 2007, also sponsored by the BloggingWhileBrown Blog. Her next targets are Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, the NAACP and other African American elites who have been noticeably silent about what may be one of the most horrific crimes committed against a Black woman in recent history, she’s talking about the June 18th gang rape of a 35-year- old woman that took place in Dunbar Village, a housing project in West Palm Beach, Florida.

The woman was raped repeatedly for over three hours by at least ten African American youths, while they brutally beat her son. Eventually the woman and son were forced to lie naked together in their bathtub and the woman was forced under gunpoint to perform oral sex on her 12-year-old son before the attackers poured cleaning solution on them, burning the mother’s skin and blinding her son. Not a single neighbor called the police and the woman and her son were forced to walk alone to a hospital. Only three of the alleged attackers have been arrested and residents of Dunbar Village aren’t talking to police.

McCauley is angry about a lack of public outrage from many of the people who were so swift to inject themselves into the Duke rape case a little over a year ago.

” Jesse Jackson and Rainbow PUSH rushed to issue press releases announcing that they were going to give a college scholarship to the Duke rape accuser .” McCauley said, referring to Jackson’s offer to the Duke rape accuser.

In an interview with the Associated Press on June 15, 2006 Jackson indicated that he was anxious to get in contact with the Duke rape accuser. “”I can’t wait … to talk with her and have prayer with her, because our organization is committed, when she’s physically and emotionally able … to provide for her the scholarship money to finish school so she will never … again have to stoop that low to survive,” Jackson said from Chicago in a telephone interview with The Associated Press at the time. Jackson has issued no such statements in the case of the Dunbar Village rape victim. His silence and the silence of others is damning to McCauley.

” Where is his press release offering a scholarship to this woman? Where is the announcement of how much Rainbow Push has donated to this poor woman and her child? Where is his offer to go down to Florida and have prayer with this woman?”

McCauley goes on to criticize the NAACP for holding a press conference of support for Michael Vick, but not doing the same for the West Palm Beach victim. ” I mean Michael Vick is a multimillionaire who is more than capable of defending himself, who is looking out for this poor Black woman in Florida trying to eek out a living selling Avon and delivering telephone books?”

When McCauley heard about Sharpton’s “Day of Outrage,” she decided to wade into controversy again by pointing out what she thinks is a moral inconsistency within the African American community.

” Here we have Sharpton initiating a self-promoting publicity blitz announcing a national day of outrage about rap lyrics which denigrate Black women, but I am not aware of a single e-mail from the National Action Network speaking out about this brutal attack, asking the residents of Dunbar Village to start cooperating with police, or encouraging people to help this woman and her child.”

McCauley hopes that by targeting Sharpton, Jackson and other African American leaders on her blog, she can produce some off line results. ” I notice that on his tour he plans a stop in Miami. That is not far from West Palm Beach. I wonder if he is going to pass the collection plate to contribute to this woman’s victim’s assistance fund?”

A victim’s assistance fund has been set up for the West Palm beach woman and her child through Saint Ann’s Church in West Palm Beach, FL. Checks can be made payable to the Dunbar Village Victim Assistance Fund-St. Ann. They can be dropped off at any Wachovia branch or mailed to: St. Ann Catholic Church, 310 N. Olive Ave., West Palm Beach, FL 33401. The church’s phone number is (561) 832-3757.

–

Sincerely,
Gina
What About Our Daughters
“Combating negative portrayals of African American women in popular culture.”
whataboutourdaughters.blogspot.com

Join us at Blogging While Brown in Atlanta in July 2008.
BloggingWhileBrown.Blogspot.com

August 7 Day of Outrage against the Music Industry

Hat tip to Black PR Wire

For Immediate Release
Saturday, August 04, 2007

Contact Information
Debra Toomer
305.218.2252

(BPRW) REVEREND AL SHARPTON AND NATIONAL ACTION NETWORK’S DECENCY INITIATIVE TO LEAD A 20-CITY VIGIL TO PROTEST THE USE OF WORDS “NIGGA” “BITCH” AND “HO” IN THE MUSIC RECORDING INDUSTRY

(BLACK PR WIRE) New York,NY (August 4,2007) – Reverend Al Sharpton, Founder and President of National Action Network (NAN), along with Tamika Mallory, Director of NAN’s Decency Initiative, has announced a national “Day of Outrage” against the continuous use in the music recording industry of the words “nigga,” “bitch” and “ho.” Reverend Sharpton, who has persistently challenged the entertainment industry on denigrating lyrics, will use August 7th to call for the withdrawal of public investments from companies that won’t clean up their act. In New York, one of the states where the event will take place, roughly $3 billion from the state pension fund is invested in the entertainment industry. According to Reverend Sharpton, “The idea of divesting State taxpayers’ money from record companies that have a double standard when it comes to language is something that will be a priority.” In April, Reverend Sharpton led the drive to have Don Imus fired from his syndicated radio show for calling the Rutgers University women’s basketball team “nappy-headed hos.”

The event on August 7th which is being held by National Action Network’s Decency Initiative will take to the streets in 20 cities across the country at 12 (Noon) to mount public pressure on the music industry to adopt a universal standard of respect for all people. The cities are New York City, Newark, NJ, Los Angeles, CA, Detroit, MI, Atlanta, GA, Miami, FL, Washington, DC, Dallas, TX, Jacksonville, FL, Las Vegas, NV, Kansas City, MO, Phoenix, AZ, Stamford, CT, Philadelphia, PA, Columbia, SC, Houston, TX, Richmond, VA, Baltimore, MD, and Augusta,
GA.

Since April, the Decency Initiative, in collaboration with dozens of activists across the nation, has demanded that the music recording industry eliminate the use of the offensive words “nigga,” “bitch,” and “ho” in all recordings. No other ethnic group is subjected to denigration for profit by the music industry and the Decency Initiative will continue to demand a universal standard of respect, particularly for all women and African Americans.

The August 7th national protest will mobilize dozens of women and men in 20 cities for a call to action. There will be a press conference and protest in each city located strategically outside of a major music distributor. The strategic locations will send a strong signal to the music industry that the people will no longer stand by idly while public airwaves are used to promote disrespect.

The protests will be multi-cultural and include all age groups. The women and men will come from all facets of the community including leaders and students. All people must now stand united in defense of decency and the August 7th gathering is just the beginning of a national movement to achieve this end.

Background on the Decency Initiative:

In Reverend Al Sharpton’s 2003 book “Al on America” he dedicated a whole chapter to Hip-Hop, condemning Hip-Hop artists for using those exact three words. He convened the first Hip-Hop summit taking a very public stance that was widely covered in the media both nationally and locally. He also picketed the movie Barbershop for desecrating Rosa Parks, a position that was covered nationally. He has written numerous op-ed pieces for the New York Daily News and others about the “N” word and how Blacks must stop using it. On his syndicated radio show which is broadcast in 40 markets he has had hip hop artists on and debated them about the use of demeaning lyrics. He appeared recently on Oprah Winfrey’s show opposing the Hip-Hop artists. At our recent NAN national convention that was widely covered by all newspapers, we withdrew an award for L.A. Reid, a Black music executive because he had co-authored songs with the “Ho” word, and we had a public forum on the words with hundreds of Black kids and formed a Decency Initiative headed by Tamika Mallory to follow up with Blacks and others that use the terms “N,’ “B” and “H.” The Decency Initiative and Reverend Sharpton led a march of hundreds outside of the four major companies on May 3, calling upon on them to remove those words from their artists, most of them Black. Then Decency Initiative and Reverend Sharpton went into Detroit holding the same public forum in late May.

The Decency Initiative has marched upon Viacom, the owners of BET, and even addressed their stockholders on this issue. The Initiative also called upon comedian Michael Richards to apologize for his use of the “N” word and the Decency Initiative does limit its outrage to members of the music industry or to its impact on African-Americans. The vigil on August 7th will be an annual event sponsored by the Decency Initiative.

12:00 (Noon) EST

New York City

Virgin Music Store

Times Square

1540 Broadway

Btwn. 45th & 46th

Philadelphia, PA

F.Y.E Music Store

Broad Street and Chestnut

Philadelphia, PA

Richmond, VA

Radio One (92.1)

2809 Emerywood Pkwy

Richmond VA 23294

Stamford, CT

Mill River Park

Washington Boulevard & Broad Street

Stamford, CT

Augusta, GA

Municipal Building

530 Greene Street

Augusta, GA

Atlanta, GA

WHAT, Hot 107.9

101 Marietta Street

Atlanta, GA 30303

Miami, FL

F.Y.E Music

501 Collins Ave

Miami Beach, FL

Chicago, IL

Clear Channel Illinois Center

233 North Michigan Avenue

Chicago, IL

Kansas City, MO

Magic 107.3

4240 Blue Ridge Boulevard

Kansas City, MO

Phoenix, AZ

Sony Corporate Tower

7700 East Camelback Road

Phoenix, AZ

Los Angeles, CA (9:00 am/12:00 Noon EST)

Los Angeles Sentinel

3800 Crenshaw Boulevard

Los Angeles, CA 90008

Bakersfield, CA

American General Media Complex

1400 Easton Drive

Bakersfield, CA 93309

Montgomery, AL

97.9 Radio Station

4101 Wall Street

Montgomery, AL 36106

Detroit, MI

Motown Historical Museum

2648 West Grand Boulevard

Detroit, MI 48208

Jacksonville, FL

Gateway Shopping Center

5184 Norwood Avenue

Jacksonville, FL

St. Louis, MO

The University of Missouri – St. Louis

One University Boulevard

St. Louis, MO 63121

Why Black Children are being sent from Schools to Jails

Why Black Children are being sent from Schools to Jails

Resubmitted by Eddie Griffin

Monday, July 30, 2007

The case of the Jena 6 black youth is hereby being resubmitted for your consideration, along with the following explanation of why certain children as harshly disciplined and prosecuted through our education system.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Office of the Governor
Attn: Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco
P.O. Box 94004
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9004

866-366-1121
225-342-0991
225-342-7015
Fax: 225-342-7099

RE: Pardon Mychal Bell & Free the Jena 6

BACKGROUND OF CASE:
On July 31, 2007, there will be a national rally behalf of six Jena juvenile defenders from further prosecution by the state of Louisiana. It is a fact that, in public schools around the United States, black children are disciplined more than white children. The harshest form of punishment is doled out through criminal prosecution. We find black boys being disproportionately criminalized.

The town of Jena, Louisiana, its public school system, and law enforcement allowed white children to tease, threaten, intimidate, and assault black children with impunity. When black youth defend themselves by retaliating, the local dominant white population assailed them with Jim Crow law and discriminatory practices. They prosecuted the black youth, while letting their own pass with egregious wrongdoings, along race lines.

Monday, July 30, 2007

Dear Governor Kathleen Blanco:

Please stop the prosecution of the Jena 6. Drop all charges and pardon Mychal Bell.

This is a classic case of racial injustice much like the Scottsboro boys. Do realize that these are children, high school students, who were caught up in a race tense situation. The Jena High School administration is the blame for allowing a white prank to go unpunished. The Jena police have acted as protectorates of white wrongdoers. The Jena district attorney’s office leveled some of the heaviest criminal offenses against six young black boys. Reading the sequence of events, you cannot help but realize that the “alleged” crimes were nothing more than a schoolyard fight, common to most high schools. But every high school does not take racial sides when administering punishment, as in the case of Jena, Louisiana.

The reputation of this great state is at stake.

REMEMBER: One out of every three African-American males, who go through the nation’s public school systems end up going to jail and prisons. Why so?

The Jena 6 case takes a common school yard fight, which grew out of racial tension, and treats it as a serious criminal offense. The application of law is so arbitrary that it can be said: The white people in Jena make the law up as it goes along. In so doing, they suppress the minority black population in submission, albeit aided by the school system, prosecution office, and local judicial system.

There are hundreds of school disciplinary incidents prosecuted each year as criminal offenses against black youth. The result is a pattern of misdemeanors, leading to incarceration.

In Paris, Texas, a 14-year old teenager shoves a teacher’s aide while trying to enter a school building. They charged her with “aggravated assault upon a public servant”. The minor incident then became a major felony by local officials and school administrators arbitrarily applying the Texas Criminal Code.

The child was tried in a court of law by a judge, who applied adult standards equivalent to that of an assault of a prison inmate upon a guard. ShaQuanda Cotton was incarcerated in the Texas Youth Commission (TYC) lockup facilities, hundreds of miles from home and family.

If she was a “good girl”, she could go home in 9 months. If she received any prison infractions, her stay could be extended up to her 21st birthday. As a prerequisite to gaining her freedom, little Ms. Cotton must confess and show remorse for the crime of assaulting a “public servant”- a dubious and concocted offense. Otherwise, she would not be released. In fact, her nine-month stay was extended, because of a TYC disciplinary report for the offense of “possession of contraband”, to wit an extra pair of socks.

The Texas legislature was so appalled at the case of ShaQuanda Cotton that the teenager was immediately released. She and hundreds of other incarcerated teens were released immediately because their original sentences had been arbitrarily extended.

It seems ironic that, during the Texas legislature’s investigation into the children sexual abuse scandal by TYC prison officials, district attorneys around the state fought vigorously against the mass release of these youth. And, small rural Texas prison towns who, otherwise would not exist except for these lockup facilities, protested depopulating the youth prison system. To them, it would mean the loss of jobs- but, to us, it would be jobs that depended on the continued rate of incarceration of our children.

Texas Governor Rick Perry has seen fit to shut down two or three of these facilities as a result of trying to reform the Texas Youth Commission. And, many Texas counties are beginning to look at keeping their own youth offenders and working at finding an in-house solution to juvenile delinquencies, rather than send the kids off to these scandalized facilities.

But the statistics speak for themselves. More black youth are being sent to prison straight out of the school system- a practice condoned by the office of many district attorneys and courtroom benches.

The case of the Jena Six should never have been prosecuted as a criminal offense, but handled as a school disciplinary matter, in context of the overall tense racial climate. Only as last resort does a public school disciplinary action warrant being processed through the criminal justice system. It appears that teachers and administrators are using the punitive concept of “Zero Tolerance” to comport youth behavior and language to server forms of social control. It is a bully weapon against minority children and their parents.

The only way to correct the egregious injustice in Jena, Louisiana would be:

1. CEASE PROSECUTION OF ALL JENA SIX YOUTH
2. DROP ALL THE CHARGES
3. PARDON Mychal Bell
4. REFORM SCHOOL POLICIES ON DISCIPLINE

Free The Jena 6

ALERT! FREE THE JENA 6 Rally July 31, 2007

Report Submitted by Eddie G. Griffin

Friday, July 27, 2007

An all-white jury in the central Louisiana town of Jena swiftly convicted a black teenager Thursday for attacking a white student in an incident that capped months of racial unrest and attracted the scrutiny of civil rights leaders concerned about the application of justice in the town.

Jurors convicted Mychal Bell, 17, of aggravated second-degree battery… He allegedly jumped the victim as he emerged from the gymnasium at the local high school on Dec. 4, knocking him unconscious.

This case is important to all African-Americans who are suspicious of disparities in the administration of Justice. A young black man being convicted by an all-white southern jury is nothing new. In fact, the disparities in charging and convicting blacks are so one-side. This case merits shame of white justice upon African-American children, who get caught up in the southern criminal justice system.

The white students started the fight at Jena High School when they hung three nooses across a tree in front of the school. The black students had appealed to the school principal to allow them to sit under the tree. But the display of the three nooses anger the black students. The school administration played it off as a childish “prank”.

It proved to be no prank, as the situation escalated into racial violence over the next several months, culminating in the charging of six Jena black male students with aggravated assault… and, with a “deadly weapon”, to wit, “a pair of tennis shoes worn on the feet of Mychal Bell as he allegedly kicked and stomped a white student”… deadly weapon equal a pair of tennis shoes. How arbitrary can the law be? Is it arbitrary enough to satisfy a blood-thirst revenge of white authority against black youths retaliating for previous violent incidents instigated by white but wholly unpunished?

Mychal Bell, the first of the Jena 6 defendants, is scheduled to be sentenced on July 31, 2007.

PLEASE REVIEW the Michael David Murphy video, if you agree that this is a grievous miscarriage of justice, PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION to the US Justice Department Civil Rights Division. And give your support to FREE THE JENA SIX Campaign organized by Friends of Justice.

We need to ASK the Right People THE RIGHT QUESTIONS:

* Is there a current investigation of this shooting? If so, who is doing the investigating? Where is the Justice Department Civil Rights Division?

Here are the Telephone Numbers for Fulton County Board of Commissioners.

Telephone Numbers for Fulton County Board of Commissioners.

[Previous conversation: Gloria, Secretary to (African-American) Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard (404) 330-6100, said the District Attorney Howard had "just got the case," and she was unable to readily provide a statement about the status of the investigation.]

We must hold law enforcement officers accountable for the actions and culpable to excessive use of force and murder-in-the-name-of-the-law. We have enough proof to show that the State of Georgia has returned to the type of lawlessness and violence against minority like in the days of Dr. Martin Luther King.

Call: Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue: (404) 656-1776

The Sacred Rule Of Law in the South is as much a farce as Jim Crow, which is why African-Americans have always had to call upon the international community for Justice. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, Article 37 provides:

States Parties shall ensure that:

(a) No child shall be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Neither capital punishment nor life imprisonment without possibility of release shall be imposed for offences committed by persons below eighteen years of age;

(b) No child shall be deprived of his or her liberty unlawfully or arbitrarily. The arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be in conformity with the law and shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.

Stop BET’s Hot Ghetto Mess

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Black Bloggers and Civil Rights Groups Unite to Topple BET’s “Hot Ghetto Mess”

Austin, TX -July 19, 2007 – If Viacom’s Black Entertainment Television goes through with it’s plans to air ” Hot Ghetto Mess” next week, many people will be watching, but not for the reason BET wants. Realizing that mere online advocacy was not going to be enough to topple “Hot Ghetto Mess” after she’d gotten advertisers to flee the show, Gina McCauley, creator of the blog What About Our Daughters? turned to a coalition of religious and women’s groups including the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the National Coalition for Black Civic Participation, National Organization for Women, Rainbow PUSH, and the National Congress of Black Women.

The result is what may very well be the largest intergenerational collaboration between young online activists and their older offline counterparts in United States history. Their focus; to convince advertisers that buying ad time on BET’s “Hot Ghetto Mess” just isn’t worth it, despite the high ratings that the show is likely to bring if it airs.

On July 25, 2007, “Hot Ghetto Mess” watch parties are being scheduled in Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York, Austin, the District of Columbia and the list of locations keeps growing. Those attending the watch parties will be recording which companies purchase advertisements during the show. The coalition then plans to target those businesses with possible boycotts or demonstrations.

” The message we want to send to advertisers is that “Hot Ghetto Mess” is radioactive. They don’t want to come within one mile of it.” McCauley said.

Transitioning from being a one-woman blog to working with long-established organizations has not been easy. “There’s a reason why the only organization I belong to is AAA( the roadside assistance company).” In fact McCauley’s dialogue with these groups began after she wrote a post on her blog criticizing their methods.

“I’m not going to lie and say I haven’t been impatient with the pace of their response,” said McCauley. “As a blogger I move at warp speed. I can respond instantaneously with one click. I don’t have to have a committee debate what I am going to release to the world.” While initially disappointed with the pace of the response to her request for assistance, her patience is finally beginning to pay off.

“Yes, to me, they move at glacial speed.” McCauley says of the organizations she’s been working with “BUT, when they move- THEY MOVE!”. Currently that glacier is aimed straight at Black Entertainment Television and Viacom.
###

Contact: Gina McCauley, creator of the blog, What About Our Daughters
http://whataboutourdaughters.blogspot.com/

e-mail:WAODmedia@gmail.com (interview requests)
e-mail:WhatAboutOurDaughters@gmail.com

–
Gina
What About Our Daughters
“Combating negative portrayals of African American women in popular culture.”
whataboutourdaughters.blogspot.com

THE SOLUTIONS BLOG HAS LAUNCHED!!!

THE SOLUTIONS BLOG HAS LAUNCHED

Many thanks to Mark Bey for starting this much needed website

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Hello fellow activists and thinkers this space is being created so that progressive and creative people can brainstorm  ideas and ways to bring about change amongst the African Diaspora.