Perhaps reading this New York Times story can help people who are not troubled by the harsh 3-strikes laws, understand why it's important for all US citizens to be concerned. The 3-strikes and similar laws are a big contributor to the crisis America is facing in the prison industry - overcrowding, riots, disease, and unjust sentences. I could go on.... It's about time for the law to be reformed.... Here's the NY Times piece....
From the NY Times:
One day last fall, Norman Williams sat drinking hot chocolate with his lawyer, Michael Romano, at a Peet’s coffee in Palo Alto, Calif. At an outdoor table, Williams began to talk about how he’d gone from serving a life sentence at Folsom State Prison to sitting there in the sun....
Williams, who is 46, was a homeless drug addict in 1997 when he was convicted of petty theft, for stealing a floor jack from a tow truck. It was the last step on his path to serving life. In 1982, Williams burglarized an apartment that was being fumigated: he was hapless enough to be robbed at gunpoint on his way out, and later he helped the police recover the stolen property. In 1992, he stole two hand drills and some other tools from an art studio attached to a house; the owner confronted him, and he dropped everything and fled. Still, for the theft of the floor jack, Williams was sentenced to life in prison under California’s repeat-offender law: three strikes and you’re out.
By Carol Morell, Washington Post - A sharp rise in African American voting rates in the 2008 presidential election was largely a Southern phenomenon, according to a Census analysis of voting patterns released Wednesday.
The South was the only region in the country where the voting rate among blacks increased sizably from the 2004 election, from 59 percent to 66 percent. The West, Northeast and Midwest had smaller increases in black voting rates, but they did not represent a significant change, the Census said.
The report, an analysis of raw data released last year, offers a more nuanced view of results from the election, in which an African American was on the ballot for president in the general election for the first time.
About 64 percent of voting-age Americans went to the polls. Nationally, 5 million more Americans voted than four years earlier, including 2 million more African Americans and 2 million more Hispanics. But the voting-age population increased by 9 million during that period, so the turnout rate remained roughly the same and the percentage of registered voters decreased slightly. Click here for the full story.
A lawsuit accuses the government agency of unfair hiring practices. — By Nick Baumann, Mother Jones
In America, you're supposed to be innocent until proven guilty. Tell that to some of the four million people seeking jobs with the US Census, who say they were rejected for crimes they didn't commit.
With the unemployment rate close to 10 percent, relatively high-paying census jobs are much sought after. Census-takers can earn more than $17 an hour for going door-to-door to gather data; other employees make even more. But there's a problem with the process. The Census Bureau runs every applicant's name through an FBI database. If the database shows the job seeker has ever been arrested, the application is put on hold, and the Census Bureau sends a letter giving the job seeker 30 days to prove that the arrest was no big deal.
Last month, two people sued the government after being denied census jobs when their applications were flagged for arrests. They argue that relying on a database of arrests—many of which never led to convictions—discriminates against black, Latino, and Native American applicants, who are statistically more likely to be arrested. Read the full story at Mother Jones.
As people convene in the nation's capitol to mourn the loss and celebrate the life of Dr. Dorothy I. Height, those unable to attend Celebration of Dr. Height's life should celebrate where they are. And remember to make a donation to the NCNW to keep her legacy alive. www.ncnw.org/
What a blessing it is to have had the opportunity to get to know the matriarch of the civil rights movement, Dr. Dorothy Irene Height who passed away earlier this week. Under most circumstances the death of a 98 year-old may be sad, but it's not shocking. However, even at 98-years-old Dr. Height was everywhere. She went to work in the day, she was on various conference calls giving direction on all types of issues in the evening, and even made it to the parties and had a few of her own. You always got the feeling that she would always be around. She was just at a press conference I coordinated at the US Capitol last month - and I assure you navigating through the Capitol is not easy, especially in a wheelchair.
In 2000 I was in a crowded field in South Africa running around trying to pull the US Delegation to the UN World Conference together to lead a march of over 100,000 people. It was quite hectic. I glanced at the entrance of the field and there was Dr. Height rolling up in her wheelchair.
I feel blessed that I was able to spend Election night 2008 when the first black president was elected, and Inauguration night with the legendary leader. Dr. Height was a database of quotes from leaders ranging from President Roosevelt to Mary McCloud Bethune. She was classy, charming, brilliant, and had a great sense of humor. Dr. Height will be greatly missed.
A few minutes after President Obama was elected president Dr. Height wiped the tears from her eyes and had some wise words for the crowd gathered at the NCNW headquarters – once a holding space for slaves – for an election watch party.
Civil Rights icon Dr. Dorothy Height passed away early Tuesday morning, April 20, at the age of 98. Height died of natural causes, according to a spokesperson from Howard University Hospital.
Height served as the President of the National Council of Negro Women for four decades, stepping down from the position in 1997. She was considered one of the founding members of the Civil Rights movement. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994 by President Bill Clinton. In 2004, she was also the recipient of the Congressional Gold Medal.
Height fought for equal rights for both women and blacks, and was active in such causes as securing voting rights, equal employment opportunities and the desegregation of public schools.
Height marched with Dr, Martin Luther King Jr., and spoke out for women’s rights during the Civil Rights struggle. She was instrumental in the fight for equal pay for women and organized numerous programs designed to help women achieve equal rights and independence. During her years as President of the National Council of Negro Women, Height was dedicated to issues that affected women, including child care for working mothers, health and nutrition and providing adequate housing for families in need. Read the full story here
By MARK S. SMITH (AP) WASHINGTON — He may be the world's foremost mixed-race leader, but when it came to the official government head count, President Barack Obama gave only one answer to the question about his ethnic background: African-American.
The White House confirmed on Friday that Obama did not check multiple boxes on his U.S. Census form, or choose the option that allows him to elaborate on his racial heritage. He ticked the box that says "Black, African Am., or Negro."
Obama filled out the form on Monday, supplying information for himself, first lady Michelle Obama and their daughters Malia and Sasha, as well as for Mrs. Obama's mother, Marian Robinson, who lives with the family in the White House.
For Obama, whose mother Ann Dunham, a white woman from Kansas, married his father, the Kenyan native Barack Obama Sr., the question of his racial identity has been a lifelong struggle. His first memoir, "Dreams From My Father," is an account of a difficult journey of discovery. Read the full story here
Obama the community activist and then politician always self-identified as African-American, and he now wears the mantle of America's first black president with pride. On a visit to Ghana last year, he took his wife and daughters to see Gold Coast Castle, the one-time slave trading depot from which thousands of Africans were sent in shackles to a life of toil in the New World. Mrs. Obama is descended from a South Carolina slave.
PARTICIPATING CITIES**
Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL; Gary, IN; Houston, TX; Jackson, MS; Los Angeles, CA; Miami, FL; New Orleans, LA; New York, NY.
PURPOSE OF COMPETITION
In an effort to decrease the undercoung of the Black population, The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation's Unity Diaspora Coalition is sponsoring a Poster & Talent competition to educate youth on the importance of filling out and returning the Census form.
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS: April 16, 2010
CATEGORIES
Judges will select 5 local winners from each participating city including: elementary, middle school, high school, undergraduate, and young adult categories. Local winners will receive a certificate of recognition and a $25 - $100 gift card and will be entered into the DC National Census Poster & Social Media Competition. Five national winners will be selected from the local winners. Participants must live in one of the cities listed above. Click here for more information.
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