Dogon Village News Alerts

Have You Seen My Childhood? by Michael Jackson

In a CBS interview Michael Jackson told the late Ed Bradley that the song "Have You Seen My Childhood?" was his autobiography so I thought it would be the most appropriate tribute.

Michael Jackson dies at 50

by Steve Jones USA Today - Probably no celebrity has been as revered and reviled over the past 40 years as Jackson, 50, who died Thursday in Los Angeles, according to the Associated Press. The troubled, reclusive star was rushed to UCLA Medical Center by paramedics responding to a call from his home at about 12:30 p.m.

The cause of Jackson's death was not immediately announced, nor were circumstances surrounding it. Jackson was not breathing when Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics got to his Los Angeles home, Capt. Steve Ruda told the Los Angeles Times. The paramedics performed CPR and took him to UCLA Medical Center, Ruda told the newspaper. Read the full story at USAToday.com

A Drug War Truce?

By Tim Dickinson, Rolling Stone - Looking at the headlines, you might get the impression that America is approaching a cease-fire in the War on Drugs. After four decades of mindless prohibition and draconian prison sentences for addicts and casual users, the first four months of the Obama era have seen a rapid turn toward rationality. The administration has announced that it will no longer bust clinics that legally dispense medical marijuana, and incoming drug czar Gil Kerlikowske declared flatly in May that he had "ended the War on Drugs." Prominent politicians from Virginia to California including Sen. Jim Webb and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger have begun to discuss the merits of legalizing and taxing marijuana. And most striking of all, New York the state that pioneered the use of prison cells for drug addicts has repealed its repressive Rockefeller drug laws, replacing the nation's harshest sentences with a progressive approach to treatment. Read the full story at Rollingstone.com

Drug suspect turns tables on NYPD with videotape

This article is why I wrote the novel "SnitchCraft." The so-called war on drugs invites corruption.

By TOM HAYS and COLLEEN LONG NEW YORK (AP) When undercover detectives busted Jose and Maximo Colon last year for selling cocaine at a seedy club in Queens, there was a glaring problem: The brothers hadn't done anything wrong.

But proclaiming innocence wasn't going to be good enough. The Dominican immigrants needed proof.

"I sat in the jail and thought ... how could I prove this? What could I do?" Jose, 24, recalled in Spanish during a recent interview.

As he glanced around a holding cell, the answer came to him: Security cameras. Since then, a vindicating video from the club's cameras has spared the brothers a possible prison term, resulted in two officers' arrest and become the basis for a multimillion-dollar lawsuit. Read the full Associated Press article here.

President Obama's Cairo Speech

The New York Times - When President Bush spoke in the months and years after Sept. 11, 2001, we often chillingly felt as if we didnt recognize the United States. His vision was of a country racked with fear and bent on vengeance, one that imposed invidious choices on the world and on itself. When we listened to President Obama speak in Cairo on Thursday, we recognized the United States.

Mr. Obama spoke, unwaveringly, of the need to defend the countrys security and values. He left no doubt that he would do what must be done to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban, while making it clear that Americans have no desire to permanently occupy Afghanistan or Iraq.

He spoke, unequivocally, of the United States unbreakable commitment to Israel and of why Iran must not have a nuclear weapon. He was also clear that all of those listening in the Muslim world and in Israel must do more to defeat extremism and to respect the rights of their neighbors and their people. Read the full article here

First lady Michelle Obama joins push for Sotomayor

by Julie Hirschfeld Davis Washington (AP) The White House dispatched first lady Michelle Obama to defend Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor on Wednesday, part of a broad offensive to humanize the judge that came as former GOP House Speaker Newt Gingrich backed off his harsh criticism of her as a racist.

Mrs. Obama told students at a high school graduation that Sotomayor is "more than ready" to be a justice and compared the judge's life story of humble beginnings and high achievement to the paths taken by her husband and herself. Read the full story here.

Controversy Over Obama's Citizenship Heats Up

by Cynthia Gordy Essence.com

The growing legal battle against President-elect Barack Obama's presidency is heading to the U.S. Supreme Court this week. The justices will decide whether or not to look into a lawsuit challenging Obama's citizenship. While the lawsuit is a continuation of a New Jersey case, the citizenship question has sparked a number of lawsuits from Obama's opponents.

Among those who have filed lawsuits is Alan Keyes, who ran an unsuccessful race against Barack Obama in 2004 for the Illinois Senate. Now, U.S. Associate Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has taken an interest in the legal question and asked the rest of the bench to look into the case. Obama received dual citizenship since his father was a Kenyan-born national, which arguably doesn't qualify him as a "natural born citizen" as required by the U.S. Constitution.

A petition to stop the Electoral College from confirming Obama as the forty-fourth President of the United States on December 15 has already been rejected by Justice David Souter, but in a rare move, Thomas has stepped in and granted the case time before the high court in a conference scheduled for tomorrow.Read the full Alan Keyes interview at Essence.com

Many Intimidated, Won't Call Hot Line - So Say the Police

Perhaps the police should do investigative work and recognize that criminals normally commit crimes with few or no witnesses. Do some police work and stop unsolved cases work on an imaginary campaign.

Why don't we ever see photos of all of these "stop snitching" shirts? I have been working in neighborhoods across the country and have not seen one of those shirts for many years. What campaign are you talking about? The media campaign? That's the ONLY place you hear about a don't snitch campaign. Yes there is witness intimidation. That's because CRIMINALS are CRIMINALS and they may threaten people so they won't go to jail. This applies to criminals in the 'hood or those in the White House. Perhaps if you stop writing about the "campaign" there will be no campaign.

Find something newsworthy to talk about.

Hot Line Hurt By 'Stop Snitching' Campaign

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Crime Stoppers TIPS Hot Line coordinators say a campaign of intimidation is keeping many unsolved crimes unsolved.

"For a family member or friend, man, I'll do it. But if I don't know the person, what could I do?" asked one Kansas City resident.

LaMont Williams, whose nephew Marcus was killed by a bullet from a passing car a year ago, said, "I'm sure someone knows who did it. They may not have been at the scene, but that person who committed the murder knows someone and talked to someone about committing that type of thing."

Marcus Williams was a father of two and had no criminal record. His family recently held a vigil in his memory, asking for information from anyone who knows anything about not only Marcus' killing, but all the other unsolved homicides. Full story here

Texas grand jury indicts Cheney, Gonzales of crime

I keep telling people, the only thriving legal industries in America making money are the Prison Industrial Complex and the companies making money off the war. Forget the auto industry - we've got prisons! Low and behold... when you trace the money back, look who's involved. When are people going to wake up and smell the coffee?

Texas grand jury indicts Cheney, Gonzales of crime Reuters News

HOUSTON (Reuters) - A grand jury in South Texas indicted U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney and former attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Tuesday for "organized criminal activity" related to alleged abuse of inmates in private prisons.

The indictment has not been seen by a judge, who could dismiss it.

The grand jury in Willacy County, in the Rio Grande Valley near the U.S.-Mexico border, said Cheney is "profiteering from depriving human beings of their liberty," according to a copy of the indictment obtained by Reuters.

The indictment cites a "money trail" of Cheney's ownership in prison-related enterprises including the Vanguard Group, which owns an interest in private prisons in south Texas.

Former attorney general Gonzales used his position to "stop the investigations as to the wrong doings" into assaults in county prisons, the indictment said. Read the full story here

Surge in minority voting pushed Obama over the top

By Gref Gordon, McClatchy Newspapers
WASHINGTON -- Barack Obama's 8.5 million-vote margin over John McCain was fueled by a more than 20 percent surge in minority voting, a new analysis of exit polling data suggests.

While Obama won a lopsided number of electoral votes, his popular-vote margin was increased by an outpouring of minority balloting as the number of whites who cast ballots declined overall.

The analysis estimated that about 5.8 million more minorities voted in this year's presidential election than in 2004, while nearly 1.2 million fewer whites went to the polls.

Separate opinion polls and election results themselves indicate that an overwhelming majority of African-Americans and Latinos backed Obama.

The surge in minority voting was even more pronounced in some election swing states, including Ohio, the liberal-leaning nonprofit group Project Vote reported.

Project Vote also said that the number of voters ages 18-29 increased by more than 1.8 million, the biggest jump of any similarly sized age group, reflecting a depth of support for Obama among younger voters. Read the full story here

Why Blacks Should Support GM

While we are all weary of one bailout after another with our economy sliding deeper into recession, we should not forget the role of organized labor in the development of the Black middle class. One in 10 jobs are connected to the auto industry and for Blacks, especially Northern Blacks, there are deeper and more extensive connections to UAW and our mighty automobile industry. Union jobs still offer the best opportunity for supporting a family for men and women lacking a college education. Looking back a few years, these were the jobs that helped to put a generation of first-time college graduates through school.

Driven by globalization our entire economy is in transition and this is not the time to let such an important industry fail. In addition to the impact on the economy, we are also engaged in two wars with hot spots all over the world. Should we need it, the auto industry can produce equipment essential for national defense. Hopefully we will never need a national mobilization at the WWII level, still it seems that it is better to retain manufacturing capacity than to bet that it will not be needed. We should use our tax dollars to ensure domestic manufacturing capacity if possible.

We should remember the contributions of great leaders like A. Philip Randolph as well as the ordinary Black men and women who paid mortgages, put kids through college, and helped to strengthen our communities. It was GM that provided buses to transport people to the Poor Peoples March on Washington not to mention supporting national organizations in significant ways for decades. When you really think about it we should be loyal customers and reject foreign imports. A corporate campaign of this sort is against trade agreements but there is nothing stopping the Black community from advancing our own interests. We can advance Buy American and Unity with UAW, to do otherwise dishonors the struggle that really helped move us forward.

It is also important to note the phenomenal opportunity that skilled labor provides young adults eager to work, rear families, and become productive citizens. It is a fact that a rising tide lifts all ships, so anything that helps Black America helps all of America.

Lets do this people. Put our tax dollar to work for Americans who work. Please reject all claims that the current challenge is the fault of overpaid laborers who only struggled to get a fair share of the profit from their labor. Call and email your Congressional Delegation Now.

FeliciaD

Election spurs 'hundreds' of race threats, crimes

by Jesse Washington, Associated Press

Cross burnings. Schoolchildren chanting "Assassinate Obama." Black figures hung from nooses. Racial epithets scrawled on homes and cars.

Incidents around the country referring to President-elect Barack Obama are dampening the postelection glow of racial progress and harmony, highlighting the stubborn racism that remains in America.

From California to Maine, police have documented a range of alleged crimes, from vandalism and vague threats to at least one physical attack. Insults and taunts have been delivered by adults, college students and second-graders.

There have been "hundreds" of incidents since the election, many more than usual, said Mark Potok, director of the Intelligence Project at the Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors hate crimes.

One was in Snellville, Ga., where Denene Millner said a boy on the school bus told her 9-year-old daughter the day after the election: "I hope Obama gets assassinated." That night, someone trashed her sister-in-law's front lawn, mangled the Obama lawn signs, and left two pizza boxes filled with human feces outside the front door, Millner said. Read the full story here

Dr. Dorothy I Height Speaking Election Night

Yes We Did!

Dr. Height at 96 partied last night celebrating our great victory. Long before CNN declared a winner our DJ was rocking Sam Cooke's "Change", James Brown-Say It Loud, I'm Black and I'm Proud, Aretha's R-E-S-P-E-C-T, and even Parliament's One Nation Under a Groove, and of course Ray Charles' America and Marvin Gaye's National Anthem not to mention multiple versions of Lift Every Voice and Sing as well as incredible Obama songs. We celebrated our UNITY knowing that we had done all. We celebrated each and every check for Obama with shouts and dance but when that final check came in for just one moment--less than a second--but a clear moment in time we stood as one with one collective breath before exploding in a great jubilee. Dr. Height had tears streaming down her face seated next to former Lincoln University president Niera Sudarkasa. My daughter Illai took off her Black Youth Vote tee shirt and replaced it with an Obama President tee shirt signaling the change. When Dr. Height spoke of the meaning of this election on a personal level she said that "It means my work was not in vain."

My father joined the ancestors this year but not before he had an opportunity to vote for Obama in the primary. I identified with the painfully sweet essence of such a victory actually made possible by those no longer here to see the day. My father was a deep, philosophical thinker fond of profound instructive quotes. Dr. Height left us with the same quote that my father shared as the single most instructive. It was powerful then and resonated throughout my being when Dr. Height selected the same quote last night: "At the banquet table of nature, there are no reserved seats. You get what you can take, and you keep what you can hold. If you can't take anything, you won't get anything, and if you can't hold anything, you won't keep anything. And you can't take anything without organization." A. Philip Randolph

Don't Wake Up on the Wrong Side of History!

There is very little time left and my heart goes out to all of the Black folk that could vote that will soon miss the train. I just blogged about responsibilities so now it is time to make it known that there are no excuses, not for Black America. The nationalists can't say anything about imperialism, I don't want to hear about faith in God preventing participation, as Dr. Lowery always says for some "voting is a sacred right but for Blacks it is a moral obligation." There are only 15 minutes left I want to dedicate this last blog to the sisters and brothers who would give anything to have the right to vote. Some have made mistakes but there was one young brother incarcerated in Florida who sent a letter and $10 to the National Coalition because he wanted to play a small part in making history even if he could not vote. There are so many that moved with great physical challenge to make their way to the polls one 82-year-old grandmother in Michigan preferred to stand in line with her daughter and grandson so that 3 generations could vote together while training a 4th too young to vote. I am all for removing obstacles to voting but we have to be willing to make small sacrifices for the greater good. Standing in line does not compare to standing in a swamp with dogs following, or being attacked by dogs for demanding the right to vote, come on people there are 7 minutes left. My heart is breaking for those who were turned away but at least they came forward to represent. Each and every vote today celebrated an ancestor that kept the flame of freedom alive. Five minutes left, my job is to blog it on out, free style, I close honoring Barbara, Lee, Marie, Eleanor, Chaneys, Davis, Hobsons,to Illai, Tashonie, Kemauhl, Kwahme, Edrea, Omar, remembering Jr.,Alvin, thanking Andy, Ronald, Michelle, Bernetta, Wanda, Pam, Anita, Dempsey, LeRoy, Eula, Henrietta, Woodrow,Roscoe,Percy,Henry,Matthew, Maurice,Joe,there is only one minute left until the polls close. Out of time