2009 January
Monthly Archives: January 2009
Obama EPA to prioritize school air quality
Grading and construction activities by the Florida-based megadeveloper Lennar enter a third year ... with asbestos and particulate levels at air monitor HV9 - located adjacent to a residential complex - skyrocketing to over 296,000 structures per cubic meter Dec. 28-30.
Black Power wins a Black president and a white cop charged with murder
In the first month of 2009, we put a Black man in the White House with our votes and convinced a DA to charge a white cop with the murder of a Black man with our rebellion. Don't miss MOI JR's next Town Bizness Townhall Wed., Feb. 11, 7 p.m., Black Dot Cafe, 1195 Pine, West Oakland, featuring Ch. Fred Hampton Jr., Martina Davis, Min. Keith Muhammad and more, and come with me to the BART board meeting Feb. 12, 9 a.m., 344 20th St., Oakland.
Weathering the storm: an insider’s look at the Justice for Oscar Grant Movement a...
Jan. 23 the movement for justice for Oscar Grant III kicked into high gear at the Prisoners of Conscience Committee's Town Bizness Town Hall Meeting. Follow up by packing the courtroom at Johannes Mehserle's bail hearing Friday, Jan. 30, 2 p.m., at 1225 Fallon St., Oakland. Don't let the cops outnumber us.
Haiti policy statement for President Obama and Congress
Haitian-Americans are working for change on the following priorities and urge President Obama and the new U.S. Congress to incorporate them into a more effective foreign policy that centers on promoting sustainable development, self-sufficiency, and a sovereign, prosperous and stable Haiti.
Torture at Angola Prison
The torture of prisoners in U.S. custody is not only found in military prisons in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo. If President Obama is serious about ending U.S. support for torture, he can start here in Louisiana.
BART Officer Tony Pirone caught on video punching Oscar Grant
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0egoZCTXLGY&hl=en&fs=1&w=480&h=295]
Moments before he was killed, Oscar Grant was punched in the face - but not by the BART officer who shot him. A...
Congo’s riches belong to the Congolese
Forty-eight years ago, the first freely elected prime minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Patrice Emery Lumumba, was brutally murdered by the United States, Belgium and certain local elites because he wanted the resources of the Congo to benefit the Congolese people.
Obama is president: Time for self-deliverance
"Electing Barack Obama president doesn't mean we have overcome ... We could put too much faith in him to deliver us, when we need to be organizing to deliver ourselves."
The terrible aftermath of Marsy’s Law
Life-term prisoners - lifers - are beginning to experience the effects of Prop 9, Marsy's Law. On Jan. 14, when political prisoner Hugo Pinnell appeared before the Parole Board, he was told to come back in 15 years!
Black Iraqis make Obama a model
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1sJFMDfAPI&hl=en&fs=1&w=480&h=295]
"Now we, the dark-skinned people, feel even closer to the American people now because Obama is one of us," says the leader of...
Leonard Peltier’s safety in jeopardy!
Leonard Peltier was severely beaten after being transferred to another prison. Learn how you can help and read a letter from Leonard and commentary - ‘President Obama must free Leonard Peltier' - written Jan. 23 by Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman.
Everyday people witness an extraordinary inauguration
"This historic occasion is merely the tip of the iceberg. Yet unseen but soon to surface is the debunking of a global culture of supremacy that assumes or guarantees the authority of European principles, practices, preferences and privilege," said Dr. Tascoe.
Dr. King shows us the way to end poverty in America
The Gulf Coast Civic Works Act to fund "green" resident-led recovery projects is inspired by Dr. King's proposal for ending poverty: a public works New Deal-like program assuring full employment.
Rev. Joseph Lowery’s inaugural benediction – video and transcript
Lord, help us work for that day when Black will not be asked to get in back, when Brown can stick around, when Yellow will be mellow, when the Red man can get ahead, man; and when White will embrace what is right.
‘The Emperor’s Clothes’ by Invincible
In response to Israel's horrific attack on the Gaza Strip, Invincible has dropped a new track, "The Emperor's Clothes," which ties the attack to the police execution of Oscar Grant in Oakland.
A ‘police state’ celebrates
The Israeli government is stepping up efforts to suppress dissent and crush resistance in the streets.
Obama’s cross to bear
We arrived in Palestine on Jan. 2, the fourth day of the attacks on Gaza and the day after the murder of Oscar Grant III by the subway police in Oakland.
No more excuses
Who among us - especially those of my generation - ever dared believe that an American of African heritage would ascend to the highest office in the land in our lifetime?
President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address
President Barack Obama delivers his Inaugural Address on the steps of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., Jan. 20, 2009 - see the videos, photos and transcript.
A new storm against imperialism
'On behalf of the Chinese people, I hereby express resolute support for the just struggle of the Black people in the United States,' said Mao, as rebellions following the assassination of Martin Luther King set 100 U.S. cities on fire.