Washington (CNN) -- A Washington elementary school student who allegedly brought cocaine to school and shared it with other children has been charged with possession of a controlled substance, the school system said Friday.
Four children who received cocaine ingested it orally or inhaled it, said a spokesman for District of Columbia Public Schools.
The students were evaluated by a school nurse and taken to the hospital to be checked out, along with a fifth child who did not ingest any of the cocaine. All of the students are reported to be OK.
The incident took place Thursday at Thomson Elementary School.
Fred Lewis, a spokesman for the school system, said a child brought to school "an undetermined amount of cocaine" and shared it with others in his class. Neither the school system or the police would release the names or ages of the children involved. Thomson has students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade.
Local law enforcement and school officials could not immediately recall an instance involving cocaine use by such young students.
Thomson Elementary's principal, Albert DuPont, sent a letter home to parents asking them to speak with their children about the dangers of drugs. His letter included a request for parents to warn their kids "not to eat something from another child."
The school's students had a day off Friday because of a previously scheduled professional development day for teachers.
Counselors are going to be at the school Monday to discuss what happened with students and teachers and will stress the danger of drugs, the school system said.
Washington's Metropolitan Police Department would not comment on whether investigators have learned how the child obtained the cocaine. "The investigation is continuing," said police spokeswoman Gwendolyn Crump.
(CNN) -- Deadly conflict is raging in Libya, witnesses say, despite the government announcement of an "immediate" cease-fire after a U.N. Security Council resolution authorizing the use of force to protect civilians.
At least 28 people died and hundreds were wounded as fighting raged in the Libyan cities of Mistrata, Ajdabiya and Zintan on Friday, according to Khaled el-Sayeh, military spokesman for the opposition.
U.S. President Barack Obama warned Gadhafi to adhere to the cease-fire and pull back from several besieged cities. But Obama insisted that American troops will not be deployed in Libya.
Witnesses in the western city of Misrata said a pro-government assault is persisting and casualties are mounting as countries backing the council's move, such as Britain and France, get their military resources into place to enforce the measure.
"What cease-fire?" asked a doctor in Misrata, who described hours of military poundings, casualties and dwindling resources to treat the wounded. "We're under the bombs.
Libya declares immediate cease-fire
Libya reacts to no-fly zone
Libyan rebels celebrate vote
Breaking down a no-fly zone over Libya
Libyan amb. still hopeful for airstrikes "This morning, they are burning the city," the doctor said. "There are deaths everywhere."
"Misrata is on fire," according to an opposition member, who said tanks and vehicles with heavy artillery shot their way into the city Thursday night and the assault continued Friday. He said leader Moammar Gadhafi's regime announced a cease-fire to buy time for itself. "Please help us."
Outside Ajdabiya in eastern Libya, CNN's Arwa Damon said she heard explosions, listened to fighters' accounts of heavy casualties and saw ambulances. She said fighters, who don't trust Gadhafi, believe that the declaration is a trick.
"Everybody around us is on very high alert, still expecting the worst," Damon said.
El-Sayeh said 26 people died in Mistrata, 83 were seriously wounded and hundreds were slightly wounded. In Ajdabiya, two died, three were seriously wounded and hundreds were slightly wounded. There was no immediate casualty count for Zintan, el-Sayeh said.
CNN couldn't independently confirm the witness accounts, and it is impossible to tell whether word of the cease-fire declaration trickled down to pro-government forces. The announcement, which came hours after the U.N. Security Council authorized the use of force to protect besieged civilians, drew quick skepticism from France and the United States, among others.
In remarks televised around the globe, Libyan Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa said in Tripoli that the country decided on "an immediate cease-fire and the stoppage of all military operations." He noted that the country, since it is a member of the United Nations, is "obliged to accept the Security Council resolution that permits the use of force to protect the civilian population."
Obama said Friday that "left unchecked, we have every reason to believe Gadhafi (will) commit atrocities against his own people" and the surrounding region could be destabilized.
Power and water must be restored to several cities, he added.
"These terms are not negotiable," Obama said. If Gadhafi doesn't comply, the U.N. resolution will be imposed through military action, the president said.
It was not immediately clear how the announced cease-fire and word of continued fighting will affect plans of some countries to intervene militarily in Libya; authorities in Britain and France had talked before Koussa's remarks.
Koussa said that Libya plans to protect civilians and provide them with humanitarian assistance and that it is obliged to protect all foreigners and their assets. He also called for a fact-finding mission to sort out the events on the ground.
He said the Libya government was disappointed in the imposition of a no-fly zone, arguing that it will hurt the civilian population. He also said the use of military power would violate the country's sovereignty and go against the U.N. charter, but he acknowledged that some countries may yet intervene.
"There are signs this indeed might take place," Koussa said.
Bernard Valero, a French Foreign Ministry spokesman, said the cease-fire announcement "does not change the threat on the ground."
Frustration and anger in Benghazi
Libyan rebel: We've seen heavy gunfire
No-fly zone a slippery slope to more?
Libya 'welcomes' U.N. resolution RELATED TOPICS
Libya
United Nations Security Council
Middle East Conflict
"Gadhafi is privy to folkloric declarations, and we must remain extremely vigilant with regards to these declarations," he said.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who called the situation "fluid and dynamic," said the United States wants actions, not words. "We will continue to work with our partners in the international community to press Gadhafi to leave and to support the legitimate aspirations of the Libyan people," she said.
The Libyan government "must immediately cease all hostilities against the civilian population," U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Friday in Madrid.
Earlier Friday, talk emerged in Europe of speedy military action against Gadhafi's regime.
In an interview with RTL radio, French government spokesman Francois Baroin said France plans to participate in "swift" efforts. President Nicolas Sarkozy will convene a summit Saturday to look at the crisis. Invited are members of the Arab League, the president of the European Council and representatives of states that support the implementation of the U.N. resolution.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said the United Kingdom has started preparations to deploy aircraft, and "in the coming hours" they will move to air bases where they will be positioned for any "necessary action."
Spain will offer NATO the use of two military bases and provide air and naval forces for use in operations involving Libya, Spanish Defense Minister Carme Chacon said Friday in Madrid, a Defense Ministry spokesman said.
The two bases to be offered in southern Spain are the Rota air and naval station, where a contingent of U.S. troops is also based, and the air base at Moron de la Frontera. Those, as well as the offer to provide air and naval assets, would be subject to parliamentary approval, the minister said at an event at a Spanish air base in Madrid, the spokesman said.
Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said it is closing the Italian Embassy in Tripoli and will actively participate in the effort.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Canada is sending CF-18 fighter jets to join a Canadian warship on standby off the coast of Libya.
The Pentagon, meanwhile, announced Friday that Defense Secretary Robert Gates will travel to Russia this weekend as the United States and other nations deliberate action against Libya.
"There is no consideration being given to delaying this trip," spokesman Geoff Morrell said at the Pentagon. He said Gates maintains constant communications links with Washington wherever he goes and can "carry out his responsibilities no matter where he is in the world."
Asked whether the cease-fire declaration complicates a U.N.-sanctioned intervention, Michael Rubin, a Middle East expert at the American Enterprise Institute, said, "It is going to make it tougher without a doubt."
"One should credit Obama for getting the international community behind him, but it came at the price of momentum. The Libyans understand European weakness and know how to play off of it," Rubin said.
Rubin said migration concerns come into play, with Europeans worried that more violence will generate more refugees.
"They look at change in North Africa almost exclusively through the lens of migration," he said.
The council voted 10-0 with five abstentions Thursday night to authorize "states to take all necessary measures to protect civilians." It also imposed a no-fly zone, banning all flights in Libyan airspace, with exceptions that involve humanitarian aid and evacuation of foreign nationals.
The United States and its NATO partners have several contingencies in place to act quickly, according to an administration official familiar with planning. They include airstrikes and cruise missile attacks designed to cripple Libyan air defenses and punish the military units that are leading Gadhafi's push on opposition strongholds in the east, the official said.
Obama will insist on a major Arab role in any no-fly zone, the official said.
All commercial air traffic has been shut down in Libya, an official at Eurocontrol said Friday.
The opposition, with devoted but largely untrained and under-equipped units, has suffered military setbacks this week. But their hopes were buoyed by the U.N. vote, particularly in rebel-held Benghazi, where an assault by pro-Gadhafi forces has been expected.
The resolution singles out the city. It says U.N. member states can "take all necessary measures ... to protect civilians and civilian populated areas under threat of attack in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, including Benghazi, while excluding a foreign occupation force. "The Libyan Arab Jamahiriya" is a formal name for the nation.
The U.N. resolution details enforcement of an arms embargo against Libya, the freezing of assets and a ban on most flights.
Yeah,Yeah,Yeah,..............Is Obama The New George W.????
Hell we need humanitarian aid here at home in America, we need the full backing and support of the Government here in America.
Our beloved country always going to war unnecessarily, no ground troops or not innocent people will die by the multitudes. (THINK ABOUT IT)
Minnesota's Adrian Peterson: Lockout Is 'Slavery'
“It's modern-day slavery, you know?” is what Adrian Peterson, star running back of the Minnesota Vikings said about the current situation between the NFL owners and the players association.
He went on and said,
“People kind of laugh at that, but there are people working at regular jobs who get treated the same way, too."
Adrian told Yahoo! Sports after the NFL lockout was announced on Friday that he felt it was unfair that the league would refuse to open their financial books.
"Obviously, there's a lot to hide — these guys are professionals, and they're maximizing what they do. But they know that if all this information comes out, the information the players want, it'll be right out there for everyone to see."
No matter what NFL players may be doing in the offseason, the ongoing labor negotiations are never far from their minds. Even stars like Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson have strong feelings on the issues being debated by NFL players and team owners, who are fighting over how to divide the league's estimated $9.3 billion in revenue.
Speaking just minutes after the owners locked out the players, Peterson compared the players' place in the game to "modern-day slavery," a statement that, while ill-advised, was made in the context of how the players feel they're being treated in these talks. (Note: Based on the context in which the comments were made, I do not believe that Peterson was actually equating his current position in the NFL with any kind of slavery. I will update this piece if he clarifies his statement.) What follows is our full interview.
See the controversial quote in its entirety here.
SC: We're talking about 15 minutes after the NFLPA sent in the paperwork to decertify, so the lockout's on everybody's minds. I've talked to a lot of players about this recently, and I always ask the same question — what is the message you want to get out to the people who love the game and are tired of hearing all the labor talk?
AP: We're business-minded, also. It's not just fun and games. A lot of football players, whether it's Sunday or Monday night — we're out there on the field, competing, hitting each other. But people don't see everything else behind it. It's a job for us, too — every day of the week. We're in different states, sometimes thousands of miles away from our families and kids, and a lot of people don't look at it like that. All some people see is, 'Oh, we're not going to be around football.' But how the players look at it … the players are getting robbed. They are. The owners are making so much money off of us to begin with. I don't know that I want to quote myself on that…
SC: It's nothing that I haven't heard from other players, believe me.
AP: It's modern-day slavery, you know? People kind of laugh at that, but there are people working at regular jobs who get treated the same way, too. With all the money … the owners are trying to get a different percentage, and bring in more money. I understand that; these are business-minded people. Of course this is what they are going to want to do. I understand that; it's how they got to where they are now. But as players, we have to stand our ground and say, 'Hey — without us, there's no football.' There are so many different perspectives from different players, and obviously we're not all on the same page — I don't know. I don't really see this going to where we'll be without football for a long time; there's too much money lost for the owners. Eventually, I feel that we'll get something done.
But this crazy idea about an 18-game season … I'm sure they want more entertainment and more revenue, but we're not going to see a pinch of that (the increased revenue), and it's just the business we're in.
SC: It seems to most of the players that if the owners had nothing to hide financially, and if the current business model was as unsustainable as they claim, they'd have no trouble opening the books and showing audited profit and loss per team. Is that your impression?
AP: Exactly! It's like … 'Well, show us.' We want more information, and they want to bull****, going around, saying this and that, just open it up and give us the information we want. If they have nothing to hide, just give us the information. Why not? Obviously, there's a lot to hide -- these guys are professionals, and they're maximizing what they do. But they know that if all this information comes out, the information the players want, it'll be right out there for everyone to see. It's a ripoff — not just for the players, but for the people who work at the concession stands and at the stadiums. The people working at the facilities, you know?
SC: Do you feel that you're represented well by DeMaurice Smith and George Atallah and what now used to be the Players' Union?
AP: Yeah, I think so — they're doing a good job. And with the veteran guys on board, and the player reps, they give us a lot of confidence.
SC: Obviously, last season was a disappointment for the Vikings — your team went 6-10 while the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears played for the NFC championship, and the Packers won the Super Bowl. How do the Vikings get back to the top of the NFC North? And how should you get that new quarterback now that Brett Favre(notes) is gone?
AP: We need to make some adjustments. Obviously … I mean, Favre hasn't retired yet! (laughs) You never know! The quarterback situation is up in the air, and some adjustments need to be made there. We need to go out and do a good job of recruiting in free agency (whenever there is free agency) — bring some new guys in, patch up some areas, and I feel that with Coach [Leslie] Frazier and the changes he's made, they're all for the better, and they'll help our team in the ways we're hoping for. It's all about having 53 guys that come together, and can get it done with the same goals, and will make sacrificed to accomplish those goals.
I see so many teams … the Patriots are a perfect example. Tom Brady's(notes) the guy everyone knows about, but it's about all the other players — the role-players who, one way or another, will get it done somehow. It's not all about talent, and we were a perfect example of that. Brett Favre at quarterback, me at running back, the offensive line, Sidney Rice(notes) … Percy Harvin(notes) is one of the best athletes I've ever seen. Our defense is always ranked in the top five … that shows you that talent doesn't always get it done. So, the changes Coach Frazier has made, new offensive and defensive coordinators, I feel like the mindset those guys bring to the table will be the key we need to get back to that level.
Peterson is one of the best players in the game, and he's staying busy as the labor issues get hashed out — he recently teamed with Power Balance performance wear and Converge to shoot a "Double Take" video in which he interviewed himself and dealt with delicate subjects like McDonald's restrooms, fantasy football, and power handshakes.
The family of rapper Nate Dogg has told the Long Beach Press-Telegram that the performer died Tuesday at age 41.
No details were immediately available, but the paper said Nate Dogg, whose real name is Nathaniel D. Hale, had suffered two strokes in recent years.
His musical collaborator, rapper Snoop Dogg, posted a note on his Twitter account saying: "RIP NATE DOGG."
Rapper Ludacris said on Twitter: "There is a certain void in hip hop's heart that can never be filled. Glad we got to make history together."
Hale was born in Long Beach.
He got his start with Snoop Doggy Dogg and Warren G in a Long Beach-area band called 213. He later recorded with Dr. Dre on "The Chronic" and appeared in Snoop Doggy Dogg's "Doggystyle," according to Times reports.
To be honest, on that list, I was on the cover of Forbes back in '98," Diddy explained in an interview. "I been on that list. I don't really get caught up into the list. I think people think that I have that money actually sitting at home in the basement...It's really like if I sold all my companies, and I take pride in [building] something as a black man that's worth that much...To everyone calling me for a loan today, I do not have that money today! ... It helps inspire people and it shows the power of hip-hop." (MTV)
Falling closely behind Puff on the list is Jay-Z and Dr. Dre.
When it comes to net worth, Jay-Z is number two. The top spot goes to Sean "Diddy" Combs, who tops our accounting of rap's richest with a fortune of $475 million, fueled by his interests in Sean John clothing, Bad Boy Worldwide record label and, most significantly, his Diageo joint-venture vodka brand Ciroc. Jay-Z ranks a close second, with $450 million. Super producer/rapper Dr. Dre ranks third with $125 million, fueled by past earnings generated from his own career and by helping to launch those of Snoop Dogg and Eminem. Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, a onetime Dr. Dre protege who reaped a nine-figure payday from the sale of Vitamin Water to Coca-Cola, rounds out the top five in a tie with Cash Money Records cofounder Bryan "Birdman" Williams at $100 million. (Forbes)
No stranger to wealth, Diddy previously spoke on his dominance last summer.
"I was the first on the jet. I was the first running the marathon. I was the first donating millions of dollars. I was the first. I was the first with the 10 million records sold. I was the first with the label. I was the first with the renegotiations. F*ck a Forbes list--I was on the cover of Forbes. There is going to be someone that will pass me, but as long as I'm on the court, they are not going to be badder than me, because there is too much catching up to do...There is not one muthaf*cka that's here now who is going to outwork me. That is not going to happen, not right now. Maybe if I slow down, but to this day, no one can f*ck with me when it comes to getting busy and working." (XXL Mag)
Leading the pack is Diddy with nearly half a billion dollars to his name.
When it comes to net worth, Jay-Z is number two. The top spot goes to Sean "Diddy" Combs, who tops our accounting of rap's richest with a fortune of $475 million, fueled by his interests in Sean John clothing, Bad Boy Worldwide record label and, most significantly, his Diageo joint-venture vodka brand Ciroc. Jay-Z ranks a close second, with $450 million. Superproducer/rapper Dr. Dre ranks third with $125 million, fueled by past earnings generated from his own career and by helping to launch those of Snoop Dogg and Eminem. Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, a onetime Dr. Dre protege who reaped a nine-figure payday from the sale of Vitamin Water to Coca-Cola, rounds out the top five in a tie with Cash Money Records cofounder Bryan "Birdman" Williams at $100 million. (Forbes)
The renowned financial publication also provided the reasoning behind each artist's selection.
In order to form the list, we followed the same procedures we use to calculate the list of the world's billionaires (released today) -- valuing current holdings, looking at past earnings, leafing through financial documents and talking to a bevy of analysts, attorneys, managers and other industry players to find the nitty-gritty details. We considered only performers, which is why hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons isn't on this list. Though other hip-hop artists including Lil Wayne, Pharrell Williams, Rick Ross and others -- not to mention pop sensation Bruno Mars, who penned Travie McCoy's hit song "Billionaire" -- frequently speak of ten-figure desires, we kept our list to five because of the lack of information available on the fortunes under $100 million. (Forbes)
Last year, Jay-Z and his wife/singer Beyonce were ranked the highest-earning couple in Hollywood.
Music duo Jay-Z and Beyoncé Knowles earned $122 million between June 2008 and June 2009, landing them atop the publication's annual Top-Earning Couples list in Hollywood for the second year in a row. The couple married quietly in 2008 and are responsible for everything from music ("Single Ladies" and "Empire State of Mind") to clothing lines, worldwide tours, and product endorsements (like American Express and Budweiser). (Entertainment Weekly)
(sohh)
Child Molester Francis Phillip Tullier Is Castrated in Plea Deal
Talk about a crime fitting the punishment, Francis Phillip Tullier, a convicted child molester in Louisiana, underwent surgical castrationon Thursday so he could be released from prison on parole.
Tullier plead guilty in 1999 to 3 counts of molestation and faced hundreds of molestation counts involving young girls. The now 78-year-old Tullier was sentenced to 27 years in prison.
According to The Associated Press, Tullier's lawyer Nathan Fisher, said that under the agreement Tullier could only be eligible for parole once he underwent castration.
Tullier agreed to have the surgery at his own expense according to officials and it was done this week after years of delays while Tullier was treated for various medical issues.
The Advocate newspaper reports that Tullier is due for release next week. He will live in Iberville Parish and has to register as a sex offender.
Tullier admitted abusing three girls, ages 6 to 12, during the 1970s and 80s. As part of the plea deal, he agreed to have his testicles surgically removed. If he didn't have the procedure done, Tullier wasn't expected to be released until 2024.
(HIPHOPWIRED)
HOUSTON (FinalCall.com) - Black and Hispanic community leaders held a Feb. 3 press conference to express their disgust at seeing a video showing Houston police offi cers allegedly punching, stomping, and kicking a Black teen last March while he was handcuffed.
“This is a tragedy repeated one more time in Harris County. The community is standing here today to say we are outraged at what has transpired. While others were trying to cover it up and had managed to keep it out of the public eye, the truth is fi nally coming out,” said D.Z. Cofi eld, president of the NAACP Houston branch.
The video was released publically for the fi rst time on Feb. 2 to the local KTRK-TV Channel 13 news station by community activist Quanell X, who said he legally obtained the tape. He further said he had planned to hand it over to all media outlets but was stopped in his tracks by a state district judge’s temporary restraining order prohibiting further release.
Despite describing “racist threats” made against him via his Facebook page and office phone, he decided to show the unedited version of the incident on a laptop during the press conference.
The video was recorded by a surveillance camera on March 24 at Uncle Bob’s Self-Storage located in the southwest area.
The footage shows then 15-yearold burglary suspect Chad Holley being chased by several offi cers on foot and in patrol cars. After jumping over the hood of a patrol car as it jams into a fence, Mr. Holley lays down in the grass on his stomach with his hands up before offi cers descend upon him. Then one offi cer appears to stomp Mr. Holley’s head and other offi cers land several more kicks to the face after he’s been handcuffed.
Another offi cer appears to deliver multiple punches to the abdomen just before the fi rst offi cer to do the stomping returns again to kick Mr. Holley in the legs. The teen is then escorted to a patrol car.
Under the orders of Houston police Chief Charles McClelland, eight offi cers were suspended within three days of obtaining the tape last year. Five offi cers received two-day suspensions and three other offi cers were fi red without being charged. Two of the fi red offi cers were able to obtain their jobs back due to an appeal.
In June, offi cers Raad Hassan, Andrew Blomberg, Drew Ryser and Phil Bryan were indicted on misdemeanor suppression charges and terminated. Mr. Hassan and Mr. Bryan were also charged with violation of the civil rights of a prisoner. All four cops pled not guilty and are slated to stand trial in August.
Last year, a request from Harris County District Attorney Pat Lykos to ban the release of the footage was granted by a federal judge. “Despite the tape’s release, we will continue to do everything possible to ensure that both the state and the defense are given a fair trial,” she said.
“I was shocked and disgusted when I fi rst viewed this tape. My feelings haven’t changed. The city of Houston has fully supported the district attorney’s desire to keep this video from being released prior to trial because we did not want to do anything that could jeopardize the prosecution of the police offi cers involved,” said Houston Mayor Annise Parker, in a statement after the video was released.
“Whoever provided the video to Channel 13 is in violation of a federal court order and should be prosecuted. It is unfortunate and irresponsible that Channel 13 has chosen to air the material at this time,” said Mayor Parker.
“I am shocked and appalled that Mayor Annise Parker would call for my prosecution. Why do you want to prosecute a man who committed no crime? These police offi cers are public servants in uniform in the public eye, captured on a tape in public, I believe, committing a crime,” said Quanell X.
Mr. Holley, now 16, was convicted in the burglary case last October and given probation. Rev. James Nash, who represents the group Ministers Against Crime, made it clear that Mr. Holley’s crime was not supported.
“We do not condone the behavior of any criminal. This young man stood in a court and received a penalty for his misdeeds. We condemn the actions of these offi cers. This is criminal activity from the very people that should be protecting us,” said Rev. Nash.
“This never ever should have been kept from the people. What’s on that tape the world will get to see now how they truly behave in public when dealing with Black and Brown men. Chad Holley never resisted,” said Quanell X. State Rep. Borris Miles, D-Houston, said he is taking steps to call on Texas lawmakers to address the issue and get the attention of U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.
“This is about rogue cops. We’re going to be forwarding Eric Holder a copy of this tape. These offi cers on this tape need to be dealt with in a severe manner,” said Rep. Miles.
Millions paid out in judgments for abusive officers as cities cut services, furlough workers
LOS ANGELES (FinalCall.com) - Abusive cops are costing already cash-strapped cities across the U.S. millions of dollars in settlements but civil rights activists and attorneys warn that the payouts will continue unless the criminal justice system begins to prosecute its out-of-control officers.
“Obviously we are in a major budget crisis, which has personally affected me,” said author, activist and syndicated columnist Dr. Earl Ofari Hutchinson, referring to a local community college Spanish class he had signed up for, but was cancelled due to state budget cuts.
“Already within a space of three months we’ve seen how this crisis has gotten bigger and bigger and people are hurt by this. This is not just some abstract numbers, but this affects real peoples’ lives. We’ve seen how it affects healthcare, education, welfare, and jobs—whether public or private—public services, DMV, mental health facilities and processing job applications.There is real pain and suffering,” Dr. Hutchinson said.
On Feb. 4, the Los Angeles City Council authorized a $12.85 million settlement to demonstrators who were injured when officers from the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) used excessive force to break up a peaceful May Day rally in MacArthur Park last year.More than 300 claims were filed against the city.
That same day in Oakland, Atty. John Burris filed a $1.5 million claim against the Bay Area Rapid Transit District and former transit officer Johannes Mehserle.Mr. Mehserle shot and killed 22-year-old Oscar Grant, III in the back while he had apparently been subdued.
Atty. Burris filed the claim on behalf of five others who were with Mr. Grant that New Year’s Day and alleged that they were also abused by BART police.
On Jan. 28, the L.A. City Council also approved a $20.5 million settlement for four LAPD officers who charged that they were wrongfully prosecuted during the 1990s Rampart corruption scandal. But previous settlements to Rampart victims of police misconduct totaled about $75.5 million.The notorious scandal was uncovered when Rafael Perez, a member of the CRASH (Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums) Gang Unit, testified as a police informant that he and other officers often falsely accused and framed gang members for crimes.
“Cities and counties around the nation are hurting badly but is that to say that it’s going to make the LAPD any better in terms of how they police, hire and promote in terms of more minority sensitive?I don’t think so.I just think it’s going to increase the liability of taxpayers,” Dr. Hutchinson said.
If cities have to pay $12 million settlements, they simply rob Peter to pay Paul. “They will pull the money from somewhere else, library, park, playground service hours.They’ll find it by not funding after school nutrition programs.It has a rippling effect and it is caused by a mandated court order,” Dr. Hutchinson said.
According to the non-partisan California Budget Project, which works to improve “public policies affecting the economic and social well-being of low- and middle-income Californians,” people who have been and stand to be impacted by the current statewide budget crisis include:
• 1,544,710 public school students, due to cuts to five of the largest funding allocations;
• 66,140 low-income children dropped from the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids Program;
• 418,840 low-income seniors and persons with disabilities who would lose the state cost-of-living adjustment for Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Payment cash assistance grants;
• 61,590 low-income children in 2008-09—and a total of 112,140 children by 2009-10 —who would lose Medi-Cal coverage due to increased paperwork requirements; and
• 249,220 children enrolled in the Healthy Families Program, which provides low-cost health coverage for children in low-income working families.
In Chicago the mayor has put city employees on unpaid leave to help fill a budget shortfall. But a little over a year ago, Chicago officials agreed to pay $19.8 million to four men who suffered police torture under then-commander Jon Burge.Some $30 million has been spent to settle assorted lawsuits connected with the case, which stretches back to abuses during the 1980s and 1990s. Mayor Richard Daley proposed a two-to-three day furlough for more than 4,000 non-union workers to ease the city’s budgetary crisis.
The $30 million payout doesn’t count millions of dollars spent defending Mr. Burge after he was fired by the police department in 1993, said a staffer at the People’s Law Office, which has represented torture victims. City attorneys and private attorneys were paid to defend a man whose firing bore witness to his guilt, said the staffer. This doesn’t even count the human toll, which is worse, because of how Blacks, Latinos and the poor are abused by officers, said the staffer.
Big price tags for cop abuses aren’t new
Current budget problems may cause taxpayers to take a look at how their money is spent, but in Chicago $18 million was paid to the family of LaTanya Haggerty, a Black woman shot to death by police in 1999. In 1995, a New York Times editorial noted that in the “cash-starved” Big Apple, brutality settlements and court judgments cost the city $87 million over five years. The Rodney King beating cost Los Angeles $3.8 million in a settlement and estimates for property damage hit $700 million after riots when officers involved were acquitted. In 2001, the city of New York shelled out $7.125 million in the infamous Abner Louima case, in which the Haitian immigrant was assaulted with a plunger by officers in a precinct bathroom.
“This is shameful because right now if you’re already suffering from a $150 million budget deficit and you have three or four huge lawsuits, you have to find that money, so it makes sense to train and educate officers on the front end rather than pay for settlements on the back,” said Ronald Hampton, executive director of the National Black Police Association.
“All their priorities are turned upside down and instead of discouraging more police brutality from occurring, they are basically encouraging it.The money could have been used to offset all of Gov. Schwarzenegger’s budget cuts,” said John Parker, west coast coordinator of the International Action Center, in Los Angeles.With the exception of the Grant case, it is rare that police officers face any possible penalty for excessive force and misconduct, Mr. Parker said.
Police watch groups say that another challenge to police misconduct is being able to track the numerous settlement cases and how they balance with criminal prosecutions of officers.
Information about settlements may be secret
The ease or difficulty of getting records of payments in police misconduct cases depends on the particular state and state law, according to Brigitt Keller, executive director of the National Police Accountability Project. For example, Ms. Keller said, in Massachusetts, settlements paid out of the city’s budget are public record and the terms can be made available with a public records request.However, settlements paid through insurance companies may be confidential.
According to civil rights attorneys, since many abuse cases never make it to trial, the real costs of these settlements are unknown.“Many civil rights cases are dismissed on summary judgment, a method that individual judges use to dismiss or get rid of cases.Many are dismissed by White judges, often in federal court, and there’s no recognition by the judge of the racial issues in the case,” said civil rights attorney Christopher Cooper, of Merrillville, Ind., outside of Chicago.Lawyers’ best advice to plaintiffs, especially if they are Black, is for them to take the settlement or risk having their case tossed out, he said.
Atty. Michael Haddad, who has been fighting civil rights cases for 17 years, said the settlements are only the tip of the iceberg because attorneys probably talk to 100 people who say police abused them before they can take one case. “It’s so hard to prove these cases because the juries like to give police the benefit of the doubt … so the high cost is high but the human cost is much higher because the vast majority of victims never get compensated,” said the Oakland-based lawyer.
Unfortunately, Atty. Haddad added, the settlements create budgetary problems because most cities don’t plan for it, but some cities have insurance that kicks in after so many millions. They could save so much more if they spent money to prevent the misconduct in the first place, he said.
Atty. Haddad said that in a 2004 lawsuit he filed in Oakland, the police chief acknowledged a longstanding pattern of improper strip searches of people on the street.After four years, his firm uncovered some 40 victims of the strip searches. In 2008, although a federal judge ruled that the policies were unconstitutional, the city has not revised the policy and continues to use it.
“Now they’re facing a very big case with these 40 plaintiffs and probably will end up having to pay a significant amount of money to these victims,” Atty. Haddad said.
Legal challenges to police abuse expensive, rare
Kenavon “KC” Carter, an Austin, Texas-based criminal defense attorney, said it is important to understand that the battle against police brutality will not be won with lawsuits alone.“It’s going to take community organizing, public education and a legislative strategy to put pressure on police departments and city councils to hold their officers accountable,” he said.
According to Atty. Carter, it takes at least $50,000 to even bring a civil rights lawsuit alleging police brutality.Such cases are difficult to win because police officers are protected by the principle of qualified immunity, he said.“All an officer has to say when they’ve shot some brother down in the street, in the back, is that they had to make a split second decision, and that decision was to use deadly force.The courts allow them to get a pass,” he said.
“A lot of civil rights organizations, ACLU, NAACP and others are really picking and choosing cases to litigate on because they’re so expensive.They’re not successful and really not an effective strategy on holding police accountable for the conduct of their officers.”
Atty. Carter established Hip Hop Against Police Brutality Project under the sponsorship of the Texas ACLU’s Police Accountability Office. What he has found throughout his legal career is that along with city councils,the real power brokers for police misconduct are district attorneys and police chiefs from civil settlements to criminal prosecutions.
District attorneys are elected officials, so if communities are dissatisfied with their performances, one option is to vote them out, Atty. Carter said.The problem is, however, police officers have strong police unions that put a great deal of pressure on police chiefs, district attorneys and whoever they feel is a threat to cops who step out of line.
On the other hand, Atty. Carter added, citizens have to give good D.A.s political cover when they try to do the right thing.“D.A. Craig Watkins in Dallas, Texas, who is Black, has reopened and overturned 20 wrongful convictions placed on the books by the former D.A. because he saw a pattern of wrongdoing, but now he’s under pressure by the rest of his class of prosecutors to ease up.He’s going to be in trouble in the next election if people don’t stand up and when we finally have somebody really about justice, doing the right thing, we can’t afford to leave him out to dry,” he said.
In its 1999 report entitled, “Shielded From Justice: Police Brutality and Accountability in the United States,” Human Rights Watch indicated that race has played a central role in police brutality in the United States. “In the cities we have examined where such data are available, minorities have alleged human rights violations by police more frequently than white residents and far out of proportion to their representation in those cities. Police have subjected minorities to apparently discriminatory treatment and have physically abused minorities while using racial epithets,” the document read. Human Rights Watch hasn’t followed up on that major report made a decade ago because of money problems and has discontinued domestic monitoring of police misconduct.
We that live in the United States Of America are blessed to live in the greatest Nation on the planet. But for all the freedom and liberties that we have along with some of the greatest technology and independence, we have a horrible and sad reality as well. Our beloved country often displays double standards and hypocrisy invading countries and foreign territories killing innocent civilians and dethrowning other countries Presidents and Rulers Etc. We have enough problems domestically in our own country that needs to be dealt with and rectified. As a country we instigate and exsasibate many foreign problems and issues. We interfere with alot of countries private affairs and civil affairs unnecessarily time and time again. I dont agree with alot of madness and injustice in the Middle East but hell who is America to try to right the wrong when America has not right her own wrong by far. Is it a coincidence that America is always interfering with Oil-Rich Nations or is that just our country's standard of operations. I say and Millions just like me will agree it's our country sad standard of operations to interfere in the affairs of other countries especially the ones that can't really defend themselves against America's mighty military. But you dont see America trying to punk Russia or China. We call ourselves a great democracy but are we the great hypocrisy??? Because we're always in the middle of other countries foreign affairs. We have enough injustice to focus on in our own country where injusticeness runs rampad. I love our country and all that it has to offer but our government is wicked to the core and is responsible for some of the world's most savage crimes and injustices. America needs to focus on America and not always focusing on another country and what they can take from that country. Perfect example George Bush lied to the whole world just as his father did as well. Before its all over with, we're going to witness over here what we've been witnessing over there. The protests and rebellions over here are only going to get much worse as time passes us by. U decide, our country is what it is good and not so good in many,many ways. We love America but do America really love us, we helped build this great Nation but do this great Nation appreciates our blood,sweat,and tears ??? Ask yourself, do this great land we helped build appreciate all of our many,many contributions. Hypocrisy or Democracy ??????????????????? Think About It//THA CHILL ONE
ROSEMONT, Ill. | Stephens Convention Center (FinalCall.com) - The phenomena known as “Unidentified Flying Objects”—which have been witnessed and even documented by thousands and thousands of people in all walks of life for several decades in the United States and all over the world—are in fact evidence of intelligent beings, an international panel of scholars and researchers told a packed ballroom at the Nation of Islam's Saviours' Day 2011 conference on Feb. 26.
Slide presentation of film footage presented at UFO plenary session.
The sightings in several U.S. cities, in Brazil, China, Russia, and many, many sightings in Mexico confirm one of the core beliefs since 1930 of the Nation of Islam. “Master Fard Muhammad pointed out to the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, a dreadful looking plane in the sky, a half a mile by a half a mile, a human built planet,” the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan said in a lecture which was excerpted as part of a film introduction to the plenary session. “I said, before you can make mockery of me you'll see these wheels over the major cities,” the Muslim leader continued. And so it is.
“The witnesses have described these craft as disk-shaped, or cylindrical shaped, or spherical,” a television news announcer continued, recounting the typical description of what have been known as “flying saucers” since a well known incident in Roswell, New Mexico, on July 8, 1947. “These objects are capable of both hovering and high-velocity flight, usually, completely silently. I believe, these gentlemen believe, that this planet is being visited by beings from another world,” the announcer continued.
Because of the superior, advanced technology these craft demonstrate, along with the inability of modern authorities to explain them, most commentators insist that the beings operating these craft must be “extraterrestrial,” or inhuman beings from other worlds.
Slide presentation of Brazillian government's inquiry into UFO phenomenon.
“You want to give the credit to somebody from outer space?” Minister Farrakhan continued in the lecture excerpt. “It ain't no outer space. You want to know where they come from? They're made from here.” The evidence from the seven experts, from Mexico, Brazil, Italy, and the U.S. who addressed the panel, largely confirmed the Muslim leader's conclusion.
The expert presenters—Ademar Gevaerd, Brazil; Dr. Roger Leir, Donald R. Schmitt, and Seve Colbern, all from the U.S.; Antonio Urzi, Italy; and Fernando Correa of Mexico—are people who have “dedicated their lives,” are the best in their field, who have “credibility”, according to Dr. Jaime Maussan, Mexico's leading UFOlogist, director and founding president of Producciones Maussan.
“Of course aliens exist and they are our brothers, and plus, not recognizing the existence of other advanced civilizations in space is underestimating the creation of God,” the official astronomer of The Vatican has said, according to Mr. Urzi. His investigation looked into one of the largest real mass contact with people by UFOs in Europe in 1956.
Another myth about UFOs that was debunked by one of the panelists is about their hostile intent toward all humanity. UFOs have never committed any aggressive acts, according to Dr. Maussan. “They are so advanced that they could destroy us in a flash, in a moment, in a second,” the former journalist told The Final Call.
Min. Farrakhan at UFO plenary session. Photo: Mikal Veale
“Yes, we know there are some abductions. We know they experiment with humans as we do with some minor species. But that doesn't mean that they are against humanity, because the technology they exhibit would prove that they are so much advanced that we couldn't match them if they decided to do something against us. There is not a single evidence of an aggression, a massive aggression against human beings,” he continued.
The UFO technology is so advanced, one panelist estimated, that it is 80 million years ahead of the most advanced science in the U.S., Russia, or China. The behavior of the UFOs themselves demonstrates what is clearly “intelligence,” panelists insisted. The craft have been sighted alone, in pairs, and “sometimes in thousands,” standing still, making formations, some even resembling “big parades” in the sky.
Slide of crop circle believed to to have been made by UFO.
And while the governments involved do not report the incidents, UFOs have been sighted by astronauts on and near the International Space Station, as well as by countless pilots and other military personnel.
The most famous UFO incident, however, remains the July 1947 incident at Roswell, New Mexico, where the craft itself crashed in the desert. There were more than 600 witnesses of that event, according to Dr. Maussan, and the U.S. dispatched 50 to 60 troops to search for every piece of physical evidence anywhere near the crash site. In addition, he said, there have been four official archeological digs at the site, but the U.S. government is simply trying to “play out the clock,” until all the living witnesses are dead.
Governments in other countries, however, have been more open concerning UFO information. France, Spain, Italy, Canada, Urguay, Chile, the United Kingdom, Peru, Norway, New Zealand, the Vatican and Argentina have begun opening official files for public investigation. Brazil alone has declassified more than 4,000 pages of documents related to UFOs.
Slide presentation of Brazilian government's declassification of UFO documents.
“We will drive the government of the United States to open the files and make known to the American people the existence of this reality,” Minister Farrakhan promised attendees after the session.
“I personally am deeply grateful to Dr. Jaime Maussan and his colleagues. We are grateful for what they have shared with us, and I say to you and to those who may be listening in Tempe, Arizona (where a conference attended by other UFO scholars was taking place), these men have suffered much to tell the truth. Their colleagues in Tempe, Arizona, have suffered much to share with the world their experiences,” Minister Farrakhan continued.
“Many have died or been killed to keep from sharing what they have seen. Today on February 26, they meet a community that is unafraid of any government interference, and we will make known what we have been taught and what was shared with us today by these great scholars.
“So, they have in us, allies. They have in us, their protectors. They have in us, those that will help them to gain the finance to keep up their research. They have in us the community that He who pointed out The Wheel to us 81 years ago, they have Him and the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, backing their work,” the Muslim leader said.
Hundreds pack the main ballroom at Stephens Convention Center for UFO presention.
The respect from Min. Farrakhan was reciprocated. “The dream of every people around the world is to have wise and loving guides in this life,” said Mr. Urzi. “(This is what you have) in Minister Farrakhan. He has led me to believe that every people's dream can become reality.”
The UFO evidence is that “the people are one,” said Mr. Urzi, and the UFO phenomena are proof that “the people are the same who have accompanied all the great prophets in the history of humanity.”
The UFO phenomenon “simply stated is a sign of the end of one world going out and the beginning of a new world order coming in to take its place,” Mother Tynnetta Muhammad, wife of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, wrote recently.
There is a “new reality” of a “new people” in the truth about the existence of UFOs, according to Min. Farrakhan. “And if you noticed, in the final messages (in unexplained crop circles which have appeared on farms waiting for harvest), a crescent and a star,” the Muslim leader told the session. “A crescent in the first quarter, representing a new day, a new Islam, a new Christianity, a new religion that will do away with dogma.
“Religion rooted in science—a scientific analysis of the Teachings of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. Let us stand and give this panel our deep and abiding love and respect and honor for what they shared with us today.”
(The entire plenary session is available for viewing at http://www.noi.org/sd2011/ufo_symposium.shtml | Click here to order the high quality DVD Video.)
ROSEMONT, Ill. (FinalCall.com ) - The tumult the world is witnessing in Tunisia, in Egypt, in Libya, in Bahrain is headed to America, the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan warned thousands during his annual Saviours' Day address at the Allstate Arena here.
“You'd better prepare because it will be coming to your door, America,” Minister Farrakhan told a crowd of over 16,000 with thousands more watching globally via live Internet webcast.
During an over four-hour lecture in which Minister Farrakhan looked and sounded strong throughout, he informed the audience that this is a time of war—as it says in the scriptures—and the time of the deliverance of God's people is at hand.
He also advised President Obama should remember his words to other nations concerning freedom of assembly and the freedom to protest. These disturbing events now seen on foreign shores are a sign that the Great Mahdi—God Himself, the Saviour—is in the world today and all tyrants will be set down, the Muslim leader warned.
(L)Crowd listens to message. (R) Min. Farrakhan points to an image on the screen at Saviours’ Day 2011.
“God is indeed present and he has made His choice of the people for His glory,” said Min. Farrakhan. God has chosen the Black people of America for himself and the Nation of Islam is a vehicle established to fulfill that purpose, he said. “And the Scripture says, ‘even the Gentiles will come to the brightness of thy rising.' Maybe you don't know it but there are many Whites who are now writing to the Nation of Islam and telling us that they believe in the teachings of the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad and this is a sign of what many of the Gentiles have always known, but they have not been strong enough to say it. But they see and hear us saying things that are in their hearts and they see us rising and they are now saying boldly that they will help us,” he said.
God has chosen Blacks for a specific duty and function, the Minister said.
“We are that people—then God will have to free us from the people to whom we are bound and since they have already let us go—but they do not want to say it openly—we want to force them to say ‘yes, we let you go,'” said Min. Farrakhan. “But then, you have to provide us with a good send off, and if you don't provide us with what is required to let us go, then God will fight you, and now is fighting for our deliverance.”
Each year, the Nation of Islam holds a celebration marking the birth of its founder Master W. Fard Muhammad. This year's convention was filled with informative workshops and demonstrations attended by thousands from all over the world.
“This man, Master Fard Muhammad, Elijah Muhammad said of him, he came to us from the holy city of Mecca. He was born February 26, 1877. He knew his future when he was six years old. He saw himself pushing the DuPonts, the Rockefellers, the House of Rothschild—this Synagogue of Satan—into a lake of fire when he matured. He was made from Black and White so that He could slip in among us undetected, as the Bible says, ‘He would come as a thief in the night.' ”
During this year's Saviours' Day convention, a plenary session was held dealing with what are commonly referred to as Unidentified Flying Objects. Master Fard Muhammad taught the Hon. Elijah Muhammad of a “dreadful looking plane in the sky” referred to in Nation of Islam teaching as the Mother Plane, “a half-mile by a half-mile humanly built planet.”
The Minister drew parallels between the dual function of the Saviour, and the two functions of the Mother Plane.
“It was he who pointed out to us a dreadful looking plane in the sky—a half-mile by a half-mile—a plane that had two natures and two functions—like himself. He is a saviour but he also is a destroyer and that Wheel that is above our heads has those same two functions—one to heal, one to save, one to replenish, one to renew the earth and the people on it, but one that is to destroy the enemy of peace so that those who live on our planet after such a destruction will never again have to worry about a mischief maker or a peace breaker breaking the peace of the members of the human family.”
“Think about a God so angry at the condition of his people, and the misuse of the power of the oppressor against his people, that his own fury upheld him,” said Minister Farrakhan.
“The Bible teaches, ‘He had for a long time held His peace, but now He would cry out like a woman in travail.' Isaiah saw Him treading the wine press alone. His garments stained with the blood of His and our enemies,” he continued.
After a long pause and a moment of reflection, Minister Farrakhan said, “That's the One I represent today,” and the crowd exploded in applause.
The title of his message was: “God Will Send Saviours.” The Great Mahdi—The Saviour—would send and has sent Elijah Muhammad, and his representative to deliver Black people in America from the clutches of their open enemies.
The Saviour wants to free Blacks from White control and domination, in a land of their own, said Min. Farrakhan.
God's judgment and divine upheaval
The scholarly, passionate, address was filled with quotations from the Bible, the Holy Qur'an, and from American historical documents, writings and speeches of this country's Founding Fathers, as well as timely references to contemporary events: precisely the kind of analysis people around the world look to the Minister to receive, because of his sterling reputation for integrity, and insight into complex world problems.
He also referred to the words of the Hon. Elijah Muhammad regarding the four great judgments of America—rain, hail, snow and earthquakes.
America has been hit with one weather battering after another, causing strain on many major cities during already financially tenuous times for most.
Major earthquakes have been experienced globally.
The Minister reminded the audience about the words of the Holy Qur'an, the Muslim book of scripture, in which it says there would be “calamity after calamity until the enemy is laid low.”
He then discussed events within the political landscape of the United States and world affairs
“I don't know what's going on in Libya,” said Min. Farrakhan. “But Muammar Gadhafi has always been my friend. People tell me I should distance myself from him, but I'm not that kind of weak-kneed person,” he said.
Minister Farrakhan noted that every nation on earth has citizens that do not agree with their governments. The governments of this world, including the Middle East, arein upheaval as a divine change takes place, the Minister explained.
In Libya's case, however, we cannot be sure of exactly what is happening and why, he continued. But, Min. Farrakhan said, the unrest in the country has erupted after Libya sought closer relations with America.
Min. Farrakhan had warned Col. Gadhafi about rapprochement with America, saying the United States would not cease in attempts to overthrow the longtime revolutionary leader.
Similar to Iraq, violence was come with the involvement of America and Western forces in the name of peacemaking, the Minister said.
President Obama should also be careful about warning Libya about not harming peaceful protestors as upheaval and angry protests are headed for America, Min. Farrakhan warned.
He also warned against a double standard in the name of justice.
“I listened to our president the other night. I watched the way he talked about his friend (deposed Egyptian president Hosni) Mubarak. Mubarak's been there for 30 years—the friend of every American president—so whatever he was not doing for his people, America sure knew it!
“When did we (the United States) find out that we should be ‘for the people?' After the people rose up, America tried to get in behind the cart,” observed Min. Farrakhan.
America lied about going into Iraq in search of weapons of mass destruction, thousands of innocents were killed, and there have not been calls from the U.S. for trying former President Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld for war crimes, said the Minister.
“They need to put America out of Iraq, out of Afghanistan because the trouble didn't begin until the trouble maker came in. … When they set up the embassy, practically all the members of the embassy were CIA. They aren't for peace! They're there to destabilize! The people are still gathering in Tahrir Square (in Egypt)—they're not satisfied. Well that fell off the radar,” he said.
The Great Compromise of 1877
The Minister also discussed critical events in the history of Black people in America—the trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, The Compromise of 1877. Despite the fact that it had major implication for the conditions Blacks are in today, many know nothing about it, however, much of this information is contained in “The Secret Relationship Between Blacks and Jews” Volume Two.
Mother Evelyn Muhammad, Mother Tynnetta Muhammad, Sister Khalidah Farrakhan, Sister Karen Farrakhan,
The Minister explained that in 1865, the 13th Amendment legally abolished slavery, however, the presidential election of November, 1876 ended in a deadlock between the Republican Rutherford B. Hayes, who represented the Northern sentiments, and Democrat Samuel Tilden who represented the former slaveholders of the South. The two sides fought over the result for weeks, and there were even threats of another civil war.
The American Bankers Association met on January 26, and then again on Feb 7, to strategize in the midst of the controversy. The Emancipation of the Black man had undermined the very source of their fortunes—Black slave labor.
It was thought that this political standoff could provide the opportunity to radically change the course of the nation—in their direction. If Tilden won, they thought, he would be facing a hostile Republican congress. They believed that their plans would be received better under a Hayes administration. Southern politicians, whose votes would be needed for these major projects, could be convinced to go along with the promise of an enormous capital investment and a return to the old racial order.
After that, a group of politicians from both parties secretly convened in Washington, D.C. to attempt to resolve the conflict and save the union from political disaster and possibly a second civil war. After days of negotiations they finally agreed that if Rutherford B. Hayes were awarded the presidency, he would remove the federal troops in the South who were protecting the Black ex-slaves, and the former Southern slaveholding class would be returned to power where they could establish new forms of slavery free from federal control.
The agreement in effect put the bankers and industrialists in control of the Southern economy, and it forced Blacks back into the cotton fields to finance it all. After twelve years of “emancipation” Blacks would be returned to virtual slavery, denied civil rights, and assigned to permanent political, social, and economic inferiority. Jim Crow laws took immediate effect and Ku Klux Klan terrorism exploded. Lynchings, rapes, and mass murders against America's Black so-called citizens escalated. Black property was stolen, schools were destroyed, voting rights abolished. Whites ran Blacks out of the skilled trades and industry, effectively locking them into plantation labor and domestic service.
That decision would in effect nullify the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to the Constitution, and it all started when the Jewish congressman from Louisiana, William M. Levy representing Jewish railroad and cotton investors like the Lehmans, Seligmans, Belmonts, and Kempners, gave an impassioned speech on the floor of the U.S. Congress convincing those lawmakers that this wicked agreement, that scholars call “the Great Betrayal of the Negro people,” was indeed the best policy for the United States of America.
“The most profound part of this, however, is that on the same day that White America decided on the complete destruction of the Black people, Allah decided that The Saviour to the Black man would be born. Both events—the two most significant in the history of Black America happened on February 26, 1877!”
“We have given America the best we have in Barack Obama,” the Nation of Islam leader said of the U.S. president who is often vilified by Republican politicians and conservative commentators. “With the right minds he could probably help America, but he was selected for a purpose. He is the head of a corporation that I don't think he has any stock in.”
Minister Farrakhan then proposed a unique plan. After saying that he was proud of President Obama and his symbolic and inspirational importance to Black youth, he also said Mr. Obama was “a Black man in charge of White affairs,” and “a good man under control of bad people.”
He said it would be better for Mr. Obama, as eloquent and loved among Black people as he is, to lead a separate Black nation, on what is now U.S. territory or elsewhere.
But Min. Farrakhan also had a warning for President Obama, to not let himself be pushed into a war with Iran—a war that only serves the interests of Israel, not the United States—and to not let himself be pushed into intervening militarily in Libya.
In 1942 The Honorable Elijah Muhammad was sent to prison for five years when President Roosevelt signed an executive order taking him off the street because he was preaching to Black people that they had no interest in fighting in World War II, a war which only benefited White Americans and Europeans. Today, if the U.S. launches a war against Iran, another Islamic country—a war which serves only the interests of the Zionists in Israel—then Min. Farrakhan has promised he will speak out against it, increasing the danger that this President might issue an executive order to have the Muslim leader arrested on sedition charges.
Zionists dominate the government and the banking system in this country, Min. Farrakhan argued, and just as when the Roman ruler Pontius Pilate did the bidding of the Jews in arresting and crucifying Jesus, U.S. society responds to crush anyone whenever there is a perception that Zionist interests are threatened in the world today.
“What man do you see in America who is standing up to the Jews?” the Nation of Islam leader asked. “Farrakhan!” the crowd roared.
His pointed criticism of the Black-Jewish relationship is not an anti-Semitic pogrom or attack because of any “hatred” Min. Farrakhan harbors against Jewish people, he pointed out.
“I'm not a hater of the Jewish people, but I know the truth,” said Min. Farrakhan. “Do you think I would waste my time if it was not important that you know Satan? My job is to pull the cover off of Satan so that he will never deceive you—the people of the earth again!”
Saviours' Wanted
Minister Farrakhan discussed the mind and spirit needed to be a servant and saviour of the people swimming in sin, however, Black people need to be saved from the enemy and themselves.
Addressing the interaction between the Nation of Islam and the Church of Scientology, Minister Farrakhan said he found something in the study of L. Ron Hubbard's technology of auditing that he believed could be of use to the Nation of Islam to better prepare them to become saviours of their people. He also spoke of his respect for Mr. Hubbard, and his importance to Whites.
“L. Ron Hubbard is so exceedingly valuable that every Caucasian person on this earth—all Whites—should flock to L. Ron Hubbard,” said Min. Farrakhan. The very reason why L. Ron Hubbard might be so hated is because he sought to end this world and civilize Whites by taking away their reactive minds, he added.
“Mr. Hubbard recognized that his people had to be civilized, he never wanted to continue this world nor did he try to save this world. He was trying to prepare a people to build a brand new world and a brand new civilization,” said Min. Farrakhan.
Regarding Min. Farrakhan's words regarding the Church of Scientology, Mother Tynnetta Muhammad, wife of the Hon. Elijah Muhammad, called their outreach to the Nation of Islam “significant.”
“They were in training for all these years under Dianetics or under the Scientology Church to turn out to be little saviours themselves and trying to unravel the mystery of how we are in this condition because we were reared by our former slave masters that have as the Minister put it—a psychopathic mind—that is the White man's mind and that is what we have been dealing with for the last 6,000 years,” said Mother Tynnetta.
Reactions to the message
Mother Tynnetta Muhammad said Min. Farrakhan took the time that he needed to get his entire message over to the listeners and viewers.
“His address was an explosion—it can be compared to Problem No. 6 that speaks of the atom being exploded into 10 million parts and that message that he sounded was the beginning of the outreach to global humanity and the 10 million parts represents 10 million new converts that will come into the doors of the Nation of Islam because it is now a global mission,” said Mother Tynnetta Muhammad.
“It is a matter of the most sensitive material that he was dealing with but he was not playing with words and he gave a clear understanding so that afterwards people will not say ‘well he didn't explain that part' and then he got into Yakub and the Island of Patmos and Scientology and the real nature I would say of the existing systems and racists that are on our planet because we are going through a transition from the old into the new if we can survive the change that is coming on our planet at this time.”
Student Minister Hilary Muhammad, the Nation of Islam's United Kingdom representative, described Saviours' Day 2011 as “amazing.”
“The experience of being here is something that every Black man and woman who desires consciousness has to experience so they can actually see and believe and know for a fact that we can build an independent nation, independent of the wicked rulers who have destroyed our lives,” said Hilary Muhammad. “We need to see it, we need to ingest it; we need to be imbued by it and once we've had this experience, we can never be the same again. You cannot be the same again after being in the presence of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan's followers.”
“I was very interested in hearing his take on world affairs,” Atty. Malik Zulu Shabazz, national chairman of the New Black Panther Party, told The Final Call. “Obviously, he has the greatest command of the people and the leadership so really I would have to say I will do whatever I can do to help him and I think that would be the position of most other leaders here,” he added.
“You can see—those of us who have been following the Minister—the strength of his delivery and the conviction of what he's bringing tells us that the time is very short on this world and all of the things that are taking place everything is speeding up,” Student Minister Ishmael Muhammad, Min. Farrakhan's assistant at Mosque Maryam in Chicago told The Final Call. “It was an absolutely magnificent representation of that truth that Allah has given to the Honorable Elijah Muhammad but that Allah is giving to him (Farrakhan) directly through him for us. We heard from God today.”
(FCN)
Gaddafi's son says reports of violence 'just a big joke'
The Libyan leader's son Saif al-Islam has said that the reports of casualties and mercenaries in Libya are "just a big joke" while restating his claim that Al Qaeda are behind the anti-government protests in the country.
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TelegraphPlayer-834934612:29PM GMT 26 Feb 2011
Speaking at a news conference at the Rixos al Nasr Hotel in Tripoli, Saif al-Islam tried to play down the extent of fighting with rebels who have seized much of the country.
"Soon you will discover that what you have heard in Libya was just a big joke. A very big joke. Here in Libya we were laughing about those reports about hundreds and thousands of casualties, bombing Tripoli and Benghazi and Zawiya or whatever, about mercenaries," he said.
He went on to claim blame al-Qaida chief for the chaos in Libya.
"If we are talking about al-Qaida, it's not a secret. Al-Qaida issued a statement yesterday supporting those groups in Libya and they said 'this is part of our global war against...' I don't know. So, go to the internet, and search there, and you will see the statement, official statement from al-Qaida issued yesterday, supporting those terrorist people."
Benghazi, Libya (CNN) -- Libya's foreign minister said late Saturday that talks are underway between Moammar Gadhafi's government and figures in the eastern part of the North African nation.
Benghazi-based opposition spokesman Jalal Igallal, however, strongly knocked down reports of any discussions between anti-government figures and officials in Gadhafi's regime. He urged Foreign Minister Musa Kasa to say who is being talked to, if such negotiations are in fact ongoing.
Meanwhile, city councils in areas no longer loyal to Gadhafi have chosen former Justice Minister Mustafa Abdul Jalil to head an interim government that would represent all of Libya and ultimately be based in Tripoli, according to Amal Bogagies, a member of the coalition of the February 17 Uprising, and a separate Libyan opposition source. Both are based in Benghazi.
Protests began February 15 in Benghazi. That city and many others in Libya are now thought to be under opposition control, according to eyewitnesses. There have been numerous reports of widespread violence, some of it perpetrated by foreign mercenaries and military and security forces loyal to Gadhafi.
Kasa, the foreign minister, told CNN's Nic Robertson that the country was close to a civil war situation, on the same day that Saif al-Islam Gadhafi told a reporter that "life is normal" in Tripoli.
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While CNN does have staff in some cities, the network could not independently confirm reports for many areas in Libya. But CNN has compiled information through telephone interviews with witnesses.
Tripoli itself was noticeably tense but largely quiet overnight Saturday, its streets largely barren except for police and young people with sticks at some intersections.
The situation at the main airport, about 20 miles south of Tripoli, was far more chaotic. Several thousand people camped outside in makeshift tents, waiting for the chance to leave the war-torn country.
Across the Atlantic at the United Nations, international pressure intensified as the Security Council huddled Saturday in an urgent session to discuss slapping new sanctions on Gadhafi's government and referring the strongman to the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity.
Military and security forces loyal to Gadhafi have killed more than 1,000 people, the United Nations estimated.
More than 200 Arab organizations and a group of 30 prominent intellectuals from across the Middle East and North Africa urged global bodies, including the Security Council, the European Union and the African Union, to take action to limit further humanitarian consequences.
"We fear we may be witnessing the calm before the storm," said their statement. "The window of opportunity to prevent further atrocities from occurring is closing fast. The people of Libya need you to act quickly and decisively."
The group urged the international community to devise contingency plans for intervention and impose immediate sanctions on the Libyan regime.
"We appeal to you as leaders who have the power to bring an end to this horror," the statement said. "Your failure to do so would be a lasting stain on the responsibilities of world leadership and on humanity itself."
U.S. President Barack Obama also weighed in Saturday, telling German Chancellor Angela Merkel to "coordinate our urgent efforts to respond to developments and ensure appropriate accountability," according to a White House statement. In some of his strongest wording to date, Obama said, "when a leader's only means of staying in power is to use mass violence against his own people, he has lost the legitimacy to rule and needs to do what is right for his country by leaving now."
Later, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton issued a statement urging Gadhafi to step down.
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Libyan: U.S. 'doesn't give a damn' "Moammar Gadhafi has lost the confidence of his people and he should go without further bloodshed and violence," Clinton said. "The Libyan people deserve a government that is responsive to their aspirations and that protects their universally recognized human rights."
Tripoli's Green Square, occupied by pro-Gadhafi demonstrators on previous evenings, was empty Saturday night, a witness told CNN. She said her neighborhood near the square was eerily quiet.
Other frightened residents said they stayed indoors, though unable to shut off the sound of gunfire or put aside the words of Gadhafi in a public address the day before in which he vowed to keep unleashing force.
"We can destroy any assault with the people's will, with the armed people," he said on state television Friday. "And when it is necessary, the weapons depots will be open to all the Libyan people to be armed."
Gadhafi's son went on air on Al-Arabiya television Saturday, again blaming foreigners for the unrest and denying that Gadhafi's security apparatus was to blame for the bloodshed.
"Now we are here, we are in a hotel in Tripoli," said Saif al-Islam Gadhafi. "Go out and see who is ruling there. Thousands of people are doing their jobs to maintain security in the city. They are not security police or armed forces."
The prime minister, meanwhile, announced on state television that every family would receive 500 Libyan dinars ($406) from the government.
The humanitarian group Doctors Without Borders said in a statement Saturday one of its teams was in Benghazi, Libya's second-biggest city. Their arrival, and a promise of future aid, marked one of the first humanitarian inroads into Libya in recent weeks.
Three main hospitals were all "well equipped and have managed to deal with the numbers of wounded people and medical needs," according to the group. But the facilities also face shortages of drugs, bandages and other medical items, which Doctors Without Borders said it will provide. The group plans to send an orthopedic surgeon, anesthesiologist and nurse on Monday.
The advocacy group Human Rights Watch said the situation was appreciably worse in Zawiya -- about 55 kilometers (35 miles) west of Tripoli and the epicenter of violent protests Thursday.
"West of Tripoli in Zawiya city, government security forces firing on demonstrators are causing bloodshed and chaos," said Sarah Leah Whitson, the group's Middle East and North Africa director.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he planned to speak with Obama in Washington Monday.
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Obama was suspending embassy operations in Tripoli and pursuing sanctions. State Department officials said they have other channels to communicate with the Libyan government, and emphasized that relations between the two nations are not broken.
"The flag is still flying. The embassy is not closed. Operations are suspended," said Under Secretary of State for Management Patrick Kennedy.
The British Embassy has done the same.
"In light of the deteriorating situation in Libya ... we have temporarily suspended the operations of the British Embassy in Tripoli," the Foreign Office said Saturday.
I say defiantly dont rush to judgement about the situation in Libya strictly based off of the western media reports. For those millions following the situation in the east get your facts dont rush to judgement strictly off of media reports. The same media who has never been friendly to Muslim Nations and Countries. I say dont believe the hype just the truth, just the truth of everything. By no means do I condone or standby human or civil rights violations by no group, faction, country, or religion by no means. But I know our history over here in the greatest nation on earth when it comes to false media slander and propoganda. We should be wary of what took place in Egpyt and Libya and what can happen over here in our country. We're focused on the middle east when we still have senseless deaths,crimes,corruption,racism,and all sorts of civil rights violations over here daily. We just dont have the outpouring of mass violence, rioting, and protesting. We live in this great land but in this great land you can display racist sentiments towards our President because of his color of skin. (THINK ABOUT IT) THACHILLONE!!!
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Yes, oral sex is sex, and it can boost cancer risk
Here's a crucial message for teens: Oral sex carries many of the same risks as vaginal sex, including human papilloma virus, or HPV. And HPV may now be overtaking tobacco as the leading cause of oral cancers in America in people under age 50.
"Adolescents don’t think oral sex is something to worry about," said Bonnie Halpern-Felsher professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco. "They view it as a way to have intimacy without having 'sex.'"
Halpern-Felsher and other researchers presented the latest information about the risks of contracting an HPV infection Sunday at the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual meeting.
The latest data suggest that 64% of oropharynx cancers - growing in the middle part of the throat - in the United States are caused by HPV, which is more than tobacco causes, said Maura Gillison of Ohio State University. And as the number of partners on whom you have performed oral sex goes up, the risk of oropharnyx cancer goes up.
About 37,000 people per year receive a diagnosis of oral cancer, according to the Oral Cancer Foundation.
Just about everyone has had at least one of the 130 strains of HPV. The vaccines currently available, Gardasil and Cervarix, only protect against a few of them. But not all of the strains are cancer-causing. Certain types cause warts on the hands and feet that are benign.
About 5% of cancers worldwide are caused by HPV, and some turn up in some surprising places. A University of Washington study found that some men carry HPV 26 under their fingernails, which can lead to a form of cancer called digital squamous cell carcinoma. Proper hand-washing can help prevent this from happening, said Dr. Diane Harper, leading HPV researcher at the University of Missouri in Kansas City.
But this isn't nearly as common as HPV causing cancer in other areas of the body, such as the oral cavity and the cervix.
In the countries that have cervical cancer screening, the prevalence of cervical cancer is five times lower than in other countries, indicating that the testing is effective, Harper said.
Why HPV causes cancer in some people and not others is still mysterious. Studies of the cervix have found that 70% of infections resolve by themselves within one year, and 90% within two years. It's that remaining 10% that actually turn into more serious infections, and 5% lead to treatable precancerous lesions, Harper said.
Two well-established mechanisms of prevention in terms of sexually transmitted HPV are condom usage and circumcision, although neither completely eliminates the risk, Harper said.
A large ongoing study called HITCH is examining questions of HPV transmission and infection in greater detail. So far, it's found that couples can "ping-pong" HPV back and forth to each other, which is one reason that the virus may take so long to clear naturally.
As for getting HPV from kissing, that's not clear, and there isn't enough data to say anything about it yet, Harper said.
It's very hard to get teens to listen to abstinence messages about oral sex, or to get them to use any kind of barrier method for these behaviors, Halpern-Felsher said. And since any risk factor under 50% sounds low to a very young person, throwing these precise statistics at them most likely won't make a difference.
But parents should have honest conversations with their teenagers about oral sex, Halpern-Felsher said. Tell them that the consequences of HPV may not happen right away, and while the risks may not be huge, they are significant. Potential long-term outcomes of cancer are quite concerning.
(cnnhealth)
