December 3, 2014
$lortlanò (Observer
Page 7
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Value and Justly Treat Every Parent’s Child
Time for prayer
and strategic
nonviolent
action
O
thp m
n o
n f f a □ holy
krJw season r_______
•
O n n the
c u e sp
fo r
C hristians and Jew s, it is tim ely to
rem em ber and help A m erica rem em
b er that the k in sh ip o f h u m an be
ings is m ore im portant than the fel
low ship o f race and class and g en
M arian
W right E delman
In th e w ake o f
F erguson and a se
ries o f y o ung black
m ale deaths at the
hands o f official law enforcem en t
by
personnel (and one self-appointed
neigh b o rh o o d w atchm an w ho cost
T rayvon M artin his life), I hope w e
w ill use this tim e o f T hanksg iv in g
and celebration o f N ative A m erican
H eritage as an o pportunity fo r n a
tional and personal soul searching
and discussion about w hat it m eans
to be an A m erican.
I also hope w e w ill reco m m it to
doing w hat w e can to serve, speak
up, and w ork w ith others to b u ild a
nation w here every ch ild is safe,
seen, heard, respected a nd hopeful,
and every p a re n ts’ s o n - a n d d au g h
te r - is valued and ju s tly treated.
d er in a dem ocratic society.
W e m u st all try h ard er to be
decent and fair and insist that
others b e so in o u r presence
by not telling, laughing at o r
to leratin g racial, eth n ic, reli
gious, o r g e n d er jo k e s - o r any
practices intended to dem ean
rath er than en h an ce an o th er hum an
being.
W alk aw ay from them . Stare them
dow n. M ake them un accep tab le in
y o u r presence. T hrough daily m oral
co n scio u sn ess w e m u st all counter
the pro liferatin g voices o f racial and
ethnic and religious division that
are reg ain in g too m uch resp ectab il
ity o v er the land.
..
____
m a jo rity n o n -W h ite w o rld is as
in e x tric a b ly in te rtw in e d w ith o u r
p o o r an d n o n -w h ite c h ild re n as it
is w ith o u r w h ite a n d p riv ile g e d
but I care and am w illing to serve
and stand w ith others to save all o ur
children.
I cannot sing like M arian A n d er
o n e s, w ith o u r g irls as w ell as o u r
boys.
L e t’s n o t sp en d a lo t o f u se le ss
tim e p in n in g b la m e an d d e n y in g
ra th e r th a n th o u g h tfu lly e x a m in
in g th e r o o t c a u s e s o f o u r
son o r Fannie L ou H am er o r o rg a
nize like Ella Baker and Bayard Rustin
but I care and am w illing to serve
and stand up w ith others to build a
pow erful n o nviolent m ovem ent to
protect all o u r children. •
c o u n try ’s s y ste m ic ra c ia l d is p a ri
I am not holy like A rchbishop
ties an d h e a lin g o u r d iv isio n s.
T u tu , fo rg iv in g lik e P re s id e n t
R abbi A braham Jo sh u a H eschel M andela, or disciplined like M a
put it aptly: “W e are no t all equally h atm a G andhi
guilty, but w e are all equally resp o n
but I care and am w illing to serve
sible” for bu ild in g a decent and ju s t and stand w ith others to protect all
A m erica and ensuring the safety o u r children.
and hopefulness and opportunity
I am not brilliant like Dr. W .E.B.
o f ev ery child.
Du B ois o r E lizabeth C ady Stanton,
So I o ffe r a p ra y e r fo r all o f us in
o r as eloquent as S ojo u rn er T ruth
th is tim e o f n a tio n a l trial:
and B ooker T. W ashington but I
L o rd I c a n n o t p re a c h lik e M a r care and am w illing to serve and
tin L u th e r K in g , Jr. o r turn a p o e tic stand w ith others to protect all our
p h ra s e lik e M a y a A n g e lo u an d children.
R o b e rt F ro st b u t I c a re an d am
I h a v e n o t M o th e r T e r e s a ’s
w illin g to se rv e an d sta n d w ith sa in tlin e s s , T h e D a lai L a m a ’s o r
o th e rs to b u ild a m o v e m e n t to D o ro th y D a y ’s lo v e o r C e s a r
A n d le t ’ s fa c e u p to ra th e r th an
ig n o re o u r d e e p s e a te d a n d g ro w
in g ra cial p ro b le m s w h ile a p p la u d
in g th e g re a t p ro g re s s w e h a v e
p ro te c t all o u r c h ild re n .
m ade. W e m u st all stru g g le to w ake
I do not have H arriet T u b m an ’s
u p a n d re c o g n iz e th a t o u r a b ility courage, o r E lean o r R o o sev elt’s and
to c o m p e te a n d le a d c re d ib ly in a W ilm a M an k iller’s political skills
MM
G o d it is n o t as e a s y a s th e 6 0 ’s
to fra m e a n is su e a n d fo rg e a s o
lu tio n bu t I c a re an d a m w illin g to
se rv e an d sta n d w ith o th e rs to
p ro te c t all o u r c h ild re n .
M y m in d a n d b o d y a re n o t so
sw ift as in y o u th a n d m y e n e rg y
c o m e s in sp u rts b u t I c a re an d am
w illin g to s e rv e a n d s ta n d w ith
o th e rs to p ro te c t all o u r c h ild re n .
I ’m so y o u n g n o b o d y w ill lis
ten. I feel in v is ib le an d h o p e le ss
an d I ’m n o t su re w h at to say o r do
b u t I c a re an d am w illin g to
serv e and stan d w ith m y p e e rs
an d a d u lts to sav e m y s e lf a n d all
o u r c h ild re n .
I c a n ’t see o r hear well speak
good English, stutter som etim es and
get real scared standing up before
others but I care and am w illing to
serve and lift m y voice w ith others
to save all o u r children.
G od, use m e as you w ill to save
C h a v e z ’s
y o u r and o u r children today and
tom orrow and to build
a nation and w orld w here every
ch ild is valued and protected.
g entle tough spirit but I care and
am w illing to serve and stand w ith
others to save all o u r children.
-M arian Wright Edelman is
President o f the Children's Defense
Fund.
A Path Forward in Prosecuting Ferguson Cop
Follow Bush
and support
federal charges
B against
™ civilians, —
force
w hen there
now f i n a s h i m s e l f f a c e d ud»h ♦»»<,
In the case o f K ing the co m n el-
ling pu b lic in terest w as that the state
U ial w as fla w e d in lh e r a c ,a „ y
T he call h «
♦
fo r U S A ttorney C ^neralEnB H older
to h n „ g c S
“
“
i
------------
W ik n n He w cn id
u
as he d , d i
E arl O fari H utchinson
O n M arch 2 2 ,1 9 9 1 , a vis
ib ly s h a k e n a n d a n g e re d
P resident G eorge H .W . B ush
said he w as sickened and "out
ra g e d ” by w hat he saw on
television. T h at w as the b eat
ing o f black m oto rist R o d n ey K ing
by a sw arm o f L A P D cops. A y e ar
later follow ing the acquittal o f fo u r
o f the police officers by a Sim i V alley
ju ry w ith no blacks on it, B ush o r
d ered then A ttorney G eneral W ill
iam B arr to begin the process o f
slapping federal civil rights charges
on the officers.
H e issued a terse statem ent say-
ing “the verdict has left us all w ith a
deep sense o f personal frustration
and anguish." H e backed this up
w ith a televised address a few d ays
later in w hich he strongly signaled
that civil rights charges w ould be
cifically, the statute on “com pelling
public in terest” m akes D la in that th f
alleged violation m ust involve "egre
gious co n d u ct including that w h k h
causes i X f l i r C d w ^ r e
"the r e s u l t i n ' e’ prior’ P" " n
bro u g h t against the officers.
w as m anifestly in ad eq u ate in light w a t c h nn d s t ^e rta ,n ly k e p ta c lo s e
by
sk ew ed ju ry c o n w o si-
.ion, an d th at thenTw as a
o f the federal interest in v o lv ed "
’ W
h h l ^
crim inal civil rights laws specifically
d e c id in g n o t to b rin g c h a r g e s
“
s
x
.
°
Though there was no apparent
racial motive in Wilson confronting
Brown, his action clearly violated
Brown’s right to exercise his freedom
o f movement, and his rights.
B u sh had the authority to ord er a
pro secu tio n , via a string federal
. . . . . . .
-
u
^
:
°nT 6 j ’ u
w ard w ith c h a r g e s ^
s
s
s
’ V "'«*1
p ro se c u to rs.
T he B row n case also strongly
m erely because som eone perceives
they shouldn’t be there and then
points to system ic issues o f exces-
sive force by police. T he obvious
ex cessiv e force that w as used w as
row
n the
T slaying o ? f B
Br°
' v n.
n ’ T
™ his s strikes to
the heart o f an o th er basic rig h t o f
nam e,y the freedom from
undue harm . His killing once m ore
questions
about
P ° - r o f the law to pro-
acts on that perception with no cause
o th er than that b e lie f o r perception
B ush Sr. w as deeply concerned
_________
that the King
beating
had
caused an
K in8 heating
ar
even deeper, volatile and danger-
ous rift betw een p olice and A frican-
A m ericans. The riots after the cops
Were ^ u itted underscored that,
This was enough o f a com pelling
tect c,b zen s
their unim peded
interest to force B ush to act. O bam a
rigbt tO
and safety ' Pederal Pro s-
e - t o r s play a m ajor role in ensuring
have to co n sid er the sam e. As
B ush Sr. did, he can and should
he SUSpic’on that
follow his exam ple and green light a
° 8° ° f’
s
:
police officers. This is the sam e ratio-
that federal prosecutors u s e d »
WaS D° ap p aren t
m om ent W ilson p resum ed that a
A s in the K ing case, there are
young black m an w alking in a public crucial federal interests in ensuring
thoroughfare had com m itted a crime, the rights o f individuals to be free
T he safeguard o f that right m ust be from undue harm because o f their
a fundam ental concern o f federal color, age, and being in a public area
__________
d u res w ith civil rights a ttn m e v . and
invecH« .
attorneys and
a p p r o i X f O b ^ a T » ? 116
d id o n
O bam d’38 B ush
1 "
8 ’,
f
a ^ h ^ Z ' n
1 J T 7 °
R
Sr d ^
shot w ith his h ands up. A n inde- hispow erasanofficerinkillingB row n
P^
nt 3UtOp8y h a sc o n firm ^d 11131 under the color o f law is the linchpin
s J Z w ^ X ^
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c a !
s
a
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