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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 3, 2014)
Opinion Nobody Knows the Trouble We’ve Seen “Challenging People to Shape a Better Future Now” B ERNIE F OSTER Founder/Publisher B OBBIE D ORE F OSTER Executive Editor J ERRY F OSTER Advertising Manager L ISA L OVING News Editor H ELEN S ILVIS Multimedia Editor P ATRICIA I RVIN D AVID K IDD Graphic Designer M ONICA J. F OSTER Seattle Office Coordinator J ULIE K EEFE S USAN F RIED Photographers The Skanner Newspaper, established in October 1975, is a weekly publica- tion, published each Wednesday by IMM Publications Inc., Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen Nobody knows my sorrow Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen Glory hallelujah! T hose are the opening lyrics to “Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen,” a spiri- tual with roots as a slave song. It was originally called, “Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Had.” The enormously gifted Marian Ander- son popularized “Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen” in 1925. Different versions were subse- quently rendered by Lena Horne, Paul Robeson, Louis Armstrong, and Sam Cooke. In the wake of the latest miscar- riage of justice in the Michael Brown case in Ferguson, Mo., the song once again has a relevance to the continuing reality of racial injustice for Black Americans. Sometimes I’m up, sometimes I’m down Oh, yes, Lord Sometimes I’m almost to the ground Oh, yes, Lord Although you see me going ‘long so Oh, yes, Lord I have my trials here below Oh, yes, Lord Nobody knows the pain of Michael Brown’s parents. Nobody knows the utter disgust of the Black American community across the nation after the grand jury in Ferguson failed to indict Darren Wilson. NNPA C OLUMNIST Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. The writing and singing of spiri- tuals are an important aspect of the tradition and long struggle for freedom and justice in America. We are a spirit-filled people. Our poetry, songs and cultural respons- es to the conditions and contradictions that we face have always helped us to not accept injustice, and to persevere even in the face of violence. ‘Journey for Justice: Ferguson to Jefferson City’ march is the first of many demonstrations to show both the country and the world that the NAACP and our allies will not stand down until systemic change, accountability and justice in cases of police misconduct are served for Michael Brown and the countless other men and women who lost their lives to such police misconduct.” We hope that the march and the other protest activities that are being planned will involve the growing number of young activists and leaders who are emerging in St Louis County and on the national scene. We need to propose solu- tions to local, state and federal If a picture is worth a thousand words, a fully-functioning video camera attached to police officers could be worth millions of words – and save thousands of lives Marching for equal justice is also therapeutic. The NAACP, our oldest civil rights organization, is about to conclude a 7-day march from Ferguson to Jefferson City, the state capital, to protest the Michael Brown injustice and to propose corrective remedies. NAACP President and CEO Cor- nell William Brooks stated, “We stand committed to continue our fight against racial profiling, police brutality and the militariza- tion of local authorities. Our bodies to take corrective action. Beyond singing and marching, we need to get more civil rights laws enacted to stop police brutality and racial profiling. Fifty years ago, in response to the racially-motivated police vio- lence to suppress the voting rights of Black Americans in Selma, Ala. and throughout the Deep South, the Civil Rights Movement was successful in getting the 1965 Vot- ing Rights Act passed by Congress and signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson. There are numerous issues that arise out of the killing of Michael Brown. Unjustified propensity by police officers to use deadly force against Black Americans and other persons of color, the improper and inadequate training of police offi- cers, racism in the flawed criminal justice system, prosecutorial mis- conduct, and the systemic racial oppression are all issues that need be addressed more effectively. We support the efforts of Presi- dent Barack Obama and some of his key domestic policy advisers, such as Roy L. Austin, Jr., who are proposing the development and enactment of the “Michael Brown Law.” If enacted, the new law would require all state, county, and local police to wear a body video camera. Of course this is just one solution, but it is a much needed and achievable step in the right direction to hold police offi- cers accountable for their actions, especially when deadly force is used. If a picture is worth a thousand words, a fully-functioning video camera attached to police officers could be worth millions of words – and save thousands of lives in the process. As we campaign for passage of the law, we must con- tinue to be vigilante and never cease singing our spirituals. If you get there before I do Oh, yes, Lord Tell all-a my friends I’m coming to Heaven! Oh, yes, Lord 415 N. Killingsworth St., P.O. Box 5455, Portland, OR 97228. Telephone (503) 285-5555. E-mail: info@theskanner.com World Wide Web site: http://www.theskanner.com Fax: (503) 285-2900 The Skanner is a member of the National Newspaper Pub lishers Associ- ation and West Coast Black Pub lishers Association. All photos submitted become the property of The Skanner. We are not re - spon sible for lost or damaged photos either solicited or unsolicited. © 2014 The Skanner. ALL RIGHTS RE SERVED. REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION PROHIBITED. To see The Skanner News on your smart phone go to theskannermobile.com or scan this QR code with your app. • • • • • • • • Local news Opinions Jobs, Bids Sports Entertainment Music reviews Bulletin board RSS feeds Justified Rage in Ferguson Shooting A t this moment I don’t need my president to tell me to respect the decision of a tainted grand jury. And the call for calm from civil rights leaders, politicians and suspect clergy fall upon deaf ears. This isn’t about calm or order. It’s about justice. I am not trying to be analytical, politic, proper or courteous about this madness. By the way, if our civic leader- ship was as concerned with the killing of Black people as they are with the destruction of property, we wouldn’t be at this moment. Busi- nesses can be rebuilt, insurance can cover property damage. Michael Brown ain’t coming back. The vio- lence we witness in the streets is a reaction to the violence and degra- dation Black people endure on a daily basis. If the National Guard can be called up to defend the pur- veyors of hate and injustice, why not call them up to protect the peo- ple against institutional forces of evil – the police? No, we don’t have to respect the decision of a corrupt institution. Our only recourse is to dismantle the infra- structure that breeds racism. For every Tamir Rice, Emmett Till, Rodney King, Phillip Pannell, Cheyanne Bond, Trayvon Martin, Hadiya Pendleton, Malik Williams, Michael Brown, Gene- sis Rincon, John Crawford, Oscar Grant, Sean Bell and Eric Garner – I choose to be angry and indig- nant. I reserve the right to simmer with rage, and to use all my God given strength and talent to com- Page 2 The Portland and Seattle Skanner December 3, 2014 NNPA C OLUMNIST Walter Fields bat the sins of this nation. I refuse to submit, to be docile; to accept the slaughter of innocent children as a cost of being a Black Ameri- can. It is a cost that I refuse to afford and a penalty that I refuse to accept. My rights were already me Walter, but you can call me Mr. Fields. And if you try ‘boy,’ ‘nig- ger’’ or ‘you people,’ or any other pejorative label know that I didn’t make it to 55 by accident. “I will not be silent nor will I waver in the face of ignorance and hate. There is no bending of the back here, no casting eyes away and no lowering of the head. The back you thought you broke is straight, and buttressed by a spine of steel. That sound you hear is not feet shuffling, but steps ordered and determined.” America needs to know that it crossed the line in Ferguson. Real- The violence we witness in the streets is a reaction to the violence and degradation Black people endure on a daily basis paid down by the enslaved labor of my ancestors and the blood of the strange fruit that you hung on southern trees. I now demand pay- ment in full for the terror imposed on my people and the dignity you trampled to gain advantage. I will not be silent nor will I waver in the face of ignorance and hate. There is no bending of the back here, no casting eyes away and no lowering of the head. The back you thought you broke is straight, and buttressed by a spine of steel. That sound you hear is not feet shuffling, but steps ordered and determined. My friends call ly, it obliterated the line of decency and humanity with the farce of a judicial process that occurred. The line was crossed a long time ago and Black people have been incredibly patient. No other group of oppressed people on this planet would have been this tolerant for this long as its children were murdered in cold blood. In some corners of the world children are hurling rocks at tanks and teenagers are standing in the path of tanks, and mothers are bearing arms. In America we have simply seethed, cried, prayed and hoped. And our oppressors have gone about their business, dining at the table of ill-gotten gains. It’s time we put justice on the menu and force fed it down the mouths of those who will never acknowl- edge our humanity. And let me set the record straight. Black people kill Black people, just as Whites murder Whites. White cops kill Black people. Black cops kill Black peo- ple. Corporations kill with their products. Americans kill. Violence is an equal opportunity offender. Just ask the families in Columbine, Sandy Hook or Okla- homa City. The attempt to racialize inner-group conflict is a pathetic denial of the reality of the society in which we live. Violence is part of the American fabric, is glorified, glamorized and claimed as a unique aspect of our culture. There is nothing Black about vio- lence but there is everything American about killing. We get it America. We get it loud and clear. The ball is now in our court. We have votes. We have money. We have our youth. We have our voices. We have our feet. We have our bodies. Let’s just be clear about one thing. We have tried it the way you prescribed in the Constitution and you betrayed the very words etched on parch- ment. It’s now time for payment in full on that promissory note Dr. King spoke of on August 28, 1963 with Lincoln in the background. It’s time for Black Americans to be about the business of bill col- lecting.
