Increasing Outrage Over Beating of Woman on LA Freeway by Hazel Trice Edney

July 14, 2014

Increasing Outrage Over Beating of Woman on LA Freeway
Group Asking for Justice Department Investigation
By Hazel Trice Edney

Caree Harper, lawyer for Marlene Pinnock, speaks to rally on Saturday as
Rev. K. W. Tullos of the National Action Network looks on. Tullos was organizer
of the rally. PHOTO: Omarosa Manigault

(TriceEdneyWire.com) – Outrage continues to grow over the beating of a Black woman by an officer of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). A group of protestors met for a rally July 12 to demand that the officer be fired.

“The point of the rally is we want to put pressure on CHP to do the right thing and fire the officer, said Rev. K. W. Tulloss, western regional director of the National Action Network, and nationally led by the Rev. Al Sharpton. “We also want to continue to let the family of the victim know that we’re here and we’re supporting and we’re here to give her voice because she’s voiceless.”

The beating of the woman, identified as Marlene Pinnock, has spotlighted a historic distrust between police and African-Americans. Some view the Pinnock case as the worse videotaped beating since the Rodney King beating by Los Angeles police in 1991.

“The reality is this is probably one of the worst beatings seen throughout this nation and it happened to a lady,” Tulloss said.

CHP Commissioner Joseph A. Farrow has said he is “deeply concerned” and promised a fair and thorough investigation. But circulation of the video of the July 1 incident has continued to fuel ire across the nation. It shows the woman pinned down by the officer at the side of the Los Angeles freeway as he repeatedly punches her about the head and face as she attempts to defend herself.

Tulloss said NAN is also pressing for the U. S. Department of Justice to investigate to give additional oversight to the CHP.

“We look at it as a vicious crime,” Tulloss said. “We’ve been through this before and we just don’t have confidence in police conduct. They’re protected by their Police Bill of Rights and we don’t have confidence in them policing themselves and doing their own investigation.”

Pinnock, 51, had apparently been walking on Interstate 10 west of downtown Los Angeles. At a news conference CHP Assistant Chief Chris O'Quinn said the officer was trying to restrain the woman after seeing her veering into the highway when an altercation occurred.

A passing motorist, David Diaz, recorded the incident and sent it to media outlets. The video went viral on the Internet, social media and TV.

Diaz told the Associated Press that the officer "agitated the situation more than helped it.” He said the woman was actually walking off of the freeway when the officer said something to her that started the incident.

Reports say that Pinnock, a great grandmother, is now hospitalized while undergoing psychiatric evaluation. The officer, placed on administrative duty, has also not been identified.

Pinnock’s lawyer, Caree Harper, told CNN that her physical injuries are severe. "Her family went to visit her," Harper told CNN. "She has multiple lumps in her head, lumps on her shoulder like the size of a plum, bruises and lumps all over her upper body."

Tulloss has had several conversations with the lawyer, who also participated in the rally. He said NAN is also pushing for the CHP to so right by Pinnock in civil court. Pinnock’s family has reportedly said they will file a lawsuit.

“We see that CHP has an officer who is not fit for the job. He should not wear the CHP uniform ever, ever again,” said Tulloss. “That’s what we’re pressing for and we’re pressing for the Department of Justice do an independent review of this case.”

Election-year Battle: NAACP Promises to ‘Educate, Mobilize and Agitate’ for Voter Participation by Hazel Trice Edney

Election-year Battle: NAACP Promises to ‘Educate, Mobilize and Agitate’ for Voter Participation
By Hazel Trice Edney

NAACP Chair Roslyn Brock

(TriceEdneyWire.com) – With a “pivotal election” coming up Nov. 4, the NAACP will kick off its 105^th Annual Convention this week focusing primarily on maximum Black voter turnout for the mid-term elections.

“All In for Justice & Equality” is the theme of the convention – to be held in Las Vegas. Voter suppression, criminal justice reform, voting rights, economic opportunity and educational equality are among the topics on the agenda from Saturday, July 19 to Wednesday, July 23.

Chairman Roslyn M. Brock says that the 105-year-old organization will escalate its traditional strategies with determination to turn out the largest voting force possible.

"In this pivotal election year, it is especially important for us to address voter suppression and the challenges facing communities of color and the nation as a whole. As we tackle important issues like health care, economic opportunity, education and civic engagement, we know that we cannot fully recover as a nation unless we are courageous, stand in solidarity and get out the vote,” says Brock. “The NAACP will continue to educate, mobilize and agitate to create an informed and engaged populace and continue the work in ensuring every American has unfettered access to the ballot box."

NAACP is a non-partisan organization, but has always fought for Black voter participation given the social, civil rights, and economic justice issues at stake. The Republicans Party, which gets only a hand full of Black votes, are determined to win back the majority in the Senate that they lost in 2006 elections. Currently Senate Democrats have a 55-45 majority (including two independents who usually vote with Democrats). Republicans will likely maintain control of the House unless Democrats can pick up at least 17 seats. Democrats have not had a House majority since 2010.

The convention comes amidst major civil rights milestones including the 60th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education desegregation ruling March 17, the 50th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, signed into law on July 2; and the 50th Anniversary of the Mississippi Freedom Summer. Also, next year is the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (Aug. 6, 1965).

A statement from the NAACP stressed that the convention also occurs on the heels of the “devastating decision” in Shelby v. Holder, June 25, 2013, which gutted Section IV of the Voting Rights Act.

"The civil rights anniversaries this past year remind us how far we have come, and how far we still have to go,” said NAACP former Interim President & CEO, Lorraine C. Miller. “As we honor the contributions of heroes like Thurgood Marshall, Dorothy Height and Maya Angelou, we also continue to address the new Jim Crow of mass incarceration and the old Jim Crow of voter suppression. NAACP members and partners have never been content to simply memorialize historic icons; in fact, we are inspired and energized by their example for the work that lies ahead.”

The convention will also feature the first speech from NAACP Cornell William Brooks, a civil rights lawyer and AME preacher, is scheduled to speak at the first plenary session Monday morning July 21. Brooks is slated to speak on Brock is schedule to speak at the first public mass meeting on Sunday evening, July 20.

According to a release, the convention speakers include “well-known as well as the next generation of civil rights leaders, elected officials, faith leaders, actors and community activists.”

“The NAACP is still the most influential and relevant voice in the fight for social justice,” stated NAACP Vice Chairman Leon Russell. “We still face several challenges and we must continue to set the tone for those who believe that the struggle for a greater nation must continue. Our Convention must also re-emphasize the importance of civic engagement as we move into off year elections. The ability to cast an unfettered ballot that is actually counted is perhaps our greatest challenge.”

South African Strike at General Motors Car Factory Gains International Support

July 14 2014

South African Strike at General Motors Car Factory Gains International Support

Special to the Trice Edney Wire from Global Informational Network

(TriceEdneyWire.com) General Motors South Africa has shut down its plant in Port Elizabeth where some 200,000 members of the NUMSA trade union are demanding a 12 percent pay hike.

Support for the union walkout has poured in from the UK, the Czech Republic, Brazil, Namibia, Swaziland, and the machinist workers union in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.

In a letter to the NUMSA General Secretary Irvin Jim, IAM’s international president wrote: “Dear Brother Jim: On behalf of over several hundred thousand members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, we stand solidly with NUMSA as you and your brothers and sisters struggle for decent wages and benefits. We are outraged over the lack of progress in your negotiations.”

“The IAM and NUMSA have supported each other for many, many years. As in the past, your fights are our fights and our fights are yours. As multinational corporations and their attacks on unions and workers grow, we must strengthen our resolve to battle injustice wherever it is found." The letter was signed by R. Thomas Buffenbarger, IAMAW international president.

General Motors is demanding a two tier wage scale and other givebacks, despite a banner year in car sales, reaching an 11.5 market share, with volume growth up 16 percent over the previous year. Their new models, the Chevy Sonic and Chevy Utility, exceeded sales expectations with the light commercial vehicle “retaining 80 months of consecutive segment leadership.”

The union is demanding a 12 percent increase for workers while the employers have proposed a three-year deal that includes raises of 8 percent the first year. Talks between the parties are continuing.

Demands for wage gains are a long time coming. South Africa suffers from the widest income disparities on the planet, according to the World Bank. Executives earn as much as 300 times the average wage of workers and the economy remains dominated by white people and politically connected blacks 20 years after Nelson Mandela became South Africa’s first democratically elected president.

In a press statement, the vehicle maker expressed confidence that it could meet its domestic and export customer demands for the medium term.

NUMSA, in an open letter to employers posted on their website, said the union was aware of the weak state of the global and local economy. Yet despite high rates of unemployment, they pointed out, capital was taking excessive profit.

“Large numbers of NUMSA members have lost their jobs,” the statement noted. “Unemployment for young people was 47.5 percent in the third quarter of 2013. 26 million South Africans live in abject poverty. Overall the 20 years of democracy have been disastrous to the working class of our country.”

“The strike can only end once the employers put a proper offer on the table,” Mphumzi Maqungo, NUMSA’s national treasurer, said in a press interview. “We need a full response for all of our demands including a pay raise and benefits.”

A full blown strike with the South African Municipal Workers Union, joined by Cosatu, the South African Community Party and the ANC is possible if authorities fail to address worker grievances within 14 working days.

In a related development, agricultural workers in neighboring Swaziland have ended a three-week strike for a living wage with a 10 percent wage increase and improved benefits for seasonal workers.

The strike targeted Ubombo Sugar, the Swazi subsidiary of South African sugar giant Illovo, which is 40% owned by Swaziland's monarch Mswati III and 51% owned by the UK's Associated British Foods, involved some 3,000 workers.

President Obama Happy with Last Month's Jobs Report, Blacks benefitting from improved economy, by Frederick H. Lowe

July 14, 2014

President Obama Happy with Last Month's Jobs Report
Blacks benefitting from improved economy, report says

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from TheNorthStarNews.com

By Frederick H. Lowe

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - An ebullient President Barack Obama said on Thursday that that day's jobs report showed the fastest growth since the first half of 1999.

"This is also the first time we've seen five consecutive months of job growth over 200,000 since 1999. And we've seen the quickest drop in unemployment in 30 years," President Obama said.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Thursday that total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 288,000 in June and the unemployment rate declined to 6.1 percent, led by growth in professional and business services, retail trade, food services and drinking places and health care.

The Economic Policy Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based nonpartisan think tank, reported that African-Americans benefited from the improved economy.

"The share of working age African Americans with a job increased1.3 percentage points since January 2014," Valerie Wilson, director of EPI's Program on Race, Ethnicity, and the Economy, wrote in a blog.

The overall black unemployment rate was in June was 10.7 percent compared to 11.5 percent in May. The African-American unemployment rate, however, is still much higher than the 8.3 percent unemployment rate recorded in 2007, according to Heidi Shierholz, labor-market economist for EPI.

The jobless rate for black men 20 years old and older was 10.9 percent compared to 11.5 percent in May. For black women 20 years old and older, the jobless rate in June was 9.0 percent compared to 10.0 percent in May. The labor-participation rate for black men and black women also improved, according to BLS.

It wasn't all good news. The Economic Policy Institute reported that a large pool of workers are missing because of still weak job opportunities.

"They are neither employed nor actively seeking a job," EPI reported. "In other words, these are people who would be either working or looking for work if job opportunities were significantly stronger." If the missing workers were looking for work, the unemployment would be 9.6 percent, EPI reported.

President Obama admits there is more work to do. "Now, what we also know is, as much progress as has been made, there are still folks out there who are struggling," the president said. "We still have not seen as much increase in income and wages as we'd like to see. A lot of folks are still digging themselves out of challenges that arose out of the Great Depression."

Memories By William Spriggs

July 14, 2014

Memories

By William Spriggs

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - Memory is how individuals and societies recall past events. History, in contrast, seeks to collect the actual data of events. In society, memory is important because it forms the narrative on which we build basic concepts that drive policy.

Take this past week when we celebrated the founding of the United States on July 4. Historical facts tell us there are many days we could designate to celebrate the official independence of the United States of America. July 2 was the day the Continental Congress voted to declare Independence. July 4 is when the Continental Congress completed the draft of the Declaration.

Then there were the battles at Lexington and Concord, Mass., in April 1775 that set the colonies on the path to the American Revolutionary War. Or we could look to Oct. 18, 1781, when British troops surrendered to French troops and General George Washington at the battle of Yorktown, forcing the British to the bargaining table.

Then there's Sept. 10, 1783, when the war officially ended with the Peace of Paris. As you can see there is much more to the history and documentation of the events of that era, yet in the memories of Americans, it is July 4 that marks the founding of a nation that protects individual liberty against government and mob rule, while upholding representative democracy.

Memory is a selection of facts, ignoring those that don't serve the agreed upon framework. The Civil War is a key example. Another seminal event occurred July 3, 1863, when the failure of Confederate General George Pickett's charge on Cemetery Ridge in Gettysburg, Pa., forced the retreat of General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, ending its last thrust into the North and the beginning of the end of the American Civil War. Gone from America's memory are the raids led by Confederate soldiers in June and July, in advance of the Battle of Gettysburg to kidnap free African Americans of the Cumberland Valley into slavery. This is to remove the centrality of the maintenance of slavery from the Southern cause and dismiss the pain of slavery, as on a personal level we forget painful incidents with family members.

In assembling arguments for reparations for slavery and America's history of racial exclusions, journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates underplayed the convenient loss from America's memory that there were slave owners who received "reparations." And, until the movie "Glory," the role of African American troops in the war was not part of America's memory. My wife's third great grandfather, Jessie White, enlisted on Oct. 1, 1864, into Company D of the 6th Regiment, U.S. Colored Cavalry, and saw action at two Union victories later in November at the Battle at Marion and the Second Raid on Saltville in southwestern Virginia. His military file includes the claim before the Adjutant General's Office for $300 to be paid to Daugherty White as compensation for the freedom of Jessie White, his slave, to serve in the defense of the United States of America.

Memory, in part, is the creation of a narrative that serves other concepts-like the meaning of race or patriotism. It also can serve the purpose of class. We are still recovering from the Great Recession of 2008. So far the narrative is that it was a financial collapse and that the quick actions of the Federal Reserve and the bailout through the Troubled Asset Relief Program saved the day. That means we can "remember" this as home loans gone bad. With health restored to Wall Street, we don't need to do anything more. That serves the purposes of the 1 percent.

Memories also shape policies to prevent painful policy failures. Why isn't 2008 remembered like the Great Depression? Conservative economist Milton Friedman and monetarist Anna Schwartz went to lengths to rewrite the Great Depression as a financial sector collapse followed by poor Federal Reserve policy, dismissing the need for Roosevelt's aggressive government response. Adopting the financial system as central to how we remember 2008 is part of that same anti-government narrative.

Another narrative of 2008 could be this: Long-term imbalances between workers and managers generated huge inequality, resulting in workers' heavily indebted position and making sustained demand for goods and services to maintain full employment impossible. Remembering 2008 as a financial collapse dismisses the pain of high unemployment in the real economy. That memory would force new policies to correct those imbalances and calls to strengthen policies that ensured workers' jobs and incomes. Like the memory of the Great Depression.

Follow Spriggs on Twitter: @WSpriggs. Contact: Amaya Smith-Tune Acting Director, Media Outreach AFL-CIO 202-637-5142