We will not rid our culture of institutional racism until white people start discussing the subject. I’ve known this for a long time.
About "Seven Last Words of the Unarmed"
"You’ve heard their names in the news. Michael Brown. Trayvon Martin. Oscar Grant. Eric Garner. Kenneth Chamberlain. Amadou Diallo. John Crawford.
These men are the subjects of a powerful multi-movement work by up-and-coming Atlanta-based composer Joel Thompson titled “Seven Last Words of the Unarmed.”
The song was recently premiered by the University of Michigan Men’s Glee Club under the direction of Eugene Rogers, associate director of choirs and professor of conducting at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance." (University of Michigan News.)
Sydney Hawkins wrote a terrific summary of Joel Thompson’s new choral work. I highly recommend that you read it and listen to the section-by-section audio slide show that includes descriptions of the individual sections. The audio slide show (I do not know what else to call it) is located immediately above the paragraph that begins “Each movement is distinctly different” here. Or if you prefer, you can watch the video below. Following introductions, the "Seven Last Words of the Unarmed" begins at the 19:51 position and is about 14 minutes long. The audio slide show is much more valuable imho.
“The Seven Last Words of the Unarmed” by Joel Thompson
I. |
Kenneth Chamberlain |
“Officers why do you have your guns out?” |
II. |
Trayvon Martin |
“What are you following me for?” |
III. |
Amadou Diallo |
“Mom, I’m going to college.” |
IV. |
Michael Brown |
“I don’t have a gun! STOP!” |
V. |
Oscar Grant |
“You shot me!” |
VI. |
John Crawford |
“It’s not real” |
VII. |
Eric Garner |
“I can’t breathe.” |
When I saw the above picture of the University of Michigan Men’s Glee Club, I noted the preponderance of white faces and was disappointed — I wanted to see more nonwhite faces in the choir. After I mentioned that to members of Support the Dream Defenders, however, JoanMar responded:
“I disagree with you about the demographic makeup of the choir. As Attorney Al McSurely said at a recent Moral Monday event, ‘Racism is a white people problem.’ It is good to see white men fighting for young black men.”
I now agree with her about the racial makeup of the University of Michigan men’s choir.
Update on Our California Ballot Initiative
We are rapidly approaching the signature-collection phase of our campaign to get the Over-Policed Rights Act on the California ballot. We will be needing your help.
Here is a screengrab of the Summary and Title of the Ballot Initiative sent to us by the California Department of Justice:
We await word from the California Secretary of State who will be sending us a schedule with the filing deadline and the certification deadline of the California Over-Policed Rights Act.
More awesome news! Our law has been submitted as a Resolution to the NAACP. That august body will now discuss and then vote on whether to adopt The Michael Brown Over-Police Rights Act (MBOPRA) at the Legislative Session of the NAACP’s Annual Convention in July 2016.
About Support the Dream Defenders
Members of the Daily Kos group Support the Dream Defenders launched four ongoing projects:
1. We came together to support the Dream Defenders in Florida and their mission, our first project and the origin of our name. The Dream Defenders defend the Dream of Martin Luther King Jr. by "develop[ing] the next generation of radical leaders to realize and exercise our independent collective power; building alternative systems and organizing to disrupt the structures that oppress our communities." Please donate here.
2. Our Michael Brown Over-Policed Rights Act, crowd-sourced at Daily Kos in the fall of 2014 after the death of Michael Brown. Our bill quickly earned endorsements from the NAACP and the ACLU. The NAACP forwarded our bill to members of Congress, and we distributed it to members of the Congressional Black Caucus and other progressive members of Congress. President Obama signed into a law a small piece of our bill in December 2014. The Department of Justice included parts of our law in their reports on Ferguson, Missouri, in 2015. Our state version of the MBOPRA is also currently in committee in the Kansas legislature.
3. Our Freedom of Information Act project. Nineteen Republican governors chose to kill poor people by not expanding Medicaid. Ebola has killed about 9000 people in total; Republican governors kill 23,000 people PER YEAR by refusing federal support for Medicaid, a story ignored by traditional media. Our project forces those governors to out themselves, clapping them in a Catch 22. With the support of readers, we publicize our results through letters to the editor, press releases, and petitions.
4. Our Law Enforcement Documentation Act of 2016.
More information about STDDs here.
You can receive all future diaries of Support the Dream Defenders in your Daily Kos Stream by clicking here. Then click "Follow," which will make all STDD diaries appear in "My Stream" of your Daily Kos page.
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You are also welcome to join us on The Porch over at the Black Kos Community group on Friday afternoons at 4 p.m. ET."
Disclaimers:
I am a graduate of University of Michigan, a white guy who still sometimes has trouble seeing through or removing my white goggles.