The jury has spoken in the trial of Kwame Kilpatrick, the former mayor of Detroit and rising political star. He was recently found guilty on 24 charges related to corruption and contract steering and could face substantial time in prison. The 42-year-old former chief executive of the Motor City was convicted March 11 of “racketeering conspiracy, which carries a maximum punishment of 20 years behind bars,” AP reported.

The conviction of such a promising young man is disheartening and all leaders must have a level of commitment and character which puts the peoples’ interests first and their personal interests second.

But at the same time, it once again appears that Black officials when suspected of wrongdoing or accused of wrongdoing are singled out for special sanction. Meanwhile bigger federal fish, whose crimes have wide impact, are not getting fried–or even snagged by a government legal hook.

Take those who orchestrated the Wall St. and housing debacle, which nearly wrecked the economy and helped wipe out three decades of wealth accumulation by Blacks. Like most Americans, Black wealth was tied to equity in their homes and when the housing market folded like a deck of cards, the wealth evaporated. So today average Black wealth stands at about $28,500 and average White wealth is $265,000, according to a study by Brandeis University.

Late last month, Senators Sherrod Brown, an Ohio Democrat, and Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder about the government’s failure to prosecute “certain Wall Street megabanks.”

“Wall Street megabanks aren’t just too big to fail, they’re increasingly too big to jail,” Sen. Brown said. The megabanks “may also enjoy some impunity when they violate the law by laundering money or illegally foreclosing on homeowners. Wall Street should pay the full price of its wrongdoing, not pass the costs along to taxpayers,” he added.

“The best deterrent to crime is to put people in prison,” Sen. Grassley argued. “That includes those at powerful banks and corporations. Unfortunately, we’ve seen little willingness to charge these individuals criminally. The public deserves an explanation of how the Justice Department arrives at these decisions.”

Attorney General Eric Holder testified March 6 at a Senate that Justice Department officials considered what damage going after major bankers could do to the U.S. and world economy when considering whether to charge anyone. He insisted his department’s efforts were sufficiently aggressive. Yet to date, not one Wall Street big shot has faced criminal charges for fraud tied to the financial crisis that almost downed a nation.

By March 11, the senators were blasting the banking industry’s response. “It comes as no great surprise that the megabanks’ trade associations think the Too Big To Fail problem is behind us,” Sen. Brown said. “The trade groups’ actions speak loudest: instead of supporting a bill to have GAO study this issue, some of them worked to kill it in the House of Representatives.”

The senators were responding to Justice Dept. decisions not to prosecute big time banksters.

Sen. Brown wants to limit the size of banks so the fall of any one entity would not collapse the economy or necessitate a federal bailout.

Sen. Grassley “has been critical of the Justice Department’s decisions against holding people criminally accountable in financial cases. He called the Justice Department’s decision to forego any criminal prosecution of HSBC officials involved in that money laundering scandal inexcusable. And he has questioned the Justice Department about the number of mortgage fraud cases brought forward, revealing a failure to bring significant criminal cases against any of the major banks or financial institutions that have faced civil actions for various frauds,” said a statement from the senators.

The senators’ actions were sparked by a remark by his deputy, Lanny Breuer, broadcast on FRONTLINE’s film “The Untouchables.” “PBS’ Frontline program on Tuesday night (March 6) broadcast a new one-hour report on one of the greatest and most shameful failings of the Obama administration: the lack of even a single arrest or prosecution of any senior Wall Street banker for the systemic fraud that precipitated the 2008 financial crisis: a crisis from which millions of people around the world are still suffering. What this program particularly demonstrated was that the Obama justice department, in particular the Chief of its Criminal Division, Lanny Breuer, never even tried to hold the high-level criminals accountable,” wrote Glenn Greenwald for the Guardian in London.

“What Obama justice officials did instead is exactly what they did in the face of high-level Bush era crimes of torture and warrantless eavesdropping: namely, acted to protect the most powerful factions in the society in the face of overwhelming evidence of serious criminality. Indeed, financial elites were not only vested with immunity for their fraud, but thrived as a result of it, even as ordinary Americans continue to suffer the effects of that crisis.”

“Worst of all, Obama justice officials both shielded and feted these Wall Street oligarchs (who, just by the way, overwhelmingly supported Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign) as they simultaneously prosecuted and imprisoned powerless Americans for far more trivial transgressions.”

So much for justice in America.

The post A sad tale in Detroit and no jail for banksters appeared first on Final Call News.

A panel hosted by “Frederick Douglass Republicans” at CPAC was supposed to be about how Republicans can overcome their issues with race and tolerance spun out of control when an attendee suggested that Douglas should have been grateful to his slave owners “for giving him shelter and food.”

During the breakout session called Trump The Race Card: Are You Sick And Tired Of Being Called A Racist When You Know You’re Not One?” which was led by K. Carl Smith, a black conservative activist that committed to the movement full time in 2009, a young man from North Carolina, Scott Terry, asked him about the problems facing white people and segregation.

October 13, 2008 Archive Video

Related news:

Presidential Politics don’t matter without radical change -Farrakhan (FCN, 10-18-2012)

In Obama -vs- Romney the Poor are ignored (Farrakhan on Election 2012)

Republican recalcitrance, extreme rhetoric knows no boundaries  (FCN, 08-30-2012)

Square pegs–Black Republicans and the Congressional Black Caucus (FCN, 11-23-2010)

Atlanta Jewish Times suggests need to “order a hit” on Pres. Obama  (FCN, 01-31-2012)

The post Racism Talk At Republican CPAC Derailed When Attendee Says Slaves Should Have Been Grateful appeared first on Final Call News.

(FinalCall.com) –  Minister Farrakhan commented on policy discussions at the highest levels of U.S. government aimed at the preservation of the planet’s resources for use by those whom they deemed to be desirable members of the population, as well as plans to deal with the demographic threat posed to white supremacy.

The people and the resources in areas commonly referred to as the “Third World” would be targeted for population reduction.

Minister Farrakhan’s comments were made during Part 4 of his weekly message, ‘The Time & What Must Be Done‘ which is available in its entirety at http://www.noi.org/thetime

“Many of you cannot wrap your mind around a human that could think that the resources of the earth are too little and population too much  so we must kill 2 to 3 billion people…”

Minister Farrakhan’s 52-Week Lecture Series Website

(Series DVD, CD  & MP3  Available @ http://store.finalcall.com

The post Farrakhan on Eugenics & the Demographic Threat to White Supremacy appeared first on Final Call News.

On a crisp January day, President Barack Hussein Obama was sworn in as the 44th president of the United States of America. While there was pomp and circumstance and attendance at the ceremony far larger than the usual official beginning to a presidential administration, the numbers were smaller than the throngs that turned out in 2009, the first Obama inauguration.

The president begins with fewer crises than were faced after the 2008 election but problems remain and they are serious. The economy is still an unresolved riddle, government remains divided, violence persists in the streets of cities and in picture perfect suburbs, and there is much less optimism for the future.

And while the president argued the founding fathers were not building a state where the few would benefit, the truth is their definition and view of democracy did not include equal rights for non-property holders, White women, Native Americans and certainly not Blacks languishing in slavery. Their revolution cited high ideals but in reality, those leading and most likely to benefit from the desired change were White men who owned land and slaves.

While the president argued that America was built on the principles of majority rule and not mob rule, for centuries it was mob rule that determined the lives and deaths of Blacks with lynchings, race riots and even medical experimentation.

With Blacks locked out of competition by segregation, inferior education, thievery and intimidation, American capitalism certainly was not governed by fair competition and one set of rules.

The myth of fair play and one standard may be an enchanting narrative but unfortunately is not the true reality of American history and in particular the experience of Black, non-white and even poor Whites in this nation.

Each president has had the opportunity to try to evolve the United States toward a more perfect union given its flawed and imperfect beginning. Mr. Obama has the same opportunity.

Crucial to this opportunity is not only how the commander in chief handles the world and the raging conflicts in the Middle East or the increase in U.S. activity in Africa, or the drone attacks killing innocent civilians in Afghanistan but also how the longstanding problem of Blacks in America is dealt with.

In his inaugural address, the president spoke clearly to the need to confront climate change, demand equal pay for women, equal rights under law for the gay community and proper treatment of immigrants, the only apparent nod to Blacks was his saying no citizen should be forced to wait for hours to exercise the right to vote.

Voting rights are important but for a community that has overwhelmingly given support to the president and patiently waited through a first term for a chance to have him speak directly to their issues, it was not a shining or visionary moment. Urban violence, joblessness in inner cities and the growing gaps that exist in health, economics, educational achievement and other areas were worthy of mention and need to be shown some attention.

When the president speaks directly to issues related to specific constituencies–White women, gays and immigrants–he is expending political capital and beginning to push for progress for the groups that he lifts up and their causes.

His words not only have an impact on policy but also open the way for others to support his view and push for change in society. President Obama’s support for gay marriage was a major statement and was followed by social-cultural and political figures that followed his lead. Some businesses and corporations also followed his lead in terms of his benefits and other workplace policies.

Bigger, however, than the president’s political decisions and political positions is how he will deal with the race problem in terms of divine time and divine guidance. Like previous presidents, Mr. Obama must decide what to do with the children of America’s once slaves and a divine decree that Blacks must be let go in accord with prophecy.

For over 80 years, the Nation of Islam has offered guidance to America’s leaders and her people in a warning that slavery, the cruel mistreatment of Blacks in this country has put the world’s greatest superpower under the judgment of God Himself.

In rebuilding the work of the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan has provided divine guidance and insight about the choices to be made and the consequences for rejecting or accepting the guidance and the path of God.

While the ongoing change is universal, the judgment that brings in that change starts with America. This country, nor the world, will see peace until the problem of the injustice, murder, oppression and evil planning against Blacks is dealt with. We have suffered the most of those who have been abused and misused and God Himself has declared we are no longer forsaken or forgotten.

We respectfully suggest the president, and the American people, lend an ear to the powerful and insightful messages of warning from Min. Farrakhan based on the words and work of his teacher–Elijah Muhammad–a little Black man from Georgia who has had an undeniable impact on Black America and the world, inspiring direct and indirect students and movements, and introducing new ideas and concepts from health, to politics and religion.

We wish Mr. Obama well and pray for his safety and his success, but the way to success begins with hearing a gentle word and assessing the conditions of this nation and what is needed for its survival. And what is needed for the country to possibly get another chance is to follow divine guidance and divine warning. This inauguration is a second chance for the president and the nation, we pray that all concerned will make the right decision.

The post A second term and another opportunity to change appeared first on Final Call News.

X-mas is over with the exception of the hurt feelings for not getting the expected presents, the hangovers and lingering regrets from bad decisions, the credit card bills and late notices and the regular reminders that life goes on after Dec. 25 with all its attendant problems.

But did the X-mas celebration really bring more joy and true happiness–which can never be purchased–or simply a momentary respite and false sense of joy which quickly dissipates as the financial, emotional and spiritual costs of the season are totaled?

Billions have been spent. Merchants count receipts with glee. Economists tally whether the public rescued the nation once again in a vortex of spending and orgy of consumption.

But are you better off? Is your family better off? Is our community better off?

And if the reason for the season is the birth of a Saviour who represents the reconciliation of God and man and one the Bible says was declared to be the son of God by the spirit, do you have a feeling of relief and enjoy confidence that one is in the world with the power to deliver you? Or sadly do you feel overcome or almost overcome by a world that profited from using the name of Jesus in ways far removed from his life and mission?

Jesus didn’t come to make sure we received the biggest presents and enjoyed the biggest parties; he came that we may have life and have it more abundantly. As the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan has taught us, life is much more than physical existence: It is engaging in the creative aspects of life in business, home and community that truly represent whether we are living or simply languishing in a state of existence. Life at the highest level means having a greater spiritual understanding and appreciation that allows one to transcend earthly worries and humdrum reality for higher values of service, sacrifice and progress.

In the season of excess, perhaps progress is the thing we should be talking about. In the days of chattel slavery, our suffering ancestors enjoyed X-mas as a time away from a dreaded existence. It is easy to understand why a slave would seek refuge in alcohol or whatever the slave master provided given the abject conditions under which they existed and the intense pain and horror they experienced. But if we are free people today, should we follow in the path of our ancestors who would have, and some did, give all they had to be free?

If we are free should not we take a sober look at the celebrations and traditions of our slave masters’ children and make an intelligent decision?

Is it enough that Black people were pepper-sprayed in Huntsville, Ala., because of fights and chaos surrounding the release of the latest Michael Jordan sneaker? Or how about hundreds in Ft. Worth who came out for Air Jordans and found themselves crammed together, scrambling and police intervening with an officer releasing pepper spray and a mall security guard doing the same. Police complained the store goofed by not offering vouchers to allow people to purchase the shoes on a schedule. A voucher to stand in line and buy shoes? So this is what we have come to?

It’s hard to imagine that Jesus would look at this madness and say, “Well done my good and faithful servant,” and more like he would shout, “Get thee behind me Satan.”

Black America has been blessed with a teacher and a community that has been preaching since 1930 that this is not the time for such foolish behavior–but the time for collective action to plot and pursue a future for ourselves. That man is the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and the community is the Nation of Islam. The madness of the season bypasses the followers of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, under the leadership of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan.

Since we have been taught that X-mas is really a celebration of pagans and wickedness, we shun such observances and are granted a reprieve from the stress induced by the drive for spending and mass consumerism.

We understand that this is the time of year to assess one’s current position as one seeks to make progress in the coming year. That progress won’t be found in unnecessary spending or ostentatious and expensive displays of finery, but in pooling our resources to do something for ourselves.

Joblessness, poverty, want, urban decay, government ineptitude, racial hostility and community disunity haven’t taken a holiday and aren’t problems that will be solved by more bling.

The solution to our problem is divine, rooted in the blessing we will receive by coming together and maximizing our unity in an attempt to save ourselves. The country is on the verge of total collapse with intractable political infighting and economic insecurity. It can’t solve its own problems, should we ignorantly hope for a miracle or should we act in our interest and build a future for ourselves and our children?

It is always the season to build and the time to celebrate the virtue and value of hard work and self-determination.

The post Seasons’ greetings … seasonal madness appeared first on Final Call News.

At Final Call press time the super storm once known as Hurricane Sandy was hitting the East Coast with flooding in the streets of Atlantic City, N.J., New York, parts of Long Island, N.J., and other points on the East Coast.

EDITORIAL

Snow and sleet hit parts of West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio along with near 90 mile per hour wind gusts. Twenty-three states were under high wind advisories.

Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey lambasted the mayor of Atlantic City, accusing the mayor of essentially saying residents did not have to leave in accord with the evacuation order by the Republican chief executive officer of the state. Gov. Christie bluntly took to airwaves Oct. 29, saying no help would be coming for anyone stuck, stranded or flooded in the area. The darkness of night and risk to the lives of rescuers prohibited anyone coming until daylight Tuesday morning, he said. His advice? Stay put and try to ride the storm out safely.

Governors along the East Coast were pleading with residents to get to higher ground and Mayor Michael Bloomberg, at one point, threatened to shut down power to low lying areas he said should be evacuated.

“Hurricane Sandy barged ashore in southern New Jersey just after 6 p.m., bringing 90 mph winds and a roiling wall of seawater as it moved inland and north toward New York City,” reported Fox News.com.

“The monster storm, a powerful, 900-mile-wide hybrid of several weather systems, sent 30-foot-high swells toward the garden State, and as its eye passed over the shoreline, a surge as high as 10 feet tore into dunes and washed across boardwalks. The state had evacuated all shore towns ahead of the strike, with Gov. Chris Christie telling residents who ignored the evacuation orders they were ‘both stupid and selfish.’  

“ ‘(It’s a) very intense, very dangerous storm. People will die in this storm,’ Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley said Monday. ‘So folks will need to mind their families, stay home and hunker down.’ ”

According to the Associated Press, Hurricane Sandy led to the cancellation of nearly 12,500 flights in the Northeast, with predictions that passengers could be stranded for days. Beyond these cancellations is the impact on connecting flights and havoc that will linger. “Travelers overseas could wait days to get to the East Coast of the U.S. All flights from Paris to Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Washington–a total of 14–were cancelled,” AP reported.

Some 60 million Americans were expected to feel some aspect of Sandy’s wrath, whether flooding, power outages, business closures, school shutdowns, transportation cancellations and a myriad of other woes.

But while warnings from weathermen and political leaders are coming in, there has been a divine warning echoing inside of America for 82 years now. That warning is from the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and his declaration that God Himself has declared war on America and will use the forces of nature to pummel the United States into submission for her evils done to the Black people of this hemisphere, in particular, taking Black people into slavery.

Since his effort to rebuild the Nation, the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan has repeated those warnings to a country that seems hell bent on staying on the wrong path. Racial animus and hatred continues to rise, the unjust taking of Black lives continues, the plots against the Minister and the Nation of Islam continue, alongside media misreports and slander, outright government infiltration and continued sanctions and attempts to thwart any progress. These efforts will not succeed and in the end, only hasten America’s divinely appointed doom.

“Remember what I said last year? Watch the weather? Well, in 2011 America and the world had the worst weather in recorded history and this year portends even greater calamities and hurt for the American people and also Europe,” said Min. Farrakhan in February 2012 during his annual Saviours’ Day address.

In recent weeks, the Minister has repeated the same warning, urging an errant country to humble herself and imploring Black America to separate herself from the deeds, mindset and desires of her former slave masters to avoid the fate assigned to the children of her former slave masters.

Speaking Oct. 14 at the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, N.C., to mark the 17th anniversary of the Million Man March, Min. Farrakhan repeated his warning and noted federal disaster declarations have been issued during the Obama administration have passed the number of disaster declarations that haunted the Bush administration.

“God doesn’t fight with your cheap weapons,” said Min. Farrakhan. “God fights with the forces of nature,” he continued. “You can’t win with a war against God. You will understand it not by and by, but very soon.”

As The Final Call reported earlier this year, 2011 included some of the costliest disasters in U.S. history. “Floods, extreme drought, snow, wildfires and hurricanes made 2011 not only one for the record book but the fallout was also felt in America’s pocketbook,” The Final Call noted .

“Fourteen weather disasters across the country alone were in excess of one billion dollars each costing a total of $55 billion according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) eclipsing the previous record of eight set in 2008. Through October of 2011 President Obama had declared 89 disasters, another record.

“Having not yet completed the first quarter of a new year, the U.S. has been hit with a near historic outbreak of tornados, across Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and other states.  

“According to one tornado expert at least 80 twisters struck during the two days, exceeding the record for the entire month of March on record of 74 in 2006,” The Final Call article said.  

While it is wise to follow the advice of weather “experts” and political leaders in an emergency, the best course is to follow the divine warnings coming through Min. Farrakhan from the teachings of the Hon. Elijah Muhammad. Heeding such wise counsel can save lives, alleviate some suffering and possibly delay America’s doom. Failing to heed the call to change and turn from her wicked ways only means this country’s woes will escalate. If you don’t believe that is true, simply continue to watch the weather.

The post ‘Watch the weather’ appeared first on Final Call News.

The one-year anniversary of the Occupy Movement came, went, and left a lawsuit in its wake. There were more than 180 arrests in mid-September as demonstrators took to streets in New York City in efforts to revive a movement that started in Zuccotti Park near Wall St., highlighted the thievery of banksters ripping off the country and declared it was time to overthrow the One Percent who control the majority of U.S. wealth and impact the destiny of the vast majority of Americans.

Instead of offering balloons or a big birthday cake, the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of demonstrators “falsely arrested on September 24, 2011 in the first week of the Occupy Wall Street movement, including one plaintiff who was subject to Deputy Inspector Anthony Bologna’s notorious pepper spray attack on peaceful demonstrators.”

The lawsuit wants an end to arrests of “people lawfully present on city sidewalks and the use of orange netting and police lines to conduct indiscriminate group arrests. The lawsuit also seeks compensatory and punitive damages against NYPD officers,” said PCJF.

“It is evident from the mass use of illegal sidewalks arrests executed yet again this weekend during OWS demonstrations that this is an unlawful tactic the NYPD will use over and over again until a judge declares this tactic to be unconstitutional,” argued PCJF legal director Carl Messineo on the Occupy protest anniversary.  

“People in New York City are entitled to engage in dissent without having to fear that they will be subject to the NYPD’s illegal arrests and brutality,” added Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, PCJF executive director.

The plaintiffs were among a large number of people arrested on an East 12th Street sidewalk following a peaceful Occupy Wall Street rally in Union Square, according to the complaint, Sterling, et al. v. City of New York, et.al.

Three-hundred and sixty five days after the largest sustained public protest in recent memory to denounce a lack of freedom, out of control corporate power, and a game tilted toward those already have, not much has been learned and certainly no appreciation for the right to dissent or free speech has developed.

But the lives of millions remain desperate with homes lost, and dreams of higher education crushed by high costs and debt. One in six Americans is now living in poverty. One year later and two major political conventions completed, it is hard to find any reference to the poor, poverty or alleviating or even addressing poverty by Democrat Barack Obama or Republican Mitt Romney. Before a Romney gaffe, a declaration that 47 percent of freeloading Americans will vote for Mr. Obama because they love living off of government, “poor” seemed a word banned from presidential hopeful vocabularies.

A Sept. 21 CNN report noted that unemployment has risen in 26 of America’s 50 states. In addition, 636,017 people are officially homeless while another six million Americans spend more than half of income for a place to live. Labor unions are clashing with employers. Schools are failing. Patience with divided government run by politicians awash in special interest money is nearly gone.

“In our bipartisan system, when the two candidates for president are doing everything to kneel down to the corporations and banks and turn against the people, it doesn’t matter who you vote for, because the war machine will continue,” said Kim Fraczek, a handbag and jewelry designer, NBC News reported Sept. 17. The 37-year-old, wearing an Obama mask, was with a man wearing a Romney mask at the New York Occupy protest to show the Democratic and GOP presidential candidates are controlled by money.

Things don’t look much better overseas: In Afghanistan, Afghan soldiers turned on and killed their American and Western trainers and the Muslim world was aflame with rioting and attacks ignited by an American movie that denigrated the holy prophet of Islam. In Benghazi, Libya, where a U.S. diplomat was killed in uproar following the initial unrest about the movie, battles started Sept. 21 between different factions in the city. It was reported that the groups were battling over “the revolution.” Gunfights between militias leaning to the West and others deemed Al-Qaeda style militants had reportedly broken out.

A report by United for a Fair Economy exposed continued concentration of U.S. wealth and the lie that somehow merit alone pushed ascension into the stratosphere of the super-rich. “Born on Third Base” showed how the classic Forbes 400, which lists the country’s wealthiest people, was almost a sham.

“Forbes claims that their list of the 400 richest Americans is ‘the definitive scorecard of wealth in America,’ but the Forbes 400 does not tell the whole story,” said United for a Fair Economy. “Forbes understates the impacts of birthright and family privilege. Roughly 40 percent of the 2011 list received a significant advantage by inheriting a sizeable asset from a spouse or family member. More than 20 percent received sufficient wealth to make the list from their inheritance alone.

Forbes ignores the other side of the coin–that the opportunity to build wealth is not equally shared. The net worth of the Forbes 400 grew fifteen-fold between the launch of the list in 1982 and 2011, while wealth stagnated for the average U.S. household. The racial wealth divide is starkly apparent from the overwhelming Whiteness of the list. The 2011 Forbes 400 had only one African American member,” the Boston-based organization found.

In addition, “tax policy is tilted in favor of the wealthy members of the Forbes 400 list. Tax rates on capital gains have been slashed, which especially benefits members of the Forbes list. The richest 0.1 percent receive half of all net increases in capital gains,” United For a Fair Economy said.

Anniversaries are a time look back and reflect, but there is little to celebrate, and growing pain and rising anger are representative of not only the Occupy Movement but the mood of the country.

The post Unhappy anniversary: Occupy Movement marks still hard times appeared first on Final Call News.

The coroners’ report is back and they have agreed with the incredible assertion of the Jonesboro Police Dept., that 21-year-old Chavis Carter shot himself to death while handcuffed in the back of a police car in the Arkansas town.

      EDITORIAL      

The report by pathologists in Little Rock, Ark., was released July 20 at Final Call presstime and backs up the official account. The seven pages of information describe the condition of the body, the bullet wound and other details, and says it was based also on information from the police department.

But while the report lists details and reaches conclusions, there are still some things missing as noted by Memphis attorney Benjamin Irwin, who represents the deceased young man’s family. In an interview on CNN, the attorney said it was important to note that the report essentially offers a medical conclusion, which includes saying the gun was next to the young man’s head and a gun caused the death. But, he continued, the report doesn’t reach a conclusion about who fired the weapon that killed Chavis. It also is not known whether Chavis was tested for gun residue or if officers were tested for gun residue and when, Attorney Irvin added.

“We tried to duplicate it (the reputed suicide) and it was a difficult feat at best,” said Attorney Irvin. He wasn’t impressed by a Jonesboro Police Dept. video produced to show how someone in handcuffs could shoot himself in the head. We don’t know who the person in the videotape is, whether the person was double-jointed and the only thing that matters is what Chavis would have been able to do that night, said the lawyer.

From his perspective the Jonesboro police called the death a suicide from the beginning and started with a conclusion, instead of starting with an investigation and ascertaining the facts. Given that police officers say they searched Chavis twice and handcuffed him, incompetence is clear and the question is where does the situation go from here? observed Attorney Irvin. Too many conclusions have been released when all of the facts have not been released, he added.

There are some facts in this case: A young Black man was stopped with two White males the night of July 28 and the two Caucasians were let go and the young Black male is dead. The encounter was based on a simple traffic stop. A gun fired the fatal shot that took Chavis’ life. Chavis was in police custody. He was facing minor charges for drug possession. Police say they searched him twice and found no weapon. Dash cam video shared by police show a pat down and Chavis being led off camera and questioned.

It is also a fact that historically in the South, Blacks have died while in police custody or after authorities said they were released. During the civil rights movement the collusion of the White power structure and disregard Black rights and Black lives led to federal intervention. The infamous killing of civil rights workers Andrew Goodman, James Chaney and Michael Schwerner near Philadelphia, Miss., in Neshoba County, Miss., June 21, 1964 is one of many examples. The group was stopped by police who alerted the Ku Klux Klan and set the stage for their killing. Until the federal government got involved all the authorities sang the same song, no one knew what happened to the three young men. A sheriff was among those actually tried for the murders, though he was acquitted.

The “Mississippi Burning” case, dramatized by the movie, was not the only such incident in the South and outside intervention was the only way to seek any semblance of justice.

Is America’s ugly history repeating itself?

The coroners don’t provide answers to how a left-handed person shoots himself on the right side of his head and, of course, don’t say where the gun came from nor how police missed a weapon in two searches. This case isn’t over and while authorities can try to dismiss it and the family attorney wisely walks a thin line without placing blame while calling for an investigation, many believe Chavis Carter was murdered. So while authorities may be content with their findings, Black America is not. There are too many unanswered questions and too much history for us to believe the books should be closed on this case.

The post Southern-style justice in 2012? appeared first on Final Call News.

Tia Norfleet has accomplished what no other Black woman has done. At 24 the Virginia native, is the first and only Black female licensed to drive for NASCAR, traditionally a

White male dominated sport. Daughter of Bobby Norfleet, a professional race car driver, Tia was introduced to racing by her father at a young age and has not looked back. Her motto, “Get left or get right,” Tia Norfleet takes her position as a role model seriously, talking to young people wherever she goes. Final Call staff writer Starla Muhammad recently interviewed Tia in Chicago during the 41st annual Rainbow PUSH conference.

Starla Muhammad (FCN): How old were you when you first became interested in racing and who was your biggest influence?

Tia Norfleet (TN): When I first realized that I wanted to race and make a career out of it, I was 14 and my biggest influence was my dad.

FCN: What was it about your dad that that drew you into this sport?

TN: Just his strong will and seeing him go through so many different obstacles and so many trials and tribulations in the sport and for him to stand with his head held high and continue to love the sport with such a beautiful passion, it motivated me.

FCN: What is your training regimen like? How often do you train and practice?

TN: We practice as much as possible. It starts off in the morning. I eat breakfast and then I go to the gym and then I test maybe for five hours. Sometimes longer than that just depending on what’s needed and after that, I have to stay hydrated at all times because it is hot. That’s pretty much it.

FCN: And what are some of the top speeds you have gotten up to?

TN: Almost two (200 mph).

FCN: As the first Black woman licensed to drive for NASCAR, what have you found to be some of the biggest challenges that you face?

TN: Really, the biggest challenges that I’m facing at this moment because of the economic downfall would have to be finding a sponsor, a major sponsor.

FCN: You often speak to young people at schools and things like that. Why is that important to you and do you consider yourself a role model?

TN: Yes, I consider myself a role model. I don’t think people in the limelight understand that when you are in the limelight whether you want to be a role model or not, you are. I speak to the kids, I’m all about empowerment and motivation and just positivity and letting them know that dreams come true. It may sound cliché but the truth never changes. I love to let them know that they can be anything they want to be as long as they’re positive and they keep God first, anything can happen.

FCN: Where do you see yourself in five years in the sport?

TN: In the sport, in five years I see myself continuing to race. Just doing what I love. An old man once told me ‘If you want to make God laugh, tell Him what you’ve got planned.’ So I really just take it one day at a time and just pray that I’m still in the sport, still around, still relevant.

FCN: Thank you very much.

TN: Thank you!

(You can follow Tia Norfleet on Facebook or Twitter @TiaNorfleet. Visit her official website at http://tianorfleet34.com.)

The post The Fast and the Feminine: One-on-One with NASCAR’s Tia Norfleet appeared first on Final Call News.

The Honorable Elijah Muhammad was jailed May 8, 1942 after he refused to register for the draft and take part in World War II. He was beyond the age of draft eligibility and was a conscientious objector to the war. Yet he and other Muslims over the years have been imprisoned unjustly as government authorities on different levels tried to thwart the teaching of Islam and the spread of truth among the children of America’s once slaves.

If you think that the abuses and targeting of Muslims and attempts to deny truth have ended think again. Muslim inmates still suffer today and are denied their religious rights and recognition of their faith earned by Believers who suffered in prison before them. In 2012, these brothers and sisters in desperate need of the truth and with a burning desire to learn more about the teachings of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad are often denied basic rights and religious accommodation that is unworthy of a nation that touts itself as a model of democracy. Religious freedom is a cornerstone of democracy.

Islam comes as a social solution and as a healing for the ills Black people have suffered and the sins we have adopted in 400 years of oppression and enslavement. Islam comes to give the Black man and woman the knowledge of self and a desire to rise from a wretched former condition into a higher state and to emerge as a new self-respecting, law abiding human being. The transformation of petty criminal Malcolm Little into powerful Minister Malcolm X, taught by the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad, is not just a story for yesterday but a reality for brothers and sisters who learn of the teachings every day. Islam stresses a focus on self-improvement as the precursor to community development.

In recent years, lawsuits have been filed because The Final Call newspaper, the official organ of the Nation of Islam and Black America’s independent source of information, has been banned in penal institutions at the federal, state and local level. The Final Call comes as a source of light and a source of truth with the purpose of resurrecting fallen humanity. The Final Call certainly does not encourage revolt against prison authorities who already have our poor brothers and sisters under their control and at their mercy.

Each week the newspaper strives to provide important news and vital spiritual offerings. The wisdom contained in weekly excerpts from books by Mr. Muhammad and messages from his National Representative, the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan, can transform the lives of inmates and reform those caught in the snares of a racist society and an unjust social order.

Denying our brothers and sisters access to the information needed to learn more about the faith and to promote their proper development does nothing to effect greater peace inside correctional institutions. Over the years inmates who accept Islam have been shown to be disciplined and are taught to obey those in authority over them and respect rules and laws that do not conflict with their religion. That orientation alone should make authorities welcome Islam into their institutions and allow the faith to be taught in an unhindered way. But in addition to their personal salvation, these Muslims behind bars and Nation of Islam ministers desire to teach and train others in the way of God. They desire peace, they pursue knowledge and they dispel ignorance by God’s grace.

Denying these brothers and sisters Holy Qur’ans, the Muslim book of scripture, and other religious materials, locking them up in segregation for no reason, beating them, denying them non-pork meals, mocking and belittling them does not make things better. We humbly submit to authorities that the way to improve prison conditions is not to deny inmates the truth, but to allow Nation of Islam ministers to freely teach those who are incarcerated. “When you look at what the Muslims are doing with our prison program, in the midst of you, here again you see a torchlight. Muslims are relatively crime free, and our rate of recidivism is lower than the main.

We respect law and order. Since so many of the inmates are our people, why not let us reform them and help to save some of the taxpayer’s money. Why not let us handle the inmates and lessen the taxpayer’s burden. We can handle the inmates for less than what America is paying now. And better, we can reform our people and make them productive members of society,” wrote the Minister in his book, “A Torchlight for America.”

“America has not found a way to curb crime and reform those in her society who consistently break her laws, particularly in the Black community. The fact is that due to the high rate of recidivism, most of the street crime is perpetuated by the same set of people. Instead of being reformed, a substantial number of people are recycled through committing crime and then being incarcerated again and again,” he continued.

Islam can help. Islam dignifies. Islam civilizes. Islam uplifts. It is the religion of peace and can help bring peace to those who are jailed and those who oversee inmates. A better environment, greater respect and increased knowledge would make the rehabilitation of inmates easier and curb recidivism. The work of the Nation of Islam is a work of redemption. We just need and desire the opportunity to serve.

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