i am

My photo
harlem, usa
same-gender-loving contemporary descendant of enslaved africans. community activist, feminist, health educator, independent filmmaker, mentor, playwright, poet & spiritual being. featured at, in & on africana.com, afrikan poetry theatre, angel herald, bejata dot com, bet tonight with tavis smiley, blacklight online, black noir, brooklyn moon cafe, gmhc's barbershop, klmo-fm, lgbt community services center, longmoor productions, nuyorican poets cafe, our corner, poz, pulse, rolling out new york, rush arts gallery, saint veronica's church, schomburg center for research in black culture, sexplorations, the citizen, the new york times, the soundz bar, the trenton times, the village voice, upn news, uzuri, venus, vibe, wbai-fm, wnyc-fm & wqht-fm. volunteered with adodi, bailey house, inc., black men's xchange-new york, colorofchange.org, drug policy alliance, east harlem tutorial program, imagenation film & music festival, presente.org, save darfur coalition, the enough project, the osborne association, the sledge group & your black world. worked on films with maurice jamal & heather murphy. writing student of phil bertelsen & ed bullins. mjt975@msn.com.

Sunday, May 27, 2018

Class-action lawsuit seeks damages for Indiana inmates denied voting rights in jail during 2016 November elctions

a class-action lawsuit was filed on behalf of 150 people unjustly denied of the right to vote in the 2016 november election while incarcerated in allen county jail in indiana. unspecified monetary damages are being sought.

the state prohibits anyone serving time for a felony to vote. but a majority of the jail's detainees on election day were eligible - either because they were pre-trial and and couldn't afford bond, or because they were serving misdemeanor sentences.

indiana law requires all eligible voters be allowed to vote by absentee ballot, and the sheriff has to make arrangements with election officials to provide those ballots. the suit claims sheriff david gladieux neglected his principle duties to ensure all eligible voters get equal opportunity to do so.

attorney david frank, who is representing the plaintiffs, said they believe this is the first class-action suit to seek monetary damages for detainess barred from voting. the lawsuit targets allen county, indiana's third-largest county, but its likely detainees across the state were denied as well. 

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is restoring voting rights to felons on parole

new york governor andrew cuomo on wednesday signed an executive order to restore the voting rights of felons in the state. there are nearly 35,000 people barred from voting while on parole from a felony conviction.

48 states strip people of their voting rights after their felony convictions. cuomo's order allows felons to vote after completing their sentences. historically, the state legislature refused to change its policies. "i'm unwilling to take no for an answer, i'm gonna make it law by executive order and i announce that here today," cuomo said.

the executive order applies to those on parole now, and those eligible for it in the future. the state's department of corrections and community supervision will submit a list of current paroless to the governor's office. the department will also provide a monthly list of new parolees, and determine their eligibility for conditional pardons to restore their voting rights.

according to the sentencing project, there were over 6.1 million disenfranchised americans in 2016 due to felony convictions. the idea of stripping voters' rights of criminals dates back to ancient greece and rome. some american states adopted these laws around the civil war to oppress blacks. in 2016, one in 13 blacks were disenfranchised - four times the rate of other americans.

  

Thursday, May 24, 2018

Jack Johnson pardoned by President Trump for violating the Mann Act in 1913

jack johnson, the first black man to become world heavyweight champion, was pardoned on thursday by president donald trump. johnson was convicted in 1913 of violating the mann act.

trump said last month he was considering the pardon after receiving a call from actor sylvester stallone. "i am taking this very righteous step, i believe, to correct a wrong that occurred in our history and to honor a truly legendary boxing champion. it's my honor to do it. it's about time," trump said at an oval office ceremony.

the u.s. department of justice began investigating johnson after the mann act became law in 1910. the law made it a felony to transport across state lines, "any woman or girls for the purpose of prostitution or debauchery, or for any other immoral purpose." johnson was convicted by an all-white jury and served 10 months in prison.

the mann act's purpose was to stop human sex trafficking, but the broad language allowed for it to be used to prosecute men for extramarital, interracial and premarital relationships - even if they were consensual.   

johnson finished with a career 73-13-10 record and was inducted into the international boxing hall of fame in 1990. johnson won the unofficial black heavyweight championship in 1903, and defeated canadian boxer tommy burns in december 1908 with a tko in the 14th round to become the first black man to hold the world heavyweight championship.

johnson dominated jim jeffries - the latest to be dubbed "the great white hope" - in taking a 15th round tko in july 1910. the bout took place in reno, nevada, was called "the fight of the century" but also led to deadly race riots across the country. 

jeffries, the former champ who came out of retirement for this fight despite being well past his prime, said, "i could never have whipped johnson at my best. i couldn't have hit him. no, i couldn't have reached him in 1,000 years."

johnson was born in galveston, texas in 1878. his parents were enslaved africans who instilled confidence in their son. johnson was an imposing, strong and powerful man with a bald head and dark skin. he infuriated whites for taunting his opponents in the ring, driving fancy cars, wearing furs and openly dating white women.  

johnson died in a 1946 car crash in north carolina at age 68.


2018 All-NBA Teams

listed below is the 2018 all-nba team:

First Team____________________________
LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
James Harden, Houston Rockets
Anthony Davis, New Orleans Pelicans
Kevin Durant, Golden State Warriors
Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers

Second Team__________________________
LaMarcus Aldridge, San Antonio Spurs
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
DeMar DeRozan, Toronto Raptors
Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
Russell Westrbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder

Third Team___________________________
Jimmy Butler, Minnesota Timberwolves
Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
Paul George, Oklahoma City Thunder
Victor Oladipo, Indiana Pacers
Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves

Milwaukee Guard Sterling Brown unjustly tasered by Milwaukee Police Officer in January 2018 and the body camera footage was just released

milwaukee police department on wednesday released body camera footage showing one of their officers unjustly tasing milwaukee bucks guard sterling brown. the incident took place in january 2018 when brown, an unarmed black male, was stopped by a white officer for a parking violation.

officers tasered and arrested brown after the arresting officer noticed his car parked across two handicapped parked spaces at a local walgreens. the arresting officer (in his police report) said brown refused repeated requests to step back and became "very aggressive." the officer called for backup and said brown, "physically resisted officers attempts to handcuff him and was taken to the ground in a controlled manner."

milwaukee police chief alonso morales said officers acted "inappropriately," and "were recently disciplined," without providing details. brown, now 23, was booked and received a $200 parking ticket. but after looking at the reports and body camera footage, authorities decided against the arresting officer's request to charge brown with obstructing an officer.

the city's then-police chief, ed flynn, told wisn-tv the department had questions about the officer's tactics - prompting an internal affairs investigation. flynn said, "we wouldn't be conducting an investigation into this if we were 100 percent satisfied with our application of our tactics in this matter. what we want to do is ascertain how a parking ticket turned into a tasing, and so that's what we are going to do." 

flynn retired in february and was suceeded by morales. earlier this week, milwaukee mayor tom barrett expressed concern over the video, which he viewed before the public. barrett said, "it was a disturbing video when i saw it and i know (morales) feels the same way, and i don't know what actions his department is going to take, but it is disconcerting to see some of the actions in that video."

mark thomsen, brown's attorney, says brown plans to file a civil lawsuit against the milwaukee police department as a result of this incident.      

2018 NBA All-Defensive Team

listed below is the 2018 nba all-defensive team:

First Team___________________________
C Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz
F Anthony Davis, New Orleans Pelicans
F Robert Covington, Philadelphia 76ers
G Jrue Holiday, New Orleans Pelicans
G Victor Oladipo, Indiana Pacers

Second Team_________________________
C Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
F Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors
F Al Horford, Boston Celtics
G Jimmy Butler, Milwaukee Bucks
G Dejounte Murray, San Antonio Spurs