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In case you haven't heard about this story making national headlines, let me quickly fill you in. On February 8th, Joe Rickey Hundley, 60, an Idaho executive with AGC Aerospace and Defense, was on a flight from Minneapolis to Atlanta. Seated next to him was Jessica Bennett, 33, and her 19-month old son Jonah. On the descent into Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, young Jonah began to cry, as babies often do when there is a change in altitude.
In response to Jonah's crying, Mr. Hundley told Ms. Bennett to "shut that Nigger baby up," according to Ms. Bennett. Not believing she heard him correctly, Ms. Bennett asked him, "What did you just say?" Mr. Hundley leaned in and repeated the ugly words in her ear then slapped Jonah across the face. Todd Wooten, another passenger, claims to have witnessed the slap and stepped in to assist Ms. Bennett along with other passengers, according to court papers.
Mr. Hundley has since been charged with simple assault by an Atlanta federal court and faces penalties of up to a year in jail. Mr. Hundley has plead not guilty.
In addition to the assault charge, there has been a new development in the case. It seems Mr. Hundley's employer has let him go from the company. A statement on the company's website reads as follows:
“Reports of the recent behavior of one of our business unit executives
while on personal travel are offensive and disturbing. We have taken
this matter very seriously and worked diligently to examine it since
learning of the matter on Friday afternoon. As of Sunday, the executive
is no longer employed with the company."
I'm proud of the company's swift response. It sends a clear message that racist behavior on the part of its employees will not be tolerated or excused, no matter how high their position is within the company. I wish more companies did this.
Check out a recent news report on the incident and hear Jonas's parents describe the ordeal in their own words and its effect on their young son.
ORLANDO - By now, it is my hope that all of you know the story of Trayvon Martin, a Florida teenager whose life was violently taken away from him because he was black and "looked suspicious."
On February 28th, 17-year old Trayvon was visiting his father in Sanford, Florida. The two were watching the NBA All-Star game at a home in the gated community of Retreat at Twin Lakes. During half-time, Trayvon walked to the local 7-Eleven to purchase a bag of Skittles and bottle of Arizona Ice Tea. On his way back, he was confronted by the self-appointed Neighborhood Watchman, George Zimmerman, a 28-year old Hispanic male.
George Zimmerman
Apparently, Mr. Zimmerman had been watching Trayvon for quite some time. Moments earlier, he called 911 to report a "real suspicious guy" in the neighborhood. After weeks of community pressure, the City of Sanford finally released the audio tapes. Take a listen below:
Despite being advised by 911 NOT to follow or confront Trayvon, Mr. Zimmerman took it upon himself to do so anyway. Some sort of scuffle ensued resulting in Trayvon crying out for help only to be silenced by a single bullet from Mr. Zimmerman's gun (Yes, he had a gun!) seconds later.
When police arrived on the scene, Trayvon was dead with Mr. Zimmerman claiming self-defense. One listen to the 911 recordings and witness accounts given on the scene make it patently clear that Mr. Zimmerman was the aggressor in this situation. However, he was NEVER arrested or charged in the death of Trayvon.
It appears that both Mr. Zimmerman and local authorities are relying on Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law for safe haven on this issue. In a nutshell, this doctrine grants a person the right to use deadly force if he/she feels threatened and does NOT impose a duty to retreat from such perceived threat if it is possible to do so safely. The NRA and other gun advocates lobbied for the law and it was ushered in by Republican lawmakers in 2005.
Sadly, this law loosened the pre-existing "Castle Doctrine" that most of us are familiar with. The Castle Doctrine permits a person to use deadly force if they are attacked IN THEIR HOME. Florida, through their "Stand Your Ground" law, extended this doctrine to include areas outside the home (read = in public). So, in essence, all a person has to do is "feel" threatened and he is permitted to take the life of the person he's scared of, however unreasonable that fear may be.
The normal standard, found nationwide, is that a person may use deadly force only when threatened with serious bodily harm or deadly force. Notice the difference? The standard is much higher than Florida's law, as it should be since it involves the taking of a human life. Because "feeling" threatened is a whole lot different than "actually" being threatened.
As a person of color, I have a huge problem with Florida's law as it currently stands. Namely because some people feel threatened by me simply because of the color of my skin and the proximity of that brown skinto them. So, the closer I am to them (like, say, walking beside them on a local street) the MORE they feel threatened. Such a person should NOT be given license to take my my life based on their irrational fear and possible prejudice. And that's exactly what Florida has permitted to happen with their "Stand Your Ground" law.
As of the date of this post, Florida authorities have NOT arrested or charged Mr. Zimmerman. Three weeks later! As you can imagine, national outrage has grown. Trayvon's parents demanded answers and action on the part of Florida lawmakers and law enforcement. Still nothing. So, Trayvon's parents and much of the national public began calling on federal authorities to intervene, asking them to investigate since nothing was being done on the local and state level.
Finally, on March 19th, the Justice Department agreed to do just that, issuing the following statement:
“The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, and the FBI opened an investigation into the facts and circumstances of the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. The department will conduct a thorough and independent review of all of the evidence and take appropriate action at the conclusion of the investigation. The department also is providing assistance to and cooperating with the state officials in their investigation into the incident. With all federal civil rights crimes, the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a person acted intentionally and with the specific intent to do something which the law forbids – the highest level of intent in criminal law. Negligence, recklessness, mistakes and accidents are not prosecutable under the federal criminal civil rights laws. The Community Relations Service will be in Sanford, Fla., this week to meet with civil rights leaders, community leaders, and local law enforcement to address tension in the community.”
It is my sincere hope that we are now on the path to getting justice for Trayvon Martin, a young man whose life was taken far too early. Let's hope that an arrest and charging of Mr. Zimmerman is right around the corner.
Man, I disappear for a few weeks only to discover that the stupidity is still here once I return. LOL!! Anyway, my apologies for being MIA - yet again. I was doing some final rewrites of my book for a very important contest I wanted to enter and by the time I was done writing for the night, I simply had no more brain power for my baby, The Sauda Voice. My apologies, everyone. Since we're family, I know you understand.
Okay, back to the stupidity. As if the diabetes fiasco wasn't enough, Lisa Jackson, a former employee of Uncle Bubba's Oyster House, a restaurant owned by Paula Deen and her brother Earl W. “Bubba” Hiers, filed a lawsuit Monday in which she alleges the celebrity cook supported the hostile work environment and sexual harassment prevalent at the restaurant. Sidenote: I know it's not fair, but doesn't the name "Bubba" just scream racist sexual harasser?
The 33-page complaint outlines how Mr. Hiers physically intimidated employees, displayed pornography in the workplace, made sexual advances toward Ms. Jackson and acted in a sexually degradating manner, and repeatedly used racial epithets. In her five years at Bubba's, Ms. Davis alleges she made numerous complaints to management about the persistent racism and sexual harassment, but nothing was ever done.
Although the complaint makes it clear that Mr. Hiers was the biggest perpetrator, it also points to Ms. Deen as being an active participant in the ugliness as well. Perhaps the most charged example provided was that of Mr. Hiers' 2007 wedding in which Ms. Deen allegedly told Ms. Davis she wanted a "true Southern plantation-style wedding." Don't know what that is? According to Ms. Davis, Ms. Deen described it as follows:
“Well what I would really like is a bunch of little ni**ers to wear long-sleeve white shirts, black shorts and black bow ties, you know in the Shirley Temple days, they used to tap dance around...Now, that would be a true Southern wedding wouldn’t it? But we can’t do that because the media would be on me about that.”
Okay, my first thoughts about the above description? The fact that Ms. Deen allegedly wanted the black wait staff to dress in such a cartoonish, buffoonery way makes me believe there may be some truth to the allegation. In my opinion, it is not uncommon for those with racist leanings to see blacks as caricatures, in both dialect and dress. Thus, given the opportunity (with no repercussions), they would absolutely have blacks in their employ act out such foolishness, in dress or otherwise.
Additional allegations include: Mr. Hiers required black staff members to use the back entrance and prohibited them from using the same customer restroom as white staff. He also once violently shook a black male kitchen worker.
My first thoughts on this one? I can't see any black person putting up with this kind of racist BS. Not for long, anyway. But then I got to thinking. The economy is real bad these days and people are putting up with things they otherwise wouldn't just to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table.
Additionally, I got to thinking about my teenage years when I lived in the South. I remember being disgusted when I witnessed some blacks readily accept racially-motivated substandard treatment by whites. It was like being transported back in time. All they had to say was, "Yessa, Massa" and the scene would be complete. So, it IS possible that Bubba's black employees cowtowed to his mistreatment (for whatever reason).
Like most of you, I really hope these allegations are untrue. But, I won't hold my breath.
With almost spot-on predictability, two contenders for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination have begun using a popular conservative campaign tactic: the "Black Bogeyman" card. Don't know what that is? Well, let me explain.
Whenever politicians, traditionally conservatives, want to obtain votes and political ground quickly (usually to prove they are true Republicans) they target the fringe element of their party by appealing to these people's intolerant and racist belief systems. Typically, the politicians use code words and thinly-veiled "us vs. them" commentary.
However, occasionally, a few of them get bold and say it how they really mean it. This usually happens when they're in their comfort zone, a safe environment wherein most, if not all, the people surrounding them look like them, share similar life experiences and hold the same opinions. Such was the case with Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum this week.
At an Iowa campaign stop on Sunday, former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum told his supporters:
"I don't want to make black people's lives better by giving them somebody else's money. I want to give them the opportunity to go out and earn the money."
Okay, what? Once again we have a politician reinforcing the grossly unfounded and forever-enduring stereotype that blacks in this country refuse to work (i.e. are lazy). According to Mr. Santorum and others, we'd rather collect a welfare check every month (i.e. don't "earn" what we have; abuse the system).
This sentiment is a slap in the face to all the hardworking black Americans who get up each morning and earn a living. A living that feeds, clothes, houses, and all around supports both themselves and their families. Last time I checked, this was the vast majority of the African American community. I know it represents my reality and that of my friends, family and loved ones. So why the continuous lie, Mr. Santorum, if not to pander to hate?
But, wait. Mr. Santorum is not alone in his pandering to the lowest of the low in his party. On Thursday, Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, told a crowd of supporters at a town hall meeting in Plymouth, New Hampshire, that if the NAACP invited him to their annual convention this year:
"I will go to the NAACP convention and tell the African American community why they should demand paychecks instead of food stamps."
So, what are we to take away from this comment? Yet again, it presupposes that: (1) all blacks are receiving welfare, and (2) we don't want to work. For reasons already stated, this statement is beyond offensive. Politicians should be working toward knocking down racist ideologies and stereotypes NOT reinforcing them.
After searching for her missing granddaughter since November of 2010, Lorene Turner finally discovered her whereabouts - Columbia. Apparently, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) wrongfully deported Jakadrien Turner, 15, in April of 2011. The question on everyone's mind is: How did this happen? Especially to an American teen.
According to Ms. Turner, then 14-year old Jakadrien became distraught over the simultaneous death of her grandfather and parents' divorce. She ran away from her family home in Dallas and somehow made it to Houston where she was eventually arrested for theft. She gave a fake name. Unfortunately, the name she provided matched the identity of a 22-year old illegal immigrant from Colombia with warrants out for her arrest.
Now, here's my question: Knowing it's commonplace for people who come in contact with police to sometimes give a fake name in order to avoid more serious punishment, why didn't ICE confirm this young girl's identity before deporting her to a foreign country?
ICE took Jackadrien's fingerprints, but when they were unable to confirm her identity (probably due to some bureaucratic mix-up or oversight), they deported her anyway - an African American minor who didn't even speak the language. Red flags should have gone up all over the place. Not to mention the fact that it should've been impermissible, even illegal, for ICE to deport this child to a foreign country by herself. If nothing else, the child's family or guardians in her "native" land should have been identified, contacted and transported to an agreed-upon pick up location, either in the U.S., at the Colombian Embassy or at an appropriate Colombian government facility.
There is absolutely no excuse for doing what ICE did. Anything could have happened to this child. And, for all we know, bad things did happen to her once she was dropped off on foreign soil to fend for herself.
Lucky for Jakadrien, her family didn't consider her a throwaway like ICE apparently did. Her grandmother searched for her diligently from the moment of her disappearance, combing social networks and other resources until she came across a clue on Facebook. That clue turned into the eventual discovery of Jakadrien in Colombia where she was working as a cleaner. It seems the Colombian government issued the teen a work card upon her arrival in the country.
Check out brief news clips of story (below).
The Colombian government has since been informed of the "accidental" deportation and has placed Jakadrien into custody. She has now spent over a month in detention and it was recently discovered that she is pregnant. To make matters worse, the Colombian government refuses to release Jakadrien into the custody of her family. In effect, Jakadrien is in limbo and it is all courtesy of the U.S. government.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT:
Would ICE have been so quick to deport an underage white teen under the exact same circumstances and characteristics as Jakadrien (underage, no confirmation of identity, doesn't speak language of supposed native country, etc)?
