Ferguson police chief remains after Justice Department's scathing report
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Ferguson (Missouri) Police Chief Tom
Jackson was still on the job Friday, March
6, two days after a government report
blasted his beleaguered department for
years of racial profiling, and Mayor James
Knowles III refused to speculate about the
chief's future, saying his role was not to
"just chop heads."
Meanwhile, three Ferguson employees
implicated in racist emails exposed by that
report are now gone from their jobs, the
mayor said. One was identified as a city
court clerk.
Calls for Jackson's removal were
renewed again last week after the Justice
Department cleared Darren Wilson, a
white male who is the former Ferguson
officer who shot and killed black 18-year
old unarmed Michael Brown. It cleared
Wilson of federal civil rights charges pre
viously against him. A second report
released simultaneously found patterns of
racial profiling, bigotry and profit-driven
law enforcement and court practices in the
St. Louis suburb that have come to repre
sent the tension between minorities and
American police nationwide.
Attorney General Eric Holder told
reporters Friday that the federal govern
ment will "use all the power that we have
to change the situation" in Ferguson,
including possibly dismantling the police
force.
The Justice Department has released its
investigation of the Ferguson Police
Department, concluding that city law
enforcement practices are discriminatory
and unconstitutional and calling for sweep
ing changes. Here are some of the high
lights of the report:
THE BASIC FINDING: The police
and municipal courts in Ferguson have
been treating blacks unfairly, violating the
law and the U.S. Constitution. Police use
force too often.
HOW THE INVESTIGATION WAS
DONE: Representatives of the Justice
Department interviewed city and court
officials, police officers and citizens.
Police records were reviewed, along with
court and police data. Justice Department
representatives rodfltjrfong^ith police offi
cers and observed coilrt sessions.
AMONG THE EVIDENCE
AGAINST POLICE:
*From 2012 to 2014, 93 percent of all
arrests .and 85 percent of all vehicle stops
involved black people, who constitute two
thirds of the population.
?Blacks were more than twice as likely
as whites to be searched during vehicle
stops, yet contraband was found 26 percent
less often on them than on white drivers.
?From 2011 to 2013, blacks were
charged with 95 percent of cases involving
"manner of walking in roadway" and with
94 percent of "failure to comply."
?Almost 90 percent of documented
force used by officers was used against
blacks.
?Police make many arrests for talking
back to officers, recording police activities
and engaging in lawful protest.
AMONG THE EVIDENCE
AGAINST THE CITY COURTS:
?Blacks are 68 percent less likely than
others to win dismissal of their cases.
?Blacks represent 92 percent of cases
where an arrest warrant was issued in
2013.
?The court often imposes large bail
amounts that do not seem justified by pub
lic-safety concerns.
?City officials often fix tickets for
themselves and their friends.
ALLEGATIONS OF BAD POLIC
ING:
?As a result of a single illegal parking
violation in 2007, a black woman spent six
days in jail, paid $550 in fines and still
owed $541 as of December.
?In 2013, police on their way to arrest
someone at an apartment building instead
arrested without justification a black man
parked outside, handcuffed him and kept
him in a patrol car while they ran his
record. Faced with a complaint later, a
police sergeant described the detention as
"minimal" and said the car was air condi
tioned.
?In 2012, an officer stopped to ques
tion a 32-year-old black man sitting in his
car with windows that may have been
more deeply tinted than allowed under the
city code. The officer went on without
cause to call the man a pedophile, order
him out of his car for a pat-down and ask
to search the car. When the man refused,
the officer reportedly pointed a gun at his
head and arrested him.
?Police broke up a lawful protest on
the six-month anniversary of Michael
Brown's death by shouting, "Everybody
here's going to jail." Two people were
arrested simply for recording the police
action. Four others were arrested. It
appears police were upset about insults
written in chalk on the department parking
lot and on a police vehicle.
KEY QUOTES:
?"Partly as a consequence of City and
FPD (Ferguson Police Department) priori
ties, many officers appear to see some res
idents, especially those who live in
Ferguson's predominantly African
American neighborhoods, less as con
stituents to be protected than as potential
offenders and sources of revenue."
?"Minor offenses can generate crip
pling debts, result in jail time because of an
inability to pay and result in the loss of a
driver's license, employment or housing."
?"Ferguson's approach to law enforce
ment both reflects and reinforces racial
bias, including stereotyping."
?"FDP officers frequently detain peo
ple without reasonable suspicion and arrest
people without probable cause."
?"City, police and court officials for
years have worked in concert to maximize
revenue at every stage of the enforcement
process."
?"Many officers are quick to escalate
encounters with subjects they perceive to
be disobeying their orders or resisting
arrest."
?"FDP officers' use of canines to bite
people is frequently unreasonable."
?"Officers often use force in response
to behavior that may be annoying or dis
tasteful but does not pose a threat."
RACIST JOKES:
?A November 2008 email said
President Obama would not be president
for long because "what black man holds a
steady job for four years?"
?A May 2011 email said: "An African
American woman in New Orleans was
admitted into the hospital for a pregnancy
termination.
Two weeks later she received a check
for $5,000. She phoned the hospital to ask
who it was from. The hospital said,
'Crimestoppers."'
RECOMMENDED CHANGES:
?Shift away from police practices
aimed at raising revenue.
?Focus on public safety, rather than
stopping people simply because police
have authority to do so. End ticketing and
arrest quotas.
?Move officers toward de-escalating
confrontations.
?The police department should
improve race and gender diversity in
recruiting, hiring and promotion practices.
?Municipal code violations should
result in jail in only the rarest circum
stances. Arrest warrants should not be used
to collect court fees.
In veatigatioa of tbe
Jackson
United State* Department of Justice
Civil Right* Division
March <? 1813
Holder
A November 2008 email said President Obama would not be president
for long because "what black man holds a steady job for four years?"
-Racist joke sent in email
NBTF
from page Al
She has also appeared
on Broadway in "What the
Wine Sellers Buy" and the
atre stage in "Colored
People Time," "My Sister,
My Sister" and "Once in a
Wife Time." Morgan will
have a play on display for
this year's festival. In addi
tion to writing her personal
memoir, "A Monkey On
My Back," slated to be
released on June 23, she
has also written a one
woman play based on the
book of the same title.
"We will be performing
a full-run this season.
Hopefully many of you
will come out to join me on
this captivating, hilarious,
thought-provoking journey,
which chronicles much of
my tumultuous life which
will hopefully inspire,"
Morgan said.
Williams has appeared
on Broadway in "Your
Arms Too Short to Box
with God" and perform
ances in "Selma," and
"Spalding Gray: Stories
Left to Tell." He was a reg
ular dancer on "Soul Train"
in the mid-1970s.
On television, the
British-born actor has
grabbed the heart of view
ers on shows such as "Law
& Order: SVU," "NYPD
Blue," "E.R.," "Felicity"
and the Debbie Allen
directed television movie,
"Stompin' at the Savoy."He
has been in the films
"Shadow Boxer,"
"Shortcuts," "Simone" and
"Detour," along with co
directing the independent
film "Manhattanites."
Both stars said that they
are excited about chairing
the event and look forward
to what the festival has to
offer.
"It's just an honor to
have been asked. It came
out of the blue. I had heard
about the festival a few
years down the line, but I
had never really known
that much about it. To have
been asked to come down
and participate ... there's
no greater honor,"
Williams said.
The announcement
included a performance by
Alyson Williams, a Harlem
native and the first female
R&B artist signed to
Russell Simmon's Def Jam
records. She was billed as
the event's celebrity per
formance.
Along with performing,
she is writing musical stage
plays, books, and television
treatments through her pro
duction company, AWP: A
Woman's Prerogative.
Alyson Williams will
perform a special tribute in
honor of the late Dr. Maya
Angelou at the 2015
National Black Theatre
Festival Opening Night
Gala on Aug. 3. 2015.
The NBTF, founded by
the late Larry Leon
Hamlin, was founded in
1989 in an effort to unite
black theater companies
while enabling black the
atre professionals to
express cultural value and
perspectives dramatically
and powerfully.
The six-day event,
which will be held Aug. 3
8, is held biennially and
attracts more than 65,000
people looking to attend
more than 100 performanc
es. A schedule of events
can be found on the
agency's website,
www.NBTF.org in June.
Tickets range from $17
to $42 and can be pur
chased online, by mail and
at the NBTF office. For
more information, tickets
or volunteer opportunities,
contact NBTF at 336-723
2223.
"All My Children " co-stars Debbi Morgan and
Darnell Williams speak at the announcement event.
A Marv-tastic evening: NBTF holds tick-off reception
BY CHANEL DAVIS
THE CHRONICLE
It was fitting to host the National Black Theatre
Festival's Kick-off Reception at Foreign Cars Italia in
Greensboro on the afternoon of Monday, March 8 in light
of diverse topics and international theatre groups that will
descend on Winston-Salem the first week of August.
"It's an exhilarating and very exciting time. It's like an
air of energy that's sweeping through right now, especially
with the announcement of the co-chairs. It's a feeling of
expectation," said Taylor Thierry, executive director for
the North Carolina Black Repertory Company. "We are
expecting greater sales, more people coming and compa
nies coming from different countries. It's kind of a cross
cultural explosion."
The festival has been held biennially since 1989 and is
the only national black theatre in the country offering six
consecutive days of professional theatre, film, poetry,
workshops, seminars and shopping, attracting theatre
patrons, professionals and scholars.
"It's really an opportunity to get their works broadcast
to a very diverse audience. An audience that is historically
known to have all types of taste," Thierry said. "Our taste
ranges from the strict theatre-goers, to people who come
for comedy, to people who come for the lighter type of
productions or the one-woman shows. There's such a wide
variety, I think that when folks see that there's an opportu
nity to bring their company here, they see the diversity,
themselves and they see that black theatre is for every
one.
Attendees had the chance to join the NCBRC Guild
and the Marvtastic Society, two organizations that help
support and fund programs like the NBTF.
Sylvia Sprinkle-Hamlin, president of the NCBRC
Board of Directors and executive producer for the NBTF,
said that she's excited about the festival, its history and
how it's maintained over the last 20 years. She is particu
larly excited about the agency's fiindraising efforts this
year.
"As of today (Monday), we've raised $393,000 and
our goal is $500,000. We think that we are going to make
our goal," she said.
The agency is also looking to branch out and connect
with those potential sponsors and attendees in the sur
rounding area that may be familiar with but have never
participated in the festival.
"We felt this would be a good location [to have the
reception] because we could reach people in Greensboro,
High Point and Winston-Salem. We have people coming
from out of state, all over America and from foreign coun
tries to come to the festival," Hamlin said. "We have peo
ple right here in our own neighborhood that don't come or
say that they don't know anything about the festival. We
are an international festival, so we are trying to get people
in the local area involved."
There's even a chance for aspiring actors and actresses
to audition, but Hamlin said that none of it would be pos
sible without the help of the festival and office staff, and
volunteers.
Selma
from page A1
time of the march.
A veteran of that clash,
U.S. Rep. John Lewis, who
was severely beaten by
police that day in 1965 and
suffered a skull fracture,
exhorted the crowd to press
on with the work of racial
justice.
"Get out there and
push and pull until we
redeem the soul of
America," Lewis said. He
was the youngest and is the
last survivor of the Big Six
civil rights activists, a
group led by the Rev.
Martin Luther King, Jr. that
A
had the greatest impact on
the movement.
Among those in atten
dance was Peggy Wallace
Kennedy, daughter of the
ilate George Wallace, the
Alabama governor in 1965
who once vowed " segrega
tion forever."
Selma's fire department
estimated the crowd
reached 40,000. Former
President George W. Bush
shared the platform.
Republican congressional
leaders were mostly absent
but one. House Majority
Leader Kevin McCarthy,
joined the walk.
The walk progressed
under the bold letters on an
arch, identifying the bridge
named after Pettus, a
Confederate general in the
Civil War, senator and
reputed Ku Klux Klan
leader.
Obama, his wife,
Michelle, and their two
daughters walked about a
third of the way across,
accompanied by Lewis,
who has given fellow law
makers countless tours of
this scene. Bush, his wife,
Laura, and scores of others
came with them before a
larger crowd followed.
Two years after King's
historic "I have a dream"
speech in Washington,
D.C. the Bloody Sunday
march became the first of
three aiming to reach
Montgomery, Alabama, to
demand
an end
to dis
crimi
nation
against
black
voters.
Scenes
o f
troopers
beating
marchers on the bridge
shocked the nation,
emboldening leaders in
Washington to pass the
Voting Rights Act five
months later.
"Our congressional
delegation was very
diverse consisting of
Democrats and
Republicans who repre
sent districts across
America," Butterfield
said. "We had a unique
opportunity to witness
recounts of decades of
segregation and the denial
of the right to vote.
"The Selma story pro
vides compelling reasons
why a strong Voting
Rights Act is absolutely
critical to protecting
Americans' right to vote."
"I call on my many
Republican colleagues
who made this journey to
join the effort to amend
the Voting Rights Act to
comply with the United
States Supreme Court's
decision by updating the
coverage formula.
"It would be unforgiv
able for my Republican
friends to have made this
historic journey and then
turn their backs on the
need to protect the voting
rights of African
Americans and other
racial minority groups."
On his way to Selma,
Obama signed a law
awarding the
Congressional Gold
Medal to participants of
the trio of marches, the
last of which brought pro
testers all the way to
Montgomery.
ButterfieU