Katrina: America's Bloody Sunday

[dreamdancer 0]

not forgotten...

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These charges have been a long time coming. I was in New Orleans throughout the floods and in the days after, and I still remember the sense that something had gone amiss when we first heard of the incident on Danziger Bridge, the way our anger grew.

Since that terrible day back in September 2005, the community – and most particularly the African American community – has been petitioning, marching, following lawsuits, begging, and pleading for justice to be done over these premeditated, murderous acts.

The community has known, through its own investigation and its own work, what happened that day. But the Bush administration did nothing. The local justice department did nothing. It wasn't until finally the administration changed and we got a new attorney general in Eric Holder that we saw any movement towards the investigation and prosecution that were so desperately needed.

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/tracie-washington-this-crime-was-a-symptom-of-a-wider-sickness-in-the-police-2026861.html

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
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[lost_n_confuzd 0]

From the source:

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I have a 17-year-old son, and he makes his own curfew, because he's scared of the police. Imagine that: a 17-year-old black male with his own car, and he's telling his mother that he's scared to go out.

I'm also scared to go out in some parts of New Orleans, but I'm white so its not the police I have to be cautious of, its the locals who commit the crimes - 35 murders in three months (according to the article).

I agree with the author, there definately is a problem with the NOPD, especially with relations to the mostly black New Orleans residents. The NOPD is known for its corruption and backwoods politics. The only way to change that is to recruit better people, change management from the mayor on down, and make examples of officers who are found guilty of [insert crime here]. However I believe the greatest change will come when the people decide to change themselves.

[skyrider 0]

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greatest change will come when the people decide to change themselves.

Exactly...stop blaming the rest of the world for the mess , Get off your ass, and do something to improve your world!

[rhaig 0]

as the article is clearly trying to make this a Bush/Obama thing, I'd like to quote another source
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danziger_Bridge_Shootings

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On August 13, 2008, charges against the officers were dismissed by District Judge Raymond Bigelow due to misconduct by the prosecution with regards to the grand jury.[4]
In September 2008, the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI began investigating the case. U.S. Attorney Jim Letten vowed his office would take "as much time and resources as necessary" to resolve the case.[5]
After a year and a half of investigation, on 24 February 2010, former New Orleans police lieutenant Michael Lohman entered a plea of guilty to obstruction of justice in federal court.[1] Lohman admitted to encouraging the officers to "provide false stories about what had precipitated the shooting" and planting a firearm near the scene[6] On March 11, 2010, Jeffrey Lehrmann, another former NOPD officer, pleaded guilty to misprision of a felony for failing to report the cover-up.[7]
On April 7, 2010, Michael Hunter, one of the seven officers originally charged with attempted murder in 2007, pleaded guilty to misprision of a felony and obstruction of justice.[8] His first hand account, if accurate, reveals that the Danziger bridge shooting was simply a shooting of unarmed civilians.[9] A man identified in the court document as "Sergeant A", according to Hunter, fired at unarmed civilians, who were trying to shield themselves behind a concrete barrier, with an assault rifle "in a sweeping motion". Meanwhile, on the other side of the bridge, a man identified as "Officer A" shot Ronald Madison in the back with a shotgun, from a moving police vehicle, as Madison ran away. Madison had his hands in plain view while he ran, held no weapon, and did not pose a threat. After the shooting of Madison, "Sergeant A" ran from the other side of the bridge. He proceeded to kick and stomp Madison as he lay bleeding to death from his fatal wound.

This is not a national political issue. This is not a Bush/Obama issue.

--
Rob

[mnealtx 0]

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This is not a national political issue. This is not a Bush/Obama issue.

"Never let a crisis go to waste"

Mike
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