March for Our Lives: Hundreds of thousands expected

Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to take to the streets Saturday for March for Our Lives events across the U.S. — the biggest set to happen in Washington, D.C.

Busload after busload has filled the nation’s capital with students from across the country, including some from as far away as California and Minnesota.

The march was announced by students days after the Valentine’s Day shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., and since then, more than 800 sister marches have been planned.

Events are scheduled in every U.S. state and on every continent, all with the same mission: ending gun violence and taking up gun-control legislation. Organizers expect 500,000 to descend on the nation’s capital, including many from Parkland.

Mei-Ling Ho-Shing arrived in D.C. on Thursday. She was one of the many who were inside Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School during the attack, which left 17 dead. The junior said she plans to link arms with her classmates and march in hopes of changing laws so what happened at her school will never happen again.

“Douglas is in the house. We’re here and coming to make a change,” she said, adding “this isn’t a trending topic. This is people’s lives. We’re not going to stop after this. When we go home we’re still going to be fighting for this.”

The shooting instantly reignited the gun-control debate. But the students in Parkland — who spoke with a loud voice and amassed an enormous following in the hours and days after the shooting — seemed to disrupt the typical cycle after an attack and demanded an end to gun violence.

Within a month of the rampage, several companies cut ties with the National Rifle Association and stopped offering discounts, students from 3,000 schools held a nationwide walkout, and Florida’s governor signed a comprehensive bill that included tightening gun laws.

Jaclyn Corin, one of the core group of Parkland students leading the #NeverAgain movement and organizing the marches, said it’s been unbelievable to see the support around the nation and how thousands of students have rallied for the cause.

She said the outpouring is a “constant reminder that even though this shooting was a horrible tragedy, we’ll make these changes and see some light come out of the bad.”

Corin, 17, said preparations for the march have been stressful, but she and the others are excited. She said this march is just the beginning of what they hope to accomplish.

“We want to continue what we’re doing, especially leading up to November,” she said. “We want every young person to register to vote and head to the polls, no matter who they’re voting for or what party they’ve voting for.”

Students in Parkland have teamed up with other student organizers across the country planning sister events and offered tool kits to help them get organized.

Ahead of one of those planned marches in Milwaukee, students rallied outside a school to demand action from lawmakers and gain support throughout the community.

“It is our time as youth in the community to make a difference,” said Marvell Reed, a 10th-grader at Barack Obama School of Career & Technical Education. “It is our time to stand up and speak out to our state and local politicians.”

Two friends of Christiana Duarte, one of the 58 killed in the October shooting in Las Vegas, are also planning a rally in Tucson.

Hannah DeSanto and Jessica Hopkins, both college students, say it was “horrifying” to see another mass shooting after losing their friend. They say the time to act and see changes is now — not after another attack.

“We’ve let it settle a lot more than the students in Florida have, and for people to be saying, ‘They’re acting too soon, they haven’t let it sink in or had time to heal,’ it’s frustrating to hear that because I wish something was done sooner to prevent that Florida shooting, to prevent the Vegas shooting,” DeSanto said.

She said they want to help these students and “be the change.”

SOURCE

Cowboys’ David Irving Raises Fist After Anthem in Spite of Jerry Jones

In spite of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s efforts to quell the National Anthem controversy consuming the league, nearly two dozen players continued to protest racial inequality during Week Seven’s schedule of games on Sunday, Oct. 22.

Six members of the Seattle Seahawks squad joined teammate Michael Bennett in sitting the anthem out, three Miami Dolphins (Julius Thomas, Michael Thomas, and Kenny Stills) remained in the stadium tunnel for the anthem’s duration, and Rams DE Robert Quinn raised his fist as the song played. Perhaps the most controversial demonstration came from Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman David Irving, who waited until the anthem was complete to also raise his fist.

Leading up to Sunday’s action word had gotten around that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones’ demand that players on his team stand during the ceremony rubbed Irving the wrong way. Thus, it had been anticipated that the 24-year-old Compton native may act on how he felt.

After the game, reporters attempted to get Irving to speak on his decision to protest, but he was hesitant, stating, “I’ve said some teasers here and there and it turned into a big, huge thing, a big distraction … We’re just going to talk about football now.”

In follow-up, he was asked a pair of additional questions on the topic, one of which concerned a comparison to iconic ’68 Olympics duo John Carlos and Tommie Smith. Irving declined to speak on the comparison, but he’d oblige in responding to whether he meant any disrespect towards military servicemembers by the gesture.

“My dad’s a Master Sergeant and I’ve had plenty of discussions and talks with him about the issue, and my oldest brother served as a Marine as well. You know, I’m not meaning to disrespect the flag at all,” he said.

SOURCE: VLADTV

ESPN Suspends Jemele Hill Over Jerry Jones Tweets

After Jerry Jones made a statement that the Cowboys would not allow any player who “disrespect the flag” play, ESPN anchor Jemele Hill took to Twitter to give her opinion on the matter. Hill tweeted that her people should consider boycotting advertisers of the Dallas Cowboys owner after his policy to penalize players for kneelings.

ESPN has suspended Jemele for a second violation of the network’s social media guidelines on Monday (10/09).

“Jemele Hill has been suspended for two weeks for a second violation of our social media guidelines,” the network said in a statement. “She previously acknowledged letting her colleagues and company down with an impulsive tweet. In the aftermath, all employees were reminded of how individual tweets may reflect negatively on ESPN and that such actions would have consequences,” the statement continued. “Hence this decision.” Hill had previously come under fire for calling President Trump a “white supremacist.”

Hill recently received backlash after tweeting that President Trump is a “white supremacist.”

SOURCE: VLADTV

Heather Heyer Memorial Service Held in Charlottesville

Five days after she was tragically killed while demonstrating against a white supremacist rally, a memorial service is being held for 32-year-old Heather Heyer.

The service started at 11 a.m. Eastern. Prior to the service, President Donald Trump tweeted his well wishes for Heyer and her family, saying she was a “beautiful and incredible” woman that “will be long remembered by all.”

Heyer was killed Saturday when a vehicle allegedly driven by James Alex Fields Jr. stormed into a counter protest and hit dozens of demonstrators. Nineteen others were injured as a result, and Fields was arrested and charged by police.

The incident has caused widespread outrage across the nation as people look for answers to the senseless act, which was spurred by increased tensions because of the white nationalists gathering in the Virginia city. Those demonstrators were there protesting the potential removal of a Confederate statue in a local park.

Heyer’s mother, Susan Bro, told NBC News that her daughter was at the demonstration with friends and was hit by the car as she was trying to cross the street.

“She was plowed down by a young man who was intent on spreading hate and thought hate would fix the world,” Bro told the news outlet. “And hate does not fix the world.”

Bro spoke to the Huffington Post one day after her daughter’s death. She told the news outlet that Heyer was at the counter protest to try and “bring an end to injustice.” She tearfully added that her daughter’s goal was always to stop hatred in the world.

“Heather was not about hate, Heather was about stopping Hatred,” she said to the outlet. “Heather was about bringing an end to injustice. I don’t want her death to be a focus for more hatred, I want her death to be a rallying cry for justice and equality and fairness and compassion.”

Bro also appeared on CNN with Anderson Cooper and tearfully remembered her daughter.

SOURCE: HEAVY

Alicia Keys Attend Women’s March

Protests against Donald Trump’s presidency have become a global movement. Washington D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, London, Toronto, and Paris, are just some of the cities hosting marches Saturday (Jan. 21).

Though the final numbers have yet to be tallied, it’s already clear that the Women’s March trumped the inauguration figures. Alicia Keys, Janelle Monae, America Ferrera, and Uzo Aduba, were among those at the Washington D.C. march.

“We are mothers, we are caregivers, we are artists, we are activists,” Keys told the crowd. “We are entrepreneurs, doctors, leaders of industry and technology. Our potential is unlimited. We rise!” Keys also performed “Girl on Fire,” while Monae shared the stage with the Mothers of the Movement, and performed “Hell You Talmbout” off her 2013 album, The Electric Lady.

Ferrerra also shared a powerful address with the crowd. “It’s been a heart-wrenching time to be a woman and an immigrant in this country,” said the 32-year-old actress. “Our dignity, our character, our rights have all been under attack and a platform of hate and division assumed power yesterday. But the president is not America. His cabinet is not America. Congress is not America, we are America and we are here to stay.” – See more at:

SOURCE: WWF

Inside the Women’s March & History in the Making

Donald Trump hammered home in his inaugural address outside the Capitol building Friday the promise he had sewn onto so many red ballcaps: that he would Make America Great Again. In the same spot the following day, protesters with far less nostalgia for America’s past – women who lived through the Civil Rights movement, who came of age in an era when abortion was criminalized, who have vivid memories of a time when gay men and women were regularly victimized – have gathered to say, We are not going back. 

An estimated 500,000 marchers – more than double the crowd that showed up to watch Trump’s swearing-in – are squeezed onto the National Mall with their families and their hand-drawn signs and their pink knit caps, waiting for their turn to talk at the Women’s March on Washington.

They self-describe as “nasty,” but for the most part the marchers are good: they don’t push, they carry their possessions in translucent bags, as requested, and their posters don’t have poles or sticks or stakes. Some are frustrated to see the evangelical Christians who are parked in the middle of the Mall hoisting signs that read “Attention Rebellious Jezebels” and “Abortion Is Murder” with strictly verboten metal poles.

It isn’t fair, but add it to the fucking list: Hillary Clinton earned three million more votes than Donald Trump and still lost the presidency. Women earn 80 cents on the dollar compared to men – women of color even less. They have only 19 percent representation in Congress.

As they’ve proven by turning out in record numbers all over the U.S. and the world Saturday, women are tired of double standards. So they surround the anti-abortion protesters and chant, “My body, my choice!” and “Love trumps hate!” loud enough to drown out the bullhorn.

A teenage boy leans out from the Newseum’s second-floor balcony, waving and kissing his star-spangled Make America Great Again hat and hollering, “Jesus loves you! Donald Trump loves you!” as the march sweeps down Pennsylvania Avenue. The marchers channel Michelle Obama, drowning him out with chants of, “When they go low, we go high!”

For the millions of men and women pouring into the streets around the world Saturday, the march is a show of force, proof that for however many people are happy about Donald Trump’s inauguration – and that number is far smaller than he or his press secretary would have us believe – many more are unhappy. Across the country, and in countries around the globe, people are showing up to drown Trump out.

Just past the Newseum, four women – ages 57, 66, 77 and 79 – are sitting on a bench, watching as a line of police vans cuts through the protesters. One of the women, Roberta Safer, explains why they drove together from Maryland for the march. “I demonstrated in 1957 for Civil Rights,” she says. “It’s still the same problems, and Donald Trump’s cabinet picks are going to reverse many of the things that we’ve had. … It just upsets me to see us go backwards.”

Her friend Rosanna Mason has similar concerns. “My wife, before she died, was a teacher. I’m getting texts constantly from her students: ‘What about me, what about me? Am I going to be deported? Are they going to send me to [conversion] therapy?’ A lot of people are scared.” She says she tells them the only thing she can: that she remembers how she coped as a lesbian before gay rights were mainstream. “I remember back in the Seventies, I remember the Eighties, the violence. I tell them to hold on to your friends. … because when we all do it together, we’ll be stronger.”

The Bikers for Trump have set up a counter-protest in support of the new president at a park on Pennsylvania Avenue. There aren’t more than 20 Trump supporters there, but they have a stage equipped with speakers blasting Lee Greenwood, Toby Keith and Kid Rock at an unreasonable volume. At one point, the group’s head, Chris Cox, gets onstage and tells the marchers, “On November 8th, America voted, and it voted for Donald Trump.”

“Three million votes! Three million votes!” they chant back.

Off to one side, 31-year-old Courtney Miller is holding a sign that reads, “Sorry. Were my civil rights getting the way of your privilege?” She asks a man in a Confederate hat why he still wears it even though the South lost. He retorts by asking her why she has black pride – her people lost too, he says. For ten minutes, he tries (and fails) to defend an indefensible point, while she maintains her composure, trying, maybe in vain, to reason with him.

“You never get anything accomplished by fighting, by yelling and screaming. We’re not going to get our points across. We might leave here today and agree to disagree, but maybe I said something that will make him think,” Miller says after the interaction. “I’m standing here because my grandparents had to do this. Now I have to do this. I’m hoping my kids don’t have to do this. We’re marching for the same things, and I’m getting tired.”

SOURCE: RS

Protests Happening Across the Nation

Protesters took to the streets Wednesday in at least 10 cities to march against president-elect Donald Trump – and numerous college students and faculty leaders took to social media to announce support groups and even postponed exams.

Protests were underway in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, D.C., Portland, Ore., St. Paul, Minn. and several other cities. An estimated 2,000 protesters shouted angrily in downtown Seattle, expressing their frustration at the Trump victory over Democrat and former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who won 228 electoral votes to Trump’s 279.

http://www.usatoday.com/videos/embed/93575420/?fullsite=truePolice in riot gear struggled to hold back scores of protesters in some of the cities as protesters chanted “Not My President” and “No Racist USA.” The protests were mostly peaceful. Seattle police said they were investigating a report of a shooting near the site of the protest in that city, but it may not have involved protesters.

In Los Angeles, protesters poured into the streets near City Hall and torched a giant Trump effigy, the Los Angeles Times reported. Later in the night, hundreds marched onto the busy 101 Freeway which brought the highway to a complete standstill. The California Highway Patrol and the Los Angeles Police Department —who urged protesters to remain lawful and peaceful — responded and were seen leading demonstrators away from the busy highway. At least 13 people were later arrested, LAPD Officer Tony Im told the Los Angeles Times.

In Washington, D.C., hundreds took to the streets carrying signs saying “Nasty Women Fight Back” and “White Males for Equality for All.”

The unrest culminated when two separate anti-Trump demonstrations converged in front of the Trump International Hotel. They chanted and yelled “Impeach Donald Trump” and toward the end yelled at police officers who stood guard at the hotel entrance.

This is happening in front of the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. right now. pic.twitter.com/1G6UXNE7KO

— Natalie DiBlasio (@ndiblasio) November 10, 2016

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In New York, thousands of demonstrators blocked off streets around Trump Tower near the busy intersection of 57th Street and Fifth Avenue, chanting “hey hey, ho ho, Donald Trump has got to go” and “p—y grabs back,” a reference to taped conversations of Trump making lewd commentary about women. One woman protester was topless while another climbed on top of a tree to see the activity. Taxis, city buses and passenger vehicles stood at a standstill.

“We’re (mad) so we’re out here in the streets,” said demonstrator Omar Aqeel, a 27-year-old film producer who lives in Brooklyn.

Anti-Trump protests clog streets of Manhattan. #trump #protests #election2016

A photo posted by Melanie Eversley (@melanieeversley) on Nov 9, 2016 at 6:12pm PST

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While he and other demonstrators said they were aware that protests could not reverse the election, they said they still felt it would have an effect on the future.

“I hope it rallies everyone together as a wake up call,” Aqeel said.

“I think there’s a chance for impeachment at the end of the day,” said protester Joey Henriquez, a 22-year-old student at the City College of New York, who lives in Manhattan. “We can’t let him have eight years.”

In Boston, thousands of anti-Donald Trump protesters streamed through downtown, chanting “Trump’s a racist” and carrying signs that said “Impeach Trump” and “Abolish Electoral College.”

While he and other demonstrators said they were aware that protests could not reverse the election, they said they still felt it would have an effect on the future.”I hope it rallies everyone together as a wake up call,” Aqeel said.

“I think there’s a chance for impeachment at the end of the day,” said protester Joey Henriquez, a 22-year-old student at the City College of New York, who lives in Manhattan. “We can’t let him have eight years.”

In Boston, thousands of anti-Donald Trump protesters streamed through downtown, chanting “Trump’s a racist” and carrying signs that said “Impeach Trump” and “Abolish Electoral College.”

In Chicago, several hundreds of protesters gathered near the Trump International Hotel and Tower to express their displeasure with the president-elect.

The protesters held signs with messages such as “Love Trumps Hate,” “Not My President ” and expletive-laden repudiations.

Chloe Stratton, 33, a transgendered woman who moved to Chicago earlier this year, said she fears for what a Trump-Pence White House holds for the nation’s LGBT community.

Pence has opposed same-sex marriage and expressed support for shock therapy for people with same-sex attractions.

“I am terrified for my life,” said Stratton, who added that she has begun exploring options to move away from the U.S.

Police said five people were arrested in Chicago over the course of the protest on minor charges—two for obstructing traffic, one for criminal trespass, one for reckless conduct, and one for criminal trespass and resisting arrest.

SOURCE: USA

Charlotte Police Release Video of Fatal Shooting

Videos released by police in Charlotte, North Carolina, shows a deadly confrontation between police and Keith Lamont Scott, a 43-year-old black man who was shot to death Tuesday, triggering riots in North Carolina’s largest city.

The two videos from body cameras and dash cameras from officers confronting Scott were released Saturday after days of calls by protesters to make the footage public.

One of the videos shows Scott getting out of his car and turning to his left, standing in the parking lot for about three seconds before he is shot and seen falling to the ground.

A second video does not show Scott before he is on the ground. The audio on this video has been removed for the first 23 seconds.

http://www.voanews.com/embed/player/0/3523698.htmlA fifth day of protests against the shooting was largely peaceful after the release of the videos. On Sunday, dozens of protesters chanted, “Black lives matter!” outside the Carolina Panthers-Minnesota Vikings professional football game in Charlotte.

The Panthers’ star quarterback,Cam Newton, wore a T-shirt in pregame warm-ups quoting civil rights icon Martin Luther Jing Jr., saying, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

The major question about the shooting – whether Scott was holding a gun when police ordered him to step out of his car – was not answered, even with the release of the video, which shows Scott exiting his car and backing slowly away as police officers order him to drop his weapon.

Police said Saturday that two plainclothes officers in an unmarked car had been in Scott’s neighborhood Tuesday to serve a warrant to someone else when they spotted Scott sitting in his car holding what they believed to be a marijuana joint [cigarette].

Police Chief Kerr Putnam told reporters Saturday the officers also believed they saw Scott holding a gun, and reasoned that the combination of drugs and a weapon constituted a threat to public safety.

http://www.voanews.com/embed/player/0/3523699.htmlPutnam said the officers retreated, donned protective gear that was marked “Police,” and returned to confront Scott, ordering him loudly to drop his weapon, something that can be heard on the video. Police say Scott did not comply, even after a police officer in a marked SUV drove up and pounded with his fist on Scott’s passenger-side window.

Police said Scott then got out of his vehicle, but did not surrender a weapon, and one of the officers fired the fatal shots.

In a news conference Saturday, Scott’s family questioned how the situation could have turned deadly so quickly. After seeing the video, Scott’s brother told reporters, “Unfortunately, now we are left with more questions than answers.”

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney announced earlier Saturday the video would be released, a central demand by protesters who have been marching in Charlotte since Tuesday night.

Several hundred demonstrators gathered near police headquarters Saturday as Putney held his news conference.

Putney said he had been assured that making the video public would not interfere with an ongoing investigation of the killing. He said the images were being released “in the spirit of transparency.”

The police chief defended his officers’ actions, saying they acted correctly in firing at Scott because he had marijuana with him at the time and also had a firearm.

The question of whether or not Scott had a gun with him, and whether he brandished it at police, has been central to the public debate over this case in North Carolina’s largest city.

Scott’s family members have said repeatedly that he had no weapon, and that he was sitting in his car, reading a book and waiting for his son to be dropped off by a school bus, when police approached him.

The dead man’s widow, Rakeyia, has released a recording she made with her mobile phone on Tuesday, calling out to police over and over again that he was unarmed, and at the same time calling out to Scott to obey all police orders and come out of his car.

A marijana “blunt” cigarette that police said was in the possession of Keith Lamont Scott is seen in a picture provided by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department in Charlotte, North Carolina, Sept. 24, 2016.
Neither Rakeyia Scott’s video nor the images released by police Saturday show clearly whether or not Keith Scott was holding a gun. As she yells that he is unarmed, police can be heard shouting at Scott: “Drop the gun!” Gunshots then ring out, and Scott can be seen lying prone in the street.

Authorities said the police were in the area looking for someone else when they saw Scott was holding a gun, and turned toward him.

Soon after the shooting, it was learned the police had video recordings of what happened, and those images became the focus of angry demonstrations. Wednesday’s protest turned violent, with store windows smashed and scuffles with police, who fired tear gas at the crowd.

A 26-year-old man was shot and fatally wounded, by someone in the crowd, authorities have said, not by a police officer.

Demonstrations have been more peaceful since then, and the city has ordered a midnight curfew, which police have chosen not to enforce while anyone still on the streets at that hour is peaceful.

SOURCE: VOA

Charlotte shooting: State of emergency amid protests

North Carolina’s governor has declared a state of emergency in the city of Charlotte, after violence erupted during a second night of protests over the police killing of a black man.

Keith Lamont Scott was shot dead by a black officer on Tuesday.

One protester remains in a critical condition after a “civilian on civilian” shooting, police said.

Nine protesters were also injured while police arrested 44 people, according to the police chief.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney said charges included looting, failure to disperse and assault.

Five officers also required medical care, including two for minor eye injuries, he added.

Police officers wearing riot gear block a road during protests after police fatally shot Keith Lamont Scott in the parking lot of an apartment complex in Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. September 20, 2016. REUTERS/Adam Rhew/Charlotte Magazine

Mr Scott was the third black man killed by US police in a week. Such shootings have sparked nationwide protests.

 

SOURCE: BBC

Russell Simmons Offers Brandon Marshall Endorsement Deal

NFL linebacker Brandon Marshall has found a supporter who can offer him more than his sympathies, following reports that a second Marshall sponsor has pulled its endorsement in response to his recent protest of the National Anthem.

Music mogul Russell Simmons took to Instagram upon learning the news on Tuesday [September 13], and extended Marshall an opportunity to recoup some of his lost bucks while he continues to stand for what he believes in.

“Which other company is supporting Brandon? It says two endorsements,” Simmons asked followers, before jumping the gun on a possible partnership. “RUSHCARD is in. We will find Brandon and make him an offer and make him a deal.”

Marshall is one of the players who has followed Colin Kaepernick‘s lead in bringing a call for the nation to address racial injustice, to the NFL in 2016. In fact, while Kaepernick sparked the movement back in August, Marshall was the first to abstain from observing the anthem during the regular season, rallying various players around the league to continue joining after he took a knee during the star-spangled banner before the year’s inaugural game against the Carolina Panthers on Thursday.

Within 24 hours of staging his dissent, Marshall’s partnership with Air Academy Federal Credit Union was severed. On Monday came news of another voided endorsement, when CenturyLink announced it’s parting from Marshall. Interestingly enough, CenturyLink is the sponsor of CenturyLink Field, home of the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks themselves have had an overt presence among the league’s protesters, demonstrating with interlocked arms during pre-game ceremonies on Sunday. There has been no word as to whether CenturyLink plans on punishing the Seattle team, but the company’s maneuver could none the less spell out inhibition among players who are planning to protest, as it’s reached over the sport includes a partnership with DirecTV.

SOURCE: VLADTV