More African Americans Run For Local Government In Ferguson

MSNBC

MSNBC gives “All In” viewers a look at the history-making election in Ferguson, MO.

After months of upheaval, the beleaguered city of Ferguson, Missouri, has a new governing board. It looks different than the old one, states CNN.

After a higher-than-normal 30% turnout, two African-American candidates won their wards last Tuesday to make the six-member City Council 50% black.

Ferguson’s population of about 21,000 is 70% black, but the City Council was predominantly white, as is the police force.

Bizarre November Rant By Ted Nugent

Last November, Ted Nugent posted the below rant about Ferguson on Facebook:

Ted Nugent

“November 24, 2014

Here’s the lessons from Ferguson America- Don’t let your kids growup to be thugs who think they can steal, assault & attack cops as a way of life & badge of black (dis)honor. Don’t preach your racist bullshit “no justice no peace” as blabbered by Obama’s racist Czar Al Not So Sharpton & their black klansmen. When a cop tells you to get out of the middle of the street, obey him & don’t attack him as brainwashed by the gangsta assholes you hang with & look up to. It’s that simple unless you have no brains, no soul, no sense of decency whatsoever. And dont claim that ‘black lives matter’ when you ignore the millions you abort & slaughter each & every day by other blacks. Those of us with a soul do indeed believe black lives matter, as all lives matter. So quit killin each other you fuckin idiots. Drive safely.”

Is Hunting A ‘White Sport?’

Ridgeway, MO.

Is hunting a “whites only” sport?

Almost, because federal surveys show that less than 5 percent of all participants are black.

According to the Kansas City Star, a man named Eric Morris founded a hunting club – called the Black Wolf Hunting Club – in order to attract more African-Americans to hunting.

“There’s a huge perception that blacks don’t hunt,” said Morris, who led a group of hunters at the Harding Gamebirds hunting preserve in northern Missouri. “I know that’s what the surveys say. But look at this.”

He motioned to the black family he was leading on a hunting trip.  “This is proof that blacks can have a great time hunting. We just have to give them the opportunity.”

Through the Black Wolf Hunting Club, Morris and others attempt to provide that opportunity. They organize trips to preserves, where participants pay to hunt pen-raised birds, and introduce blacks young and not-so-young to hunting.

For many, it’s a unique experience. They weren’t brought up with hunting, as they were with fishing, Morris said.

Not feeling comfortable in rural settings, a lack of access, prejudice, the lack of role models — those are all excuses Morris has heard from fellow blacks as to why they don’t hunt.

Morris, who now lives in Platte City, didn’t face those barriers. He grew up in Alabama and taught himself to hunt.

Now he helps others discover the excitement of the sport.

“I had a life-long desire to go hunting,” said Sommari Muwwakkil, on a hunting trip with Morris. “I was brought up in Kansas City, and I didn’t know where to get started.

“Some landowners don’t trust African-Americans, and they aren’t going to give you access. And some of the public areas get hit so hard that it’s tough for a beginner to get out.

“So I really felt lost.”

But that changed, he said, when he met Morris.

After Morris gave a talk to a youth group, Muwwakkil approached him and asked him questions about getting started in hunting. Morris invited Muwwakkil to participate in a hunt, and he jumped at the chance.

Workers at Harding Gamebirds stocked pheasants and chukars in the thick strips of cover, then guide Jim Sparks released his chocolate Lab, Sarge, and his two English setters, Pete and Sid. It wasn’t long before the bird dogs picked up the scent and were on point.

Hunters flushed the birds and took turns shooting, keeping safety in mind. Shots rang out, birds fell and happy hunters watched as the dogs retrieved the game.

One of Muwwakkil’s daughters, Eshante, was among the successful.

“At first, I didn’t know how I would like this,” she said. “I was scared of shooting at first. I though the kick from a shotgun would hurt.

“But we started by shooting at clays (targets).Then when I went hunting, I loved it.”

She paused and laughed. “I think the boys are jealous that they don’t get to go,” she said. “They call me a hunting beast.”

Thomas, a major in the Army who is stationed at Fort Leavenworth, also is happy that Morris recruited him.

“I had deer hunted back home in South Carolina, but I had never been bird hunting,” he said. “It takes some getting used to.

“…but once you get used to it, it’s a lot of fun.”

That’s the kind of reaction Morris seeks. He has a passion for introducing blacks to hunting, even if he has to do it one person at a time.

“Seeing these kids come out here and have a great time, that’s special,” he said. “If we could get more blacks to come out and at least give hunting a chance, I think we could change the way people see things.

“I think there is untapped potential there.”

More:

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/outdoors/article4741914.html#storylink=cpy

Tim’s Take: Antonio Martin Updates and CCTV Footage

Tim’s Take has video footage of the Antonio Martin shooting in Berkeley, Missouri, from 3 different angles.

St. Louis Police released CCTV footage of the Antonio Martin shooting. All camera angles are distant. Watch the videos and judge for yourself.

Tim’s Take video.

Protests Ongoing

THOUSANDS of protesters walked through parts of New York and Washington yesterday, stepping up demonstrations across the US demanding justice for black men killed by white police.

The rallies in Washington D.C., New York, Boston, and several Californian cities were among the largest in a growing protest movement sparked by the killing of ­unarmed teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri on August 9.

Demonstrators shut down parts of Manhattan and Washington’s Pennsylvania Avenue with cries of “No justice, no peace!”, “Justice Now!” and “The whole damn system is guilty as hell!”.

The mixed crowds of black and white mobilised many young people but also young families, parents and the elderly.

The Garner and Brown families were joined in Washington by relatives of 12-year-old Tamir Rice, who was shot dead last month by Cleveland police, and of Trayvon Martin, who was killed in Florida by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman in 2012.

Garner’s widow and wife took to the stage before the energized crowd. “I am here not only marching for Eric Garner, but for everyone’s daughters and sons and nieces and nephews and dads and moms,” Esaw Garner said.

Garner’s mother Gwen Carr said the protests would continue until congress responded to ­demands for reform.

National Action Network president Al Sharpton led the protest march in Washington.

Organizers called for congress to “pass a national profiling act” and Reverend Sharpton called for sweeping justice reform.

“You thought it would be kept quiet. You thought you’d sweep it under the rug. You thought there would be no limelight. But we’re going to keep the light on Michael Brown, on Eric Garner, on Tamir Rice, on all of these victims,” said Sharpton.

Berkeley, CA Cops Surround Protesters

David Pakman video.

Police brutality at UC Berkeley is caught on video.

The video (posted under the Youtube name bagheera) gives this information:

“At 5PM on 12/6/14, hundreds of UC Berkeley students and Berkeley residents began a peaceful march from Sproul Plaza to the Berkeley Marina to protest the deaths of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, and countless other brown and black youth at the hands of police. Along the way, police set up barricades and fired rubber bullets and smoke bombs, shattering one student’s knee and causing another student to have a seizure…”

“This video begins with riot police forcing students south down Telegraph, which only caused more Cal, Berkeley High, and City College students to join the struggle. The demonstrators were pushed all the way down Telegraph by waves of tear gas until they reached the border of Oakland, where the riot police finally dissipated.”

More:

http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/12/08/protesters-march-in-berkeley-for-third-straight-night-over-police-brutality/

No. 22 Oklahoma defeated Missouri 82-63

Number 22 University of Oklahoma defeated Missouri 82-63 Friday night in the SEC/Big 12 challenge.

The Sooners shot 57 percent from the field and made 10 of 20 3-pointers.

Sources state that what changed the game was the way Oklahoma defended after halftime.  The Sooners opened the second half on a 15-0 run. Missouri (4-4) didn’t score for the first 5:16 of the second half and missed its first seven shots after the break.

It’s a big step for a team that wasn’t always focused on defense a year ago.  “Defensively, we’ve been making progress and we’ve been getting better,” Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger said.

Oklahoma (5-2) was coming off a runner-up finish in the Battle 4 Atlantis.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2014/12/05/3856260/no-22-oklahoma-beats-missouri.html#storylink=cpy

After Ferguson And Eric Garner Decision, Some White Christians Get On Board

“African-American brothers and sisters, especially brothers, in this country are more likely to be arrested, more likely to be executed, more likely to be killed.”

This might sound like a statement from black clergy or civil rights activists, but those words came from white evangelical leader Russell Moore.

While most conservative media outlets have spoken out on behalf of the white police officers, some white Christians have grown more vocal in urging predominantly white churches to no longer turn a blind eye to injustice and to bridge the country’s racial divides.

“It’s time for us in Christian churches to not just talk about the gospel but live out the gospel by tearing down these dividing walls not only by learning and listening to one another but also by standing up and speaking out for one another,” said Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.

Others issued similar pleas.

“I weep & pray for his family,” tweeted Danny Akin, president of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, the day before he led a prayer for justice at his school in Wake Forest, N.C. “I beg our God to bring good out of this tragedy.”

“’Love your neighbor as yourself’ means you picture yourself being choked and surrounded by five men while you say, ‘I can’t breathe,’” tweeted Scott Slayton, a white Southern Baptist pastor in Chelsea, Ala.

The Rev. Alan Cross, a white pastor in Montgomery, Ala., said the publicized video of Garner’s choke hold has moved some white Christians to speak when they might not have after Officer Darren Wilson was cleared in the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo.

Author Barnabas Piper chose to post what others were saying about Ferguson and Garner on his blog, saying as “a young white man” he wasn’t in the best position to explain it all.

“Put yourself in the shoes of the authors and immerse yourself in the experiences they describe,” he wrote. “You and I need to do so if we want to contribute anything to stopping injustice and closing the racial gap that exists.”

The Rev. Barbara Williams-Skinner, co-chair of the National African-American Clergy Network, sees a growing interest among white Christians and others to speak up about the “pile on” of events capped with the Garner decision.

“It just so offends the human spirit of people of every race that it compels them to act,” she said. “We don’t have to ask young white students and young white adults anymore to act. They understand … if the system will so violate the rights of people of color today, they will violate everybody’s rights tomorrow.”

She had already witnessed an interest across races in the Ferguson events when her network’s planned letter on justice from black church leaders took on a more interracial feel.

Even before the Garner decision, the progressive Christian group Sojourners had gathered 50 leaders, including black clergy and white evangelicals, for a retreat on Tuesday and Wednesday that included a “historic pilgrimage of racialized St. Louis” and a discussion of theological implications for “our nation’s broken justice system.”

“There were white evangelicals in the room in Ferguson who were weeping when the Garner decision came down,” said the Rev. Jim Wallis, founder of the Washington-based social justice group.

White Christians beyond evangelicalism added their voices to the outcry about the ruling.

“The degradation and demeaning of black life must stop,” said Serene Jones, president of New York’s Union Theological Seminary. “What the hell kind of country do we live in?”

Russell Moore, noting some of the reaction after he called for racial reconciliation in the wake of the Ferguson strife, said some white Christians see no reason to speak up for better race relations.

“I have gotten responses, and seen responses, that are right out of the White Citizens’ Council material from 1964 in my home state of Mississippi, seeing people saying there is no gospel issue involved with racial reconciliation,” he said in a podcast.  He doesn’t agree with them.

Is Ferguson Prosecutor Bob McCulloch Incompetent?

In September, it appeared to some that Bob McCulloch, the St. Louis County prosecutor, wasn’t trying to get an indictment.  He had a long record of protecting police in similar cases, and his decision not to recommend a specific charge to the grand jury essentially guaranteed there would be no indictment.

TYT video.

Cop Stops Black Man For…Walking in the Cold With His Hands in His Pocket

A police officer in the video stops Brandon W. McKean in Pontiac, Michigan for walking outside in the cold with his hands in his pockets.

Majority Report video.