[Marxism] "If a Black Man Dies in America..." (on Tookie)

[Anna Fierling <anna_fierling@xxxxxxxxx>]

counterpunch.com

  December 12, 2005
  If a Black Man Dies in America, Does It Make a Sound?  Killing Tookie 
Williams  By NATE MEZMER
  If Stan Tookie Williams is executed tomorrow who will feel the negative 
effects? Most of those who support his state sponsored murder do not live in 
war torn regions of the Golden State of California. Thus it is difficult for 
these privileged people to understand the benefits of Stan's contributions on 
behalf of non-violence. However, because blacks are sentenced to death twice as 
frequently as whites who've been convicted of the same crime it appears that 
this may be more than a misunderstanding.

  If a young black man is shot in South Central does it make a sound in 
Thousand Oaks?

  If Stan Tookie Williams is executed tomorrow who will feel the negative 
effects? Stan was convicted of four murders 25 years ago in connection with 
armed-robbery however the key witnesses were felons who recieved 'benefits' in 
exchange for their testimony. ( facts of the case). I have encountered many 
people who say that since Stan was a gang-banger and a co-founder of the Crips 
that such facts alone should condemn him despite his transformation. This 
notion is almost laughable if it were not so dubious, especially in light of 
the fact that our own country, the United States of America, is currently 
disguising the hostile takeover of oil-rich Iraq as a righteous crusade for 
freedom.

  If a young black man is shot in Hunter's Point does it make a sound in 
Hillsborough?

  If Stan Tookie Williams is executed tomorrow who will feel the negative 
effects? The current administration in the White House is the most mafia regime 
in the history of the country and is thus run by some of the biggest gangsters 
in the world. The war in Iraq, a war based on falsehoods and conspiracies, 
collusion and neglegence, has been responsible for the murder of thousands of 
innocent civilians and has taken the lives of more than 2,100 US soldiers. This 
being said, no one is calling for the execution of the president?

  If a young black man is shot in Watts does it make a sound in Orange County?

  If Stan Tookie Williams is executed tomorrow who will feel the negative 
effects? Indeed, lessons in retribution and justice in the form of war and 
execution never seem to get the job done. After, 9/11 we haphazardly attacked 
two countries, enraging large portions of the global community and subsequently 
created a greater terror threat than had existed before. Maybe if we had 
stopped to understand why the attacks had occurred in the first place our 
nation and its soldiers would not be in the same deadly predicament? 
Furthermore, becasue violence begets violence, as the bumper sticker says, "why 
do we kill people who kill people, to show that killing people is wrong?"

  If a young black man is shot in Richmond does it make a sound in the Oakland 
hills?

  If Stan Tookie Williams is executed tomorrow who will feel the negative 
effects? Unlike the Christian re-birth of President Bush, the spiritual 
re-awakening of Stan Tookie Williams has been synonymous with peace. As 
documented, over 150 youth have pledged that Stan's writings and works have 
been responsible for their decision to remove themselves from the gang life. 
Since, 2001 Stan Tookie Williams has been nominated for 5 Nobel Peace Prizes 
and has won several awards for his work concerning non-violence. In that same 
time George W Bush has managed to invade two countries in the middle-east.

  If a young black man is shot in South Sacramento does it make a sound in 
Granite Bay?

  If Stan Tookie Williams is executed tomorrow who will feel the negative 
effects? After witnessing the government's reaction to Hurricane Katrina and 
New Orleans it seems that our nation is comfortable with stranding its black 
population. Although the tragedy did eventually spawn some national concern, we 
have since failed to address the real problem that blacks have been drowning in 
America for years. Thus the very fact that blacks are left to fend for 
themselves in ghettos and slums across the country does not bode well for an 
individual of the same color, who speaks out about such injustice and who's 
ultimate fate rests in the hands of the same people and the same system that 
creates such inequality.

  If a black man is murdered in America does it make a sound?

  Nate Mezmer is a political Hip-Hop artist and resident of Davis, CA . He can 
be reached at: mezmerfmk@xxxxxxxxx


Anna Fierling
Otto-Suhr-Institut
FU-Berlin

"Freiheit ist immer Freiheit der Andersdenkenden."
                        
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