Revolution #145, October 19, 2008


October 22, 2008

13th Annual National Day of Protest
to Stop Police Brutality, Repression and
the Criminalization of a Generation

From the 2008 Call from the October 22 Coalition:

“Not-guilty verdicts in New York for the three detectives who shot Sean Bell 50 times on his wedding day. The court system once again put its stamp of approval on any action taken by a police officer, no matter how outrageous. Then in July, a Grand Jury was led not to indict the NYC officer who killed 25-year old Jayson Tirado in a fit of ‘road rage.’ District Attorney Robert Morgenthau described the incident as ‘a justifiable shooting in unfortunate circumstances.’

“A police ‘surge’ in Chicago leaving six people dead in a month. Between June 11th and July 5th in Chicago, police shot twelve people, all Black and Latino. Six were killed, six wounded and survived. The Governor of Illinois responded by suggesting that state troopers be sent into Chicago to help control ‘violent crime’! More than forty killings by police in LA County, including four by Inglewood police alone in four months…

“More than twice as many people have been shot and killed this year in Maryland by Prince George’s County police than in all of last year…

“Massive raids and round-ups of immigrants ripped from their families and sent to detention centers and prisons. There were six hundred people arrested during raids in Mississippi, 321 arrested in South Florida…

“Prison-like schools and the school-to-prison pipeline. In Tampa, FL, 14-year old Keon Dawson was dragged from his classroom, detained and searched as part of the ongoing harassment against him and other witnesses to a cop’s murder of his brother, Javon Dawson…

“Increased police state and attacks on political dissent. FISA Amendments of 2008 legalized wiretapping and email spying  Protesters against the moving of war equipment (Strykers) to Iraq in Olympia, Tacoma and Fort Lewis have been met with tasers, rubber bullets, and more…

“STOP POLICE BRUTALITY, REPRESSION AND THE CRIMINALIZATION OF A GENERATION! NO MORE STOLEN LIVES! FIGHT BACK! ON OCTOBER 22nd, WEAR BLACK!”

Protest actions on October 22 have been announced for New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Cleveland, and a number of other cities across the country and in Canada.

For more information contact:

National Office of the October 22nd Coalition
Email: info@october22.org
Phone: 1-888-NOBRUTALITY
Web: www.october22.org

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