Abuse Victim Alejandra Vazquez Laid To Rest

Tears flow for 'another Nixzmary Brown' as 11-year-old laid to rest
BY ERICA PEARSON and LEO STANDORA DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS


A sad and steady procession of mourners came to a Brooklyn funeral home Thursday to bid farewell to Alejandra Vazquez, the 11-year-old schoolgirl cops say was beaten to death with a mop handle by her mom.
Many of the relatives, friends, neighbors - and more than a few strangers touched by her tragic story - arrived at the Ponce Funeral Home on Fourth Ave. with their arms full of flowers.
One small child went in clutching a single red rose to her heart.
Almost all had tears in their eyes, prayers on their lips - or both.
"This is so sad, so horrible," said one mourner who only gave the name Maria, gesturing at the open casket where Alejandra's body lay in a glistening white dress, her face heavily made up to mask her injuries.
"This should happen to nobody, but it seems worse when it happens to such a little girl."
Nearby, Barbara Medina, who helped collect money for Alejandra's dress through a nonprofit organization, nodded agreement.
"This didn't have to happen. This is like another Nixzmary Brown," she said. "This child died by herself and is leaving us by herself."
Alejandra's uncle, Celerino Vazquez, 30, said the family was struggling to cope with the tragedy. "We're all praying. It's something we just have to get through."
Florencia Vazquez, 36, confessed to beating her daughter to death with a mop handle and leaving her to die in her own bed, but later claimed the girl suffered her fatal injuries in a fall.
Alejandra was found dead Sunday morning. The case is going to a grand jury.
Meanwhile, the concerns of close family friend Sophia Morales, 23, are for Alejandra's three siblings - ages 6, 3 and 1.
"They are wondering what happened," she said. "I just don't know how to answer them."

Julian King, RIP

Michelle Obama

Why white America perhaps fears Michelle more than Barack.
Excerpts from a 'Jack & Jill politics' newsletter:

...as hard as it is to accept a black president, it's even harder to accept a black first lady. First Lady has always held a beloved sentimental mother/wife of the nation symbolism.

Conservatives are not ready to have to look at this very BLACK woman with her degrees and her fierceness and see her as the epitome of the American mother/wife.This will be a first for white people. They do not want this black woman in the Whitehouse as their first lady. That New Yorker cartoon was [actually] about Michelle - she was its focal point…..look closely... she is the leader, the one starting the "revolution" theywant you to imagine…………MSNBC's Chris Matthews said, in the course of covering the Obama candidacy, 'He (Barack Obama) brings none of the20' bad stuff, you know?" By 'Bad Stuff', he meant the legacy of [whites] enslaving Africans in this country, keeping them as second-class citizens until 1965, a mere 11 years before this country celebrated its 200th anniversary. You know, 'the original sin', or ' the birth d efect', as Condi Rice called it. Barack escapes this 'bad stuff' only because his mother was white and may have had ancestors involved in the slave trade; and also because Barack's father was not African American. He was full blooded African and therefore Barack had no ancestors enslaved byAmerica - and so the white guilt factor is missing when they think ofhim. HOWEVER, NO SUCH LUCK WITH MICHELLE!Michelle Obama is a direct threat and lightening bolt against White Superiority. Because, she's Black… VISIBLY BLACK… But it's important to note, she does not, in any way,shape, or form, contour to the acceptable Black Pathologies that enable White Supremacy to sigh with relief. [welfare mother, fatherless child, druggie, etc.] Michelle was raised in a neighborhood. In a home. With TWO parents. No child revolving in and out of jail.

Raised by a Black man who not only provided for his family, but did so, WITH A DISABILITY. Her mother had a working class job - secretary- but it was taken ONLYafter she had seen her youngest child settle into HIGH SCHOOL.Michelle Obama's poise, her confidence, her aura - that was created by that humble Black man, who by all accounts, adored her. He told her that she is worthy, and so, when you have that told to you by the first man who loves and protects you, you seek that validation of that in your choice of mate, you'll settle for nothing less, and Michelle hasn't.
Michelle Obama, doesn't fit any of the acceptable Black pathologies. And when you don't fit the acceptable Black pathologies, then you must be destroyed. Michelle Obama has become the face of the Black America whose existence is routinely denied by this country. Think about it.In ONE generation, the face of this 'Invisible America' has gone from living on the top floor of a bungalow, to the possibility of living in The White House. And yet, Michelle Obama, refuses to say " I' m special", in order to give white America its usual security blanket [that she is one of the exceptions rather than the rule], So what should be done?Beat her down into submission.

Michelle Obama represents everything we black women want our daughters to be. When we stand up for her we stand up for ourselves. No other women in the world are more neglected and abused as African women period. Michelle looks like [our] daughters, her daughters look like us. We love the way Barack looks at her we adore the way he looks at his daughters. The Obamas represent the hope that we can be loved by our men and they will support us in whatever we do.

Little African American girls need a vision anddream of what it is like to be loved by a man who looks just like them. Is America ready for a First Lady who looks like her? A regular black woman? Not a passable biracial curly haired girl that they call black, but a regular black woman from the south side of Chicago ? With dark skin?Is she going to be the face of The Woman on the largest pedestal in the country? A self-confessed "loud-mouth" black woman? If the Obamas succeed, it turns white supremacy upside down. And not because a black man is in the White House; but, because a blackwoman will be there who didn't have to come in the back door to lie in bed with the president.

Do white men assimilate, or with cultural preference? by La from Tribute for Your Thoughts

Do white men assimilate, or with cultural preference? by La

While living in a largely black populated community and region, I have made some personal observations about Caucasian relations in these areas. I’ve also made some comparisons regarding white men and their preference in cultural assimilation. All of what I’m stating is based on my own observations and perspectives. I am not trying to be negative or “project” any type of negativity unto other black females. I just have to explore and present my theories on these issues. I also want to welcome any opinions or opposing views.

Most importantly as a black female today, I fully support and promote black women to explore their options in dating interracially. I always knew non-black men, particularly white men found black women attractive and desirable. In fact, I grew up knowing this all my life. However, I feel there are still profoundly noticeable signals coming from the white male population that would challenge that belief in the eyes of many black females. We all know some say black women are less receptive or indulge in the “fear” of white men through “myths”, mammism, misconceptions, lack of exposure etc… But still, black women didn’t manifest these ideas out of thin air. Apart from the usual complaints, even the “white male” controlled media seems to welcome so much anti black female isms, as well as promoting more black male/white female coupling as the black and white IR tokens. Movies, sitcoms, picture ads, magazines, online banners, and even your everyday clip-art seems to be getting infected by this visible preference.

Seeing this over the years, has made me wonder at times who really controls the media regarding interracial groupings. Anyone could easily assume it’s either black males or white females using it for their own beneficial agendas, and visual recruitment. I know it might be the 1% of the white male population that actually partake in the direct media productions. But, It’s still obvious white males collectively know how to use the media to their overall advantage, affirmative self image, financial, political etc. So why not promote or encourage more white male and black female unions in the media, if so many are so inclined? I’m not trying to put an unrealistic burden on white males. In general, most women like to feel wanted and desired, or respectively pursued by men.. Black women are no different.

Which brings me back to my main curiosity. I always wondered if white men assimilate and do so romantically in non-white societies. At least in the way many black men, and Asian men etc. do when trying to acquire white female companionship in white dominated societies. I think they do, but perhaps in selective cultures? I know it’s based on individualism, but even generally when being the minority, there still seems to be some sort of arrogant superiority resistance among many white men. Furthermore, yes there is evidence of white men going to racially and culturally different places to assimilate, and even seek out the native women… Asia, Hawaii, India, South America etc.. Even in the media, these unions are presented “exotic” and they’re romatically inevitable. What about Africa? Be it movies, or real life, you rarely hear a love story coming from the fact that a white male took a trip to Africa. If anything, he seeks out white females that are there already. I often wonder how many white European/American military soldiers would readily take home African war brides the way they do with Asian and South American women.

White men don’t assimilate in the Caribbean as people seem to think either. Even so, the Caribbean is so diverse in background and culture, and it depends on the area. In my particular parts, you rarely see white men with black females, but much more increasingly in the reverse. I live on the US islands, and white men seem to still seek out the white women that are also living on these US islands. It’s almost mind boggling :) I always see young and old white men in arms with white women, especially on the weekends. Many of these men come alone, but upon arrival they still hunt for the minute white female population. Now, you might see more white men trying to befriend the native black women on non-US islands. Do non-US black Caribbean women have something special over US Caribbean black women? No. While thinking about this oddness over the few years, the harsh reality behind it darned on me. Due to some of their local island laws (british/french), some of those white males try to marry or make arrangements with those native black women in order to purchase the protected land and their island resources. So, you should think twice when if you see some white people in general with native blacks in certain parts of the Caribbean.

I know many would disagree with my less-than-positive observations. And yes, we already know all about the disloyal hearts of so many black men, this has clearly been established. So why pick on white men or put such a critical emphasis on them? If we’re going to promote or encourage white male options, then we should also be able to openly tackle some of these blatant non-affirming signals and prejudices many of them still have towards black women. This is the only way for all cards to be placed fairly on the table. Again, I’m not projecting, or talking about all white males. I just wanted to share some of my personal observations, (even in my area) and thoughts for exploring and understanding things that were on my mind. Perhaps other black women share similar concerns and sentiments.

A Visit to Erica Green (Precious Doe)

Watch some stills and video clips of my visit in 2006 to see Erica's gravesite -- May she rest in peace !!! K.C. residents, please visit her at the cemetery. Her marker is BEAUTIFUL, just like ERICA. - KWH

Jennifer Hudson's Family Murdered

Jennifer Hudson: Family Members Killed In Chicago

By Karu F. Daniels, BlackVoices.com

Family members of Academy Award winning actress/singer Jennifer Hudson have been shot in Chicago.According to CBS affiliate WBBM-TV, Hudson's mother was found fatally shot in a South Side home on Friday. The Chicago Fire Department confirmed that two adults were found dead in a home at 70th Street and Yale Avenue.Willie Davis, pastor of the family's church, Pleasant Gift Missionary Baptist, confirmed that 57-year-old Darnell Hudson Donerson was one of the victims.

A brief statement released by Jennifer Hudson's publicist acknowledged her mother's death, and confirmed that the other body was that of Jennifer Hudson's brother, 29-year-old Jason Hudson. A cousin, who lived nearby, reportedly discovered the bodies.More details have surfaced."This is a very sad day to get that kind of news," Davis said. "This is really going to be a major, major blow to such a wonderful person ... But we know through our faith in God she'll get through it." He also to the CBS station that the J Records recording artist's relationship with her mother was "very close." The 'Spotlight' singer was expected to arrive in Chicago from Florida.The shooting is believed to be domestic. Read Popeater's account for more details.

Meanwhile, an Amber Alert has been issued for a boy, believed to be Hudson's 7-year-old nephew Julian King (pictured right) who may have been taken from the scene. Police are looking for 1994 white Suburban with the license plate X584859.

Another Hate Crime In Texas: Brandon McClelland

Hat Tip to Ann. Thank you Ann for posting the article the media overlooked.

To my fellow bloggers:

Please post this article on the hate crime in Texas town of Paris. It's outrageous and it goes to show how little Black lives are valued in America. All this summer I hear was Caylee. What about Mr. McClelland? He's just as valuable as any other American citizen.

Killing in a small town raises hate crime fears
By Howard Witt
October 5, 2008

PARIS, Texas - When the mutilated and partially dismembered body of Brandon McClelland, a 24-year-old black man, turned up lying in the middle of a rural east Texas road one morning last month, the police immediately pronounced the case a hit-and-run by an unknown driver.Within a few days, however, suspicions turned toward two white friends who had picked up McClelland in their truck a few hours before he was found dead early on Sept. 16. Despite signs that the truck had been washed, authorities discovered blood and other physical evidence on the undercarriage and arrested the two men, both with long criminal histories, for murder.Now this small, racially divided town--already seared with a racist label by civil rights groups last year over differences in how blacks and whites were treated by the local justice system--is on edge yet again, wondering if it's got a horrific new hate crime on its hands.The district attorney insists race had nothing to do with McClelland's death and police investigators are portraying the case as an apparent falling-out among friends.

But McClelland's relatives and Paris civil rights leaders are less certain. Citing the violence done to McClelland's body and reports that one of the alleged assailants, Shannon Finley, had white supremacist ties, they are demanding that Paris authorities investigate the case as a possible hate crime akin to the infamous 1998 lynching of James Byrd Jr., in Jasper, Texas, 250 miles south of here.Byrd was dragged to his death behind a pickup truck by three white supremacists who were later convicted of murder. McClelland was walking in front of the pickup when Finley, 27, and a friend, Charles Ryan Crostley, 27, who was also arrested, allegedly ran him down and then dragged him 40 feet along the road until his mutilated body popped out from beneath the chassis, according to a police affidavit accompanying the warrant for Finley's arrest."If you take somebody out to the country like that in the middle of the night and do that to him in that way, that's how they do black people around here," said Brenda Cherry, a local activist working with McClelland's family. "To me, it smells like Jasper."

Paris' race relations came under withering national scrutiny last year after the Tribune reported the case of Shaquanda Cotton, a 14-year-old African-American youth who was sentenced by a local judge to up to seven years in a youth prison for shoving a hall monitor at her high school. Just three months earlier, the same judge had sentenced a 14-year-old white girl to probation after convicting her of the more serious crime of arson for burning down her family's house.The discrepancy in the treatment of the two teenagers provoked protests from national civil rights groups and led to Cotton's early release from prison. Now McClelland's family fears that Paris officials, eager to protect their city of 26,000 from another round of negative publicity over race relations, are purposefully downplaying potential racial overtones in McClelland's murder."At the crime scene, it looked like these boys went back and poured beer on my son's body," said Jacqueline McClelland, Brandon's mother. "Two beer cans were lying out there, but the police didn't even pick them up, they just left evidence out there. They won't even consider the racial issues. That's the way it is in Paris.

"Even the editor of the local newspaper, normally an impassioned defender of Paris' reputation, has cautioned law enforcement officials to be thorough and "leave no stone unturned" in their investigation."Hopefully, this community has learned from its past," Mary Madewell wrote in the Paris News. "... Even if our worst fears prove to be true, let us realize that the actions of single individuals should in no way bring condemnation to an entire community."Family members and other critics are also concerned about the impartiality of Lamar County District Atty. Gary Young, who five years ago, before he was elected prosecutor, served as Finley's court-appointed defense attorney when Finley pleaded guilty to manslaughter for shooting a friend to death.Young has declined to state whether he will recuse himself and other prosecutors in his office from handling the McClelland case.

Although the victim in Finley's 2003 manslaughter case was white, race played a role in the incident. Finley told police he was sitting in a pickup with his friend in a park when two gun-wielding black men supposedly walked up alongside and tried to rob them. Finley said he grabbed his friend's handgun and fired at the robbers, but instead shot his friend.An autopsy determined that the victim suffered three gunshot wounds to the head, but the district attorney at the time accepted Finley's contention that the shooting was an accident and offered him a plea bargain on a reduced manslaughter charge. Finley served three years of a 4-year prison sentence. The alleged robbers were never found.That manslaughter case also tied Finley and McClelland closely together. McClelland furnished a false alibi for Finley, testifying before a grand jury that Finley was with him at the time the shooting occurred. That lie under oath earned McClelland a conviction for aggravated perjury, for which he served two years in prison.Largely because of that connection between McClelland and Finley, police discount the possibility that race played a part in McClelland's death. "I don't see how it was racial, being as how they were good friends," said Stacy McNeal, the Texas Ranger who is the lead investigator on the case.But McClelland's relatives say they have heard that Finley fell in with white supremacists while in prison and that he had grown upset over Brandon's overtures to a white girl--factors they say the police ought to investigate."I always told Brandon that Finley was bad news and he should stay away from him," said Ervin Barry, a friend of McClelland's. "But Brandon thought they were good friends."

Race relations in Paris, Texas : An update

SHAQUANDA COTTON: The black high school freshman whose sentence of up to seven years in prison for shoving a school hall monitor drew national scrutiny to the town's justice system was released from prison in March 2007. Now 17, she is studying for her GED certificate and hopes to attend junior college.TASK FORCE: Citizens concerned about racial fissures in town exposed by the Cotton case convened a local Diversity Task Force, which has held several meetings and last month hosted a community-wide block party attended by several hundred residents.INVESTIGATION: The U.S. Department of Education last month concluded a two-year investigation of allegedly discriminatory disciplinary policies in the Paris public schools. The agency said it found "insufficient evidence to support a conclusion" that black students were being disciplined more harshly than whites.

Bachmann: It’s All Chris Matthews’ Fault! ‘He Laid A Trap, And I Walked Into It’»

Think Progress » Bachmann: It’s All Chris Matthews’ Fault! ‘He Laid A Trap, And I Walked Into It’

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) is still on the defensive from an appearance last Friday on MSNBC’s Hardball, in which she called for the media to conduct a “penetrating exposé” into anti-American views of members of Congress.

Speaking with the St. Cloud Times on Tuesday, Bachmann said she regretted suggesting
that Barack Obama held “anti-American” views. Referencing
Chris Matthews by name 12 times in a 6 minute interview, Bachmann
portrayed herself as the victim of a clever ploy devised by the MSNBC
host:

Chris Matthews laid a trap, and I walked into it. […]

Chris Matthews was using the term over and over, and I should not have used it. […]

This was Chris Matthews. I made a big mistake by going on the show. I never should have. […]

I just didn’t recognize — I never watched the
Chris Matthews show before. I should have before I went on. I
didn’t recognize that he would lay a trap the way that he did.

Bachmann concluded the interview by circling back to where she
began: “I didn’t bring the word choice up. That was Chris
Matthews who brought the word choice up. Unfortunately, like I said, I
walked into a trap.”

Bachmann, who appears frequently on Fox News,
apparently doesn’t understand that journalists on other networks
sometimes ask critical questions. The issue isn’t Matthews’
questions; it’s Bachmann’s answers. Here’s key
portions from the transcript:

MATTHEWS: So you believe that Barack Obama may have anti- American views.

REP. BACHMANN: Absolutely. I’m very concerned that he may have anti-American views.

[…]

MATTHEWS: What parts of America would you say are anti-American? What parts of this country?

REP. BACHMANN: Well, I would say that people who hold anti- American views. I don’t think it’s geography. I think it’s people who don’t like America, who detest America.

[…]

MATTHEWS: How many do you suspect of your colleagues as being anti-American?

REP. BACHMANN: What I would say — what I would say is that the
news media should do a penetrating exposé and take a look. I
wish they would. I wish the American media would take a great
look at the views of the people in Congress and find out, are they
pro-America or anti-America? I think people would love to see an
exposé like that.

Bachmann’s biggest disappointment must be that she wishes she hadn’t been so honest about her true feelings.

McCain's black family ties touch on the GOP's racial faultline

McCain's black family ties touch on the GOP's racial faultline | Crooks and Liars

Normally, the story of John McCain's black family -- the ones who are
planning to vote for Barack Obama -- might elicit some modest interest
in terms of what it says about the complexity of race relations in
America.

But what's been even more interesting has been how John McCain has responded to the story ever since it surfaced.

Initially, back when he first was doing the "Maverick" schtick in
the 2000 primaries, he actually denied that the aristocratic
Southerners from whom he was descended were slaveholders. But it really
became impossible for McCain to deny their existence after a 2000 report in Salon in the course of which reporters showed him photographs and birth records in person and he had to concede to their existence.

One account, In the South Florida Times, describes how McCain has handled the connection publicly and privately:

White and black members of the McCain family have met on
the plantation several times over the last 15 years, but one invited
guest has been conspicuously absent: Sen. John Sidney McCain.

“Why he hasn’t come is anybody’s guess,”
said Charles McCain Jr., 60, a distant cousin of John McCain who is
black. “I think the best I can come up with, is that he
doesn’t have time, or he has just distanced himself, or it
doesn’t mean that much to him.”

Other relatives are not as generous.

Lillie McCain, 56, another distant cousin of John McCain who is
black, said the Republican presidential nominee is trying to hide his
past, and refuses to accept the family’s history.

“After hearing him in 2000 claim his family never owned
slaves, I sent him an email,” she recalled. “I told him no
matter how much he denies it, it will not make it untrue, and he should
accept this and embrace it.”

She said the senator never responded to her email.

In her CNN interview with Kyra Phillips, Lillie McCain discusses this further:

PHILLIPS: Do you think it could make a difference with regard to
diversity issues, issues of race, if John McCain did participate?

L. MCCAIN: I think it probably could. It would give him an opportunity to know us.

I e-mailed him back in 2000 to remind him of his ties to Tiak,
Mississippi. I heard him say on I believe it was "Meet the Press," that
his ancestors owned no slaves. Well, I certainly have carried the name
McCain from the beginning of my whole life, and I've known of the ties
to John McCain and tried to get him to communicate with me about that,
but he has been unwilling, at least, to date.

PHILLIPS: Well he found out in 2000, to be fair to the senator
there, and he did come forward and gave this quote -- "How the Tiak
descendants have served their community and, by extension, to their
country, is a testament to the power of family, love, compassion, and
the human spirit." And then he added in the statement, "an example for
all citizens."

That sure is a warm, fuzzy little sentimental quote from the
senator, and the fact that it really says nothing in reality says
everything we need to know about John McCain.

Limbaugh defends his Powell race comments

Limbaugh defends his Powell race comments - UPI.com

WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 (UPI) -- Conservative talk-radio host Rush Limbaugh Monday defended his remark that Colin Powell endorsed Democrat Barack Obama simply because of race.

Limbaugh said the former U.S. secretary of state, Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman and national security adviser endorsed the Illinois senator because he is black, CNN reported.

"So what if it's race?" Limbaugh said on his radio show. "Why is it so hard to admit that it's race … ? What's so problematic about admitting it?"

Limbaugh's comments were widely discussed on news programs and in the blogosphere.

"I thought it should be about race," Limbaugh said Monday. "I thought you liberals thought this was a historic candidacy because finally we are going to elect a black guy … . Why hide behind this, why act like it's not about race?

"This was all about Powell and race, nothing about the nation and its welfare."

Racist 'N-Word' Calls Reported In Pennsylvania

Racist 'N-Word' Calls Reported In Pennsylvania

According to the election analysis site FiveThirtyEight.com, some Pennsylvanians have complained about a call that impersonates Barack Obama and includes racial epithets:

"Over in Indiana, PA and Northern Cambria, PA, volunteers
fielded complaints of a massive wave of ugly robocalls both paid for by
John McCain's campaign and those paid for by third parties. The
third party call was interactive, and purported to be from Barack Obama
himself. The call starts out reasonably, and then "Obama" asks what the
listener thinks is the most important issue. Whatever the response,
"Obama" then launches into a profane and crazed tirade using "n***er"
and other shock language."

If anyone has received this call, please send us an email so we can follow up.

AAPP: John Mccain's True Colors, No Longer Red, White and Blue

African American Political Pundit:: John Mccain's True Colors, No Longer Red, White and Blue

In recent days, the Huffington Post and other outlets have reported on the McCain-funded nationwide robocall campaign charging that Barack Obama "worked closely with"

former 60s radical William Ayers. Another RNC/McCain campaign call
states that Obama is a "celebrity" politician who was fundraising in
Hollywood during the financial crisis.

On Friday, a recipient
of one of those calls, Chris Shoff of Minnesota, said that he had tied
the origins of the campaign to the St. Paul-based firm FLS-Connect, run
by prominent GOP figure Jeff Larson.

This past week, Shoff, a
Freeborn, Minnesota Democratic County Commissioner, received the
Hollywood call while at work. Because state law dictates that any such
calls be made by an actual human, Shoff demanded that he be connected
to the supervisor. That official, who worked at the robocall shop King
TeleServices in Brooklyn, New York, said that they had been contracted
out by FLS-Connect. More HERE.

AAPP: 

I wonder (like many other bloggers) whether Colin Powell will support Barack Obama - We will know on Sunday.

NEWSFLASH: NIXZALIZ FOUND GUILTY, THANK GOD!

NEWSFLASH: NIXZALIZ FOUND GUILTY, THANK GOD!

Nixzmary Brown's mother found guilty of manslaughterBY DANIEL EDWARD ROSEN

The mother of Nixzmary Brown, the 7-year-old whose death stunned a city and influenced a new law named for her, was found guilty of manslaughter but cleared of second-degree murder in State Supreme Court in Brooklyn on Friday.

Nixzaliz Santiago, 30, appeared unresponsive as the jury also found her guilty of second-degree assault, unlawful imprisonment and endangering the welfare of a child.

"The journey for justice for Nixzmary is almost over," said prosecutor Ama Dwimoh. She went on to praise the jury of 10 women and two men for ruling on the case "professionally and stoically."

"Today is a good day for the children because this jury said loud and clear that parents have a duty - it's not just what you do, it's what you don't do," Dwimoh said.

Santiago faces 25 years in prison on the manslaughter charge alone. She is to be sentenced Nov. 5.

Nixzmary's stepfather, Cesar Rodriguez, was convicted of manslaughter in March and sentenced to 26 1/3 to 29 years.

Defense attorney Sammy Sanchez told The Associated Press after the verdict that Santiago should not have been looked at in the same light as Rodriguez. "Cesar was the true criminal," Sanchez said.

Outside the courthouse, Santiago's mother, Maria Gonzalez, avoided reporters as she hustled to a nearby garage.

The nearly monthlong trial brought back to the public's memory the grisly details of Nixzmary's death, including the chair to which she was often violently bound and the litter box she was forced to use as a bathroom.

Nixzmary was beaten by Rodriguez after she took yogurt from a fridge and messed up Rodriguez's printer. Rodriguez slammed her head against a bathtub as she was being doused with cold water. Nixzmary weighed only 36 pounds when she died Jan. 11, 2006.

Her death brought swift and comprehensive changes to New York City's Administration for Children's Services and helped influence "Nixzmary's Law," which charges parents of children who have died as a result of abuse with first-degree murder.

During the trial, Santiago sometimes broke down into tears when prosecutors showed photos of Nixzmary's bruised corpse, even remarking, "This is messed up."

The jurors also heard testimony from an ACS worker how Santiago kept the remains of a miscarriage of hers in a jar. Santiago told Child Welfare Specialist Vanessa Rhoden that she kept the remains because "once she saw the baby's eyes, she couldn't let it go."

Santiago has five other children. Gonzalez is seeking their custody.

Republicans use Obama's picture on food stamp???

The Chaffey Community Republican Women sent out a newsletter that featured a qoute that read " If Obama is elected his image will appear on food stamps -- instead of dollar bills like other presidents. The statement is followed by an illustration of "Obama Bucks" -- a phony $10 bill featuring Obama's face on a donkey's body, labeled "United States Food Stamps."

The groups president Diane Fedele says she doesn't thinks it's racist although Obama's picture is surrounded by watermelon, Kool Aid, and ribs. What's sad is that it took that picture for a black member of the group to realize why the GOP has such a hard time recruiting African Americans.
Read the story and see the food stamp here:

http://www.letstalkhonestly.com/blacknewsblackviews.html

Media Declines To Challenge McCain's Evidence-Free ACORN Charge

Media Declines To Challenge McCain's Evidence-Free ACORN Charge - NewsCloud.com

In last night's debate, John McCain claimed that ACORN "is now on the verge of maybe perpetrating one of the greatest frauds in voter history in this country, maybe destroying the fabric of democracy."

That's quite an allegation against a group that's working to register low-income voters. You'd hope that the media would ask McCain's campaign for some evidence for the claim, or at least note that the candidate himself didn't offer any. Or that moderator Bob Schieffer would have followed up in real time.

You'd be disappointed, of course. Reporters were too distracted by Joe the Plumber to pay much attention to McCain's hyperbolic accusation.

Of course, McCain had essentially no backing whatsoever for his claim. As TPMmuckraker and others have pointed out, there's virtually no evidence that fraudulent registration forms of the type erroneously submitted by ACORN in their thousands in some states ever turn into fraudulent votes.

McCain uses term ‘tar baby’

McCain uses term ‘tar baby’ - John McCain News- msnbc.com

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - Republican presidential contender John McCain on Friday used the term "tar baby," considered by some a racial epithet, and later said he regretted it.

Answering questions at a town hall meeting, the Arizona senator was discussing federal involvement in custody cases when he said, "For me to stand here and ... say I'm going to declare divorces invalid because of someone who feels they weren't treated fairly in court, we are getting into a tar baby of enormous proportions and I don't know how you get out of that."

After the event, McCain told reporters: "I don't think I should have used that word and I was wrong to do so."

Singlaub is McCain’s Ayers...Where is the neo-con backlash??

Dems hope Singlaub is McCain’s Ayers - Kenneth P. Vogel and Cecile Dehesdin - Politico.com

Since the mid-1980s, there’s been almost no attention paid to John McCain’s long-ago association with a controversial group implicated in a secretive plot to supply arms to Nicaraguan militia groups during the Iran-Contra affair.

But now, with the Republican presidential candidate stepping up his negative blitz against Democratic opponent Barack Obama, some Democrats are hoping that the group — the U.S. Council for World Freedom, and its founder, John Singlaub — will become for McCain what Bill Ayers has become for Obama: a fleeting past association used as ammunition for political broadsides.

Over the past few days, a handful of Obama allies — none directly associated with his campaign — have called attention to McCain’s ties to the council to rebut the McCain campaign’s increasing focus on Obama’s ties to Ayers, a founder of the 1960s radical Weather Underground.

“This guilt by association path is going to be trouble ultimately for the McCain campaign,” Democratic strategist Paul Begala said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “John McCain sat on the board of a very right-wing organization; it was the U.S. Council for World Freedom. It was chaired by a guy named John Singlaub, who wound up involved in the Iran-Contra scandal. It was an ultraconservative, right-wing group.”

Palin Rally: "Kill Him" Yelled Again

Palin Rally: "Kill Him" Yelled Again

Via Politico, The Scranton Times reports another threat against Barack Obama at a Sarah Palin rally Tuesday:

Chris Hackett addressed the increasingly feisty crowd as they await the arrival of Gov. Palin.
Each time the Republican candidate for the seat in the 10th Congressional District mentioned Barack Obama the crowd booed loudly.

One man screamed "kill him!" At previous rallies, McCain-Palin supporters have shouted "Kill Him!" as well as "Treason!" "Terrorist!" and "Off With His Head!"

"We were really disappointed when an Alaska Native wasn't appointed," said Kookesh, a Tlingit Indian who held the job in a previous administration.

Palin's Rural Adviser Quits Over Native Record

JUNEAU, Alaska — Gov. Sarah Palin's rural adviser resigned Monday amid criticism of the governor's record on hiring Alaska Natives.

Rhonda McBride, who is not an Alaska Native, made the announcement in an e-mail to several Native leaders, saying there need to be more Native voices in Palin's administration.

"I definitely think it would help to have an Alaska Native in this position," McBride told The Associated Press.

Many Alaska Natives have said they felt neglected when Palin, now the Republican vice presidential nominee, made appointments to her administration, including the rural adviser post.

State Sen. Al Kookesh, a Democrat, said Palin left the position unfilled her first year in office and ignored Native leaders' suggestions on the selection process.

"We were really disappointed when an Alaska Native wasn't appointed," said Kookesh, a Tlingit Indian who held the job in a previous administration.

Natives bristled early in Palin's administration when she named a white woman to a game board seat held by a Native for more than 25 years. An Athabascan Indian eventually was named to the post after protests.

Jesse Jackson causing more trouble for Obama

It's obvious that Jesse Jackson didn't get the one sentence memo that Al Sharpton, Jeremiah Wright, and Louis Farrakhan got. You know the one that read, "Shut the !@#$ up until November 5th!"

Jesse Jackson has made what can be considered anti-semitic remarks in a print interview and then said that while he is not part of the Obama campaign that Obama is "part of the family" Read the entire article and interview by clicking the link below:

http://www.letstalkhonestly.com/blacknewsblackviews.html

CALL FOR HELP! SUPPORT BARRIERE LAKE ALGONQUINS AGAINST QUEBEC POLICE ATTACKS, ARRESTS, BEATINGS, HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES

Indigenist Intelligence Review

Article by Mohawk Nation News
Photos: Barriere Lake community

Oct. 12, 2008. On Monday, October 6, 2008, the Algonquins of Barriere Lake had enough and blocked Highway 117 in Northern Quebec. They want Canada and Quebec to live up to the "trilateral agreement" signed in 1991 between the 3 parties. The Algonquins have a right to sustainably develop and co-manage their traditional territories and to have a share in resource revenues. Canada and Quebec obviously believe in stealing but not sharing. Isn't that the "slippery slope" that multinational corporations are sliding into right now? They refuse to comply with the agreement which would save the environment.

Rotten to the core, Canada and Quebec responded to the blocked road by sending in almost 100 Quebec police, some fully-equipped riot police, to attack the Algonquins to get out of negotiations. Tear gas was shot into a group of youth and elders. One canister hit a handicapped person in the chest. Nine people, including; an elderly women, a pregnant woman, and two minors, were arrested. Severe "pain compliance" techniques were used on peaceful men, women and children who had secured themselves to concrete-filled barrels. The cops twisted their arms, dislocated their jaws, left them with bruised faces and sore necks and throats from the tear gas.

The Algonquins of Barriere Lake intend to demonstrate until Canada's Conservative government and Quebec honor signed agreements and Barriere Lake's leadership customs.

Allies and supporters are needed as witnesses. From Montreal: Take #15 North to St. Jerome where it turns into #117; drive north past Mt. Laurier and 1 hour after Grand Remous to LaVerendrye Park; turn right on "#362 km" sign; drive 8 kms to the community of "Rapid Lake". Needed are camping equipment, food, phone cards, cameras; volunteers, equipment and everything necessary for makeshift schools. See contacts at end.

To view the video of the brutal police attack, go to www.barrierelakesolidarity.blogspot.com.

In 1996, Indian Affairs tried to hijack the agreement by sneakily replacing the legitimate chief and council with their outside nominees [sort of creating "New'gonquin appointees] to stop the agreement.

Algonquins, who are not part of the colony of Canada, do not come under the Indian Act. Elders nominate eligible leaders who are then approved, by consensus if possible, in assemblies. Participation is open only to those who live in the community, speak the language, and have knowledge of and connection to the land. Since they rejected the colonial "implants", the majority have been deprived of employment, education and social assistance. Electricity is being run by local generators. The parents of more than half of the children refuse to send them to Indian Affairs funded schools. The reason is because the curriculum, no Indigenous language instruction and no say in the running of the school. Volunteer community members are educating the children. They need school and food supplies. There are no phone lines. They subsist on bush food and donations. This sounds like Kanehsatake. We wouldn't be surprised if the same players are involved in Barriere Lake. See the list of slimy bureaucrats at end of this article.

Smile Precious Erica

Now that the trials are over, I believe ERICA GREEN can look down on us with a big smile -- Remembering Erica with Love - KWH

Racist, Sexist Buffoonery from Arkansas City, Kansas Mayor- SHAME ON YOU!

MAYBE HE AND CHARLES KNIPP CAN GET TOGETHER

THE DEGRADATION OF BLACK WOMEN MUST STOP!!!

Hat tip to BumpShack.com

Arkansas City, Kansas mayor Mel Kuhn found himself amid a heap of controversy after dressing in drag and blackface at a fundraiser for CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates). Mel performed as the character “Smellishis Poon” and actually won the contest. His backup dancers were the “Red Hot Puntangs.”

Mel Kuhn, the Mayor of Arkansas City Kansas, won a beauty pageant fundraiser last weekend. Kuhn participated in the Men in Tights, drag queen contest that has become an annual fund raiser for CASA, Court Appointed Special Advocates. The agency supports foster children in the court system.

Kuhn named his character “Smellishis Poon,” and the name appeared on programs and was announced during the event. He also had back up dancers for the talent portion, and called them his “Red Hot Puntangs.”

After the local NAACP talked with Kuhn he seemed to realize the severity of his actions and issued an apology after initially declining not to.
“It has been brought to my attention how offensive this was and I absolutely agree that it was shortsighted of me not to see that in the first place. I am sincerely sorry and I sincerely apologize for the offensive nature of my actions. This was not CASA, this was of my own volition, and I take full responsibility for my actions. The buck absolutely stops here”. - Mayor Mell H. Kuhn

Mayor Kuhn used extremely bad judgment even if it was for charity. He initially said he was in tan face not black face. Either way he should have been smart enough to know how it would be perceived. Even if he didn’t mean anything racial he should have been more mature than to use the names “Smellishis Poon” and “Red Hot Puntangs” which are dirty and vulgar. They remind me of names frat boys would have used during a skit in college.

Kuhn seems sincerely apologetic and has agreed to more meetings with the Wichita NAACP to ease feelings and talk about working on race relations in the are. Sometimes people are naive and not racist and other times people are just racist. Maybe Kuhn can use this as a good thing and work with the NAACP to truly help race relations there in Arkansas City.

Ward Connerly and Ignorance

Right-wing's darling Ward Connerly has made a name for himself in opposing racial preferences in California back in 1997. He allied himself with the most right-wing, racist, most backward groups in America. The biggest irony is that many of those same right-wing groups snub him. So he became a better self-hating bigot by selling out people of color, being anti-immigrant, and blaming people of color for their problems, not institutional racism.

The thing is that his one-time ally against racial preferences, Mr. Wood, was against Connerly's proposal to abolish racial categories in California. Mr. Wood, a longtime opponent of affirmative action, disagree. He thinks racial profiling college applicants is a good thing.

A lot of his white conservative base oppose intermarriage between Blacks and nonblacks. Ward Connerly doesn't get it. When he told his white audience that he's Irish, French, and American Indian, they laughed at him. So much for pleasing the right wing, eh.

Ward Connerly to me is worse than Clarence Thomas. With Clarence Thomas, what you see is what you get. As for Connerly, he's too secretive and sly. And his white right-wingers and Republicans neither respect nor liked him period.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kristina-wilfore/ward-connerly-cashes-in-p_b_126806.html

Follow the Money

Follow the Money behind Ward Connerly's divisive campaign to outlaw equal opportunity programs.

Voter Fraud

Ward Connerly campaign to outlaw eqaul opportunity programs has left a trail of voter fraud and deception.

Ward Connerly Exposed!

I found this article at an Open Left website. It basically exposed Ward Connerly's dubious financial dealings and his efforts at derailing affirmative action in various states around the nation.

Here's a link exposing his dubious financial practices:

http://www.bigmoneyconnerly.org/

The Great Black Vote