"I think that George Bush’s presence is really an insult to me and people who do not believe in non-violence.” ~MLK Footsoldier #DianeNash on #Selma50

 You are doing a "Heck of a job" Terri

No More Mister Nice Blog: ON THE 50TH SELMA ANNIVERSARY, RIGHTIES PAUSE TO REMEMBER THE REAL VICTIMS: GEORGE AND LAURA BUSH

Enabled by none other than the lone  democratic (and I use that term loosely) member of the  Alabama Congressional delegation,  Terri Sewell.  I weep for the residents of the 7th Congressional District.  Really, I do.

My worst fear has come to past. Republicans, enabled by the media (again) and the neo liberals (again) bought and paid for the only African American seat in congress (again). I'm sure they are patting themselves on the back and high fiving their "victory" this morning, but this is wrong on so many levels. For one thing it proves it's not about the people, it's about the money, the power and the influence. It's proof the residents of the 7th district didn't get to decide who represents them in congress (again).

I have more respect for the GOP Lawmakers that didn't attend than I do for the GOP Lawmakers  that did attend.  There is more than a whiff of hypocrisy.

Talking Points Memo:  In Selma, GOP Lawmakers  Explain Why They Don't Support John Lewis To Restore Voting Rights Act

The U.S. has not made progress on race relations under President Obama, said Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), the first African-American senator from the South since Reconstruction.

So much for HOPE for CHANGE we can BELIEVE in.

RedEye's #Selma50 Roundup

KKK trying to reach new ppl during the 50th celebrations. Residents tell me this was on their door step this morning pic.twitter.com/ZmwfwkqZ0K
— ashley thompson (@ashleythompTV) March 8, 2015

Just this week, I was asked whether I thought the Department of Justice’s Ferguson report shows that, with respect to race, little has changed in this country. I understand the question, for the report’s narrative was woefully familiar. It evoked the kind of abuse and disregard for citizens that spawned the Civil Rights Movement. But I rejected the notion that nothing’s changed. What happened in Ferguson may not be unique, but it’s no longer endemic, or sanctioned by law and custom; and before the Civil Rights Movement, it most surely was. ~President Barack Hussein Obama 

#Selma50  We Must Honor Selma Foot Soldiers by Repairing What They Fought For  https://t.co/S7c4mjbGIg via @aclu pic.twitter.com/KekqxaG8Cz
— The Crisis Magazine (@thecrisismag) March 8, 2015

 Meet the New Jim Crow.

Fifty years ago, African-Americans were kept from the polls by the threat of beatings and lynchings. Today, Jim Crow has traded in his white sheets for spreadsheets. He’s Dr. James Crow, systems analyst. His method is lynching by laptop.

Diane Nash refused to march in #Selma50 because George Bush

Update~#Justice for All on TeeVee, in real life... not so much #FergusonReport #Scandal #BlackLivesMatter

In the end, we went with showing what fulfilling the dream SHOULD mean. The idea of possibility.  And the despair we feel now. #scandal
— shonda rhimes (@shondarhimes) March 6, 2015

Isn't it ironic  night's episode of #Scandal addressed institutional racism and police brutality shortly after the release of the #FergusonReport?

Thursday night's "Scandal" focused on the shooting of an unarmed black teen named Brandon Parker in Washington, D.C., less than two miles from the White House. In the episode, called "The Lawn Chair," tensions run high as the boy's father positions himself in front of his son's body with a shotgun, refusing to move from the crime scene. Mere days after being held hostage and auctioned on the black market, Olivia Pope is brought on the help the police force manage the incident. She works to avoid a riot, but soon finds herself disillusioned by the people she is defending.
It doesn't take long for Liv to be swayed by the injustice, and she joins forces with the activist leading the crowd surrounding Brandon and his father Clarence. "Stand up. Fight back. No more black men under attack," she chants.

Did I mention this was TeeVee and not real life?  We all know in real life Oliva Pope would not join forces with the other side.   In real life the people who are part of the problem are asked to help solve it.

While Ms. Twitty was terminated, her involvement in the emails and their wide distribution illustrate how difficult fixing the Ferguson Police Department and municipal court will be when many city officials led, participated in or tolerated the most controversial practices uncovered by the Justice Department. Those city employees include the police chief who authorized arrests without probable cause; the municipal judge who adds new charges when people contest their citations, yet quietly got his own traffic ticket wiped away; and the city manager who was the force behind the financially driven policies that led to widespread discrimination.

What could possibly go wrong with people who are part of the problem fixing the problem? I mean, really?

Through her usual super-human powers, Liv is able to prove the knife did not belong to Brandon -- it was evidence from an earlier arrest; Brandon was just reaching for a receipt -- and puts the offending office behind bars. "What the hell is it with you people? Yeah, you people," the (unabashedly racist) policeman who shot Brandon yells at Olivia when she confronts him at the station. "You people have no idea what loyalty is, what respect is. You're here because you were supposed to help us and you spend every second of it trying to tear me down and push your own damn agenda." It's a sobering moment where the camera finds the black officers in the room, focusing on each of their faces as the cop spews his racist agenda.
During the final moments of the episode, Nina Simone plays in the background and Liv tells Clarence the officer is behind bars. Justice is served. She then brings him to the White House and the episode closes with Clarence crying in President Fitz's arms. A final shot shows Brandon being zipped into a body bag.

Did I mention this we TeeVee and not real life?  Everybody knows in real life Liv wouldn't have been able to prove the victim was not to blame for their own death.  Everybody knows in real life the Attorney General and the President of the United States of America would make sure Justice is served.

Last night's episode was deep.  Thank you #ShondaRhimes for bringing this topic to light, now if we could only apply it to real life and fulfill what the dream should mean.  

President Obama on Friday defended the Department of Justice's (DOJ) conclusion that there was insufficient evidence to bring civil rights charges against Darren Wilson, the white police officer who shot dead Michael Brown, an unarmed black man, in Ferguson, Mo., in August 2014.
Obama said during a town hall in South Carolina that he had "complete confidence and [stood] fully behind" the DOJ's decision regarding Wilson, whom said he killed Brown in self defense.
"We may never know exactly what happened, but Officer Wilson — like anyone else who is charged with a crime — benefits from due process and a reasonable-doubt standard," Obama said, fielding a question about why the DOJ didn't charge Wilson.

But I’m sure by next week, all will be back to normal in Hollywood


#BlackLivesMatter

#FergusonReport shows tax dollars are being used to arm racist police departments. What could possibly go wrong?

Bloody Sunday for the Selma to Montgomery March was 50 years ago next weekend:         #SpiderMartin pic.twitter.com/54LhIE7MZJ
— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) March 1, 2015

 It's not just Ferguson 

The problem is bigger than Ferguson.

The Ferguson Report  validates our outrage.

Read it and weep.

Know Justice.

Know Peace.

So, the #FergusonPD is a bastion of #racism but #DarrenWilson won't face Civil Rights charges.... Oh, OK #DOJ (RedEye Roll)

Justice report: ‘It’s not going to stop nothing’ http://t.co/xJDH4ApPep  pic.twitter.com/EBAUmbvqUx #DarrenWilson #MichaelBrown #FergusonReport
— Red Eye (@RedEyesPage) March 4, 2015

Just like last week's decision not to charge #GeorgeZimmerman in the death of #TrayvonMartin,  the decision not to file Civil Rights Charges against #DarrenWilson in the death of #MikeBrown comes as no surprise.

"In the end no action is ever taken that brings justice to black people."

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere except the United States of America.

#FergusonReport