Town Hall on BART Filing, Orloff Recall, & Caravan for Justice II, Oakland, 4/4/09: audio

(audio 21:18)

Keith Muhammad speaks about the BART filing, police chiefs that tend to cover-up the brutality of their officers, and the fact that cities across the U.S. pay tens of millions of dollars in taxpayer dollars due to police misconduct cases yet extremely rarely are chiefs or officers disciplined in any way. He goes on to discuss the fact that most Oakland police officers live outside of Oakland and how records of police misconduct are hidden from the public.

(audio 8:59)

Zachary Carey speaks about the challenges and moving goal posts involved in the effort to recall Alameda County District Attorney Tom Orloff.

(audio 46:44)

After a community member speaks to the need for commitment in the fight against injustice, Keith Muhammad addresses to continuous calls for more police rather than improving services to the community. For instance, Oakland wasted $27 million on 64 so-called "problem solving officers" who have not solved any problems as an upcoming report will show. Police and politicians draw lines in the sand and it is the responsibility of the community to draw the moral line in the sand. He spoke to the double-standards with Oakland police rushing Lovelle Mixon yet Pittsburg, PA police recently waited hours for a shooter who had killed three officers to surrender, and how Lovelle Mixon was called a devil at the OPD funeral yet the Pittsburg shooter was sympathetically called a "troubled" man. And in Oakland, Mayor Dellums was disinvited from the OPD funeral -- leaving open the question if the same would have happened if Jerry Brown were still mayor. Also, despite the fact that Dellums and dozens of other city officials fell over themselves to show sympathy for the officers lost recently, most of them have never even mentioned Oscar Grant. He speaks of the mission of the Caravan for Justice II, which is to pressure state legislators to repeal or reform laws that unjustly target communities of color in California. He closes with words on the complete lack of sympathy for the Mixon family and the demonizing of anyone who did show sympathy for their loss.

(audio 11:54)

Bobby Johnson speaks about the hardships the family has faced with the loss of Oscar Grant and fears that justice will not be served. But the Town Halls and community support help them carry on.

(audio 12:28)

Joseph Anderson discusses a recent pieces written by him and Douglas Allen-Taylor for the Berkeley Daily Planet (http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com) and Krystof speaks of confronting the ongoing bad behavior of BART at the upcoming BART board meeting on April 9th (http://nojusticenobart.blogspot.com).

(audio 22:30)

Minister Christopher Muhammad speaks about the uphill battle for justice and the offensive claims of BART in their recent lawsuit court filing in which they said BART officers had to defend themselves against a dangerous Oscar Grant. BART has no intention of doing the right thing and if there had been no videotape they would have completely gotten away with covering up the murder. Oscar Grant's blood is equal to the blood of the police officers killed recently. He too speaks of the upcoming Caravan for Justice II and the dire need for the community to organize and stand up to fight for the long-range struggle for justice. He speaks of the growing movement being built by black and brown people, along with progressive whites, to fight racism and legalized injustices. "We ain't gonna let nobody turn us around. All roads lead to Sacramento."

A woman speaks at about 17 minutes into this clip about Fresno's efforts to fight police brutality and community efforts to fight toxins in Bayview-Hunters Point in San Francisco. Another speaks about the importance of showing up at every City Council meeting to fight the criminalization of Oakland youth.

(audio 12:46)

Diana Davis-Marks speaks of her god Justice, and Pastor Gordon Humphreys closes the Town Hall with a prayer.