1. law, govt and politics
2. legal issues
3. civil rights

Volume IV Issue XII
Compliments of WCLM Radio1450AM
Dec. 2012/January 2013
FREE!
What a way to end 2012!
Reva Trammell beats Richmond City Democratic Committee hit list!
Senator Henry Marsh spends $250,000 to get re-elected & now being sued for 5 Million
Dr.Kim Allen elected President of Richmond NAACP with 17 votes
Reva Trammell’s name was included when certain Black leaders said there were too many Whites on City Council. It was further indicated
that anyone who questioned the Mayor would be placed on the Richmond City Democratic Committee’s hit list. The people of the 8th District came
out in large numbers in support of Reva Trammell. Trammell can be compare to Mayor Marion Barry in Washington D.C. in his heyday. Reva works
hard in her district and it showed on Election Day when the majority of voters decided not to follow the Richmond Democratic Committee but voted
for what’s best for the community. The committee did get some of their choices through the defeat of Doug Conner, Marty Jewell and Bruce Tyler.
When Bruce Tyler and Marty Jewell were focused on getting rid of Doug Conner, it aided the committee in getting all three defeated. Kathy Graziano
was on the hit list but was saved by Mayor Dwight Jones’ endorsement.
Senator Henry Marsh fought off biggest challenge of his career to get re-elected to his Senate seat. Now several past clients have filed
complaints including Mrs. Alzena Mayfield of Petersburg who has filed a Professional Negligence lawsuit for 5 million dollars.
Dr. Kim Allen becomes the President of the 800 member Richmond Branch NAACP; we hope with her resources she can bring new energy
to the Richmond Branch NAACP. With three people running and only 31 people voting in this election its shows membership has lost interest.
Heart & Soul Newspaper. Its officers, employees, and agents disclaim all warranties, expressed or implied, in connection with the articles printed and reprinted. Heart & Soul of the City Newspaper makes no claims or
representations about accuracy or completeness of the information printed, or for any cause of action related to any content in this paper. This paper is for entertainment purposes. All information printed with permission.
As we reach the end of 2012, let me first thank
all of our faithful listeners and readers for your
support over the past year. A recent survey
revealed that most Americans didn't give 2012
a good rating, but have higher hopes for 2013.
I share that hope and look forward to the
opportunities as well as the challenges that lie
ahead in 2013.
On behalf of all of us at Tanya Free and
Friends Radio and Freedom Marketing, I wish
you a peaceful and blessed holiday season
and a prosperous 2013!
I invite you to join the conversation on the new Tanya Free and Friends Talk Show every Wednesday at 2:00 pm on the Heart and Soul of the
City, WCLM 1450AM. Check out the fully interactive TanyaFree.com. Stay in touch, give me feedback, share your requests and concerns on my
blog, respond to my question of the week on Mondays, and tell me what’s on your mind for Wassup? Thursdays, stay in the know with
Headline News from Reuters and listen to the Best of the Tanya Free Experience Destination Jazz and Tanya’s Tips 24/7 at TanyaFree.com.
Dr. Lenoard Edloe Health Tips for the month!
Persons with diabetes should keep their blood sugar (also called blood glucose) at a healthy level to prevent or
slow down diabetes problems. Ask your doctor or diabetes teacher what a healthy blood sugar level is for you.

Your blood sugar can get too high if you eat too much. If your blood sugar becomes too high, you
can get sick.

Your blood sugar can also go too high if you do not take the right amount of diabetes medicine.

If your blood sugar stays high, especially for prolonged periods of time, you can get diabetes
problems. Problems that can occur include injury to the heart, eye, foot, kidney, and other problems.

You can also get sick if your blood sugar becomes too low.
How Can I Keep My Blood Sugar at a Healthy Level?

Eat about the same amounts of food each day.

Eat your meals and snacks at about the same times each day.

Do not skip meals or snacks.

Take your medicines at the same times each day.

Exercise at about the same times each day.
Why Should I Eat About the Same Amount Each Day?

The food you eat turns into sugar and travels to your blood. This is called blood sugar. Your blood
sugar goes up after you eat.
 Keep your blood sugar at a healthy level by eating about the same amounts of food at about the same times each day.
 Your blood sugar will not stay at a healthy level if you eat a big lunch one day and a small lunch the next day.
Why Should I Eat at About the Same Times Each Day?
 Eating at about the same times each day helps you keep your blood sugar from getting too high or too low.
 Eating at about the same times each day also helps your diabetes medicine keep your blood sugar at a healthy level.
What Times Should I Take My Diabetes Medicines?
 Talk with your doctor or diabetes teacher about the best times to take your diabetes medicines. Fill in the names of your diabetes
medicines, when you should take them, and how much you should take.
Here are some hints:
 Diabetes pills: Take these before you eat.
 Regular, NPH, or Lente insulin: Take this 30 minutes before you eat.
 Humalog insulin lispro: Take this just before you eat.
Points To Remember
The food you eat makes your blood sugar go up. Diabetes medicines make your blood sugar go down. Together, when each is taken properly,
they help you keep your blood sugar at the healthy level.
That's why you should:
 Eat about the same amounts of food each day.
 Eat your meals and snacks at about the same times each day.
 Try not to skip meals and snacks.
 Take your diabetes medicines at about the same times each day.
 Exercise at about the same times each day.
Keeping your blood sugar at a healthy level every day can helps you to prevent diabetes problems.
Tune in to “What’s going on” with Dr. Edloe every
Thursday Morning at 9am on WCLM Radio 1450AM
and on the worldwide internet at www.wclmradioonline.com
If you miss the show, the show is re-broadcast Sunday night at 6PM
How Banks are cheating us with overdraft fees!
Are you thinking of signing up for "courtesy" overdraft protection linked to your debit card? Think about this first. Those fees are
protection, all right -- a protection racket. A federal district judge, who examined the way the giant bank, Wells Fargo, handles debits,
called the practice "gouging and profiteering." Banks and credit unions can no longer charge you overdraft fees automatically. You have
to opt-in to this spurious form of protection, by saying that you agree to the charges. Many banks are running misleading marketing
campaigns in an attempt to get you to say yes. Say no. Please say no. There's a multi-billion-dollar loophole in the rules, which the banks
are driving deceptive overdraft practices through. The Federal Reserve, which allegedly looks after consumers, kowtowed to the banks
and let the loophole stand. It took Judge William Alsup in a San Francisco courtroom, to lay bare the fraud to the public eye. When you
use a debit card -- for a purchase or to get cash from an ATM -- you're withdrawing money directly from your account. If you're on an
automatic overdraft program, your bank will cover debits that exceed your cash on hand, up to certain limits. You're charged a median of
$27 each time you overdraw ($35 at big banks) -- even if you were over by just $1 or $5. If you don't repay within a few days, you're
charged another $7 to $35.
When you're not in an overdraft program and try to overspend, the bank won't allow it. Your purchase or ATM withdrawal will be denied.
That sounds bad but it's actually good, because it helps you develop a better budget. You might think it's okay to pay a $35 fee, to avoid
the embarrassment of having your debit card declined in a grocery line. But one fee rapidly turns into multiple fees, if you're living
paycheck to paycheck or on Social Security, with no cash cushion on your account. Once you're in overdraft, the bank has you in its
clutches. It can engineer its payment systems to squeeze you for more charges than you ought to pay. Two years ago, some of Wells
Fargo's squeezed customers decided to sue. Wells, like many other banks, doesn't debit your account in the order the charges arrive.
Instead, it accumulates them all day and then posts them in order of size, paying the biggest one first.
For example, say that you have one large utility payment plus six $5 to $10 debits, and not enough money to pay them all. If the bank
covered the small ones first, you'd get a single overdraft charge when it reached the utility bill. By paying the large bill first, however, the
bank forces your account to run out of money faster. More of your small charges turn into overdrafts, at $35 a pop. Even if you faithfully
make a note every time you debit for coffee and donuts, you'll be caught. There's no way to tell that your balance will deplete at a faster
rate than it shows in your check register. Wells Fargo has another trick. Formerly, it covered all your debits first, then all your checks,
then all your automated bill payments. In 2001, however, it started grouping those payments together -- again, paying the largest first.
Written checks and automated payments tend to be larger than debits. They use up customers' money faster, which automatically raises
the number of overdrafts for small purchases.
In internal memos, Banks predicted that the new payment order -- unknown to its customers -- would yield an additional $40 million in
revenues. As an example, one of the plaintiffs paid $111.59 in overdraft fees for overdrawing her account by $23.59. Banks
generally pay third parties to run their overdraft systems, typically paying them 10 to 20 percent of the fees they generate. The more they
hammer the customers, the more money they make. The banking industry argues that people want their largest checks or debits paid first
because they're the most important ones. During the trial, Well Fargo alluded to a 1998 survey by Norwest Bank which supposedly proved
the point. But the survey was never produced -- an "utter phantom," the judge said, "invented merely for public consumption." Besides, in
an overdraft program nothing usually bounces, so the argument has no point. What was produced in court were hundreds of customer
complaints about cascades of overdraft fees.
In finding against the bank, the judge ordered Wells Fargo to pay the California plaintiffs up to $203 million. In a statement, Wells called
its method of processing transactions "appropriate and consistent with customers' interests and the laws and rules of governing regulatory
authorities." The bank appealed. In the meantime, what the judge called "gouging" will continue as usual. Thirty banks have been sued in
Florida, for similar practices. So far, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is the only federal regulator to have addressed this form
of bank robbery. A "guidance" issued to the 1,171 banks it supervises "discourages" them from paying the largest debit first. It also wants
banks to tell customers that there are cheaper ways of getting overdraft protection, such as setting up a link to a savings account or
personal credit line.
Letter from an Inmate Richmond City Jail …..
To whom this may concern:
My name is Keycha A Vaughn, I am writing this letter in prayer that someone will hear my cry out for help. I was reading you all’s
newspaper and decided to write. Unaware if my story is gona go unheard, pushed under, some other paperwork, or just swept under a
rug. I’ve done a many things in my life and take full responsibility for my actions when I’ve done something wrong. I haven’t been in
trouble in 10 years. I am currently being held at the Richmond City Jail. And for the life of me, I still don’t understand why. I’ve been
here sense Sept 27, 2012 on a possession charge. I was giving 5 years with 2 suspended by a Circuit Court Judge name Cavedo at the
John Marshall Court building 3rd floor courtroom 302 or 303. I caught my charges in May of 2011 for traffic. On May 17 th 2011 I was
arrested on Hit & Run, DUI, Driving on suspended. I was giving a sobriety test which I blew 0.2 under the level of being drunk.
On June 22nd which was my first court date. The arresting police bought a witness forward stating the witness saw me hit a vehicle and
leave the scene. While doing the testimony the witness stated it wasn’t me he saw so that charge was dismissed which was the hit & run.
Which left me to deal with the DUI & Driving on Suspended. Court was then put off until July 27, 2012 down in traffic. When July 27,
2012 came while going to court for traffic the Police have now cooked up a new charge which came from out of nowhere. I guess due to
the hit & run not sticking they must have looked back in my past and saw at one point of time in my life I had a drug problem but my
choice of drugs was crack-cocaine. I’ve been clean sense 2004 now living life on life terms. I was a working woman, mother, and wife. I
was paying taxes. While going to court for traffic July 27, 2012 I was indicted on a possession of heroin charge the Judge stated a
plastic bag was found in the vehicle that had residue that tested positive for heroin the vehicle wasn’t mine or in my name. Everything
was certified to high court in John Marshall 3rd floor. Commonwealth tried to offer me a plea 3 years with 3years suspended. At the time
I had a public defender, whom wanted me to take the plea which I denied. Because I did not have any drugs on me. I was never charged
the night of the arrest with the possession charge why I don’t know if I was supposed to have drugs on me the proper procure would have
been to charge me right then. The police wait 2 months later to charge me. Three years of my life has been taken from me because of me
not taken a plea. I haven’t been in any trouble for the past 10 to 11 years. By the time the case made it to high court the police were
saying that the drugs were found in my right back pocket, which was even more reason for me to fight this case. The public defender was
trying to trade me off to the commonwealth.
My husband as well as myself decided to go for a paid lawyer John McCarvey. We were told by McCarvey that he could beat the case
and that was our reason for paying him money that we did not have but if that was gonna prove my innocence we did what we had to do.
I feel like John McCarvey have taken our money, moneys we truly didn’t have 2 thousand dollars is a lot of money to give someone and
still end up in jail. I’m waiting on an appeal now he’s asking my husband for more money. My husband had a stroke in 2009 he’s on a
fixed income not to mention he’s taken care of our 2 daughters. The oldest is 14 years and the youngest is 5 years old. I sit here with a
lump in my throat and my eyes full of tears. Thinking how the system is so corrupt and get away with anything everything to get this case
back in court my husband and myself but we need some “help” “ In the name of Jesus Please help us” I truly didn’t do what I’m being
accused of. For once in my life I am truly innocent. I’m in pray that maybe putting my situation out to the public it could shine some light
and the truth could be bought into the light. I wasn’t sentence because of the crime I’m being charged for. I was sentence because of my
past record. I can’t change my pastor take it back my past is my past. And it hurts that I was taken from my family and friends due to the
bypass of the law. My husband’s name is Jacob Higgs (804) 201-1987. He has a lot of information. I want to thank you for taken the time
out to read my letter. I’m in prayer that my letter will n ot go unanswered nor the phone call to my husband.
Thank you
Keycha Vaughn
5  The Heart & Soul Dec./Jan.
Many are called, but few are chosen…Tyrone Richardson a.k.a. G2S is definitely one of
God’s chosen vessels. G2S (Goon 2 Saint) was born July 18, 1983 in Harlem, New York but
spent most of his childhood between Richmond, VA and Bronx, NY. He is the oldest of three
children; he has one brother and one sister. He attended the Chesterfield County Public School
system. He began to get into trouble at an early age which led to him selling drugs while in the
7th grade and even joining a gang. G2S has found himself arrested numerous times for things
such as gun possession, assault and disorderly conduct. While incarcerated, he was introduced
to the word of God. He began studying the Bible and attending church and even gave his life
over to God while incarcerated.
Upon being released, he was led to attend the New Deliverance Tabernacle, under the leadership
of Pastor Vincent L. Mendenhall, where he has been a faithful member for the last three years.
Within those three years, he has been led to express the word of God through Christian rap and
has performed at numerous places. Some of which being the Trinity New Life Center, Second
Baptist Church’s Annual Block Party and the Star of Faith Church. He has also been
interviewed on WCLM Radio and on the Starmaker TV Show. He has a praise mix tape out and
is currently working on the second one. If you want to invite G2S to your next event e-mail him at [email protected].
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Season Greetings from Edward Jones Masonic Lodge #324
6 The Heart & Soul  December 2012
THE SHADOW KNOWS ALL AND TELLS SOME……
Send your news to: The Shadow Knows
3165 Hull Street Richmond, VA 23224
All news sources are kept confidential.
To all concerned people elected and otherwise.
Conferring only with entities that have not a clue as to how our Black people and their firms are included in the procurement process is
downright disrespectful. The BBAVA has the largest and most prolific concentration of skill Trades in the state of Virginia as well as
Richmond -Metro. Our collective Bonding Power is in excess of $110 Million. Our Credit Rating is A+. Our combined 275 years of
experience far exceeds any and all Special Interest Groups through-out this region. We have been practitioners of FORBEARANCE far
to long and the time has arrived where this practice ceases to be a virtue.
Economically our firms continue to suffer due in part to the collective efforts of those we have chosen to lead us. As President of this
organization I suggest that all of you confer with our Administrative Officials, trained, and skilled firms as well. We have asked but not
received a fair economic playing field.
We want to thank Mr. Byron Marshall and a few others for at least meeting with our folks to open a dialogue toward effective diversity
inclusion. However, obstacles that were put in place by former and current governing bodies continue to do their job...2% of procurement
dollars to MBES but 98% of procurement dollars to the status quo. For those of you who seek an out of having to deal with BBAVA,
simply do what you have been doing folks and I will assure you that we will know your collective intent.
A. Hugo Bowers, President
BBAVA
(804) 641-3554 office
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7  The Heart & Soul  Dec./ Jan
Six Things All Men Should Do to Beat Prostate Cancer
An interview with health educator Troy Duell about battling the No. 1 threat for men
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cancer is the 2nd leading cause of death for men and women.
Statistics show that cancer, in men, most often begins when abnormal cells form on the walnut-sized prostate gland, located in their lower
abdomen, and then begin to multiply out of control, often spreading to other parts of the body. Luckily, when this type of cancer
develops, it is more than 90 percent treatable. But is there a way to halt the cancerous progression -- before it begins?
According to Troy Duell, a health educator for Centurion Labs, studies show that by making certain lifestyle and dietary changes, men can
radically improve the health of their prostate and not only greatly reduce the risk of abnormal cell growth but also reduce the likelihood
and severity of prostate infections (prostatitis) and swelling (benign prostatic hypertrophy, or BPH). Duell coordinated a team of
scientists who analyzed available medical literature to isolate the most effective things men can do promote healthy prostate function.
Here's what the research team found:
1. Drink Less Beer
Beer is an especially bad choice of alcohol, as it contains live yeast that can actually take up residence in the prostate and grow and
multiply there.
2. Eat Prostate-Friendly Foods
Foods containing zinc are great: chocolate, peanuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower oil, sesame oil and meats,
such as veal, liver, low-fat roast beef and lamb. Omega-3 fatty acids in linseed oil, wheat germ and fish oil help control cholesterol, which
is a big enemy for healthy hormonal exchange. Initial evidence suggests that lycopene, found in tomatoes, may help prevent disease
progression.
3. Avoid Prostate Irritators
such irritators include black tea, coffee, alcohol and greasy foods.
4. Take Prostate Supplements
Here are six minerals and nutrients found in medical literature to be most clinically effective in promoting prostate health:





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Selenium - A trace mineral. Selenium from yeast (SelenoExcell) is now being used in prevention studies by National Cancer
Institute. It is believed that selenium fights diseases, including cancer, by neutralizing free radicals.
Saw Palmetto - Improves urinary flow and other symptoms caused by enlargement of the prostate.
Stinging Nettles - Lowers urinary tract symptoms associated with enlarged prostate.
Beta-sitosterol - A plant sterol proven effective for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) by clinical studies.
Lycopene - Evidence suggests it slows prostate enlargement and cancer development.
Pomegranate Extract - Early studies show promising anti-cancer effects.
5. Exercise Regularly
In addition to increasing oxygen and blood to the prostate, exercising helps reduce fat tissue, which stores toxins that can affect the
prostate. Exercise also helps moderate the glucose level in our bloodstream, which helps prevent the growth of cancerous cells in the
prostate.
6. Exercise Your Reproductive System
A study of 30,000 men at the National Cancer Institute found that men with a healthy love life had a 33 percent lower lifetime risk of
prostate cancer.
Heart & Soul
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9-The Heart & Soul- Dec. / Jan.2013
Swarovski Crystal Jewelry & Accessories
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Open Thursday 2pm-6pm
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(804)-222-8159 store
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Al Benson Jr. Another view of the NAACP…………………………
Although many people have said many things, for and against, about the NAACP over the years, as I
read, one of the things that struck me was the several decades of non-black leadership in the office of
president that the organization had until 1975. I noted previously that the NAACP's first president was
Moorfield Storey, a white Boston lawyer. He was president from 1910 until 1915, only five years. The
next president was Joel Springarn, who was president from 1915 until 1940. Springarn was a wellknown liberal Republican and one of the first Jewish leaders of the NAACP. He was chairman of the
board from 1913 until he died. At that point, his brother Arthur became president and he held onto that
position from 1940-1965. From 1966 until 1975 the president was Kivie Kaplan, a Jewish-American
businessman from Boston. He has been described as "...one of the last in a long line of American Jews
who held a leadership role in African-American civil rights groups." The Niagara Movement
conference which was the basis for the founding of the NAACP had a rather diverse group of people, most of whom were
solidly on the left politically. However, as the NAACP emerged as a result of this conference, it was noted that its leadership
was mostly white and heavily Jewish. DuBois was the only black man on the executive board. The Jewish community greatly contributed to the
founding of the NAACP and continued to finance it. In his book A History of the Jews In America Jewish historian Howard Sachar noted: "In 1914,
Professor Emeritus Joel Springarn of Columbia University became chairman of the NAACP and recruited for its board such Jewish leaders as Jacob
Schiff, Jacob Billikopf, and Rabbi Stephen Wise." Early Jewish American co-founders were Lillian Wald, Rabbi Emil G. Hirsch, Julius Rosenthal and
Rabbi Wise. Jacob Schiff was part of the international banking crowd and Rabbi Wise was a political Zionist. Makes you wonder how many of the rest
might have been political Zionists also. Zionism is a movement that elevates the agenda of national Israel at the expense of everyone else. The thought
occurred to me as I researched some of this, that the makeup of the founders and early officers of the NAACP was even more Jewish than it was black.
If these folks had been interested in founding a group for the stated purpose of helping blacks to elevate themselves I would have thought they could
have come up with a black president for the group before 1975. No one can tell me there were not qualified blacks available before that time. So I have
to wonder what the group's real intent was. When you look at the other people that funded the NAACP besides those who were Jewish, you see people
like those who ran the Garland Fund I previously mentioned, Communists and others on the far left politically. Those people were truly revolutionaries
and had no real interest in black folks except as cannon fodder for their class struggle agendas. It was a great idea to pit blacks and whites against each
other if it forwarded the goals of Communist revolution in this country and drove a wedge between the two groups in our society. I recall DuBois'
glowing commentary regarding the Russian revolution and how Mr. DuBois liked the racial attitudes of the Communists. Surely some of those Jewish
financiers who contributed so heavily to the NAACP had to be aware of at least some of the other leftist funding for the group. They weren't dumb by
any stretch of the imagination. They would have kept track of that sort of thing.
While much of NAACP history is chronicled in books, articles, pamphlets and magazines, the true movement lies in the faces--the diverse multiracial
army of ordinary women and men from every walk of life, race and class--united to awaken the consciousness of a people and a nation. The NAACP
will remain vigilant in its mission until the promise of America is made real for all Americans.
10  The Heart & Soul December 2012
A Look Back into History…………………………
At the end of the American Civil War radical members of Congress attempted to destroy the
white power structure of the Rebel states. The Freeman's Bureau was established by
Congress on 3rd March, 1865. The bureau was designed to protect the interests of former
slaves. This included helping them to find new employment and to improve educational and
health facilities. In the year that followed the bureau spent $17,000,000 establishing 4,000
schools, 100 hospitals and providing homes and food for former slaves. An attempt by
Congress to extend the powers of the Freemen’s Bureau was vetoed by President Andrew
Johnson in February, 1866. In April 1866, Johnson also vetoed the Civil Rights Bill that was
designed to protect freed slaves from Southern Black Codes (laws that placed severe
restrictions on freed slaves such as prohibiting their right to vote, forbidding them to sit on
juries, limiting their right to testify against white men, carrying weapons in public places and working in certain occupations). The
election of 1866 increased the number of Radical Republicans in Congress. The following year Congress passed the first
Reconstruction Act. The South was now divided into five military districts, each under a major general. New elections were to be held in
each state with freed male slaves being allowed to vote. The act also included an amendment that offered readmission to the Southern
states after they had ratified the Fourteenth Amendment and guaranteed adult male suffrage. Johnson immediately vetoed the bill but
Congress re-passed the bill the same day.
The first branch of the Ku Klux Klan was established in Pulaski, Tennessee, in May, 1866. A year later a general organization of local
Klans was established in Nashville in April, 1867. Most of the leaders were former members of the Confederate Army and the first Grand
Wizard was Nathan Forrest, an outstanding general during the American Civil War. During the next two years Klansmen wearing masks,
white cardboard hats and draped in white sheets, tortured and killed black Americans and sympathetic whites. Immigrants, who they
blamed for the election of Radical Republicans, were also targets of their hatred. Between 1868 and 1870 the Ku Klux Klan played an
important role in restoring white rule in North Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia. At first the main objective of white supremacy
organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan, the White Brotherhood, the Men of Justice, the Constitutional Union Guards and the Knights of
the White Camelia was to stop black people from voting. After white governments had been established in the South the Ku Klux Klan
continued to undermine the power of blacks. Successful black businessmen were attacked and any attempt to form black protection groups
such as trade unions was quickly dealt with. Radical Republicans in Congress such as Benjamin Butler urged President Ulysses S.
Grant to take action against the Ku Klux Klan. In 1870 he instigated an investigation into the organization and the following year a Grand
Jury reported that: "There has existed since 1868, in many counties of the state, an organization known as the Ku Klux Klan, or Invisible
Empire of the South, which embraces in its membership a large proportion of the white population of every profession and class. The
Klan has a constitution and bylaws, which provides, among other things, that each member shall furnish himself with a pistol, a Ku Klux
gown and a signal instrument. The operations of the Klan are executed in the night and are invariably directed against members of the
Republican Party. The Klan is inflicting summary vengeance on the colored citizens of these citizens by breaking into their houses at the
dead of night, dragging them from their beds, torturing them in the most inhuman manner, and in many instances murdering."
Congress passed the Ku Klux Act and it became law on 20th April, 1871. This gave the president the power to intervene in troubled states
with the authority to suspend the writ of habeas corpus in countries where disturbances occurred. However, because its object ive of white
supremacy in the South had been achieved, the organization practically disappeared. The Ku Klux Klan was reformed in 1915 by
William J. Simmons, a preacher influenced by Thomas Dixon's book, The Ku Klux Klan (1905) and the film of the book, Birth of a
Nation, directed by D.W. Griffith.
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) became the main opponent of the Ku Klux Klan. To show
that the members of the organization would not be intimidated, it held its 1920 annual conference in Atlanta, considered at the time to be
one of the most active Ku Klux Klan areas in America.
11  The Heart & Soul December 2012
A Look Back into KKK History Part 2…………………………
In November 1922 Hiram W. Evans became the Klan's Imperial Wizard. Under his leadership the organization grew rapidly and in the
1920s Klansmen were elected to positions of political power. Even on the rare occasions they were arrested for serious crimes, Klansmen
were unlikely to be convicted by local Southern juries. After the conviction of the Klan leader, David C. Stephenson, for second-degree
murder, and evidence of corruption by other members such as the governor of Indiana and the mayor of Indianapolis. During the Great
Depression and the Second World War the organization was disbanded. In the 1950s the emergence of the Civil Rights Movement
resulted in a revival in Ku Klux Klan organizations. The most of important of these was the White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan led by
Robert Shelton. In the Deep South considerable pressure was put on blacks by Klansmen not to vote. An example of this was the state of
Mississippi. By 1960, 42% of the population were black but only 2% were registered to vote. Lynching was still employed as a method of
terrorizing the local black population. On Sunday, 15th September, 1963, a white man was seen placing a box under the steps of the
Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. Soon afterwards, at 10:22 a.m., the bomb exploded killing four girls had been attending Sunday school
classes at the church. Twenty-three other people were also hurt by the blast. A witness identified Klansman Robert Chambliss, as the man
who placed the bomb under the steps of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. He was arrested and on 8th October, 1963, Chambliss was
found not guilty of murder and received a hundred-dollar fine and a six-month jail sentence for having dynamite. In 1964 the NAACP,
CORE and SNCC organized its Freedom Summer campaign. Its main objective was to try an end the political disenfranchisement of
African Americans in the Deep South. Volunteers from the three organizations decided to concentrate its efforts in Mississippi. The three
organizations established 30 Freedom Schools in towns throughout Mississippi. Volunteers taught in the schools and the curriculum now
included black history, the philosophy of the civil rights movement. During the summer of 1964 over 3,000 students attended these
schools and the experiment provided a model for future educational programs such as Head Start. Freedom Schools were often targets of
white mobs. So also were the homes of local African Americans involved in the campaign. That summer 30 black homes and 37 black
churches were firebombed. Over 80 volunteers were beaten by white mobs or racist police officers and three men, James Chaney, Andrew
Goodman and Michael Schwerner, were murdered by the Ku Klux Klan on 21st June, 1964. These deaths created nation-wide publicity
for the campaign. The Sixteenth Street Baptist Church Bombing was unsolved until Bill Baxley was elected attorney general of Alabama.
He requested the original FBI files on the case and discovered that the organization had accumulated a great deal of evidence against
Chambliss that had not been used in the original trial. In November, 1977 Chambliss was tried once again for the Sixteenth Street Baptist
Church bombing. Now aged 73, Chambliss was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment. In 1981 the trial of Josephus Anderson
an, an African American charged with the murder of a white policeman, took place in Mobile. At the end of the case the jury was unable
to reach a verdict. This upset members of the local Ku Klux Klan who believed that the reason for this was that some members of the jury
were African Americans. At a meeting held after the trial, Bennie Hays, the second-highest ranking official in the Klan in Alabama said:
"If a black man can get away with killing a white man, we ought to be able to get away with killing a black man." On Saturday 21st
March, 1981, Bennie Hays's son, Henry Hays, and James Knowles, decided they would get revenge for the failure of the courts to convict
the man for killing a policeman. They found nineteen year old Michael Donald walking home and after forcing him into the car Donald
was taken into the next county where he was lynched. A brief investigation took place and eventually the local police claimed that Donald
had been murdered as a result of a disagreement over a drugs deal. Donald's mother, Beulah Mae Donald, who knew that her son was not
involved with drugs, was determined to obtain justice. She contacted Jessie Jackson who came to Mobile and led a protest march about
the failed police investigation. Thomas Figures, the assistant United States attorney in Mobile, managed to persuade the FBI to look into
the case. It did not take him long to persuade James Knowles to confess to the killing of Michael Donald. In June 1983, Knowles was
found guilty of violating Donald's civil rights and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Six months later, when Henry Hays was tried for
murder, Knowles appeared as chief prosecution witness. Hays was found guilty and sentenced to death. With the support of Morris Dees
and Joseph J. Levin at the Southern Poverty Law Centre , Beulah Mae Donald decided that she would use this case to try and destroy the
Ku Klux Klan in Alabama. Her civil suit against the United Klan’s of America took place in February 1987. The all-white jury found the
Klan responsible for the lynching of Michael Donald and ordered it to pay 7 million dollars. This resulted the Klan having to hand over all
its assets including its national headquarters in Tuscaloosa. After a long-drawn out legal struggle, Henry Hayes was executed on 6th June,
1997. It was the first time a white man had been executed for a crime against an African American since 1913.
12  The Heart & Soul Dec./Jan.2013
The Heart & Soul Believe it or Not! The Anthony Prewitt Story…………….
On September 12, 2012 Mr. Prewitt, was at Delux Bar 2229
West Main St. Richmond, Va. Mr. Prewitt admitted to drinking
and driving. Mr. Prewitt left Delux and got into his vehicle to
follow some friends to their house. Mr. Prewitt made a U-turn
and ran a light onto Main St. Mr. Prewitt then noticed police
lights in his rearview mirror, not knowing that they were for him
he continued to drive until he noticed they were for him. He then
made a left turn and stopped his car and cut the ignition off.
Officer Kiniry approached Mr. Prewitt’s vehicle opened the
driver side door and told Mr. Prewitt “get the f*** out of the
car.” Mr. Prewitt asked Officer Kiniry “why do I have to get out
the car?” Officer Kiniry replied “because you are under arrest.”
Mr. Prewitt began to get out of the car while being pulled out by
Officer Kiniry. Officer Kiniry then placed one handcuff on Mr.
Prewitt and Mr. Prewitt asked “why am I being placed under
arrest?” Then Officer Kiniry threw Mr. Prewitt to the ground
and said “I’m going to f*** you up now you understand?”
Officer Kiniry kept saying to Mr. Prewitt “get on your belly”;
Mr. Prewitt was on his belly while he received numerous blows
to the head and face. Officer Kiniry had Mr. Prewitt in a choke
hold from behind or as Mr. Prewitt described it a death grip. Mr.
Prewitt continued receiving countless blows to the head and face
while being pulled by his neck towards Officer Kiniry. Mr.
Prewitt was being pulled and punched like a rag doll and feared
for his life. Mr. Prewitt even gestured with his hands timeout
due to the pressure on his throat while being suffocated. Mr.
Prewitt stated that at this time he knew he was going to die. Mr.
Prewitt heard sirens and knew at this time that Officer Kiniry
would not kill him in the presence of other officers. To escape
the torment and wait for backup Mr. Prewitt managed to get to
his feet and got into his vehicle. While in his vehicle he heard
the sirens getting closer and knew he just might survive. Officer
Kiniry un-holstered his weapon and stated “if you move this car I
will shoot you.” Mr. Prewitt’s vehicle was off and had no
intentions of moving the vehicle. He does admit to touching the
break on accident out of nervousness. Shortly after backup
arrived and pulled Mr. Prewitt out of the vehicle. An officer
swept Mr. Prewitt’s feet and he hit the ground where he placed
his hands behind his back. While Mr. Prewitt’s hands were
behind his back he continued to be punched by Officer Kiniry,
another Officer then tasered Mr. Prewitt while he was on the
ground face down. Officer Venerable sat on the hood of Officer
13  The Heart & Soul  Dec./Jan.2013
Kiniry’s car and it look as if he was blocking the camera. Mr.
Prewitt screamed in pain while he was tasered more, and his
ankle was grinded into the ground.
Mr. Prewitt describes his version of the Grand Jury proceedings
of December 3, 2012 as “bias, faster than an Olympic Sprinter, a
waste of tax payer’s money, and a joke. Mr. Prewitt was told
that he would go before a jury of his peers. Mr. Prewitt
described the Grand Jurors as not my peers. It was a total of 7
jurors 1 African-American, and 6 Caucasian ranging roughly in
age 40-80. Mr. Prewitt said the first question he was asked by
what looked to be the oldest juror was “are you still drinking?”
Mr. Prewitt stated “no” and wondered what that had to do with
him getting pulled out of his car being beaten and tasered.
Later that day Mr. Prewitt received a phone call from Assistant
Commonwealth’s Attorney Mike E. Hollomon. During the
phone call Mr. Prewitt was informed that Officer Kiniry was not
indicted. Mr. Prewitt was informed that the Grand Jury asked
Mike E. Hollomon questions regarding the law as it states to
Police battery and assault. Hollomon told Mr. Prewitt that he
told the Grand Jury “there is no line for the police they do not
have a limit to the amount of force that they can place on a
citizen.”
Mr. Prewitt feels that justice has not been served and that the
system is designed to protect police and give them the power to
violate citizens Civil Rights. Mr. Prewitt stated that “if the
Richmond City Police were following proper protocol September
12, 2012 then citizens need be very afraid of the police because I
was almost killed that night!” Mt. Prewitt said “he didn’t even
ask for my license or registration or ask if I had any weapons, he
just walked up to my car and pulled me out and began beating
me.” The Richmond Police Department of Internal Affairs is
still investigating, and soon will have the findings from their
investigation. Mr. Prewitt states that he has spoken to various
lawyers regarding this matter. Mr. Prewitt will be submitting a
complaint to the United States Department of Justice Civil Rights
Division. Mr. Prewitt has faith that Attorney General Eric
Holder will ensure that justice prevails.
Radio Talk Show Host Earl Bradley say’s
We Told You What To Expect!!!
No participation will get you the same result and in the Black Community we are like sheep ready to be herded in
any direction as long as we don’t have to think. We are a community, which talks loudly and proudly about our
history and what our ancestor had to endure to establish freedom of choice for us. We talk how we are Kings and
Queens of the past and then only want to be the HNIC. We have reviewed the past elections in politics and black
community organizations. History again, repeats itself and we really don’t care because we are just consumers.
Preston Brown who sought the 16th District Senatorial seat made the community aware that the incumbent was not
looking out for our interest, but his own and those that would be judges, because he majored in nominating judges
and denying that he has been the Senator in one of highest poverty rated district in the State for over twenty years.
But he was re-elected by the sheep and the first report of Senator Henry Marsh was that he was sleeping again in the
chambers.
The WCLM Dream team continues to attempt to educate the community with truth but the sheep don’t want to hear
the truth, because it would make them look in the mirror and ask the questions, that they don’t want the answers too.
The past has shown that with Black leaders in position we have lost everything by a stroke of a pen.
The organizations within our community only endorse candidates based on their party affiliations and not based on
their service. The parties, whether it be Democrat or Republican are concern about the party and not us. The
Democratic Party will exclude those that would bring you the truth and then tell you who to vote for, because they
are labeled and endorsed by the Richmond City Democratic Committee whose President is J.J Minor. When you
look at those that are being endorsed, some would ask the questions about the candidate’s service and records. We
find that does not matter only that they will be yes persons to the party. The sheep vote accordingly to instructions.
When we investigated the Black community organizations and we find that some of the same people are in
leadership or in a position of influence across all of the organizations. That smells and yet the sheep don’t care. They
voted Dr. Kim Allen as President of the Richmond NAACP Branch over Preston Brown and Ruben Greene. An
organization that acknowledges an 800 membership roster and yet only 31members came out to vote. Again, you see
the interest of the sheep. John House nominated Dr. Kim Allen at the last minute because he said she knew the
NAACP Constitution and Bylaws, yet Dr. Allen didn’t understand Roberts Rules of order and could not even run
her first meeting as President and the 1st President Mrs. Sylvia Woods had to take over.
Scripture states that my people die because of lack of knowledge; I believe we die because we don’t want the
knowledge. We talk about unity, yet we have not collectively used or resources to be producers and not just
consumers. When we state what is being done to us and still don’t change then we are the problem.
The Mayor has influenced his supporters onto the City Council and School Board and has gotten rid of the Chief of
Police because he supposes to have been Mayor Wilder’s guy.
Here we go again! History does repeat itself.
Wake up Sheep; stop drinking the Kool-Aid.
Listen to Earl Bradley talk Show on WCLM Radio 1450AM Thursday’s at 4PM
Heart and Soul Believe It or Not! The United States
Few Americans — indeed, few Congressional reps — are aware of the existence of Mount Weather, a mysterious
underground military base carved deep inside a mountain near the sleepy rural town of Bluemont, Virginia, just 46 miles
from Washington DC. Mount Weather — also known as the Western Virginia Office of Controlled Conflict Operations — is
buried not just in hard granite, but in secrecy as well.
Ted Gup, writing for Time, describes the base as follows:
"Mount Weather is a virtually self-contained facility. Aboveground, scattered across manicured lawns, are about a dozen
buildings bristling with antennas and microwave relay systems. An on-site sewage-treatment plant, with a 90,000 gal.-a-day
capacity, and two tanks holding 250,000 gal. of water could last some 200 people more than a month; underground ponds
hold additional water supplies. Not far from the installation's entry gate are a control tower and a helicopter pad. The
mountain's real secrets are not visible at ground level." The mountain's "real secrets" are protected by warning signs, 10-foothigh chain link fences, razor wire, and armed guards. Curious motorists and hikers on the Appalachian Trail are relieved of
their sketching pads and cameras and sent on their way. Security is tight. The government has owned the site since 1903; it
has seen service as an artillery range, a hobo farm during the Depression, and a National Weather Bureau Facility. In 1936,
the U.S. Bureau of Mines took control and started digging.
Mount Weather is virtually an underground city, according to former personnel interviewed. Buried deep inside the earth,
Mount Weather was equipped with such amenities as:
 private apartments and dormitories
 streets and sidewalks
 cafeterias and hospitals
 a water purification system, power plant and general office buildings
 a small lake fed by fresh water from underground springs
 its own mass transit system
 a TV communication system
Mount Weather is the self-sustaining underground command center for the Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA). The facility is the operational center — the hub — of approximately 100 other Federal Relocation Centers, most of
which are concentrated in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland and North Carolina. Together this network of
underground facilities constitutes the backbone of America's "Continuity of Government" program. In the event of
nuclear war, declaration of martial law, or other national emergency, the President, his cabinet and the rest of the Executive
Branch would be "relocated" to Mount Weather.
Each of the Mount Weather "Cabinet members" is apparently appointed by the White House and serves an indefinite term...
many through several Administrations....The facility attempts to duplicate the vital functions of the Executive branch of the
Administration." Nine Federal departments are replicated within Mount Weather (Agriculture; Commerce; Health,
Education & Welfare; Housing & Urban Development; Interior; Labor; State; Transportation; and Treasury) as well as at least
five Federal agencies (Federal Communications Commission, Selective Service, Federal Power Commission, Civil Service
Commission, and the Veterans Administration). The Federal Reserve and the U.S. Post Office, both private corporations, also
have offices in Mount Weather.
"As might be expected, there is also an Office of the Presidency at Mount Weather. The Federal Preparedness Agency
(predecessor to FEMA) apparently appoints a special staff to the Presidential section, which regularly receives top secret
national security estimates and raw data from each of the Federal departments and agencies.
15  The Heart & Soul December 2012
Soul Food
Restaurant & Lounge
FAIRFIELD COMMONS MALL
4935 Nine Mile Road
“Richmond’s
Largest Soul Food Restaurant”
Presents
THE KRAXTON BROWN SHOW
Dine & Dance
First Friday of every month
8pm-Midnight
30 Years Old and older
Dress Code / Cover Charge
Visit our website :famousbrownsoulfood.com
Limited amount of seats!
Was Elvis Presley Racist? By Todd “Stereo” Williams The United States
Elvis Presley is probably the most polarizing figure in 20th century popular music. To a significant number of people he's “The King,” a
hip-swiveling icon from rock ’n’ roll's early years who represented a generation of young people ready to throw off the sexual and racial
shackles of the previous era. To others, he's a hollow culture-thief, an overrated musical
charlatan who profited off of music some feel he had no business recording in the first place.
A quick run of the man's history and you can see validity in both arguments. But if you dig a
little deeper, you begin to realize that both of these “Elvises” are largely fabrications —
variations on a musical superstar — created to help both sides come to terms with the duality
of his legacy. Growing up, I was conditioned to loathe Elvis Presley. The lightest criticism I
heard of Elvis was that he “stole Black people's music.” The harshest criticism I heard was
that he was a blatant racist who felt that all a Black man could do for him was “shine my
shoes or buy my record.” I heard this from several family members and casual acquaintances
— a sentiment that was forever immortalized in Public Enemy's classic single “Fight the
Power.” Elvis was no hero. And he certainly never meant shit to me.
I viewed white folks' obsession with him as evidence of their inherently racist preference for black music without a black face. Even as I
became a fan of 1960s British Invasion bands, part of my praise of the Beatles, Stones, and Who was that they openly acknowledged the
Black influence in their music — “unlike Elvis Presley.” But it wasn't until years later that I really had to learn about Elvis beyond what
I'd been told. I was working on a piece about his supposed racism and racist legacy and started doing research for proof. You can't
imagine my surprise at what I eventually discovered
I learned that the infamous “shine my shoes” quote was never verified, and was told second-hand to what basically was a 1950s tabloid
rag out of Boston called Sepia. During the same time that Elvis supposedly gave this “quote,” he did an interview with Jet (yes, the blackowned Jet magazine) in which he spoke openly about the controversy and the origins of rock ’n’ roll as black music. “I never said
anything like that, and people who know me know that I wouldn't have said it,” he told Jet. “A lot of people seem to think I started
this business. But rock ’n’ roll was here a long time before I came along. Nobody can sing that kind of music like colored people.
Let's face it: I can't sing like Fats Domino can. I know that.”
I found quotes from notable black musicians and celebrities, detailing their experiences with Elvis, which ranged from respectful to
affectionate. James Brown said, “I wasn't just a fan, I was his brother.” B.B. King was also close to Presley throughout his life and Ike
Turner reportedly let Elvis carry his band's gear early on and claimed he was the first man to put Elvis on a stage. Muhammad Ali, who let
Elvis live with him while he trained for a bout against Joe Frazier, said, “Elvis was my close personal friend. I don't admire nobody, but
Elvis Presley was the sweetest, most humble and nicest man you'd want to know.”
Additionally, though artists like Fats Domino, Big Joe Turner, and Jackie Brenston had been recording rock ’n’ roll long before Elvis, the
painting of Elvis as no more than a white culture thief of black music, while not being completely erroneous, was at the very least
overstated. I'd always been led to believe that rock ’n’ roll was a sea of Black faces until this one gyrating white guy came along. But
Elvis wasn't the first white man to sing rock ’n’ roll; Bill Haley was charting two years before anybody had heard of Elvis. I also believed
icons like Chuck Berry, Little Richard, and Bo Diddley had made their mark prior to Elvis “stealing” all of the credit — Elvis first single,
“That's Alright,” was a year before Chuck's first (“Maybelline”), Diddley's first (“Bo Diddley”) or Richard's breakthrough (“Tutti Frutti.”)
Of course, it would be naïve and wrongheaded to pretend that Elvis' race did not make the path to superstardom much easier for him in
1950s America; but it wasn't just his race that made him popular.
Part 2 on page 12
11  The Heart & Soul December 2012
Was Elvis Presley a Racist…………. Part 2
Elvis was a good-looking kid. Chuck Berry was thirty singing to teenage girls, Little Richard's flamboyance made him unlikely to be a
teen idol to anyone in 1956; and even the white Bill Haley looked more like a math teacher than a rock ’n’ roller. Elvis had looks and
charisma — in addition to being a young white guy. So, is it blasphemy to call him “The King” of a genre he didn't invent? I don't believe
Michael Jackson invented pop music; and I don't believe Aretha Franklin
invented soul. So are they also not allowed to lay claim to their royal titles?
That Elvis had a much bigger hit with “Hound Dog” compared to its original
singer, Big Mama Thornton, is also often cited as evidence of his benefitting
solely from being a white face. But in the 1950s, hit songs would be recorded
by several artists; and while there were many blatant examples of “white
washing” black hits for white audiences (see: Pat Boone), it wasn't automatic
that the White artist would have the bigger hit or the definitive version.
“Blueberry Hill” is considered by many to be Fats Domino's signature song,
but it had been written by Vincent Rose and recorded by several artists prior
to his much more well-known 1956 version. There is more nuance in the
discussion of who-recorded-what-first-and-why than many like to consider.
I'd even been led to believe that Otis Blackwell, the man who wrote many of
Elvis' early hits, died penniless largely because he was screwed financially
by the nefarious Presley. But Blackwell received royalties for his songs for
years, and was at one point substantially well-off due to those royalties. He
died in 2002 having lived under tremendous financial straits in his latter
years, but that was mostly due to tax issues and years of alcoholism — neither of which had anything to do with Elvis.
The idea of Elvis as an iconic rebel leading the charge into a bold new age is also patently false. Elvis craved acceptance from the
establishment and the older generation. His rebellion was mostly in the hearts and minds of his audience; not in the intent of Presley
himself. He wanted to make music, and reacted with an aw-shucks chagrin whenever discussing the disdain that older, mostly white
people had for his image and the fact that he sang sexually-charged “race” music. When he was dismissed by the elder statesmen of the
recording industry, like Frank Sinatra, it crushed him. That need for acceptance is what led Elvis away from his early R&B/rock & roll
sound and towards middle-of-the-road pop heading into the ’60s.
He also came to resent rock's second generation; a generation that existed largely because of him. He scoffed condescendingly during his
1969 comeback special while discussing “new groups” and their “long hair.” He also famously penned a letter to Richard Nixon asking to
be given the title of “Federal Agent At-Large” in the fight against drugs; as he bemoaned the influence he felt acts like the Beatles had on
the younger generation.
There will never be a time when Elvis doesn't spark discussion and debate. He should. His musical legacy is a defining moment in our
history; that moment when Black music, vernacular, and culture became the driving force in how all American youth began to see
themselves. The trickle that had begun with jazz as far back as the ’20s was, by the late 1950s, a flood that couldn't be denied. Which is
why the white establishment fought so hard against it. But, as many fans observe the 35th anniversary of his death, its important to ignore
the hearsay and conjecture surrounding this “King of Rock ’n’ Roll,” and look at the reality of who he was as a man and a musical figure.
Before we rush to tear him down or build him up.
By Todd “Stereo” William: Creative Loafing/Atlanta
The fatal shooting of a Florida
teenager who was listening to loud
music in a car a week ago has
drawn comparisons to the Trayvon
Martin case, but the differences are
significant. Unlike the Martin case,
several people witnessed this
shooting and there was no scuffle
before 17-year-old Jordan Davis
was shot to death. And notably, the man accused of firing into
the car was arrested a day later. Michael David Dunn is charged
with murder and attempted murder in the Nov. 23 shooting at a
Jacksonville, Fla., gas station. The 45-year-old Dunn parked
beside the sport utility vehicle occupied by Davis and three other
young men and told them to turn the music down, police said.
Dunn exchanged words with Davis, who was in the back seat,
and started firing. He later told police he felt threatened. His
attorney has said Dunn saw a gun and shot in self-defense,
perhaps laying the ground work for a case under Florida's "stand
your ground" law. Since the shooting, Davis' family has received
an outpouring of support from the community. A "Justice for
Jordan" Facebook page was set up and his classmates gathered at
a memorial service with T-shirts showing Davis' smiling face.
Fire trucks saluted him by spraying water over an airplane
carrying his body to Atlanta while it was on the runway. The
teen's mother lives near Marietta, and a funeral is scheduled for
Davis Saturday at the Trinity Chapel Church of God in Powder
Springs. Davis' father, Ron, said his son was a typical high
school junior who was getting ready to start his first job at
McDonald's, looking forward to buying his first car and turning
18 early next year. He had a "million-dollar smile" and liked
music, listening to mostly rap but also the sounds of his dad's
generation, including James Brown and The Temptations.
Standing over his son's casket, Ron Davis promised to fight laws
that allow people to carry guns outside of their homes. "Law
enforcement should be the only people who should have guns on
the street," he said.
"That's what's
killing our kids
more than
anything." Police
said they didn't
find a weapon in
the SUV with the
young men, and
Ron Davis said he
doesn't believe
Dunn's claim that he saw a gun. He thinks Dunn is searching for
an explanation. "They were just 17-year-old kids that were
having a good time, coming from the mall," he said. The
shooting has revived the debate over Florida's "stand your
ground" law, which allows people to use deadly force if they
believe their life is in imminent danger. Dunn's attorney hasn't
said whether she will argue the shooting was justified under the
statute. The law came under harsh criticism after Martin was shot
in February by neighborhood watch volunteer George
Zimmerman, who believed the teenager was acting suspicious.
Martin and Zimmerman got into a fight and Zimmerman said he
thought Martin was reaching for his gun. Authorities didn't arrest
Zimmerman for more than a month after the shooting, adding to
the furor. "This case is so far from Trayvon Martin's case," Ron
Davis said. University of Miami law professor Tamara Lave,
who has closely followed the Martin case, agreed. "I don't see
how he is going to prevail under `stand your ground,'" Lave, a
former public defender in San Diego for 10 years, said of Dunn.
"You're allowed to own a gun. Even if there was a gun in the car,
that doesn't mean the gun was used to threaten him in any way."
Dunn's girlfriend went into the store, and he told the young men
to turn the music down. "It was loud, they admitted that, but
that's not a reason for someone to open fire on them and take
action," Jacksonville Sheriff's Lt. Rob Schoonover said. Dunn
fired eight or nine shots into the car and Davis was hit a couple
of times, police said. Dunn's girlfriend ran outside. "When she
came out, she said, `What's going on?' and supposedly his
statement was, `I just fired at these kids,'" Schoonover said. "At
that time I don't know if he knew that he struck anyone in the
vehicle." Dunn and his girlfriend drove off and spent the night at
a hotel. Dunn was arrested a day later at his home in Satellite
Beach, about 160 miles away, when police tracked his license
plate. He told detectives he had been in the process of turning
himself in to a neighbor, who was in law enforcement. "His side
of the story is he felt threatened and that is the reason he took
action," Schoonover said.
Advance Tickets on Sale Now For the Play
“I Thought the Grass was Greener on the other side”
Henrico Theatre
Nine Mile Rd
Early bird tickets $20.00
Play is about a young girl gowning up in the church and when
she faced with the real world………
YOU MUST COME OUT TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS!
Produced by Felicia Harding Williams
Tickets and Information call (804)433-5258
Tickets available at Barky’s, Famous Brown’s and WCLM Radio