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"What about all those LGBTQ people who think immigration does not have anything to do with them? Here is why it does. The immigration debate gets to the heart of a conversation about who is a "real" citizen, who is part of our communities, and who can be allowed to stay and live here, and who has to do so through a shadow existence, with no basic rights. Sound familiar? It should. It is a historic dialogue that has talked around and through communities of LGBTQ people, people of color, poor people, people with disabilities, and many others."

-SONG Co-Director Caitlin Breedlove  (via moyazb)

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November 19th - More than a dozen undocumented Georgians and supporters have locked themselves to the gates of the downtown Atlanta ICE office as part of the national campaign demanding the President stop deportations and expand deferred action for all.

“If the President can stop the deportations of military families, he can stop breaking apart other families as well,” explains Marisela Medina. “All my children think about is the day I could be taken away. Instead the President should grant relief to my family and all families. What is he waiting for?”

The group cites the Secure Communities deportation program active in Georgia since 2009 and the 287g agreements in counties like Cobb and Gwinnett and the state’s HB87 as creating an atmosphere of terror that hurts public safety and needlessly deports the very people who would benefit from reform.

They say that the President has the legal authority and the moral obligation to stop their suffering by expanding the already existing deferred action program, especially as immigration reform meets challenges in Congress.

In explaining why he was participating in the action, Jose Luis Romero stated, “Everyday immigrants face the risk of deportation just by taking our children to school.  Today is no different. It’s just that now we take that risk as we defend the rights of our entire community.  We’re doing everything in our power to stop deportations, now it’s time for the President to do everything in his power to give us relief.”

Undocumented Georgians, members of the cómites populares of GLAHR, are joined in their civil disobedience by members of Southerners on New Ground and Project South.

Suzanne Pharr added, “Very large numbers of both immigrants and LGBT people live in the South and face threats of violence if we live openly.  I oppose the human crisis caused by detention and deportation and I support dignity and safety for all our people. We’re working together to create a South built on justice.”

Watch #not1more deportation protest live.

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Great news!  We have met and zoomed past the goal of $10,000 for the Marissa Alexander Legal Defense Fund.  Together, we’ve reached $11,005 with 39 days still left to go! This is a powerful reflection of how passionately people feel about the need to stop punishing survivors of domestic violence for defending their lives. 

Your commitment has fired up the campaign and we are raising the freedom fundraiser goal to $20,000!  This fundraiser and movement are critical to supporting the full acquittal of Marissa Alexander in her upcoming re-trial beginning March 31, 2014. Let’s keep going!  George Zimmerman was able to raise over a million dollars in donations for his murder defense.  Can we work together to reach double the goal amount by the end of the year?  $20K by Dec 31st?  LET’S DO IT!  Please help bring in more donors and let’s bring Marissa home!

DONATE NOW: http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/justice-for-marissa-a-fundraiser-for-freedom/x/4747459

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Renisha Mcbride was a 19 year old Black Girl from Michigan. On November 2nd, she was involved in a terrible car crash but survived. After the accident, she ran to the nearest house looking for help because her phone had died. She knocked on the front door and was shot in the face with a shotgun by the White Homeowner. After the murder, No Charges have been pressed against the White shooter and it is being called a justified Killing. Several Police officers and the Shooter’s lawyer have said that “He acted Properly” in shooting her. Don’t ever be fooled into believing that Racism is over.

If you’re a Fan of signing Petitions, you can sign one at http://act.weareultraviolet.org/sign/Renisha/?akid=662.675511.T8Xw70&rd=1&t=4

Written By @KingKwajo

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Canada is getting the word out!

Letters, e-mails, and phone calls from all over the world are welcome: http://freemarissanow.tumblr.com/dropthecase

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National Action: Urge the State to Drop the Case! 

Have you heard the good news out of Florida? The Appeals Court threw out the guilty verdict in the Marissa Alexander case, citing a “fundamental error” in the jury instructions which unjustly required Marissa to prove her innocence, depriving her of a fair trial.

In mid-October, State Prosecutor Angela Corey will decide whether to drop the case or set a new trial date. We say drop the case! 

October is also Domestic Violence Awareness Month – a perfect time to draw attention to how Marissa’s experience of domestic violence and incarceration exemplifies the widespread racial and gender bias in our criminal justice system.

We are asking you to send letters and/or call Angela Corey and encourage her to seek Justice, not a Conviction! Please send copies of your message to Attorney General Pam Bondi and Governor Rick Scott so that they know the strength of public opinion on this issue.

The sample letter below may help you get started.

— Free Marissa Now FreeMarissaNow@gmail.com, facebook.com/FreeMarissaNow

***

SAMPLE LETTER (download as pdf!):

Name __________________________

Address_________________________

_______________________________

Email __________________________

Dear Ms. Corey:

You have an opportunity to allow an innocent person to go free without further cost to the state of Florida and without further trauma to this woman and her family. I encourage you to drop the charges against Marissa Alexander, rather than pursuing a new trial which, if justice is served, will result in a not-guilty verdict.

Marissa Alexander was a victim of domestic violence who acted in self-defense by taking the only action she saw possible at that moment – an action that injured no one. Her case shines a light on how black women in domestic violence situations are often doubly victimized when they seek justice. Ms. Alexander has experienced at least two traumatic events: the first is being repeatedly abused by her husband, the second is being prosecuted and sentenced to prison for defending herself from that abuse.

Ms. Alexander’s experience bears out the fact that women of color are arrested more often than white women when police arrive on the scene of a domestic violence incident.

For this reason, fewer than 17% of black women call the police for fear they will be further victimized by the police or the courts. By allowing Marissa Alexander to be sentenced to 20 years for self-defense, you have given the message to women everywhere that if they defend their lives, they will be also targeted by police and prosecutors.

There is a widespread stereotype that survivors who fight for their lives, particularly if they are black women, are “too aggressive” and not genuine victims. This stereotype was carried out to such an extent in Marissa Alexander’s case that the whole premise of innocent until proven guilty was reversed, as the Appeals Court found.

Please do the right thing by stopping any further prosecution of this innocent mother and daughter. Drop the case, dismiss all charges, and free Marissa Alexander!

______________________________

Signature

***

Send your letter to the following addresses: (Hard copies make more of an impact!)

Angela Corey, State Attorney Courthouse Annex 220 East Bay Street Jacksonville, FL 32202 Phone: 904-630-2400 Fax: 904-630-2938 Email: sao4th@coj.net

Office of Attorney General Pam Bondi State of Florida The Capitol PL-01 Tallahassee, FL 32399-1050 Phone: 850-414-3300 or 850-414-3990 Fax: 850-410-1630 Email: http://myfloridalegal.com/contact.nsf/contact?Open&Section=Citizen_Services

Office of Governor Rick Scott State of Florida The Capitol 400 S. Monroe St. Tallahassee, FL 32399-0001 Phone: 850-717-9337 or 850-488-7146 Email: rick.scott@eog.myflorida.com

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Peoples Movement Assembly on Climate Justice in Mobile AL this Saturday!

Monique Harden speaks on Democracy Now!

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This month of Domestic Violence Awareness is off to quite a start! Last Thursday, the Appeals Court overturned Marissa’s guilty verdict. On Saturday, we had a very productive national Free Marissa Now conference call, with many of you participating, that generated excellent ideas for how to...

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October is Domestic Violence Awareness (DVA) month. Today, Emotional Justice Unplugged, Chicago Taskforce on Violence Against Girls and Women, Free Marissa Now launch a month long multi-media letter writing campaign called #31forMARISSA. Throughout the month, we are urging men to write letters of support to Marissa Alexander, share stories of violence experienced by women in their own circles, donate funds for her trial fees and become engaged as active allies in the domestic violence movement. Participants are also encouraged to invite, inspire, challenge and engage 5 other men to join the campaign. We are asking a nation of men—of all creeds and colors—to stand up and engage in the pursuit of freedom of a Black woman.

Will you answer the call?

#31forMARISSA is a critical new project that features 31 letters from black to Marissa Alexander throughout October.  The project helps call attention to Marissa Alexander’s incarceration and explores the impact of domestic violence on men and their communities.

Why engage men?  From the article:

Society holds women emotionally responsible for the behavior and violence committed by men, and it has then been women who created and primarily worked within movements to stem the tide of that violence that impacts and cripples us all. Why didn’t you just leave him? Don’t make him so mad! Why do you have to keep doing that thing that makes him mad? Blame and deflection is how we deal. With this campaign, we’re calling on men to navigate their own emotional process, to engage, to emote, to speak up, to challenge each other as men— to do the work, to ask themselves and each other hard questions from safe spaces. Silence is cancer for movements. The evidence says that men care, this issue matters, they want to be engaged. Today is Day 1 of #31forMARISSA.  This campaign invites men to show up, participate and actively contribute.

Please read the article for more details.  Also, check out these resources:

CHECK OUT THE MEN’S LETTERS: theSWAGspot tumblr SEND LETTERS: theswagspot7@gmail.com DONATE TO MARISSA ALEXANDER’S LEGAL FEES FOR HER NEW TRIAL: http://justice4marissa.com/

Also, FOLLOW Free Marissa Now and Emotional Justice on Facebook. Free Marissa Now also tweets at @FreeMarissaNow.

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Join farmworkers and allies for the culmination of our two-week Publix Truth Tour throughout the Southeast US. Add your voice to the growing chorus urging Publix to join the Fair Food Program and help ensure the dignity of farmworkers in their supply chain!

For more information, contact:  joe@sfalliance.org elena@interfaithact.org

or visit: https://www.facebook.com/events/468269996613330/

BACKGROUND: After two decades of worker-led struggle through the Campaign for Fair Food, eleven major food retailers — including McDonalds, Burger King and Whole Foods — have joined the Fair Food Program (FFP), agreeing to purchase exclusively from tomato farms that comply with a stringent, worker-designed code of conduct. In addition, participating retailers have paid out over $10 million in penny-per-pound premiums, constituting the first wage increase for farmworkers in over 30 years. 

For four years, Publix has staunchly refused to join the FFP. Meanwhile, groundbreaking changes have begun to take root in the fields. For the first time ever, farmworkers on participating farms are guaranteed access to shade and water, women are fighting back against sexual harassment and abuse, and farmworkers and growers together are eliminating the scourge of forced labor. Rather than join this rising tide of justice, Publix continues to spread falsehoods about the Fair Food Program, providing an alternative market for abusive growers and anchoring the resistance of the national supermarket industry. 

As Publix expands throughout the Southeast, add your voice to the call for the supermarket giant to expand its commitment to human rights! 

  To read more, visit CIW website: http://ciw-online.org/campaign-for-fair-food/

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MAJOR VICTORY: MARISSA ALEXANDER GETS A NEW TRIAL!

September 30, 2013 · by ayinde · in freemarissa, Uncategorized · Edit

You supported the Walk for Dignity from Jacksonville to Sanford when the world was reeling in outrage that a US court ruled Zimmerman innocent for the murder of an unarmed Black youth. We named two demands: that Marissa Alexander be set free and that Angela Corey be fired. These demands resonated with the people we engaged in the neighborhoods, churches, and community centers along that 122 mile journey. Today, we are excited to share the incredible news that Marissa Alexander has been granted a new trial. Marissa was prosecuted by Angela Corey in Jacksonville FL in 2012 and sentenced to 20 years for firing a warning shot at the ceiling while being attacked by an abusive husband. These two cases exposed the systemic, institutional racism and deep injustices of the US criminal courts. And people across the country and in the South responded with action. 

  “Everyone in the Southern Freedom Movement had a role in this victory,” says Aleta Alston-Toure of the New Jim Crow Movement in Jacksonville who has been fighting the conviction with Marissa’s family and the Free Marissa Now International Campaign. 

“People have come together at the Southern Movement Assemblies and during the Walk for Dignity to confront injustice, including the criminalization of Black women and domestic violence survivors. We took action, and we are going to get Marissa’s dignity back. And Angela Corey will get her due.” 

  A trial date has not been set at this time. This day marks one step towards freedom. Your support helped make this happen. 

  Check out the news reports below, and we will keep you posted through the free Marissa Now campaign about next steps and actions over the next few weeks. 

  WATCH Channel JAX4 tonight to see Aleta’s interview.

Free Marissa Now International Campaign – Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FreeMarissaNow?hc_location=timeline 

From earlier today – JAX4: http://www.mytvjax.com/content/topstories/story/New-trial-for-Marissa-Alexander/ZygdGEgQt0iE98odshFdog.cspx

US NEWS & WORLD REPORT:  http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/09/26/marissa-alexander-granted-new-trial?page=2

MSNBC: http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/09/26/marissa-alexander-will-get-a-new-trial

TV ONE: http://newsone.com/2727619/marissa-alexander-case/

Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/26/marissa-alexander-new-trial_n_3995869.html

The Appeals Court decision can be obtained at http://opinions.1dca.org/written/opinions2013/09-26-2013/12-2469.pdf

 We are building long-term strategies with families on the frontlines of incarceration and violence – Thank you, again and again, for your contribution to this incredible expression of people power at a critical time in history.

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NATIONAL ACTION TO DEMAND THE STATE TO DROP THE CASE Yesterday’s thrilling overturn of the guilty verdict against Marissa Alexander put the onus on Florida State Prosecutor Angela Corey to either try Marissa again or drop the case. We say DROP THE CASE! Stop this cruel and unforgivable...

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This is Lowell Correctional Institution.  This is where Marissa Alexander and many others are being warehoused.  Of prisons under state & federal authority, Florida had the 7th highest incarceration rate in the US in 2008.  While black people represent 16.6% of Florida’s total population, they are 32.1% of Florida’s prisoners.

Free Marissa Alexander.   End mass incarceration.   End mandatory minimums.   End the prison nation.

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Last spring, three months after the killing of Trayvon Martin put Florida’s Stand Your Ground law at the top of every newscast, Marissa Alexander, a Jacksonville mother of three, was denied a Stand Your Ground defense in her trial with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Alexander has always contended it was her husband, Rico Gray, who was committing the assault in 2010, physically attacking her at home, nine days after she gave birth to their premature child. She maintains that she fired a bullet at a wall as a warning shot after he threatened to kill her, and for that, Alexander was convicted.  Her 20-year sentence under Florida’s 10/20 life mandatory minimum sentencing law for gun crimes provoked significant protests. Those protests bore fruit Thursday when a district appeals court ruled Alexander will get a new trial, though once again, won’t be able to invoke the Stand Your Ground law. Wrote Judge James Daniel, we reject her contention that the trial court erred in declining to grant her immunity from prosecution under Florida’s Stand Your Ground law, but we remand for a new trial because the jury instructions on self-defense were erroneous.

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You cannot crowdsource a quality education for the students of Philadelphia. More importantly, you cannot crowdsource teachers and counselors. It is shameful to ask the parents, students, and teachers, who have already given up so much, to donate to the institution of public education. It is the job of the Mayor to get money from Governor Corbett who, by the way, is building 2 new prisons at the expense of $400 million. Additionally, Corbett is withholding the much needed $45 million in federal money owed to Philadelphia school system until more concessions can be won from the teacher’s union.

Philadelphia Student Union, commenting on the new crowdsourcing campaign that is forcing Philly schools to fundraise for textbooks & other supplies.  (via moyazb)

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Marissa Alexander, the African-American woman who was sentenced to 20 years for discharging a firearm in Florida despite pleading Stand Your Ground against her husband,will get a new trial. Alexander, 32, said she fired a bullet at the ceiling because she was afraid of her husband. No one was injured. It took 12 minutes for the jury to convict her.

…

The appeals court judge ruled that the lower court judge improperly put a burden on Alexander to prove that the firing was in self-defense. “The defendant’s burden is only to raise a reasonable doubt concerning self-defense,” Daniel wrote. “The defendant does not have the burden to prove the victim guilty of the aggression defended against beyond a reasonable doubt.” He ordered a retrial. A separate proceeding would determine whether Alexander could be released on bail pending that trial.

YESSSSS!!!!!

This is wonderful news, we are so excited!  We’ll update as we learn more details.

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A MESSAGE FROM MARISSA’S FAMILY TO FREE MARISSA NOW CAMPAIGN SUPPORTERS:

September 14, 1980 is the day Marissa was born. She was a beautiful baby with a head full of hair. She did not cry much and as she grew I observed that she was adventurous and sometimes courageous. Marissa always had a mind...