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Police Attack Protesters in City Council. There is no free speech for African people in Philadelphia!
by
Uhuru Movement | 03.19.2009
For Immediate Release: Police Attack Protesters in City Council. Contact: International People's Democratic Uhuru Movement National Secretary Nzinga Themba 215-519-7749  For Immediate Release:
Police Attack Protesters in City Council. There is no free speech for African people in Philadelphia! Contact: International People's Democratic Uhuru Movement National Secretary Nzinga Themba 215-519-7749 On Wednesday, March 19, 2009, police attacked members of the International People's Democratic Uhuru Movement (InPDUM) in the gallery of the City Council during the City Council session where Mayor Nutter was announcing his 2010 budget. International People's Democratic Uhuru Movement members were holding signs protesting Mayor Nutter’s budget, which cuts essential services for the African population while spending more than one billion dollars a year for police and prisons attacking the black community. Subsequent to the police attack, InPDUM international organizer Diop Olugbala, (aka Wali Rahman), and member Shabaka Mnombatha, (aka Franklin Moses), were brutally arrested and are being charged with aggravated assault on police! As the meeting started, some of the many InPDUM supporters present were holding up signs saying "Unite Philadelphia through Economic and Social Justice", "Jail Killer Police", "Stop the War on the Black Community", and other demands upholding the rights of the impoverished black community. The meeting began with a resolution to recognize the unbeaten Frankford Chargers youth football team. The Chargers were wearing black armbands in memory of their teammate, 14 year-old Sharif Lee Jones, who was murdered by Philadelphia police on August 24th 2008. As the team left the chambers, civil affairs police gathered behind the InPDUM organizers and demanded they immediately sit down and stop protesting. A Civil Affairs officer put Diop Olugbala into a choke-hold. When Diop and the entire audience protested this attack, the police threw Diop and Shabaka down and arrested them. As a result of the violent attack by the police, at least two elderly people were thrown to the ground by the police, and another member of InPDUM, an elderly African woman, was taken to the hospital with a broken hip. The International People's Democratic Uhuru Movement calls for an end to police violence and killings, and demands justice through a program for real change: |
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Comments
City of brotherly love? Not if you're black
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 03/19/2009 - 11:00pmJust like Mumia and Move, Phila cops want to destroy anyone who speaks out. I don't think they'll get away with it this time... Uhuru is a well-organized group.
Shame on this city!
Submitted by Lisa (not verified) on Fri, 03/20/2009 - 7:12amThis is outrageous! I was there and these two organizers were only standing with signs and chanting, honoring that child who was killed by the cops and trying to make that known and make the mayor and the city face their crimes. Free speech? Not in Philly! Everyone who is for true justice and human rights needs to get involved with this.
Philly government has to go!
Submitted by Don (not verified) on Fri, 03/20/2009 - 11:22amThey want to take away social services and give more money to the police who do stuff like this? They've gone too far!
Philladelphia cops are way out of line!
Submitted by Diana (not verified) on Mon, 03/23/2009 - 11:47pmWhat upsets me the most is that violent action was taken upon Diop and Shabaka when they were peacefully exercising their right to freedom of speech! There have been many recorded events where police take a simple, nonviolent event into something ugly. Why would someone pay so called "cops" to create violence and unjust actions? Why would someone take away essential service and give it to the ones that don't need it? Isn't government made by the people for the people including all races, ages and sexes? What kind of "government" are you running over there? UHURU POWER!
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