The first person to die in defense of America was a black man, Crispus Attucks.
DESPITE being descendants of the African slaves that literally built this country and whose 400 years of uncompensated labor established the personal fortunes of many of our fellow citizens, the financial security of all most of our other fellow citizens, and the foundation of this nation's economic supremacy through the 20th century...
DESPITE being descendants of the Afro-American slaves that were set free and presumed to be given rights equal to all other citizens by the Emancipation Proclamation signed by U.S. President Lincoln in 1863....
DESPITE living for the next 100 years under legal, economic, social and cultural oppression and restrictions dictated by a legalized system of Segregation under Jim Crow laws, that was legitimized, approved and sustained by representatives of the U.S. government and all other federal, state and municipal authorities, until the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964...
DESPITE having rights to fair and equal treatment as U.S. citizens enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, the Emancipation Proclamation; the Supreme Court Decision in Brown V. Board of Education in 1954; and the Civil Rights Act of 1964, among others, African American citizens, especially males, continue to be at high risk for any seemingly inconsequential encounter with a fellow (white) citizens to escalate to an unpredictable and tragic conclusion - as was the case with Trayvon Martin...because a fellow citizen with an anti-black male obsession, had possession of a lethal weapon (due to loose gun laws), and the authority to use it (accorded to him under a racist 'stand your ground' law) and the indulgence of local authorities
DESPITE many and great achievements and contributions to America's cultural identity in a multitude of areas that includes, athletics, music and other forms of entertainment, scientific and medical inventions and discoveries, industrial and agricultural inventions, unbounded creativity in the arts, politics, business and many other fields..
DESPITE a history of admirable and honorable service of millions of black males (many of whom made the ultimate sacrifice) in all branches of the military and in every war fought by this nation, African American males continue to be victimized by the fearful descendants of white slave owners and other who continue to benefit from the legacy of slavery and law enforcement officials and people in positions of authority who see it as their personal duty to prolong if not preserve America's unspoken cultural legacy of 'white supremacy'...
In light of all that has been suffered and endured by AFRICAN AMERICAN MALES OF AMERICA, WE, THE AFRICAN AMERICAN PEOPLE OF AMERICA (being descendants of the original African slaves) and other people of goodwill, submit this petition to U.S. government officials at all levels and in all places and capacities and request that you IMMEDIATELY take such measures as necessary to
END THE WAR ON BLACK BOYS & MEN
(and WOMEN AND GIRLS)
BY THE REPRESENTATIVES OF LAW ENFORCEMENT
& PEOPLE IN POSITIONS OF AUTHORITY
By making it illegal and punishable by fine, incarceration, or both:
TO USE RACIAL PROFILING, INSTEAD OF INTELLIGENT POLICE WORK, TO INDISCRIMINATELY SINGLE-OUT BLACK MALES (or other racial/ethnic group) for a presumption of guilt, undue harassment and scrutiny, unjust detention, arrest and/or violent force, based on their race
TO PLOT TO DEPRIVE BLACK MALES (or any persons) OF THEIR RIGHTS BY deliberately creating programs, protocols and/or practices designed to deprive African American males (or other persons) of fair and equal treatment under the law based on their race
TO INCITE MOB/VIGILANTE ACTION AGAINST BLACK MALES by using coded, symbolic, insulting language or imagery to create a campaign of hate-mongering, bullying, mob action, etc. targeted against black males (or any person) based on their race that leads to them being physically attacked, subjected to emotional distress, suffering economic damages and other types of losses, up to and including their life
TO PLANT & INFLAME THE SEEDS OF RACIAL STRIFE FOR PERSONAL GAIN by engaging in or sponsoring/encouraging, inciting others to undertake any of the above activities in order to receive personal gain or benefit
AFTER 400 YEARS OF ENSLAVEMENT and 150 years of bait and switch games being played with our rights to free and equal treatment by our fellow citizens and the law enforcement and people in positions of authority, we are saying...
ENOUGH...
NEVER AGAIN
WILL WE ACCEPT
IN JUSTICE AS OUR DUE.
