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Archives for May 2014

May 29, 2014 by Mid-South Peace & Justice Center

MBRU Action Alert

1901177_627803117293056_1232437039_nWe’d love to see you tomorrow as Shelia Williams, Co-Chair and co-founder of the Memphis Bus Riders Union will be appointed to serve on the Memphis Area Transit Authority Board of Commissioners!

As a founder of MBRU, Shelia has provided our work not only with experience and insight as a daily MATA rider, but with the lasting commitment to building bus rider power that our grassroots movement needs to survive the frail moments.  She continues her commitment as our Co-Chair, representing a new era of public participation and transit justice in Memphis. Shelia looks forward to collaborating with the Board and Administration of MATA to establish new initiatives that bring the voices of MATA riders to the table in a real and meaningful way, so that the the needs of those who depend on public transportation are prioritized.

Join us at City Hall for Executive Committee at 2PM on the 5th floor. This is a historical moment for Memphis. Shelia will be the the only bus rider on MATA’s Board and will need lots of love and support. Shelia’s appointment comes before council committee tomorrow and then before the full council on June 3rd at 3:30PM.

Filed Under: News

May 19, 2014 by Mid-South Peace & Justice Center

Transitions: A New Chapter

JacobThis month our long-time Executive Director, Jacob Flowers, will be transitioning off of the staff of the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center. In ten years he has transformed this organization from a small and underfunded group to a cornerstone social justice organization doing some of the most important and innovative work in our city and region. Below you will find a letter from Jacob announcing his transition. We hope you will join with us in thanking him for his service by making a contribution to the Ten for Ten Fund which will raise $10,000 in honor of Jacob’s ten years of service.

I want to express my heartfelt thanks and gratitude to every one of you for the role you have played in supporting me and this organization. May 30, 2014 will be my last day at the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center. I have accepted a position as the TN State Director of Enroll America  a national non-profit group using grassroots organizing to educate and enroll people in healthcare coverage through the Affordable Care Act.

It’s been a hard decision to leave this job. But several years ago our Board and staff made the decision to build an organization that values leadership and growth. This is a part of that growth and also an acknowledgement that an organization like ours, one that values the leadership and perspective of all members of our community, must allow for that leadership to grow as well. Our leadership is ready to embrace this change and our community is ready to see change in their streets schools and jobs. So this change is but another step in realizing our vision of being a sustainable people-led organization that is building a people’s movement to fundamentally change our community for the better of all the people that live and work here. We will be making announcements in the coming weeks about the person that will take on the role of Executive Director, so please stay tuned.

The work that we all do here at the MSPJC is some of the most moving and potentially systems changing that I have seen. Many of my proudest moments and most moving memories have taken place here and I would not trade them for anything. I will continue to be involved in this organization’s work and our communities struggle for dignity and equality, but just in a different role. One task I am taking on before I leave is raising the funds necessary to support our work this year and into the future. So I hope you will join with me in raising $10,000 in honor of the ten years of work I have been privileged to lead here. The Ten for Ten Fund will ensure that all of our work continues strongly through this transition and beyond. I hope you will consider making a gift by following this link.

In Peace,
Jacob Flowers
Executive Director
Mid-South Peace and Justice Center

Please consider making a donation in honor of Jacob’s long-service to our community. Make a contribution to the Ten for Ten Fund securely online today!

We will also be planning a more formal farewell event for Jacob in June. So stay tuned for details!

Filed Under: News

May 3, 2014 by Mid-South Peace & Justice Center

Action Alert! Join Memphis United at City Council THIS TUESDAY

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Memphis United needs YOU to ensure that our resolution is more than just righteous words on paper. Join us at City Council Tuesday, May 6th, at 3:30PM and contact your council person, and urge them to support our resolution for comprehensive public input to reform Civilian Law Enforcement Review Board, enabling it to be a transparent process that the residents of Memphis can have confidence in when their complaints against officers are not handled in a satisfactory manner by Internal Affairs.

My name is Paul Garner and I am an Organizing Coordinator with the Mid-South Peace & Justice Center. I have worked with Homeless Organizing for Power & Equality (HOPE) since 2010. We regularly receive reports from people experiencing homelessness of mistreatment and harassment from law enforcement, ranging from unwarranted profiling to physical harm. In November of 2012, members of HOPE were harassed at the Manna House. Three members, including myself, were cited for for ‘obstruction of a sidewalk’. On October 21st, 2014 another incident occurred at the Manna House. Officers were attempting to enter the property without a warrant. They were told by staff in charge that they were not permitted on their private property without a warrant, but the police continued. When I arrived, John Holle, the volunteer in charge, was using his phone to film police, as he continued to request that they not enter the property without a warrant. He was instructed by officers to stop filming or he would be arrested. As I approached the scene, camera-phone in hand, officers were handcuffing him. I requested the officers’ names & badge numbers. The officers refused before telling me that if I continued filming, I’d be arrested too. I was cuffed and charged with ‘obstruction of a sidewalk & disorderly conduct.’ Upon our release from jail the next morning, charges were dropped, and we immediately filed complaints with IAD. It took six months just to receive a letter in the mail stating that my complaints against the officers, were ‘not sustained.’ Officials with the Inspectional Services Bureau told me that this was because MPD didn’t have a policy on filming in place at the time of the incident. This is contrary to statements made by Police Director Toney Armstrong. I will have to file an open records request with the city’s Office of Open Records to find out for sure.

I attempted to appeal the findings IAD’s investigation. I discovered that the Civilian Law Enforcement Review Board (CLERB), set up to review IAD investigations when complainants were dissatisfied, had been dissolved, despite being created by ordinance approved by the City Council in 1994. Therefore, CLERB cannot be disbanded without seven votes of the Council. The City’s Web-Site still listed a description of the process for filing a complaint through CLERB, as well as a hot-line. However, the number went to an unaffiliated person in the City of Memphis’ Legal Department, or a generic voicemail, where messages left went unreturned. Even when CLERB was operational, they were a powerless board with no subpoena power and officers’ involvement in the investigation was purely voluntary.

Days later, another incident involving the arrest of people for filming police happened at KPreSha Boutique on South Main, when police began pepper spraying young men and women at a Hip Hop Show during the downtown Trolley Night. These events sparked the reignition of Memphis United, a coalition made up of individuals and community organizations. We pressured MPD to release their policy on filming officers and drafted a list of asks for different city officials aimed at creating greater transparency and accountability of law enforcement to the community. Among these asks, was the reformation of a CLERB, and a resolution for Memphis United and the members of the City Council to jointly host public input forums in every Council District to determine the scope and powers of a reformed CLERB might look like. Our resolution has gone before the Public Safety Committee of the Memphis City Council, sponsored by Janis Fullilove, Wanda Halbert and Lee Harris, and will go before the full Council on Tuesday, May 6th.

Please join us at City Hall on Tuesday at 3:30 PM and contact your City Council representative and urge them to vote ‘YES’ on Memphis United’s Resolution!! Make the call today!


Locate your Precinct HERE!

Bill Morrison, District 1
(901) 636-6786
Bill.Morrison@memphistn.gov

William C. Boyd, District 2
(901) 636-6786
bill.boyd@memphistn.gov

Harold B. Collins, District 3
(901) 636-6786
– or –
P.O. Box 301132
Memphis, TN 38130
(901) 545-5987 office
(901) 332-3691
Harold.Collins@memphistn.gov

Wanda Halbert, District 4
(901) 636-6786
Wanda.Halbert@memphistn.gov

Chairman Jim Strickland, District 5
(901) 636-6786
Jim.Strickland@memphistn.gov

Edmund Ford, Jr., Ed.D, District 6
(901) 636-6786
Edmund.Fordjr@memphistn.gov

Lee Harris, District 7
(901) 636-7010
Lee.Harris@memphistn.gov

Joe Brown, Super District 8, Position 1
1384 Jackson
Memphis TN 38107
(901) 274-4724
Joe.Brown@memphistn.gov

Janis Fullilove, District 8, Position 2
(901) 636-6786
Janis.Fullilove@memphistn.gov

Vice Chairman, Myron Lowery, District 8, Position 3
(901) 636-7016
(901) 828-4810
Myron.Lowery@memphistn.gov

Kemp Conrad, Super District 9, Position 1
(901) 636-6786
Fax (901) 636-6796
Kemp.Conrad@memphistn.gov

Shea Flinn, Super District 9, Position 1
(901) 636-6786
Fax (901) 636-6796
Shea.Flinn@memphistn.gov

Filed Under: News

May 1, 2014 by Mid-South Peace & Justice Center

MBRU Upcoming Meeting

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Memphis Bus Riders Union will be holding it’s May meeting this Saturday, May 3rd from 12 to 2PM at MCIL 1633 Madison Ave.

We had to move the meeting from our regularly scheduled date due to Rolling for Independence which is May 10th. Rolling For Independence is a fundraiser for MCIL. We hope you can participate in this event as well and support our allies at MCIL. More info for the event can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/events/522927967790960/?ref=3&ref_newsfeed_story_type=regular

On the agenda for this Saturday will be some updates on city budget deliberations. Mayor Wharton has proposed a budget that would restore 1.5 million in funding for MATA. At the city council budget hearing yesterday, the committee passed an amendment made by Harris to add an additional 800,000 to MATA’s operations budget, bringing MATA’s city funding back to 2010 levels.

MBRU will be meeting with council members to ensure that this funding is approved.

1901177_627803117293056_1232437039_nAlso we’d like to announce that our Co-Chair Shelia Williams has been appointed to the MATA board. This is a huge victory for bus riders!

Please join us Saturday and help continue to organize for improved public transit.

May 3rd from 12 to 2PM at MCIL 1633 Madison Ave.

Filed Under: News

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