As Gio Lopez Prepares For Her Next Chapter, She Remembers Her Time With MSPJC

Hello Friends,

Transitions can be exciting and a little sad as well, but in my opinion it is always a sign that we keep on rolling.

After eight and a half years, it’s now my time to continue rolling on to different lands. I’ll be leaving my staff role as G.O.T. Power Training Director the last day of November 2018.

I’m deeply thankful for all the opportunities of growth I have found during my time at the Mid-South Peace & Justice Center (MSPJC). I remember starting as an office coordinator for the Center when the former Executive Director, Jacob Flowers and Education Coordinator, Allison Glass trusted me enough for such an important position.

I’m saying this because when I started the job, I didn’t have any prior experience in this specific field, also considering that I thought my English was very limited.

During the first months in my position, I got more and more involved in the heart of MSPJC’s work, realizing that was something I’d wanted to be involved with since I was in college. A couple years later, I started working directly with Allison (then Training Director) in the training department, where my passion for theatre, art, and social justice mixed perfectly for me, becoming the Training Coordinator in 2015. MSPJC trusted once again in my abilities and my passion, investing greatly in building my facilitation skills and learning as a trainer for social justice. This experience allowed me to serve my community, focus on my personal growth, and get more in touch with my internalized oppression to be able to dismantled it. For this and much more, I will always be thankful with MSPJC.

I’m also proud of how much our training department, G.O.T. Power, is growing, and continuing to serve our community, opening spaces for learning experiences, building our community’s capacity through building skills in grassroots organizing,  and providing support for people doing community work and offering anti-oppression and liberation education.

Bennet Foster, with who I have being working for several years now, first as MBRU Coordinator, and as a Training Coordinator for the last year, will be taking care of G.O.T. Power until a new Director takes my place.

We are exited for the new accomplishments to come!

Please consider making a donation to MSPJC so we may continue to provide affordable spaces for learning on social justice.

Con mucho amor

Giovanna ‘Gio’ López

pronouns: she/her/ella

It is that time of year where the seasons change and temperatures dip. For some, this means curling up by the fire with a good book and a pumpkin spice latte, but for those without a home, it means surviving temperatures that put them at serious risk every night. However, then there is Room in the Inn, a growing coalition of churches that host those experiencing homelessness, providing them with a safe place to sleep and get meals from November-March.

However, stay is based a lottery system, as there are a limited amount of slots at each church. We need more churches to get involved so we don’t have to turn anyone away. There are also lots of ways to support RITI as a volunteer placed in one of the churches. They even have weekend shifts if you work during the week. Just log on to roomintheinn-memphis.org or contact Whitney at whitney@roomintheinn-memphis.org. Room In the Inn has become more than just a place to sleep– for many, it’s a home. So spread a little cheer this holiday season and volunteer at the Room In the Inn!

H.O.P.E News

We are enjoying our new space at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church and grateful to Rev. Andrews, Emily, Jasper and his crew for bearing with us as we transition. H.O.P.E. is looking forward to working with our new friends as well as connect with others through this ministry. St. Mary’s offers a nice somber church service on Wednesday and then a sit down breakfast, as well as on Saturday, the Pop Top Ministry. The Pop Top Ministry provides snack crackers, Vienna sausages, granola bars, etc to those experiencing homelessness. Our very own treasurer, Mother Georgia King, is having a drive for these items as well as monetary donations now-November 10th. Please contact Mother King at 901-650-7321 for more details or on how to donate to the Pop Top Ministry.

For more information about how you can help donate or support HOPE or those who do the work to combat homelessness, or would like to put on a HOPE shirt and volunteer,  contact Tamara Hendrix, (901)725.4990 or  tamara@midsouthpeace.org.

Feed the Movement!

H.O.P.E. would like to thank Marcos Pizza for providing pizzas for the H.O.P.E meetings on the 1st Wednesday of the month! H.O.P.E  is a supportive advocacy group for people with the experiences of homelessness. For many groups and organizations offering free food at meetings is a plus for their attendees, but for H.O.P.E. it is a necessity, due to the fact that most often the meal offered at H.O.P.E. meetings may be the only meal they will have that day. Also we would like to thank another one of our new sponsors, Hattie B’s! Please give these businesses your service and tell them H.O.P.E. sent you!

How can you help? You can help by donating prepared foods on Wednesdays to our meeting that afternoon. Don’t have time to cook or buy prepared foods and bring them to our meeting space? We also accept monetary donations towards this cause. Neither of those options seem feasible for you presently? We are also looking for restaurants willing to donate food to our meetings. As always, all forms of donations are completely tax deductible.

If you would like to discuss how you can offer support to HOPE please call Tamara @ 901-254-5964 or email tamara@midsouthpeace.org.

In 2012 the Department of Justice (DOJ) identified around 120 issues with Shelby County Juvenile Justice system, many of which concerned disproportionate treatment of youth of color. According to recent findings “nearly half of the items under the equal protection category are in ‘partial compliance.’ Only 25 percent, or eight items in that category, were in ‘full compliance.'” (Commercial Appeal)

While several local officials, including newly elected Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, assure constituents that local oversight will continue, others are not as convinced. “When we say equal protection, we’re talking about African-American and Latino children who are in the system, and they’re being unfairly treated and not receiving equal access to justice, equal access to their rights,” said Commission Chairman Van Turner. “For them to pull oversight at this juncture — it should trouble everyone in this county.”

Furthermore, multiple Shelby county commissioners have expressed concern that they only found out about this change from the media. “This underhanded decision, this underhanded move just really makes me wonder whose children matter,” said Commissioner Tami Sawyer. “And until we can see that all kids do matter, that black and brown kids matter in Shelby County, we’ll have to continue to fight.”

The Juvenile Justice Project is committed to working with those directly affected by the justice system here in Memphis. Too often we see that the difference between intervention and jail sentences depend on skin color and socioeconomic levels. We will continue following this story and working towards a true system of Justice for our youth. Youth are the solution, not the problem!

Greetings, transit warriors! MATA has announced their new list of service changes for this month! This revised list has much fewer cuts, and this is a big win for bus riders. Thanks to everyone who called, canvassed, and showed up to support neighborhood bus service! MATA will be voting on these changes at their Board meeting THIS Thursday, October 25th at 3:30 PM. This meeting will be at the Hollywood Community Center (1560 N. Hollywood), and riders can get there on the #32 or #8 bus! See MATA’s new service changes here.

New Initiative Reduces Court Dates for Misdemeanor Citations

Under the strategy, people issued misdemeanor citations go to records to be identified and processed and then they go to court all in one day. In the past, they had to be booked one day and then return a second day for their initial court date.

“Not everyone can make it to court for two days,” said Brad Watkins, executive director of the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center. “Not all of us are fortunate to have jobs where we have paid time off or are allowed to take time off, so you have a lot of people who are choosing between making a living and taking care of what is a minor and nonviolent offense.”

(Read More)

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To support the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center in doing more work like the Misdemeanor Citation Consolidation please donate here: www.midsouthpeace.org/donate-now

[Caption: MBRU met with Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris to talk funding for MATA!]

Greetings, transit warriors! Our next neighborhood town hall is THIS week! We’ll be at the Orange Mound Community Center (2572 Park) on Thursday, October 18th from 5-7 PM. We wanna talk with residents of Orange Mound, Bethel Grove, and surrounding neighborhoods about how to make MATA service work better for you. Hop on the #57 Park bus and join us!

Also, MBRU is going to bat for more transit funding and more neighborhood bus service! Last week, our Executive Committee met with Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris to talk about how to make MATA stronger. We want to thank Mayor Harris and his team for supporting public transit in Memphis, and we look forward to working with them on solutions that bus riders can get behind. We’re also getting ready for MATA’s next Board meeting, where they will be voting on a revised list of service changes. We want to be sure that MATA is listening to the community’s needs, so we encourage you to attend on Thursday, October 25th at 3:30 PM. This meeting will be at the Hollywood Community Center (1560 N. Hollywood), and riders can get there on the #32 or #8 bus!

Finally, we had a great time at our October member meeting last Saturday! We got to debrief about last month’s fight against service cuts, talk about new ideas to get MATA dedicated funding, and prepare for our elections coming soon. Our next meeting is November 10th–if you’re passionate about better transportation in Memphis, come find out more about our work or become a member!

***Take MBRU’s new TRANSIT SURVEY! We want to hear from riders all over Memphis about how you use MATA service in your neighborhoods. We’re working on making versions that are accessible for even more Memphians. Take the online version in English here, and here is la encuesta en Español. We’ll also have paper surveys at all our town halls this year!***

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MBRU holds meetings on the 2nd Saturday of each month from 12-2 PM; our next meeting is November 10th at A Step Ahead Foundation, in the Crosstown Concourse. If you have any questions, or you’re interested in joining our work, contact organizer Justin Davis at justin@midsouthpeace.org. And follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to see more updates!

Otha Thurmond, 93 year-old man, Brutally Slammed & Arrested By MPD

MSPJC fought long and hard to re-establish Memphis’ Civilian Law Enforcement Review Board (CLERB) in 2015, to review cases when complainants aren’t satisfied with the investigation handled by MPD’s Internal Affairs. Prior to this, the only chance a person had at holding an officer accountable for misconduct was to file a complaint with MPD’s Internal Affairs, a process that amounts to police policing the police.

Even with the stronger ordinance, CLERB’s power is limited to making recommendations to the Police Director for policy and disciplinary action, but to date, Mayor Jim Strickland’s appointed police director, Michael Rallings, has shrugged off any recommendations from CLERB, refusing to even take a second look at the cases. This is frustrating to be sure, and has left many asking the question: “If MPD doesn’t have to follow CLERB’s recommendations, what’s it all for?”

This is a valid question, and there is much more work to be done to demand more from a Mayor that ran for office, in part, on police accountability and included CLERB in his campaign platform. However, it doesn’t mean that CLERB isn’t important.

Take October’s case for instance, that of 93 year-old (91 at the time of the incident), Otha Thurmond, a pillar in his South Memphis Neighborhood, was was brutally manhandled by officers and arrested. The incident occured while officers were responding to an unrelated call. Mr. Thurmond was out walking the block, as he was known to do on a daily basis, checking on things going on in the neighborhood, talking to residents, road crews, etc, and approached the officers to ask what was going on. The footage speaks for itself. The officers told him it was none of his business, told him they didn’t like him walking around with the walking stick that he used to ward off stray dogs and clear debris from sidewalks. Then as Mr. Thurmond appears to say, “you can have…[inaudible]” while holding the stick, one of the officers slammed Mr. Thurmond onto the hood of his squad car, twisted his arms behind his back, cuffed him, and placed him under arrest. Until that point, Mr. Thurmond had never even received a traffic ticket. The charges were dropped against Mr. Thurmond, and the officers involved received one day suspension, and were required to participate in some sort of sensitivity training.

Click photo to view the news story.

The footage of what happened to Mr. Thurmond is hard to watch, but we never would have seen it without CLERB. In our experience MPD charges upwards of $300 to get a copy of such footage. Since the re-establishment of CLERB, Memphians have had the opportunity to observe dozens of cases, and view body camera footage of police misconduct incidents that would have never seen the light of day without the forum provided by CLERB. In this case, CLERB ruled in favor of Mr. Thurmond, and plan to issue a letter of apology to him for the pain and suffering he’s had to endure.

That may seem small, but over time, as more and more cases are heard, patterns will emerge that provide the data needed to push for larger reforms around police accountability and transparency. In the meantime we can all do a few things to help us get there.

1. Attend CLERB meetings and bear witness to the process.

2. Call your Mayor (901.636.6000) and City Council (901.636.6786), and demand that they take steps to support CLERB, and greater accountability and transparency for law enforcement.

3. Don’t be discouraged. The wheels of justice turn slowly, but grind exceedingly fine.