Tuesdays with Bobbi: Dear Vecino, I wrote "Never Again" 8,245 days ago

Policy solutions and hope. That is what I hope to offer. I share with you the keynote speech from Friday evening's training event, Peggy Flanagan, Exec. Dir of Children's Defense Fund.

Yesterday it was announced that the Grand Jury in Ferguson decided to not indict the officer responsible for the death of Michael Brown, an unarmed teenager who was shot six times by that police officer who claimed that he feared for his life.

A little less than 8,245 days ago I wrote a poem entitled, "Never Again" because I was in Los Angeles at a Laker game the night the riots started. And, as the days went on, I was getting a little tired of the pundits giving space to Pres. Bush who called the rioters, "thugs and crooks."

Rioting is wrong, but let's keep King's words in mind as we witness the reaction to the decision in Ferguson.

Martin Luther King --- as quoted by Amy Goodman on Democracy's Now coverage posted on youtube.com today:  "It is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative than to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard."

ACLU - Sign the Petition:  https://www.aclu.org/secure/DOJ-racial-profiling?ms=fb_141124_racialjustice

Tell Congress:  Pass HR5478 - the ‘‘Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act’’

LOCALLY:  Is your police department like mine? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKPaiKvqsYQ  

Take action.