Social Justice
Thousands attend #JusticeorElse Million Man March in Washington, DC
Nearly a million people emerged in at the National Mall in Washington in DC for the 20th Anniversary of the Million Man March.
Thousands emerged at the National Mall in Washington in DC to Capitol Hill for Justice Or Else, the 20th Anniversary of the Million Man March.
Justice or Else Million Man March
The motto the 20th Anniversary was Justice or Else convened by the Nation of Islam leader Minister Louis Farrakhan. The rally attracted various organization and allies all for the cause of “justice”.
Celebrities At Justice Or Else
There was a heavy celebrity presence in support of the march including P. Diddy, Russell Simmons, Atlanta Housewives, J. Cole, Snoop Dogg, Yaz from Empire, and many more.
Audience heard speeches by various African American leaders, Native Americans, the Latino community, women’s rights activists, the families of Sandra Bland, Travyon Martin, and Michael Brown and many more calling for unity and reform and social justice.
Louis Farrahkan
Farrakhan, 82, spoke to the crowd for nearly two and half hours and reflected on the importance of passing the torch to the next generation.
“We who are getting older… what good are we if we don’t prepare young people to carry that torch of liberation to the next step? What good are we if we think we can last forever and not prepare others to walk in our footsteps?” he said
His overall message seemed to be directed at the black community at large.
This march was much different in regards to attendees from 1995. I was 10 years old on the first march and I didn’t attend. But the first march drew attendees that was mostly black men hearing speeches on how black men could be more responsible for improving themselves, their families and communities.
On that day, Farrakhan spoke for more than two hours and elucidated on the role of white supremacy in the country’s suffering while calling on black men to clean up their lives and become better fathers, husbands and neighbors.
But again, 20 years later, Farrakhan blasted the white establishment. “Moses was not an integrationist and neither are we,” he said. “Let me be clear. America has no future for you or for me. She can’t make a future for herself, much less a future for us.”
A man waving the Black Liberation flag during the Million Man March. #justiceorelse #millionmanmarch #washingtondc #101015 A photo posted by Chenelle (@chenellecovin) on
He spoke a lot to the younger generation, the millennials like myself to continue the torch. Farrakhan specifically mentioned Black Lives Matter, the group that arose in response to police-involved deaths of black men, as the “future leadership.”
“These are not just young people who happened to wake up one morning. Ferguson ignited it all,” he said. “So [to] all the brothers and sisters from Ferguson who laid in the streets, all the brothers and sisters from Ferguson who challenged the tanks, we are honored that you have come to represent our struggle and our demands.”
The march brought together people for a common cause, for social justice. The question is now, what happens next?
Crime & Justice
Paramedic involved in Elijah McClain’s death sentenced to probation, work release and community service
Jeremy Cooper, a former paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with a fatal dose of ketamine, has been sentenced to probation and community service.
Jeremy Cooper, a former paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with a fatal dose of ketamine, has been sentenced to probation and community service.
Paramedic Jeremy Cooper sentenced
He had faced up to three years in prison but was sentenced to four years probation, 14 months of work release and 100 hours of community service.
Cooper and another paramedic, Peter Cichuniec, were found guilty of criminally negligent homicide in December in the death of McClain, 23, who was subdued by police and injected with ketamine on August 24, 2019.
Both paramedics had pleaded not guilty to the felony charges. Cichuniec was sentenced in March to five years in prison, the minimum.
Police stop turns fatal
McClain was walking home in August 2019 when the 23-year-old Black man was confronted by police officers who forcibly restrained him. When Aurora Fire Rescue paramedics Jeremy Cooper and Peter Cichuniec arrived, they injected him with ketamine.
He went into cardiac arrest in an ambulance a few minutes later and died three days after that.
The McClain family sued the city of Aurora for Elijah’s wrongful death and received a $15 million settlement.
Social Justice
Former high school athletic director arrested and charged with using AI to frame principal
A former athletic director of a high school was arrested by Baltimore County Police after allegedly using new technology to impersonate a principal.
A former athletic director of a high school was arrested by police in Maryland after allegedly using new technology to impersonate a principal.
Maryland principal incident
In January of this year, we reported that an audio was circulating on social media accusing Pikesville High School principal Eric Eisworth of making racist and antisemitic comments.
After an investigation, authorities concluded the audio was artificial intelligence.
Suspect arrested
Dazhon Darien, 31, was charged with disrupting school activities, after investigators determined Darien faked Eiswert’s voice and circulated the audio on social media in January, according to the Baltimore County State’s Attorney’s Office. Darien’s nickname, DJ, was among the names mentioned in the audio clips he allegedly faked.
Maryland principal accused audio
In the audio, Eisworth allegedly claimed Black students were unable to “test their way out of a paper bag” and made “disparaging comments” about Jewish individuals and two teachers, the charging document said
“The audio clip … had profound repercussions,” police wrote in charging documents. “It not only led to Eiswert’s temporary removal from the school but also triggered a wave of hate-filled messages on social media and numerous calls to the school. The recording also caused significant disruptions for the PHS staff and students.”
Retaliation
Police say Darien made the recording in retaliation after Eisworth initiated an investigation into improper payments he made to a school athletics coach who was also his roommate. Darien is also charged with theft and retaliating against a witness.
Darien was released on $5,000 bond and waived an attorney at an initial court appearance, according to court records.
Crime & Justice
Exonerated man on a mission to rebuild his life
C.J. Rice, a man who served more than 12 years behind bars for an attempted murder he was falsely convicted of, was officially exonerated on March 18, 2024. He is now on a mission to rebuild his life.
Charles “CJ” Rice was just 17 years old when he was convicted of a crime he did not commit.
CJ Rice Exonerated
Now 30 year old Rice is using the injustice of the last 13 years to galvanize the life he almost spent behind bars after being exonerated and declared legally innocent of the crime he was convicted of in 2013 on March 18, 2024.
According to the GoFundMe, CJ wants to “embrace this opportunity” and become a paralegal.
With the help of Dream.org, the GoFundMe aims to help CJ start a new life with everything from a place to stay to clothes to wear as he builds a new future.
The CJ Rice case
CJ Rice, formally known Charles J. Rice, was convicted in a September 2011 shooting for attempted murder and sentenced to 30-60 years behind bars in 2013.
According to the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, the South Philadelphia shooting left a woman identified as Latrice Johnson, a 6-year-old girl and two others injured.
Johnson called 911 after the shooting and described the suspects as two men running away in hoodies and black sweatpants but couldn’t fully identify them.
Through an initial investigation with victims in the hospital, Rice’s co-defendant, Tyler Linder, was identified as one of the shooters. Detectives interviewed Johnson while she was in the hospital and she identified 17-year-old Rice as one of the shooters running away although she hadn’t seen the teen in a few years. Rice had been friends with Johnson’s son when he was younger, according to the Pennsylvania Innocence Project.
In her description, Johnson said Rice was wearing a hoodie and claimed that she was able to see his full face and long braids poking out the side of the hood. However, Rice’s arrest photo depicted him with shorter cornrows flushed against his head. Despite this, a case against Rice and Linder was built.
According to the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, among the evidence was a theory that the shooting was retaliatory, which wasn’t proven. That’s because Rice was shot and injured a few days prior. It’s alleged the suspects ran from the scene, and Rice’s counsel never used his medical records as evidence to help Rice’s case.
Rice’s case received national attention after CNN anchor Jake Tapper began reporting on it. His father, Dr. Theodore Tapper, is Rice’s former doctor and treated his injuries.
Although it was alleged that the shooters ran from the 2011 crime scene, this is something that Dr. Tapper believed Rice just physically couldn’t do at the time.
Officials believed the 2011 shooting involved gang affiliations, leading the DA’s Gun Violence Task Force to begin their investigation to see whether or not Rice could be re-tried for the shooting or to dismiss the charges in full.
This suggestion of motive and the sole faulty eyewitness identification of CJ led to his conviction on four counts for attempted murder.
A free man
Rice’s defense counsel filed a habeas petition to get CJ out of prison and have his conviction overturned.
On March 18, 2024, the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas granted the Commonwealth’s motion to dismiss all charges against Rice, officially making CJ a free man.
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