Attention: Attorney General Eric Holder:
On behalf of the New Black Panther Party and on behalf of numerous families from the City of Newark, New Jersey who have come to us for help and support, we wholeheartedly unite and join in with the American Civil Liberties Union’s petition and call for a federal investigation of the Newark Police.
The ACLU has done a heroic service to this community by extensively documenting how unchecked police abuse has created a dangerous chasm between a community and its police department.
In 96 pages, they have extensively uncovered 407 purported abuses by the Newark police of its citizens. Amazingly, these 407 incidents of abuse only cover a period of two and half years! 407 documented complaints of abuse within two and a half years!
These abuses range from blockwatch association members being accosted off their streets, to female district leaders being falsely arrested, cursed and exposed, to people being beaten and or shot to death while having been already subdued.
Behind these numbers is something all sides of this issue need to appreciate. On the other side of these numbers, and they are incredible numbers, are human beings, real flesh and blood human beings, working people, students, mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, real people…Like Basire Farrell who was hit by a squad car, tasered and then savagely beaten to death by several officers who laughed about what they had done while they were literally washing the blood off of their hands, according to eyewitnesses, like South Ward district leader Margaret Barnes-Williams who was falsely arrested and handcuffed to a radiator, like Erika Hankerson, a single mother wrongly arrested this past weekend. Hankerson and Williams both had their upper body clothing torn from them violently showing their breasts in a humiliating fashion. Hankerson’s son Travis Rattray, was savagedly assaulted on videotaped by an undercover Newark police officer and was threatened again just this past weekend. Like Warren Lee who was hogtied once arrested and in handcuffs and then savagely
beaten to death.
Real people, mothers, fathers, sons and daughters, regular people, good people who would have a natural respect and admiration for law enforcement that they can’t because of how badly they have been mistreated…Real people who deserve better than what they are
getting from Newark. In spite of well thought out publicity efforts to change the public’s image of the police by its mayor and police director, an atmosphere of fear, anger and intimidation clearly exists for many in this community.
We implore you to immediately launch a full-scale investigation into the behavior of the Newark police department so good people like Erika Hankerson and Margaret Barnes-Williams can feel better about the city they live in again.
To be sure, we think that your probe should begin with Newark, but with the same rogue atmosphere that also exists with surrounding police departments in our broader area, it needs to be expanded to include other area police departments as well. We see similar abuses coming from Essex County Police, East Orange Police and other area police departments as well. Tragically, we have the dead bodies of Amar McLean, shot in the back while in handcuffs by an Essex County police officer and of Jahqui Graham who was stripped naked and had has head bashed in while in police custody in East Orange to make our point here in the most tragic way.
This area has a rich cultural history to be proud of that needs to be rejuvenated. It cannot happen as long as its citizens are living in fear from their own police departments.
We are available for any assistance we can provide.
Respectfully,
Zayid Muhammad,
National Minister of Culture,
New Black Panther Party
Cc: Malik Zulu Shabazz, Esq.,
Nat’l Chairman, New Black Panther Party
SEE ORIGINAL LETTER ATTACHED BELOW....
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