Greetings, everyone.  Below is some information I received from London Black History Walks recently.  It deals with the two recent shootings in the U.S. as well as the killing in London of Mark Duggan, as covered in the forthcoming documentary The Hard Stop. 

Please also check out my blog post:  Black Lives Matter: How to Find Peace with the Higher Self.

Please submit a blog post to the Blogging Carnival for Nonviolence. 

Facts missing from mainstream media on Black men killed by police

The coverage of police killings of Black men has been extensive but incomplete. The murder of Philando Castile for example has been heavily reported and yet simple facts about  police behaviour have somehow been left out. For example, Diamond Reynolds who was in the car when Philando was shot states:

1. The officer who shot Philando was comforted by police at the scene but she was not
2. Police offered no first aid and the officer can be seen aiming his weapon at  Philando even after he has been shot multiple times.
3. She was detained in police jail cell for hours after the event and not allowed to speak to anyone.
4. She was not fed or offered water
5. She was not released until 5am the next day.
6. While detained she was  separated from her 4 year old daughter.  
7. Police took her phone and told her they were going to charge it and give it back to her but never  did even when she asked.
8. Police took over her Facebook page and deleted her post . Police would not tell her if her boyfriend was dead or not but merely that he was in hospital.
9. Police told her that her boyfriend was in a hospital which was miles away, and in the opposite direction to, where he actually was

Watch Diamond's full, impromptu speech HERE. Castiles' mother also complained that she was denied access to her son's body by the police. To see Philando's mother categorically state that Black men are being hunted in America watch HERE

In the case of Alton Sterling  who was shot outside  a convenience store, the store owner, Abdullah Muflahi, allowed Sterling to sell CD's there and was a friend. Police detained Muflahi and confiscated his CCTV footage illegally. They denied him communication with his family and lawyer to the extent that he is now suing the Baton Rouge Louisiana Police department. Full details HERE 

In the Mark Duggan shooting in London as detailed in the documentary The Hard Stop, information leaked to the press stated that there had been a 'shoot out' and that Duggan was armed. There were also press reports that Duggan was a 'big time gangster'. The officer who shot Duggan insisted that he saw a weapon in his hand but could not explain how it disappeared from his hand after he was shot. A firearm in a sock was found some distance away from Duggan but it did not have any of Duggan's fingerprints or DNA on it. The only officer that was shot, was shot by another police officer.