http://washingtontimes.com/commentary/2007...00318-6438r.htm
The Washington Times
www.washingtontimes.com
Forum: Wronged and Nifonged
Published February 4, 2007
We now know of the gross abuse of prosecutorial power in the Duke rape case. Durham District Attorney Michael B. Nifong indicted three Duke University lacrosse players last April without any corroborative evidence. The only "evidence" was the conflicted testimony of the accuser, an escort service "stripper" who performed at a team party. Her testimony has been challenged by the other black female stripper performing that night. DNA from five men was found on specimens from the accuser's underpants, vagina and rectum -- but none of it belonged to the three defendants.
Mr. Nifong knew this before he indicted the trio and conspired with the director of the testing laboratory to conceal this exculpatory evidence from both the defense attorneys and the judge.
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http://www.hendersondispatch.com/articles/...tters/let01.txt
Self-inflicted wounds black community's biggest threat
To the editor:
“Black on black crime is the No. 1 threat to the black community. Black on black crime is racist!” There I said it. The use of the words racism and racist appears to be the only way to light a fire under our civil rights organizations and community activists to move them into action.
We all saw how quickly they mobilized their forces in response to allegations by a black woman (of questionable credibility) of a rape by white lacrosse players who attended Duke University. I always wondered if the response and subsequent “demands for justice” would have been the same if the rape allegations were against Black men from, let's say, North Carolina Central University? Why? Because, those civil rights organizations habitually don't respond to situations involving black-on-black crime. We saw their lack of response to the murder of a retired school teacher by a black male in Raleigh. He successfully avoided his rightful death sentence for life in prison. What about our concern for the rights of his victim? She wasn't born into this world to die in such a horrific way.
Why are black victims more valuable when attacked by whites? Are black victims attacked by other blacks less traumatized? Are they “less dead” when murdered by other blacks? Yes, those are ridiculous questions, but not as ridiculous as the perceived lack of self-respect when our community leaders fail to pursue and hold those people accountable inside our communities who are preying upon us. According to research, blacks are more than seven times more likely to be assaulted by other blacks.
So, our primary threats are no longer white men/women dressed in white hoods or unprofessional law enforcement officers. That primary threat now looks a lot like me (us) and is at times wearing another “hoodie.”
I attended Tuesday's NAACP meeting, and I didn't hear anything about black-on-black crime and its impacts on our community's quality of life. Maybe Rev. Dr. Barber, president, NC-NAACP, will address this topic during the February dinner ... but I doubt it.
Let me re-emphasize my point: back-on-black crime is a lack of self-respect. Why should others respect us when we don't respect ourselves?
“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
Elwood K. Johnson,
Henderson