Rev. Pinkney’s appeal will be heard May 11!

Latest

Rev. Pinkney and other protest the opening of a private golf course on Benton Harbor land that once was public parkland. In 2012, the public land was sold by the city’s unelected Emergency Manager. PHOTO/BRETT JELINEK
Rev. Pinkney and other protest the opening of a private golf course on Benton Harbor land that once was public parkland. In 2012, the public land was sold by the city’s unelected Emergency Manager.
PHOTO/BRETT JELINEK

 
MARQUETTE, MI — Let the truth be told! I will have a hearing in Grand Rapids, MI at the Court of Appeals on May 11, 2016 at 10 a.m. An all white jury, holding a deeply rooted prejudice against the community and me, convicted me. I was charged with voter fraud when there was none.  No direct or indirect evidence was presented at the trial. No eyewitness, no confession, nothing that could send me to prison for 2 ½ to 10 years.
In 2015, Benton Harbor residents proposed a 1% income tax aimed at Whirlpool, the blood-sucking corporation that rules Berrien County, MI. Whirlpool, and their puppet, former Mayor James Hightower, defeated the measure through a massive misinformation campaign.  This created the community’s effort to recall Mayor James Hightower.
The petitions were turned in with all of the required number of signatures. Then the sheriff’s department started investigating the petitions at the request of the mayor, and began intimidating the residents of Benton Harbor who had signed petitions. A SWAT team surrounded my home to arrest me, but I had left 15 minutes earlier to celebrate my wife, Dorothy’s, birthday. This was a power move to stop the recall election and to keep the puppet mayor in office. Recently, Marcus Muhammad defeated Mayor James Hightower by a landslide. Let the truth be told.
The prosecutor, Mike Sepic, made a remarkable statement in his brief. He said that Rev. Pinkney’s First Amendment activities (right to free speech, petition the government, etc.,) could not be prejudicial in nature because my activities involved things like the fight for freedom, justice and equality for all, and for food, clothing, and shelter for the needy. But when the prosecutor argued to the jury he said something entirely different.  He said that all these things were not true and that the jury should come to the conclusion that Rev. Pinkney is guilty and that his activity indicated this. This clearly indicates the prosecutor had an improper prejudicial purpose.
There is no hope for us until we become tough-minded enough to break loose from the shackles of prejudice, half-truths and ignorance. The situation in the world does not permit us the luxury of soft-mindedness. A nation or a civilization that produces soft-minded people purchases it on death.  We must confront the corrupt system and the blood-sucking Whirpool Corporation.
Show your support for justice for all. Be at Rev. Pinkney’s Court of Appeals hearing in Grand Rapids!

+ Articles by this author

The People’s Tribune opens its pages to voices of the movement for change. Our articles are written by individuals or organizations, along with our own reporting. Bylined articles reflect the views of the authors. Articles entitled “From the Editors” reflect the views of the editorial board. Please credit the source when sharing: peoplestribune.orgPlease donate to help us keep bringing you voices of the movement for change. Click here. We’re all volunteer, no paid staff. The People’s Tribune is a 501C4 organization.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Featured

When Enforcers Look Like Us: La Malinche, the Border, and America’s Colonial Trap

A painful and recurring question surfaces in immigrant communities: why are so many of the people working for ICE and Border Patrol and enforcing deportation, detention, and family separation Latino themselves?

Afghanistan War Veteran Dies in ICE Custody One Day After Arrest

Mohommad Nazeer Paktyawal served alongside US troops in Afghanistan. He died at age 41 after ICE arrested him in front of his children and he had been in ICE custody only one day.

Tribunal of Conscience to Hold Hearings on US Crimes Against Migrants and Countries

The International Tribunal of Conscience of Peoples in Movement will launch a series of hearings beginning March 18 in Mexico City. The hearings, to be held throughout Latin America and the US, will deal with the crimes of the Trump regime and its predecessors and accomplices against migrants and refugees within US borders, as well as US crimes against other countries.

Glimpses of the Terror Inside a Detention Hotspot

The patch pictured above appears on the uniforms of some guards at "Alligator Alcatraz" in Florida. Below the grim reaper riding on an alligator are two human skulls, similar to the Totenkopf or death's head that the Nazis who ran and guarded German WWII concentration camps had on their SS uniforms.

The Women Who Move the Labor Movement Forward

History shows that the labor movement moves forward when women organize. Women have repeatedly proven willing to confront power, build solidarity, and move the fight forward when others hesitate.

More from the People's Tribune