Fresno Westside Residents Respond to Being Called Terrorists

[annm4peace]

*** wonder if they are "homegrown domestic terrorists" ***


Fresno, CA 's Westside (majority are Black) Residents Respond to Being Called Terrorists
By Mike Rhodes

Residents of West Fresno don’t like being called terrorists. At a press conference held earlier this week Rev. Floyd D. Harris said “no one has a right to call anyone a terrorist in this city.” Harris was referring to statements made by local elected officials at a press conference held last August. At that event Fresno City Council member Jerry Duncan, stressing the urgency of a campaign against gangs in West Fresno, compared black gang members to terrorists. Duncan, speaking about those gang members, said “make no mistake about it, they are terrorists and they are as much of terrorists as those people in Iraq that are blowing up innocent people.” Fresno mayor Alan Autry said “the connection with the war on terror and the war against gangs at home is not a spin, it is a very real connection.” For video and more information about Fresno City officials identifying African American gang members as terrorists, see: http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/08/29/18444759.php

This weeks press conference was held in front of radio station KFCF 88.1 FM, where Duncan and Harris were scheduled to discuss the gang/terrorism issue on Valley Black Talk, a program aired on Monday evenings. Shortly before the show, Duncan sent an email to the programs producer saying he would not be able to appear on the show. Harris was disappointed and told me that he had been looking forward to the dialog with the city council member. The show did go on, but without Duncan. The program included many people calling in to discuss the provocative statements made by local elected officials.

At the press conference, Rev. Harris, who is the president of the National Network In Action a civil & human rights organization objected to city officials identifying black gangs as terrorists. In a prepared statement, he said “did the Fresno Police worsen the gang problem by using injunctions, anti-gang legislation and police crackdowns? A recent report, the Justice Department’ Justice Police Institute Report: Gang Wars: The Failure of Enforcement Tactics and the need for Effective Safety Strategies, called for social programs that promote jobs, education and healthy communities which have proven to be much more effective in curbing drug and gang activities.”

City Council member Jerry Duncan is termed out and has announced he is running for mayor. Harris said “Prior to running for Mayor, Duncan has always told people who don’t live in his area, that he not responsible for them and doesn't have to talk to them. Yet, he is attempting to promote his ‘campaign’ on the backs of poor people who do not have the same amount of resources as those who live in the north side. Instead he voted for more monies for the incarceration instead of placing greater emphasis on juvenile diversion and prevention programs such as mentoring for those that don't live in his district.”

Excerpts from the press conference are in a video (below). For more information Rev. Floyd D. Harris Jr. can be reached at ( 559) 803 - 0286 or visit http://www.nancal.org .

[WCGreen]

1. In case you didn't realize....

Gangs have always depended on terror in order to do what it is they do...

The only thing different between gangs (and other organized crime) and the terrorists in the middle east are motivation...

Our guys are motivated by money which of course we understand while over there, the bad guys are motivated by religious and dogmatic zeal which we can't quite get our minds around...

I don't really know about this situation in Fresno, but if people can't go out at night, like in many places here in Cleveland, without an armed gaurd, I would call that a terrorism situation...

[Jim Sagle]

2. That's street crime, not terrorism. Consult yer local dickshunairie.

[WCGreen]

4. Street crime depends on terror in order to succeed...

If you lived there you would probably call it terrorism...

Beside that, here is what the dictionary has to say about terrorism...


The unlawful use or threatened use of force or violence by a person or an organized group against people or property with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies or governments, often for ideological or political reasons.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/terrorism

[aquart]

13. Yah. You're wrong.

"with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies or governments" is the clause you missed.

But I'm sure you can torture it to mean whatever you want. Except it doesn't.

[WCGreen]

14. Oh but I left it right there for a reason..

Coercing societies or governements surely does apply because the people who live in the area of the gang are,if you went to college and took a couple of humanities classes, would know they constitute a "society"...

So I guess you can ignore important words as the good as the rest of the people who fling phrases around just for the sake of making a political point...

[Mojorabbit]

3. We have too many laws

ala the patriot act stuff. It is a very slippery slope when you start calling segments of the population terrorists. It is a loaded word and the ramifications of it could be horrific.

[WCGreen]

6. look at the definition of terrorism...

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/terrorism

The unlawful use or threatened use of force or violence by a person or an organized group against people or property with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies or governments, often for ideological or political reasons.

[annm4peace]

8. Gangs are more motived by Fear than Money

** most kids join gangs because they fear getting beat up or killed. Few make money in gangs. ***

Things have gone so bad in Fresno that several years ago, they let the Mayor put the Department of Recreation under the Police the Dept. It is sick.

Fresno County and other counties in the area, always seem to have money for Police and Sheriff's Dept, and Prison's.. but cut, and cut, and cut the Recreation dept, School's, and Library budgets.

It is sickening.

[WCGreen]

10. I see that here in Cleveland as well...

When there is no hope, how can one not feel hopeless...

[shance]

11. Jerry Duncan is a white racist who is just missing the white sheet.

Seems that white supremecy is epidemic these days.

Of course with people like Rush Limbaugh, O Reilly and Hannity and others who get marketed as if their blatant racism and hatred is some how legitimate, along with obtaining prime time media access, why should it be a surprise?

[annm4peace]

5. 4 years ago Joint Terrorism Task force spied on Peace group

Did you see Fahrenheit 911? Moore put a short clip about the Fresno County Deputy Sheriff who as undercover for 6 months in the peace group Peace Fresno. A small, stand on a corner type, peace group. The group found out when the deputy picture was in an obituary under his real name and said he was with the Joint Terrorism Task Force. The CA Attorney General promised he would investigate and release a report on what the deputy was reporting on. 1 week before the release the Sheriff decided not to run for re-election and the CA state Attorney General refused to release the report.

Now.. the Mayor, a City Councilmember Jerry Duncan, and the Police Chief are calling their own citizen's terrorist. Council member Duncan is also the person who emailed another Council member's staff member that he wish he had a dirty bomb to kill all the "liberals" who were at a hearing on ending the funding of the "Human Rights Commission".. ironically the Commission was the one effective group that was helping in decreasing gang membership and violence.

*** Are there any Civil Rights Attorney out there to help or US Attorney's ? *****

[Selatius]

7. Most crime uses some amount of terror. Not all crime, however, is terrorism.

Terrorism is differentiated from run-of-the-mill crime in that it often contains either a political or religious motivation behind the action. There is a gray area between the two, such as when the mafia blows up a car belonging to a politician or police commissioner to get them to lay off, but for the most part, the Crips aren't in the same league as far as Al Qaeda or Hezbollah or even the IRA.

[annm4peace]

9. How about economic terrorism ? Can you have a war on that

Maybe congress would pass a bill that would round up all the Economic terrorists such as those who are part of the Foreclosure crisis.

[kineneb]

12. economic terrorists: corporations

and need I point out that they are the ones making the rules these days?


gangs- caused by hopelessness and poverty