This week marks the third anniversary of Sandra Bland's death.
The 28-year-old Black woman died in police custody and her demise illustrates the "historically-rooted brutal experience of Black women within the U.S. prison industrial complex," according to Black Perspectives.
We at the Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) have been committed to connecting the mass incarceration and militarization of Black communities to the workings of the criminal U.S. state that serves the transnational capitalist class. We will be releasing materials on our work in the coming months.
In an interview about the role of the Supreme Court, BAP National Organizer Ajamu Baraka, historian Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, historian Rudy Acuna, and National Lawyers Guild leadership sought to put into historical context the anxiety many felt regarding the vacancies Donald Trump is able to fill.
Ajamu said:
“The Supreme Court has never been an institution beyond and above the politics of white supremacy … as are all the elements of the U.S state.”
“In other words, the court as an instrument reflecting the race and class power of the ruling elite should never be seen as source of protection for the long-term collective human rights of Black/African people in the United States.”
Ajamu went on to say:
“Non-state alternative power is the only path open for resistance at this moment in history. The articulation of a set of rights that people are prepared to struggle for as part of a transitional program is a first step that will need to be followed up with intensified organizing.”
“Nothing has changed for us because of Trump’s nomination. Our task continues to be to organize, educate and build resistance.”
The BAP bi-monthly conference call will take place July 21. Information to register for the call will be sent to the BAP member listserv.
We are also moving toward our first in-person membership meeting, scheduled for September 21-22 in Atlanta, Georgia. Members, save that date and look out for more information.
The Black Is Back Coalition will hold its annual conference in Saint Louis, August 11-12. BAP is a member of this coalition and we encourage everyone to attend.
If you’re in Washington, D.C., attend BAP member organization Pan-African Community Action’s event on Sunday, “Ending Gun Violence: The Power of Community”.
No compromise.
No retreat.
Struggle to win,
Ajamu, Ana, Jaribu, Kali, Lamont, Lukata, Margaret, Netfa, Paul and Yolande
Coordinating Committee
Black Alliance for Peace
P.S. Help us re-build the Black anti-war movement in the tradition of Black internationalism by contributing today.