Black and Brown Community Rally on April 6 in Phoenix Seeking Justice for Trayvon Martin and the End of Law Enforcement Abuse!
This post was generated by Tia Oso, BAJI Arizona Organizer and posted to phxsoul.com. I felt it was important enough to share.
The Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) in alliance with Puente Arizona is holding a rally on April 6 at 4 PM in Cesar Chavez Plaza, 201 W. Washington in Phoenix, to organize people of color in demanding justice in the law enforcement and criminal justice systems. The Black and Brown Stand Up for Justice Rally is a mass movement of local organizations such as the NAACP and community members in solidarity with the family of Trayvon Martin, a Florida teen killed while walking home in February.
The Black and Brown Stand Up for Justice Rally is part of the "Arrest Arpaio, Not the People" campaign organized by Puente Movement to demand Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio face criminal charges for his negligence and violation of human and civil rights as outlined in a Department of Justice 2011 report.
"Law enforcement in the U.S. claims to 'protect and serve' but the killing of Trayvon Martin and the subsequent cover-up by Sanford Police Department is just the latest story of how law enforcement perpetuates and encourages violence and brutality against people of color," said Tia Oso, BAJI Arizona Organizer.
The mission of the Black and Brown Stand Up for Justice Rally is to organize communities of color in solidarity to fight the injustices that are terrorizing lives and destroying families and hold law enforcement accountable for their actions. BAJI will call attention to the characterizations of black and brown people as criminals that has created an environment where "walking while Black or Brown" has become crime punishable by vigilante violence and used to demonized immigrants of color in the U.S.
"George Zimmerman is no different from the men in self-appointed border militias here in Arizona," said Opal Tometi, BAJI National Organizer. "It is time that we connect the dots and demand an end to law enforcement committing acts of violence against people of color."
Black and Brown Stand Up for Justice Rally is organizing communities against the national epidemic of racial profiling, the deadly use of force and blatant disregard for the rights and lives of people of color in the criminal justice system. Attendees are encouraged to come "armed" with skittles and ice tea or wear hoodies in solidarity with the family of Trayvon Martin, who was dressed in a hoodie and returning from a convenience store with snacks for himself and his brother when he was confronted by and subsequently killed by George Zimmerman, a self-appointed neighborhood watch volunteer.
The Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) is an education and advocacy group comprised of African Americans and black immigrants from Africa, Latin American and the Caribbean. BAJI engages African Americans and other communities in dialogue that leads to actions that challenge U.S. immigration policy and the underlying issues of race, racism and economic inequity that frame it.
For more information, please visit www.BlackAlliance.org.
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