Monday, October 29, 2007

Vigil for 19 yr old shot in head by Miami-Dade Police- Tuesday 6pm in North Miami

Candlelight Vigil for Garcia "BG" Beaugris

Miami CopWatch and the  Haitian American Grassroots Coalition invites you to a candlelight vigil to commemorate the life of Garcia "BG" Beaugris and demand justice for him and his family. BG was brutally shot and killed by Miami-Dade police on Friday just a few feet from his North Miami home. BG's death will likely be remembered as one of the most brutal police killings in recent memory. The Vigil is set for Tuesday, October 29, 2007 at 5:30pm on the corner of 128th St. and NE 7th Ave., just off of West Dixie Highway.

According to multiple eye witnesses, BG was shot once in the chest and then twice again as he lay wounded on the ground, at virtually point blank range, while he was talking to friends just 100 feet from his home.

Miami-Dade "jumpout" police rolled up on several young black males talking to one another next to BG's home. After searching the teens and finding nothing, Miami-Dade cop Christopher Villano verbally harassed and then physically attacked BG, ultimately shooting him dead.

The community is gathering to commemorate the life of BG Beaugris and to demand justice for him and his family. We demand the immediate arrest of Christopher Villano, with the appropriate charges of murder, and the end to the "jumpout" police programs in low income black communities.

BG's death will be remembered as one of the most notorious police shootings in Miami-Dade County. Join the fight to stop police brutality and win justice for BG Beaugris.

What: Candlelight Vigil for BG Beaugris

When: Tuesday, October 30, 2007 at 5:30pm

Where: 128th St. and NE 7th Ave. (just off of West Dixie Highway), North Miami, FL

Why: an unarmed BG Beaugris was shot dead by Miami-Dade police

forward,

Max Rameau
CopWatch
a project of the Center for Pan-African Development



Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Take Back the Housing

Miami Herald Story on the Housing Takeover by Take Back the Land: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami_dade/story/282253.html

October 23, 2007 marks one year since the rise of the Umoja Village Shantytown in the Liberty City section of Miami in response to the crisis of gentrification and low income housing. In the year since this "people power" action, much has changed and much more remains the same. Black and other poor communities are ravaged by the crisis of gentrification and low-income housing while the same government which extracts taxes from us, does nothing to alleviate the crisis. One year later, the issue of community control over land remains fundamental in solving the crisis.

As the real estate bubble explodes around us, vacant foreclosed homes litter our communities and speculators choose to hold onto vacant houses and apartments, waiting for the next market swing in order to make their millions. For it's part, in spite of all the scandal and crisis, Miami-Dade County doggedly maintains an unconscionable and immoral stockpile of vacant public housing units, units which otherwise would shelter some of the 41,000 families languishing on the housing assistance waiting list.

All the while, the homeless population grows, particularly among the "under-housed," those not living on the street, but doubling and tripling up in single family homes, including public housing, where the extra families live illegally, endangering the housing security of the entire extended family, sometimes right next door to a boarded up, vacant unit.

We are forced to conclude that Miami-Dade County intentionally leaves units vacant, or tears down public housing all together- exemplified by the HOPE VI funded Scott-Carver public housing project demolition- as a means of fueling the real estate "boom." When governments take units of low-income housing off of the market, the value of the remaining privately held units increases, as families scramble to find new living arrangements. This is nothing short of tax financed market manipulation, designed to decrease supply at a time when demand is sky high, resulting in a government sponsored- not market driven- real estate "boom."

In the end, human beings are homeless because developers and speculators seek to profit from the misery of the poor. The laws allow it and the government provides direct assistance. There should be no right to profit from human misery.

In spite of the crisis, scandal and controversy, the reality is that local governments continue to enrich wealthy developers and have intentionally failed to address this crisis in any meaningful way. Neither Miami-Dade County nor the federal government operates based on the interests of poor Black people. As such, we are left with no other option than to provide for the people for whom the government is not providing.

Take Back the Land, again, asserts the right of the Black community to control land in the Black community. In order to provide housing for people, not for profit, this community control over land must now take the form of direct community control over housing.

Consequently, Take Back the Land has initiated the process of moving families and individuals into vacant housing, whether public, foreclosed upon or privately owned and intentionally vacated.

As of this writing, several families have already been moved into housing and several more are desperately awaiting their turn. We will move families and individuals into vacant housing units all across Miami-Dade County.

Housing is not a privilege reserved for the wealthy. Housing is a human right, and we, hereby, assert our humanity.


Miami Herald Story on the Housing Takeover by Take Back the Land: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami_dade/story/282253.html

forward,

Max Rameau
Take Back the Land
a project of the Center for Pan-African Development
www.TakeBacktheLand.net

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Umoja Village Anniversary Event

Greetings:

Take Back the Land cordially invites you to attend a rally in commemoration of the one year anniversary of the founding of the Umoja Village Shantytown. The rally starts at 5:00pm on Tuesday, October 23, 2007, and we have moved the location to our new office at 6819 NW 15th Ave., in the Liberty City section of Miami, FL.

Come join us as we announce our next efforts to Take Back the Land and how you can support. The event will include food, music and speakers from numerous organizations.

We are also accepting donations and volunteers for our political work and for the former residents of Umoja Village.

forward,

Max Rameau

Thursday, October 18, 2007

CORRECTION- Umoja Village 1 Year Anniversary 5PM October 23rd

Greetings:

I apologize for the resend. Please not the CORRECT TIME: 5:00PM on Tuesday, October 23rd, 2007.  Thank you.

forward,

Max Rameau


Greetings:

Take Back the Land cordially invites you to attend a rally in commemoration of the one year anniversary of the founding of the Umoja Village Shantytown. The rally starts at 5:00pm on Tuesday, October 23, 2007, on the corner of 15th Ave. and NW 62nd Terr., in the Liberty City section of Miami, FL.

On October 23, 2006, Take Back the Land seized control over public land on the corner of 62nd St. and NW 17th Ave. in Liberty City, building the Umoja Village Shantytown, providing housing for as many as 53 otherwise homeless people at one time, and close to 150 people in all. Residents of the Village did not live in opulence, but they did live in dignity, with their own shanties and running the village themselves in a direct democracy. The Village survived numerous attempts by government officials to shut it down.

On April 26, 2007, just three days after its six month anniversary celebration, the Umoja Village burned to the ground in a suspicious fire. While the physical structures burned, the Umoja- Swahili for 'Unity'- we built cannot be destroyed.

The crisis of gentrification and housing which spurred the creation of the Village rages on today. During the rally, Take Back the Land will announce future plans to address the crisis. The event will include food, music and speakers from numerous organizations. We are also accepting donations for our political work and for the former residents of Umoja Village.

forward,

Max Rameau

Umoja Village 1 Year Anniversary

Greetings:

Take Back the Land cordially invites you to attend a rally in commemoration of the one year anniversary of the founding of the Umoja Village Shantytown. The rally starts at 6:00pm on Tuesday, October 23, 2007, on the corner of 15th Ave. and NW 62nd Terr., in the Liberty City section of Miami, FL.

On October 23, 2006, Take Back the Land seized control over public land on the corner of 62nd St. and NW 17th Ave. in Liberty City, building the Umoja Village Shantytown, providing housing for as many as 53 otherwise homeless people at one time, and close to 150 people in all. Residents of the Village did not live in opulence, but they did live in dignity, with their own shanties and running the village themselves in a direct democracy. The Village survived numerous attempts by government officials to shut it down.

On April 26, 2007, just three days after its six month anniversary celebration, the Umoja Village burned to the ground in a suspicious fire. While the physical structures burned, the Umoja- Swahili for 'Unity'- we built cannot be destroyed.

The crisis of gentrification and housing which spurred the creation of the Village rages on today. During the rally, Take Back the Land will announce future plans to address the crisis. The event will include food, music and speakers from numerous organizations. We are also accepting donations for our political work and for the former residents of Umoja Village.

forward,

Max Rameau