Black athletes targeted by racial profiling
Published May 26, 2005 12:41 AM
Following are excerpts from a news release sent out May 20 by the Committee to Defend the Somerville High School 5 Against Police Brutality with the
support of the Women’s Fightback Network in Boston. A growing conspiracy
is being carried out by the corporate media, police, Somerville, Mass., School
Board and the courts to suppress the facts behind this important anti-racist,
anti-repression case. The victims, five prominent African-American athletes, are
being falsely portrayed as criminals.
Supporters of the SHS 5
packed a Somerville District Court hearing May 24 to demand that charges against
the athletes be dropped and that their unjust suspensions from school be revoked
immediately. The hearing resulted in an adjournment until early July. The media
boycotted a news conference after the hearing. For more information about this
important case, call 617-522-6626 or email [email protected]
The SHS 5 are Calvin Belfon, Cassius Belfon, Earl Guerra,
Isiah Anderson and Marquis Anderson. On April 20, these five young Black men
were the victims of racial profiling and a brutal, unprovoked attack by Medford,
Mass., police. They were beaten, clubbed, maced and arrested.
A massive
police cover-up of this abuse ensued, with the police spreading outrageous lies
about what happened that night.
In mid-May, in an outrageous decision by
Somerville School Superintendent Albert Argenziano and Somerville High School
Principal Thomas Galligani, the SHS 5 were suspended indefinitely from
school.
In a May 11 letter of protest to Argen ziano, Boston City
Councilor Chuck Turner wrote: “They are well respected, serious students,
and promising athletes. Coming at such a key and pivotal time in their academic
career, these actions of suspension threaten to do permanent damage to their
future and their reputation.
“This decision callously disregards the
hundreds of people across the U.S. and even the world who called, emailed and
faxed Dr. Argenizano’s office all last week demanding the five
students’ immediate reinstatement, said Phebe Eckfeldt of the Committee to
Defend the SHS 5 Against Police Brutality. “It also callously disregards
the 300 SHS students who signed a petition asking for their peers’
immediate reinstatement.
“It can only be seen as a racist,
vindictive act as even Massachusetts law does not require Argenziano to
suspend—it leaves it up to his discretion. But apparently, the school
superintendent and the principal have appointed themselves judge and jury in
this case and decided that the five students are ‘guilty until proven
innocent.’ What ever happened to due process?
“The SHS 5 were
caught up in the dragnet of racial profiling,” Eckfeldt continued.
“A dragnet that captures hundreds of innocent young Black men across the
country every day, subjecting them to physical abuse, jail and even death at the
hands of racist cops. To fear for your life is real. But if you defend yourself
this becomes a ‘crime.’
“The SHS 5 were forced to defend
themselves and as a result the police, media, courts and school department are
conducting an especially vicious campaign against them.”
Robert
Traynham of the Committee said: “This must stop. We will not allow the
dreams and aspirations of our youth to be stomped out by racism and police
terrorism. We demand all the charges be dropped now and an independent
investigation be conducted into the Medford Police Department. We will continue
to fight until justice is done.”
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