Happy Birthday: Harold Washington (1922-1987)

Harold Washington sparked the imagination of African Americans throughout the nation when he was elected mayor of Chicago. It was one thing to have mayors in small towns or someplace down in the South. It was another thing for an unabashedly proud Blackman to be elected mayor of the 2nd largest city in the nation.

We honor the anniversary of Mayor Washington's birthday here on this blog!


I think it is fair to say that we would not have Barack Obama has our president if we didn't have Harold Washington as Chicago's mayor. What are your thoughts or memories of Harold Washington?

Related articles

• Remembering Harold Washington, 25 Years After His Death
• Chicago pays tribute to Mayor Harold Washington
• Harold Washington Elected Mayor 30 Years Ago Today

Now They're Killing 6-Month Old Babies in Chicago ... RIP Jonylah Watkins

Chicago used to be known for being the home of our current First Family as well as its professional sports, Miracle Mile shopping and windy weather. No more. Chicago is now known as the place to go if you want to get shot.

Gun violence seems to carry a Chicago byline more often than not. This week we learn that 6-month old Jonylah Watkins was shot multiple times ... and died as a result of those gunshot wounds. I hope that our politicians in Washington DC take a moment to think about Jonylah as they look at various gun reform proposals.

Some cowardly fool woke up this week ... put a gun in his pocket ... and ended his day by taking the life of a young angel named Jonylah. Jonylah’s father, Jonathan Watkins, had been changing her diaper in the front passenger seat of a Chevy mini-van when a gunman approached the vehicle and starting shooting. The cowardly killer then fled in a waiting car.

Jonylah's mother, Judy Watkins, visited the Cook County medical examiner’s office yesterday to identify the body of her six-month-old daughter. Jonathan is currently at a local hospital recovering from several gunshot wounds he endured during the incident as well.

Facing the hard truth about her baby’s death, Judy Watkins cried silently Wednesday night as she identified the body of her daughter. She viewed the body through a closed circuit television feed at the Cook County medical examiner’s office, according to Rev. Corey Brooks, who is the Watkins family spokesman.

“She stood there for about 30 seconds or a minute,” he said. “But I could tell she would have stayed there all day. I told them that was enough.”

A police source said Watkins may have been the victim of retaliation for alleged links to an earlier robbery and shooting.

Taser Death: Philip Coleman (Chicago, IL)

Philip O. Coleman, 38, was arrested around 7:15 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2012, for beating his 69-year-old mother, injuring her head and legs, police said in a statement. Coleman "became combative" and spit blood on the faces of an officer and a supervisor, police said.

On Thursday, officers were taking Coleman from the 5th District station to court when "he again became combative" and a Taser was used "to gain control of the subject," police said. Coleman was then taken to Roseland Community Hospital where he became physically aggressive. A Taser was used again to gain control. Once admitted, he was given a sedative and later died.

Taser Protests in Chicago Seek Justice in Death of Darrin Hanna

I don't know if Darrin Hanna was a good man or not. The police were called to his home in November 2011 for a domestic violence complaint. There is never a good reason to lay your hands on a woman. Period.

That being said, I'm uncertain when there is a good time for police officers to beat an unarmed man ... then electrocute him with 50,000 volts of electricity up to 11 times with their taser guns ... then lie about the whole thing in their police report. It is the inability of the community in Chicago to see any justice in this taser-killing that is causing the current uproar. Thousands of people marched in the streets of Chicago this past weekend. They simply want to see some justice ... which means some consequences for the police officers that killed Mr. Hanna.

Here is a video that provides some of the details in this case of police brutality against Darrin Hanna. You be the judge:



Something is wrong in this country when police feel that it is OK to kill a suspect without taking him to trial ... and feel free to lie about it on their police reports about the incident ... and there are few, if any, consequences. How do call ourselves a nation of laws if the police are allowed to flaunt them as clearly as they've done in this case?

Taser Death: Jerome Gill (Chicago IL)

Cook County (IL) Sheriff's officers used their taser guns to impose pre-judicial electrocution on 31-year old Jerome Hill on July 15. Jerome Gill was subject to a year-long drug investigation.

Officers were about to apprehend Gill during an undercover purchase of drugs, but he fled and resisted arrest (according to the police). 50,000 volts of electricity from a taser gun were pumped into Gill's body; he was later subdued by officers who physically pulled him to the ground and placed him under arrest.

The police say that Gill then began spitting up pieces of crack cocaine that he may have ingested. The police took Gill to Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, where he died.

An official cause of death won't be determined until toxicology results and the autopsy of Gill are completed by the Cook County medical examiner's office.

Jerome Gill may have been a drug dealer and a bad person. However, there is no death penalty for selling crack cocaine to an undercover police officer. Neither does the death penalty apply when you resist arrest. Yet, we again see that the police used their taser gun to kill someone. This pattern repeats itself on a weekly basis in America.

Something is wrong. Don't you agree?

Blogging While Brown Conference * Chicago, IL (June 19-20, 2009)

I am pleased to report that the second annual Blogging While Brown (BWB) Conference will take place on June 19-20, 2009 at the University Center in Chicago. I attended the inaugural BWB Conference earlier this year in Atlanta GA. It appears that next year's event brings more opportunities to network and learn about the issues and concerns that face new media content creators.

The BWB Conference provides an outstanding venue for bloggers of color to meet each other, discuss current issues, and learn about the latest technology. It arose in response to widespread dissatisfaction regarding the lack of diversity in some of the other technology conferences.

Visit the official BWB Conference website to see videos from the first conference (including interviews done by Black Web 2.0), pictures of the conference attendees, reservation information, sponsorship information, and hotel logistics.

A new twist for the BWB Conference is a pre-conference blogging bootcamp aimed at targeting those who still have questions about how to start a blog, how to promote your blog, and how to keep it going. Starting a few hours before the conference, this bootcamp can help any villager who thought that the agenda would only benefit experienced bloggers.

Personally, I hope that BDPA figures out a way to partner with the BWB Conference. Especially in light of the fact that the largest BDPA chapter in the country is located in Chicago.

Anyhow, I plan to attend ... how about you? Click here to reserve your slot!