Freewheel Burning

October 2nd is the International Day of Non-Violence in commemoration of Ghandi’s birthday. Unbeknownst to me, I spent the day in Bogota, Colombia, a city plagued with incredible history of murder, warfare and political violence. While Colombia has almost halved its murder rate since 2000 (the people have had enough), crime and homicide continue to be a problem.

This year, Colombian musician Cesar Lopez has begun a campaign calling for Bogotans to cease killing one another for 24 hours in the 24-0 campaign. Lopez, an anti-violence advocate, is the creator of the Escoptarra, a guitar made from a real AK-47. He tried to give one to the Dalai Lama, but was apparently refused. The Pope, apparently, accepted.

“24-0 is an initiative of musician Cesar Lopez, who on October 2 to commemorate the World Day of Non Violence, aims to achieve 24 hours with zero violent deaths in Colombia, “from October 1 to 12 m until October 2 to 12m, “men and women of all ages and places of Colombia should care for and respect life and that of others, to demonstrate that peace is also a decision and we as a society involves all “said Lopez. With this exercise, which is expected annually, the organizers aim which values ​​life and mencanismos seek to resolve differences peacefully. Thanks to the participation of the Mayor of Bogota and the Metropolitan Police, this year there will be a first driver in the capital but the call is to the whole country.”

I was in a Bogotan park and several young people in white “24-0″ shirts appeared and began doing some sort of modern street theater. The text was in Spanish so it was mostly vague to me, but I was mostly able to get the general sense. During the worst times in Colombia’s troubled history, free thinkers and political critics were often the targets of violent retribution by the Colombian government, para-military groups and the drug gangs. Theater groups also fell victim to killings, beatings and violence. This group explained that they are celebrating the day by taking their message out publicly in the city of Bogota.

To celebrate the day, I watched a group of cyclists play bike polo on fixies (thanks to Bogota Bike Tours, more on them later). I was told that I just missed the blind soccer game, which apparently exists in Colombia (!). There was no violence among the members of the bike polo group, though they made for some great pictures particularly the lone female poloist. The guys were really serious about their game, but she was more serious about having a good time.

New York Times Nicholas Kristof has always been a hero of mine and partially why I have continued this blog, despite poor writing skills and a lack of good ideas (thank you for continuing to read… all 10 of you).

A fantasy of mine would be to go on one of Mr. Kristof’s “Win A Trip” trips, where he takes one student and one teacher to some of the most troubled places on earth. Unfortunately, I was disqualified from this contest about 2 years ago, when I stepped onto the tarmac of Chileka Airport in Blantyre, Malawi, an event which would forever change my life (like all life changing events).

In “The Reporter,” Kristof travels to the DRC, a anarchic hellhole of warfare, systematic rape and violence to show the winners of his “Win a Trip” contest the horrifying effects of of civil war on the civilian populace. Most, notably, he interviews and subsequently has dinner with warlord and war criminal Laurent Nkunda, a charismatic, university educated sociopath who has managed to assemble one of the largest and best equipped military rebellions in Africa (he has since been arrested).

To me, the most important revelations from Kristof’s journey is a chance meeting with a dying woman, Yohanita Nyiahabimama. Once a school teacher, she now weighed 60 pounds, having eaten nothing but bananas for the past 6 months. Yohanita’s death is not notable. Thousands of people like Yohanita die all over the world in a similar manner every single day. The conditions which lead to an individual like Yohanita dying from starvation in one of the most fertile areas on the planet, however, are quite notable.

Paul Farmer, a physician/anthropologist from Harvard, wrote a magnificent book “Pathologies of Power” in which he explored the idea of “structural violence,” a term originally coined by peace advocate John Galtung. Farmer posits that poor health outcomes and the suffering of the poor are not natural nor inherent states of being for humanity, but rather the result of designed structural factors which deny access to services and benefits which may empower them. Basically, the factors which generate affluence are the same factors which create conditions of poverty.

The DRC is one of the most resource rich areas of the world. The DRC is, by no accident, one of the poorest countries on the planet. A combination of a miserable colonial past, US support of the despot Mobuto (due to his resistance to communism), resource exploitation, systematic indifference and unwillingness to intervene have kept the DRC in a perpetual state of warfare and anarchy.

Yohanita dies because the peculiarities of US electoral politics prevent it from getting involved. Sending troops and sacrificing lives to root out a small group of stateless terrorists continually for nearly a decade is an acceptable response to the killing of 3000 people in NYC, but the loss of even a few troops to halt the killing of more than 5,000,000 black people in poor Africa is unacceptable to the American voter.

Connecting the dots between the plight of the poor in the DRC and affluent countries such as the United States is a difficult leap for many, and reasonably so. The connections between localized wealth and global poverty are insidious and often invisible and vastly complex, yet very, very real.

US/European/East Asian demand for cheap resources keeps rebel groups in business, by creating sources of income with which to buy arms, notably a source of vast profit for Israel, whose extensive weapons industry maintains close ties to the United States. Keeping resources cheap and unhindered by export taxes benefits producers of American consumer goods and discourages efforts to create stable, functioning governments. Most importantly, American consumers demand cheap goods and very rarely question where they come from. Essential in this dynamic and fluid network of affluence and poverty, is the role of indifference in creating the conditions of structural violence which kill millions and the systematic manner. Everything about life in affluent countries, through politics, media, education and cultural mores, work together to cover them up.

Kristof clearly hesitates intervene in Yohanita’s plight. The student member of his group also appears conflicted in her role as whether to be a physician or an observer/reporter, yet the clear and present suffering of an individual and the ability to assist demand that they do something to help Yohanita. In the same way, we as members of some of the most wealthiest societies on earth are naturally obligated to act. By not acting, or acting in a manner which merely throws crumbs at the poor in order to placate the complaints of others in the international community, we are all complicit in the suffering of the poor.

Anti-Apartheid leader and former South African President Nelson Mandela turns 93 years old today. Any day above 90 is certainly a cause for celebration. On Mandela’s birthday, let’s also remember a few of the greats of the South African anti-apartheid movement who do not have enough celebrity to get mentions in the American press. Obviously, there are more than just these three.

Walter Sisulu served 26 years in the same prison as Nelson Mandela after multiple arrests for the crime of asking for equal rights and representation for black South Africans. Sisulu, though instrumental in South African rights movements, was a communist, hence his obliteration from American recognition.

Oliver Tambo, former President of the ANC, who spent 30 years in exile from South Africa. He, along with Sisulu formed the ANC Youth League, was arrested numerous times but regrettably died before he could see the end of apartheid.

Steve Biko, South African writer and inventor of the phrase “black is beautiful,” was instrumental in bringing attention to the rights movement, mostly through having been tortured and killed while in police custody, underlining the brutality of the apartheid government.

In my view, Mandela’s contributions are immense. In conversations with South Africans, however, a different view emerges. Mandela was palatable to the Americans as a non-violent, compliant figure that would do little to embarrass foreign opponents of apartheid. Other figures in the movement either advocated violence and forced resistance by Africans everywhere, were communists, or both. Some South Africans lament the attention given to Mandela at the expense of numerous leaders and martyrs.

On this day of Mandela’s birthday, let us also remember that an apartheid continues to operate with the blessing and funding of the United States government. It is unconscionable that Barack Obama, as the first African-American to ever serve as the President of the United States, would praise someone like Mandela, while turning a blind eye to the US funded apartheid in Israel.

The 2011 Department of Justice Human Trafficking Report has recently been released. It provides country by country profiles of human trafficking and slavery for every country on the planet, and ranks them according to the level of effort given by governments to control the problem of human trafficking and slavery. There are four levels, Tier 1 being the highest (proactive effort) and Tier 3 being the lowest (no effort at all). Naturally, the United States, the author of the report and the creator of the ranking system, ranks at Tier 1.

The report, though, bluntly describes the situation of human trafficking and slavery in the US:

“The United States is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to forced labor, debt bondage, document servitude, and sex trafficking. Trafficking occurs for commercial sexual exploitation in street prostitution, massage parlors, and brothels, and for labor in domestic service, agriculture, manufacturing, janitorial services, hotel services, hospitality industries, construction, health and elder care, and strip club dancing. Vulnerabilities are increasingly found in visa programs for legally documented students and temporary workers who typically fill labor needs in the hospitality, landscaping, construction, food service, and agricultural industries. There are allegations of domestic workers, foreign nationals on A-3 and G-5 visas, subjected to forced labor by foreign diplomatic or consular personnel posted to the United States. Combined federal and state human trafficking information indicates more sex trafficking than labor trafficking investigations and prosecutions, but law enforcement identified a comparatively higher number of labor trafficking victims as such cases uncovered recently have involved more victims. U.S. citizen victims, both adults and children, are predominantly found in sex trafficking; U.S. citizen child victims are often runaways, troubled, and homeless youth. Foreign victims are more often found in labor trafficking than sex trafficking. In 2010, the number of female foreign victims of labor trafficking served through victim services programs increased compared with 2009. The top countries of origin for foreign victims in FY 2010 were Thailand, India, Mexico, Philippines, Haiti, Honduras, El Salvador, and the Dominican Republic.”

Human trafficking is a global market. Some countries supply modern day slaves and some countries demand their services and profit off the buying and selling of human beings. Clearly, developed countries with their vast financial resources and demand for cheap labor facilitate human trafficking by expanding markets for sex work, domestic servants, construction and agriculture. Until the US is willing to drop conversations on “illegal immigrants” and start facing the real questions of wage slavery and human exploitation, the situation will never change.

Included is a map of country rankings worldwide, which I have posted up to the left. It would have been helpful to include a map of estimated numbers of people enslaved in each country as well, but this obviously would not bode well for developed nations nor for the citizens which are complicit in insuring that more people are enslaved in the 21st century than in any other time in human history.

Today we went and checked out what was to be an event in protest of the closing of the Catherine Ferguson Academy for Young Women in Detroit. It turned out, instead, to be a celebration of its remaining open for the next school year. Though the school will become a charter school, CFA will remain as it is, a safe place for young mothers and an example of excellence in a crumbling world… for now.

The turn out for the event was nothing short of inspiring. Present and former state and local politicians showed up to speak, along with a few celebrities, including “Lethal Weapon 3″‘s Danny Glover. Principal Andrews and just about everyone there was moved to tears when she made the formal announcement that the school would remain open. Representatives from many organization, including BAMN and the UAW were on hand to make speeches in support of public schooling and CFA.

While the situation is NOT ideal, let’s hope that law makers see the incredible outpouring of support for CFA and public education. let’s hope that the present trend of privatization, and thus degradation of public schools does not continue.

EDUCATION IS A HUMAN RIGHT.

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, the Catherine Ferguson Academy for Girls, a school for pregnant teens and young mothers in Detroit, is slated for closing at the end of next week. I, personally, am not confident that the decision of the DPS Emergency Financial Manager will change. However, demonstrating on behalf of CFA will help send a clear message to policy makers and the general public that educational opportunities are dwindling for the poor.

When policy makers chip away at public education, they chip away at our future, insuring that the incredible divide between rich and poor becomes even wider.

Tell everyone that you support public education. Privatization of public schools will only insure that children like those which are served by CFA will have no future, neither for themselves or their children.

Access to education for all is a human right.

The BAMN website has details of the event. THe details are aimed at DPS students, but all are welcome. Reports indicate that people are coming in from all over the state.:

RALLY STARTING AT 12 NOON
2750 Selden Street, two blocks north of MLK/Mack, one block east of I-96
Defend Your Right to a Quality Education!
Unite in Action with The Catherine Ferguson Academy for Young Women (CFA)!

**After you pick up your report card on the June 16th at your school, come directly over to CFA. Transportation and food will be provided in all areas of the city and neighboring areas (call or text 313-585-3637)**
Background and news coverage at the CFA Information Page

Catherine Ferguson Academy (CFA) is a Detroit Public School. CFA is a JEWEL of DETROIT and it is about to be stolen from our community- we must defend it and defend ourselves. CFA students are standing on their feet fighting to defend public education, fighting to stop the destruction of programs in all of our schools through class size increases and elimination of our teachers, and against the closing of all of the public schools on the closing list. CFA is on the list to be closed. It is a school for pregnant and parenting teenage girls. At CFA, our sisters, cousins and friends, are not treated as outcasts, but are cared for and treated as fellow persons with value. CFA is a regular comprehensive high school, where the students can bring their children. There is early childhood development and pre-school, and nurseries. There are doctors, nurses and others who come to the school to provide services for the students and their children to make sure that they are all successful. There is also a wonderful farm with goats, ducks, chickens, honeybees, fruit trees, vegetables and even a horse. In a society where being a teenage mother enslaves most to a life of poverty and limited opportunity, CFA is like the first “safe house” stop on the underground railroad to freedom, a place of new beginning and hope for young women who have been told by so many that their own lives are over.

We can save all of our schools and programs by uniting in action at CFA to make it clear that the new “Jim Crow”, second class treatment of black and Latina/o and other minority students has no place in our city. On April 15, 2011, the brave students of CFA led Detroit and shook up the nation by sitting down and refusing to leave the school over spring break. This action resulted in numerous schools coming off of the closing list. However, CFA is still on the closing list and is being used as a “political football” between the Democrats and the Republicans, both of whom could keep the school open, but neither will without a fight led by the students to make them keep it open. Next time at CFA, if hundreds, not just dozens of people are gathered outside to defend the school, we will save CFA and win more of our demands. Just like the auto workers forced the powerful auto companies to recognize their union in the 1930′s through sit-down strikes, and black high school and college students in the South broke the back of segregation by sitting down at lunch counters, and the hundreds of Northwestern High School students in Detroit kept their school open by walking out and marching together last year, we must recognize, just as Dr. Martin Luther King did, that if young people act on “the fierce urgency of now,” we can move mountains.

In addition to closing CFA and numerous other schools, class sizes in all DPS high schools are being threatened to increase to forty-five (45) students per class starting in fall of 2012. Schools that offer a college prep curriculum will no longer be able to effectively do so in reality. And neighborhood schools will lose electives all together, as well as many extracurricular activities. We must organize a massive mobilization to save CFA and preserve the quality of all DPS schools. Anyone and everyone can and should come – people of all ages, schools, cities, etc., but the students have to lead!

At this point, we have so much power at CFA because of the first set of actions. Students at Southeastern walked out three times and won the right to sing at the MSVMA choral festival, and led a successful campaign to defend the rights of a transgendered classmate. If more students and youth in Detroit stand up and fight, we will win much more. Now is the time to stop listening to the naysayers in our life–three Ps–parents, principals and preachers, who too often speak out of fear and not strength, telling us to just keep our heads down and not to fight for what we know we deserve and believe in. They say that there is another way, and that the adults will take care of it, but the adults have not and will not do what is necessary to fight and win. Join the movement and fight for your dignity, equality and hope for your future.

Have your school adopt the following demands:

•Defend Public Education
•Keep Catherine Ferguson Open
•No School Closings
•Keep All Detroit Public Schools Public – No More Charters or Privatization
•No class size increases, reduce overcrowded classes
•Maintain all Magnet Programs and Schools
•Reinstate all programs and services that have been eliminated, including art & music as well as counselors & social workers, AP classes, robotics, and other special programs at all schools
•Student Control of Curriculum and School Character to assure that every Detroit school provides equal, quality education for all
•No discipline or retaliation against any of the participants in the occupation or any other collective actions taken to defend public education
The enemies of public education know that their plan is not about balancing the district’s budget. They are fully aware that their statistics are wrong and fabricated and that this plan will make the district lose money. For example, they say CFA costs the District $2.7 million (Detroit News 5/27/11) when it really only costs $750,000 and the rest comes from special federal and state funding, not the DPS general fund. The racist, white billionaires, who do not want to pay for public education anymore, believe that the people of Detroit do not have value and want to fulfill that prophecy through force. This is about implementing the New Jim Crow and forcing people to defer their dreams by blocking any opportunity for them to lead and shine. It is their intention to destroy public education, and get away with it with only minimal objections from the community, without any serious consequences, without Detroiters organizing and raising total HELL to stop the destruction of our schools and our neighborhoods.

Roy Roberts and other pessimistic politicians, whom of which are backed by a tiny minority of billionaires, ARE NOT OUR “FRIENDS”. They are overseers hired to implement and enforce the New Jim Crow system of education on black and Latino/a students – separate and completely unequal once again. It is for this reason that they want to close special Detroit schools such as CFA and destroy Renaissance and Cass and creative and loved programs in neighborhood schools like music and robotic programs, will all be in the past and no longer exist for black and Latino/a students in Detroit. Then, wealthy white people can say to working class and poor white people, “you may have a poor education system that we refuse to pay for, but at least you are not black or Latino/a.” They are closing schools and firing teachers to drive students out of the district and gentrify the city by race and class. A few middle-class students will go to private schools or leave the city, and the rest will be warehoused in inferior, overcrowded schools. Whether or not our schools stay open or teachers keep their jobs depends on whether we can overcome our fears and express our anger in a collective manner, and put our foot down and declare that Detroit students, our schools, our programs, our neighborhoods and our city are not for sale.

We can end the regime of overcrowded classrooms, police in the schools doling out repression and brutality, and turning what should be places of learning, where we can express and develop our full creativity and humanity, into cheap, stripped-down, prison-like holding cells. We want and deserve the full range of subjects and extracurriculars – art, music, dance, theatre, sports, AP and foreign language courses, chess, etc. – that a first-class comprehensive public education has to offer. To the extent that any school becomes a charter, if they do not meet the full standards of the students and parents, they must lose their charter immediately!

We CAN defeat this plan, but only by getting off our knees and fighting back. It’s time to heed the words of Frederick Douglass, one of the greatest leaders in the history of our nation, who said, “Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will. Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have found out the exact measure of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them, and these will continue till they are resisted with either words or blows, or both. The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress.”

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Take action and organize your school– Join BAMN (The Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration & Immigrant Rights and Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary, BAMN) at 855-ASK-BAMN (855-275-2266), or email BAMN Coordinator Donna Stern at donna.stern@ueaa.net www.bamn.com
Follow us on Twitter @followbamn

Today, I took a couple hours out and drove down to Detroit to visit the Catherine Ferguson Academy for Girls (CFA). I’ve written about CFA in the past, specifically about news that it was to recommended for closing under the Detroit Public School restructuring program.

For those unfamiliar, CFA is a public high school in Detroit that has been serving pregnant teens and young mothers for more than 26 years. Girls are able to bring their children to the school and through the proactive efforts of the entire CFA staff, are able to complete their high school education. CFA provides standard high school academic instruction and, uniquely, also provides instruction in urban farming and gardening. Students work in the school’s gardens raising edible vegetables and tending to horses, goats, chickens, pigs and geese. CFA also provides support for maternal health and child nutrition.

The Emergency Financial Manager of Detroit, Roy S. Roberts, who boasts a salary equivalent to that of 50+ poor Detroiters combined, has mandated that Catherine Ferguson be closed for good, news of which came to the school on Monday evening, just before I visited the school. The Principal did not appear confident that recent calls and petition drives for a public hearing on the issue would change the decision. Plans are already underway to empty the building.

Principal Asenath Andrews was gracious enough to take some time out to speak to me yesterday. The school is located in an odd corner of Detroit, an older building nestled between vacant lots and what looks like a juvenile detention home. Walking in to the school, I am immediately greeted by a tough security guard. “What you want? You got an appointment?” I point out that I do, and a phone call later, she escorts me 20 feet down the hallway to Ms. Andrews office, who is taking with one of the staff by her desk.

A casually dressed student walks in behind me. Ms. Andrews is an imposing figure. “You know you out of dress code,” she barks to the student, who merely needs to get something signed. Watching the interaction between Ms. Andrews and the students, it is clear that the principal is full of compassion, but unyielding in making sure the girls follow school rules.

“90% of girls who become pregnant during high school will not finish,” Ms. Andrews tells me plainly. Reasons include lack of family support, inadequate access to child care and, worst of all, stigma. “Pregnancy is a biological process. Developmentally, these girls are still girls and need help.” Catherine Ferguson has taken in girls facing one of the most difficult hurdles of their lives. Some are the victims of domestic violence and worse, human trafficking. CFA provides a safe and supportive home base for them and their children. Most importantly, CFA insures that these girls graduate from high school and continue toward a stable livelihood for them and their children.

“(Detroit) will lose two generations of people when this school closes, mothers and children,” Ms. Andrews said. Not only will these girls lose lifetime opportunities for education and work, but their children will be placed at incredible risk for falling into poverty themselves. Most importantly, Ms. Andrews says, “Detroit will lose a place where pregnant teens will always know that they can be safe. Detroit will lose a place that offers hope in a place where there are little demonstrable signs of hope.” Unfortunately, the plight of pregnant girls in Detroit is not on the minds of policy makers nor part of public discourse on the value of public education as a community good.

Nearly all of the graduates of CFA move on to 2 and 4 year colleges. In fact, acceptance to institution that provides post-high school training and confirmation of receipt of financial aid are requirements for graduation. The school not only provides educational opportunities, but also helps girls navigate the complex process of college applications and financial aid, information that they are unlikely to receive at home. Ms. Andrews and the staff at CFA insure that not only will girls be able to attend school, but that they will also have adequate access to child care once they leave CFA. Nearly all of these girls will be the first in their families to attend any type of college.

Critics of CFA and ill=informed supporters of its closing have pointed to lackluster standardized test scores and falling graduation rates as justification for cutting Catherine Ferguson Academy from the DPS. Ms. Andrews points out that few girls start out at CFA, but rather come to the school (sometimes mid-year) as a result of an unplanned pregnancy. Thus, many girls have been at the school for less than a year and sometimes for mere weeks before standardized tests are issued. Ms. Andrews rightly points out that the previous institution should be held accountable for low test scores, not CFA.

Regardless, a walk down the main hallway of CFA reveals pictures of every graduating class in the past 26 years. CFA graduated approximately 45 girls in 2010, and past photos indicate that there have been as many as 300 graduated in a single year. In total, there are thousands of CFA graduates, the majority of which have completed some kind of post-secondary education and gone on to live healthy and productive lives.

When Ms. Andrews came to CFA 26 years ago, there were nearly 200 such schools in the U.S. that catered specifically to young mothers and pregnant teens. Public indifference has insured that there are now only three schools in the US like CFA. As of Friday, there will be two, one in Ohio and one in New York State. If the loss of CFA is any indication, then we can expect that soon there will be none.

Catherine Ferguson provided not only a priceless community service to a city filled with despair, but also served as a model for the role of public education in America. Conversations in the popular press reveal that the taxpayers have forgotten that high school students are human beings, focusing merely on test scores and mean school achievement as an indicator of the value of tax dollars. The benefits of a school like CFA are difficult to quantify, and often go to populations of students that garner little sympathy.

Race, poverty and exclusion have been hallmarks of the American landscape for decades, and Detroit is no exception. That CFA in particular has been slated for closing speaks loads to the priorities of policy makers and the general public. The indifference of state and local governments to the needs of impoverished and troubled African-American girls and their children is reprehensible.

I asked Ms. Andrews what the girls will do after CFA closes. She said that the students will go back to high schools in their local areas. After that, many will likely fall through the cracks. Detroit and the State of Michigan could have done something about Catherine Ferguson but chose not to. In the end, Detroit is not the only loser with the closing of CFA. We all lose when public schools actively choose not to support those who need it most. To me, the entire country loses.

Here’s to Ms. Andrews, CFA and all of the people that made it happen. Let’s hope that one day policy makers look back on CFA as a model for public schools and repeat it.

To celebrate my birthday, I will post this incredible account of my friend, George Thindwa’s recent attempt to thwart a mob style with hunt in Malawi. Given how many people were in attendence and the large scale nature of the hunt, George could have easily been killed. The man knows absolutely no fear.

For those not in the know, George is the head of the Malawi Association of Secular Humanists. He works tirelessly as an advocate for people who have been accused (some are even jailed) of withcraft related crimes and as a spokesman for human rights, rationality, atheism and secular government in Malawi.

George’s story is almost unbelievable, but disturbingly real. Please consider donating to help George’s cause. Even the smallest amount of money goes a long way to help pay for legal fees and to provide support for those imprisoned under some of the most horrific conditions imaginable. There is a donation button on the right corner of this page.

WITCH HUNT IN CHINOKO VILLAGE, LILONGWE –STOPPED, CHIEFS ARRESTED. CHIEFS DETAIN AND CHARGE THINDWA, PAYS THE MK 5000 FINE AND RELEASED

On 1st June, I went to deliver N. Kamphata, the oldest elderly woman prisoner at her village at T/A Chumutu, Dowa who was released on witchcraft offence.

On my way back, I was informed that there was a witch hunt at Chinoko village, T/A Chimutu about 15 kms from Kanengo on Lilongwe- Salima road. I decided to investigate. Indeed, the witch hunt was in full swing with the witch finder named Boston (25- 30 yrs old) doing searches of witchcraft charms. By the time I arrived at the village, the witch finder was at the grave yard. It is alleged that a “witch” by the name of Frazer Kaphanga had hidden his charms at the grave. There were many people at the grave site with drumming and singing.

I managed to join the crowd and took pictures. I went into the graveyard where some people had gone to watch the witch finder digging the charm of Mr. Frazer. At the grave, I found the witch finder busy with his act and within a short time; he managed to bring out the charm. He showed it to the crowd claiming that it was a rat that Frazer uses to steal money from other people. Then, Mr. Frazer was detained at the camp smeared with flour all over his face as witch.

Next, the witch finder went to the house of an old lady by the name of Kwajere, Ms Mukhalepo Chinsapo (80). I followed and took pixies. At the house the old lady was very disturbed and confused. She was smeared with flour on her face and asked to stand in the middle of a circle so that the witch finder could search her house for charms. The old lady noticed that my mission was different. She faced in desperation clearly asking me in her heart so that I should her help. I went closer and took her hand and whispered to her that I will indeed rescue her at the appropriate time. I assured her that my mission there was to help such vulnerable people and her request would be answered.

I left and went aside to call the police to come and stop this illegal practice. The police headquarters told me to contact the Kanengo police. The community security men were alerted by the witch finder that my presence there was suspect. He briefly suspended his work and told them to bring me to him. The security men wanted to harass me. I resisted and told them that I had no time to go to the witch finder but to the Group Village man. At this time, I alerted my relations and humanists friends about this unfolding drama.

We went to the camp where the Group Village headman –Chinoko Kawenga was supposed to be. He was not there. But all the chiefs were there. At the camp, there were 10 “witches” by that time, surrounded by people. Kwajere, Ms Chinsapo was dragged to the camp while I was there. One could not help to shed a tear to see live how the people labeled as witches are victimized and mistreated. Mostly it is the elderly and women. Here are their names:

1. Mr. Kaphanga Frazer- is said to have a charm in the form of a rat for enrichment.

2. Mr. Boswell Kamuseza-the witch doctor was yet to visit his house to find the charms

3. Mr. Nasoni Kacholora-is said to have a charm to steal manhood from others.

4. Ms Naphiri Nabanda-is said to have a charm for tying pregnancies leading to still births.

5. Ms Moneyi Makata-her charm moved and was found to be at someone`s house.

6. Ms Mukhalepo Chinsapo-Kwajere- very old woman and her charm was found in the roof of the house. This is a very old woman possibly 80 see her photo.

7. Mr. Herbert Kupenga

8. Ms Nankhoma Genitla

9. Ms Anasani Jojo- her charm was said to cause measles to others

10. Ms Angela Mawumusamathe

11. Mr. Kumbali Kamuseza
I was told that once the witch finder had finished his searches of charms, he would come to the camp to deliver his final verdict on the “witches” in terms of punishment!

The chiefs told me that I was being charged with 3 offences: of taking pictures, of entering the grave yard without permission and attending the witch hunt without permission. I was fined to pay MK 13000 ($85). I negotiated this down to MK 5000($32) and paid.

I was destined to stop the witch hunt and to have those in captive released. I went to the captives when I was discharged on my own greeted them one by one and assured them that their freedom was at hand. I went to Mchezi roadblock at Kanengo and told the police about the witch hunt and they quickly phoned their superior to dispatch the 997 immediately. By 8 pm, the police arrived in full gear and we went to the village. At the village when police presence was noticed, people run in all the directions. All the chiefs, two lieutenants of the witch finder were taken for police questioning at Kanengo police. The witch finder disappeared and he was nowhere to be seen. Up to now he is nowhere.

As at 2nd June, 4 chiefs have been arrested and detained at Kanengo police; four lieutenants of the witch doctor are detained. The arrested chiefs are Kalumbu Byton, Chinoko 2, Nachimbo Chapotela and Kachiundu. The police went back on 2nd June to look for the witch finder and brought back two lieutenants of the witch finder. They did not find the witch finder.

The so called witches came to the police to give statement on 2nd June. I was with them. Some due to old age could not make it. I managed to deliver them back to their village especially the very old. At the village the situation is calm now. Some villagers did thank me for helping them and stopping the witch hunt.

Regards

George Thindwa 2/6/2011

Although this post is vastly overdue, the Mzembes, who I met while I was in Malawi, have had their witchcraft case thrown out of court. I filmed a short interview with Mr. Mzembe which I have attached below. Hopefully, all cases of this nature will be thrown out of court and never heard again.

Subject: Fw: THE WITCHCRAFT CASE OF THE MZEMBES- Mr AND MRS MZEMBE RULINGThe Ruling for the Mzembes case on pretending witchcraft came to court today on 14 April at 11.30 am. As usual Thindwa was in attendance. Magistrate Gomani read his ruling this way:

1- He stated that the Court heard the evidence from the children that the Mzembes were practicing witchcraft. That they fly to America in lichelo where they drink human blood.
2- But the case before this court was on pretending witchcraft which in short, the state witnesses should have shown that the accused by their statements or actions pretended themselves as witches or having powers of witchcraft to the state witnesses or police.
3- the state witnesses did not show any evidence of admission on part of the accused that they pretended witchcraft.
4- there was further no evidence paraded in the court for any statements or actions that the accused pretended witchcraft to the witnesses or the police.
5- the Magistrate said that since there was no evidence shown by the state regarding pretending witchcraft, he concluded that the prosecution failed to demonstrate to the court where it could find the accused with a case to answer and ask them to defend themselves. He therefore found the accused, Mr Mzembe and his wife with NO CASE TO ANSWER! They were acquitted accordingly. The wife and husband were quite happy with madam shedding a tear. Those wishing to appeal his decision were asked to do so within 30 days.

You may remember Terry Jones, the moronic pastor of an insignificant church in Florida whose sole claim to fame is burning Qurans and getting people killed on the other side of the world. Mr. Jones, in an attempt to prove to the world what a moron he really is, staged a six man demonstration against Islam in front of the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn, Michigan. He refused to post the $100,000 bond requested by the city to cover the costs of police and safety staff. He also refused to hold his demonstration at City Hall, where police support would be easier to maintain.

Earlier in the day, determined to make news, Jones accidentally fired a gun into the floor board of his car. One has to question the intelligence of a gun owner that doesn’t know how to use a safety. Jones should be the poster child for laws that require gun safety certification.

We made it there too late to see his demonstration, but people I talked to said that he attempted to wage his protest with 5 of his racist friends, but was immediately arrested. The turn out of people protesting hate was nothing short of inspiring. It was clear that people came out from all around Dearborn to show solidarity against intolerance and bigotry.

Free speech needs to be protected. Jones has every right to spread his idiotic message. However, his mission was obviously one of provocation. Jones likley hoped for violence, aiming to prove that Islam is, in fact, a “religion of the devil.”

I doubt he would have gotten the fight he wanted from the crowd of mostly young middle eastern men and women, who were mostly laughing hysterically at Jones’ foolishness as we passed them on their way out.

Go Dearborn. You win.

Below, I’ve included a letter that the mayor of Dearborn addressed to Mr. Jones, who likely had trouble with some of the big words:

DEARBORN – Dearborn Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr. has written an open letter to Pastor Terry Jones, who is planning a protest in Dearborn. It is as follows:

Dear Pastor Jones:

I watched you on television speaking about the Constitution and Dearborn, and it appears you need more information about both before you come to our city. I can provide insight on the Constitution, and expertise on Dearborn.

First of all, Dearborn supports the Constitution as well as any city in America. Our commitment to the Constitution is unwavering, not merely convenient, which makes your hyperbole about Sharia Law being practiced in the courts or civil law of Dearborn nonsensical. So, you are coming to protest against an imaginary threat that doesn’t exist in our community. Not in our courts, not at our City Hall, not on our streets and not in any of our places of worship.

Still, because we do understand the Constitution here, we are not preventing you from expressing your free speech. In fact, in Dearborn, we’ve even gone one step farther than most communities in support of free speech. We established, by ordinance, “Permit Free Zones” intended for demonstrations and free speech.  

One of those zones is at City Hall, where from my office I have heard many rallies being conducted in response to international, national or regional issues. This is a high visibility spot, seen by thousands of motorists but safe from traffic, with plenty of public space for protestors, supporters and the media. It is where we are asking you to conduct your demonstration. The steps of City Hall even make an impressive platform for speeches.

And, if you are unhappy with what you think is going on in Dearborn, than what better place to protest than with City Hall as the back drop?

Instead you insist on protesting in an area that has no public property to accommodate crowds, spectators, parking or the media. There is just a small public road with limited access which can’t be blocked and an adjacent grassy area for drainage. It is parallel to a major state road, but the small shoulder can accommodate people only when they have auto emergencies.

And, this property you are focusing on, in front of the Islamic Center of America, is also adjacent to four Christian churches, all of which will be hosting Good Friday services, adding to the traffic flow and congestion. It is ironic that the road that you want to protest near is called Altar Road, so named because it was first constructed to provide access to a row of churches constructed in the 1950s reflecting Dearborn’s diverse faith communities.

But I can understand if you don’t know the details of the site, or the particulars about Dearborn. But you should know about the Constitution that you claim to be defending.

The Constitution says that your rights must be balanced with the rights of others under the same document. Your free speech rights do not allow you to trespass on the private property of others or prevent them from the Constitutional right to freely practice their religion. I am not just talking about Muslims but members of all faiths.

The members of the Christian churches on Altar Road asked me last week if they should cancel their Good Friday services because of your planned visit. I assured them that they should not because the Constitution does not allow you to violate their rights. I don’t know why you selected Good Friday but it wasn’t very considerate of the significant Christian services being held at that time. I assure you that you will not make them forfeit their services.

You claim that you are coming to protest the radicalism of Islam. Like all of America, we are concerned about the radicalization of any religion that would rationalize extreme actions. However we have not let this concern turn into a twisted paranoia that promotes fear-mongering and misleading generalizations. You state that you are coming to the Islamic Center of America because it is the largest mosque in America. What does that have to do with the radicalism of Islam? While size may matter to you, we prefer to focus on actual behavior. And according to our Police Department and the anti-terrorism agencies they work with, there has never been evidence of any wrongdoing in any of Dearborn’s mosques.

It appears your choice of the Islamic Center of America is not because it has any relationship to the stated object of your free speech but because it symbolizes the Islamic faith in general. If so, that is not truly in line with the Constitution you say you are defending.

There is no Sharia Law in Dearborn, only Constitutional Law. Sharia Law is church- or faith-based law that is applicable only to the followers of that faith. For me it is Canon Law of Catholicism, in Judaism it is Torah Law, and for Muslims it is Sharia Law. The actual originator of the event you plan to hold in Dearborn, Frank Fiorello of the Fraternal Order of the Dragon, accepted my invitation to learn more about Dearborn, and after seeing the truth, he canceled his protest.

But, if you don’t believe that Dearborn follows the Constitution, here are some realistic facts for you. Businesses in Dearborn lawfully meet the diverse needs of our Greater Detroit area, but if Dearborn practiced Sharia Law, would we have three adult entertainment bars and more alcohol licensed bars and restaurants per capita than most other cities? None of that should be allowed under Sharia Law.

How about this? A business we boast about, the nationally known Dearborn Sausage, opened more than 60 years ago across the street from the first mosque in Dearborn and is famous for its sausages and spiral sliced hams. It is one of many meat packing operations in our City and no one has ever objected.

Dearborn is also famous for The Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, where more than 1.5 million visitors come each year from across the country and the world to learn about the foundations of our American way of life.

Dearborn is a diverse, safe and unified City that is addressing its future in a proactive manner. We cherish the American Dream that brought so many people here during the last century to earn a decent wage and enjoy a high quality of life thanks to Henry Ford and the Ford Motor Company. And for Dearborn, our success and our identity is tied to welcoming people of all backgrounds who have chosen to make America, and our community, their home. We are proud to have welcomed them.

As we work hard to balance your rights with the rights of others in Dearborn, you will be extended every courtesy during your visit – as long as you follow the law based on the Constitution’s protection of everyone’s rights. That should be a familiar statement to you.

You have said over and over that “Muslims are welcome as long as they follow the Constitution.” Surely, then, you wouldn’t ask less of yourself.