Report on the 8th Annual March to Stop Executions in Houston

by Gloria Rubec

The organizing committee for the 8th Annual March to Stop Executions thanks everyone who came out yesterday. We feel like we accomplished our goals, educated and motivated activists and energized a new generation for this struggle.

There was a diverse cross section of the Houston community attending the march, which was one of our main goals. For too long the death penalty has been seen as an issue led by a group of very well-intentioned white folks who sometimes have not a clue of the daily realities for the very, very poor, and the African American and Latino communities who are under occupation by the Houston police.

Yesterday shattered that idea because the leaders of this march were from those communities.

This would not have been possible without the months and days and hours and hours of hard work by Ester King, Deloyd Parker, Sherri Clausell, Lee Greenwood, Regina Guidry, Vermila Freenman, Njeri Shakur, Elisha Enard, our young sister, Courtney, and many more.

So many people were involved in making the event a success that I can't mention names. From the web site, to the flyers, to the banners, to the phone calls, to the leafleting, to the emails, to attending and speaking at meetings, to trying to pin down legislators, preachers and community leaders, to generous donations, to organizing transportation from around the state--many people shared the load and did the work. !Muchisimas gracias!

• Hope to see you at the Nov. 6 meeting of the Abolition Movement where we will be having a film and discussion on THE EXECUTION TAPES: GEORGIA'S SECRET AUDIO RECORDINGS OF TWO EXECUTIONS, a film from the July 17, 2007 program of Democracy Now. We will also be planning a fundraiser for Brother Clarence Brandley, making plans for our annual card signing and holdiay treats pot luck on Dec. 4 and our literature / tee shirt table for the first day of KWANZAA on Dec. 26.
• Please sign on the the judicial complaint agianst Judge Sharon "Killer" who told the attorneys for Michael Richard "We close at 5:00." Go to http://www.SharonKiller.com if you have not. You have until Nov. 6 to sign on. Do it now. If you are in the Austin area join the demonstration at Judge "Killer's" home next week.

The Houston Chronicle has a story on yesterday's march/rally, with one picture, in the City/State section of today's paper. Double their numbers and add a few more, cuz we had way more than 200 people!!! Ariel with the UH Sankofa Organization is lookin' serious in the photo.

Five additional photos are also there -- look for the hard-to-find link under "Resources" on that page (next to the camera icon). Great one of Clarence Brandley's sisters, Margaret and Alice!

You can also see photos at Flickr.

I'm sure our friends at Houston Indy Media will have something up before too long. Go to : http://houston.indymedia.org/

The struggle continues!