July 14, 2009Your request is being processed...This is the print preview: Back to normal view »NAACP Using Cell Phones To Fight Racismdigg Share this on Facebook Huffpost - NAACP Using Cell Phones To Fight Racism stumble reddit del.ico.us ShareThis RSShttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/13/naacp-using-cell-phones-t_n_230984.html?view=printDEEPTI HAJELA | July 13, 2009 04:05 PM EST | APCompare other versions »Compare and versionsI Like ItI Don’t Like ItRead More: Naacp, NAACP And Technology, NAACP Anti-Racism Program, NewsParticipants in the 100th annual NAACP Convention cheer and hold signs during a speech in New York, Monday, July 13, 2009. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)NEW YORK — Combining its century-old mission of fighting for equality with the instantaneous reach of modern-day technology, the NAACP has launched a program that lets people use their cell phones to report incidents of police misconduct.The "rapid response system" was officially launched Monday as part of the annual convention for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. This year, the organization is marking the centennial of its founding in New York City in 1909.The system allows people who capture photos or video of incidents of alleged police misconduct on their cell phones to send it through a Web browser to the organization or upload it through a computer. A form will then be transmitted to the sender, who can use it to provide more information about an incident."Technology has basically put a video camera in the pocket of every child in this country over the age of 12 and most grown-ups as well," said Benjamin Jealous, president and CEO of the NAACP.He said the information gathered would be used in several ways. Some video could be used immediately, to present footage for a situation the organization wants to highlight. Another purpose would be to compile a database of incidents that could show a history of discriminatory patterns and practices in particular law enforcement jurisdictions _ information the group could take to the Justice Department.The head of the Justice Department, Attorney General Eric Holder, praised the NAACP's dedication to championing equality but acknowledged the work left to be done."We must resist the temptation to conclude that our nation has fulfilled its promise of equality based on one moment or on one election," he said, in reference to Barack Obama being elected president."The efforts to harmonize our laws with our best ideals is not yet done," he said.Monique Morris, the group's vice president of advocacy and research, said the ease of reporting an incident will help give a clearer picture of the prevalence of misconduct."What this database will provide is a more accurate account in real time of what's happening in our communities," she said.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEWednesday, July 15, 2009WWW.USDOJ.GOVCRM(202) 514-2007TDD (202) 514-1888http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2009/July/09-crm-684.htmlHouston Computer Administrator Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Hacking Former Employer’s Computer NetworkThe former director of information technology for a non-profit organ and tissue donation center was sentenced today to two years in prison for hacking into her former employer’s computer network.Danielle Duann, 51, of Houston, pleaded guilty on April 30, 2009, to a one-count criminal indictment charging her with unauthorized computer access. Duann was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge David Hittner in the Southern District of Texas. In addition to the two-year prison term, Judge Hittner sentenced Duann to a three-year period of supervised release following completion of her prison sentence, and ordered her to pay $94,222 in restitution to compensate her former employer for the damage that resulted from her actions.In pleading guilty, Duann admitted to illegally accessing the computer network of LifeGift Organ Donation Center and then intentionally deleting organ donation database records, accounting invoice files, database and accounting software applications and various backup files, without authorization. LifeGift is the sole provider of organ procurement services for more than 200 hospitals throughout 109 counties in North, Southeast and West Texas.According to court documents, LifeGift terminated Duann from her position as their director of information technology on Nov. 7, 2005, and revoked all of her previous administrative rights and access to the LifeGift computer network. In pleading guilty, Duann admitted that beginning on the evening of Nov. 7, 2005, and continuing until Nov. 8, 2005, she repeatedly gained unauthorized access to the LifeGift computer network via a remote connection from her home and intentionally caused damage by deleting numerous database files and software applications, as well as their backups, related to LifeGift’s organ and tissue recovery operations.Duann further admitted that in an attempt to conceal her activities, she disabled the computer logging functions on several LifeGift computer servers and erased the computer logs that recorded her remote access to the LifeGift networkThis case was investigated by the FBI and is being jointly prosecuted by Trial Attorney Thomas Dukes of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Bret W. Davis of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.###09-684presented by:Brain Injury Association of AmericaJuly 14, 2009In this MegaVote for Mississippi's 3rd Congressional District:http://capwiz.com/bia/issues/votes/?votenum=217&chamber=S&congress=1111Recent Congressional Votes -* Senate: Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2010* Senate: Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2010* House: Enhancing Small Business Research and Innovation Act* House: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010* House: Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriation, 2010* House: Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act, 2010Upcoming Congressional Bills -* Senate: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010* House: Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010* House: Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2010Recent Senate VotesLegislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2010 - Vote Passed (67-25, 7 Not Voting)The Senate passed this $3.1 billion bill to fund the legislative branch, which includes a provision to post Senate expenses online for the public to access.Sen. Thad Cochran voted YES......send e-mail or see bioSen. Roger Wicker voted YES......send e-mail or see bioDepartment of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2010 - Vote Passed (84-6, 10 Not Voting)On Thursday, the Senate passed this $42.9 billion bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security for Fiscal Year 2010, which includes a provision requiring at least 700 miles of a border fence with Mexico be completed by 2010.Sen. Thad Cochran voted YES......send e-mail or see bioSen. Roger Wicker voted YES......send e-mail or see bioRecent House VotesEnhancing Small Business Research and Innovation Act - Vote Passed (386-41, 5 Not Voting)On Wednesday, the House voted to reauthorize two federal programs that provide research and development grants to entrepreneurs.Rep. Gregg Harper voted YES......send e-mail or see bioAgriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010 - Vote Passed (266-160, 6 Not Voting)The House approved this $123.8 billion bill to fund the USDA, FDA and other related agencies and programs.Rep. Gregg Harper voted YES......send e-mail or see bioDepartment of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriation, 2010 - Vote Passed (318-106, 8 Not Voting)This $48.8 billion bill funding the Department of State, foreign operations, and related programs for Fiscal Year 2010 was passed on Thursday.Rep. Gregg Harper voted YES......send e-mail or see bioMilitary Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act, 2010 - Vote Passed (415-3, 14 Not Voting)The House passed this $133.7 billion bill funding veterans programs and military construction.Rep. Gregg Harper voted YES......send e-mail or see bioUpcoming VotesNational Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 - S.1390The Senate is scheduled to work on this bill to set funding levels for the military and authorize Department of Defense programs.Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010 - H.R.___The House is scheduled to vote on this bill funding the Department of Energy, Army Corps of Engineers and related agencies and programs.Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2010 - H.R.3170The House is expected to vote on this bill funding the Treasury Department, the executive branch, the judicial branch, the District of Columbia and independent agencies."We must acknowledge the great lapse in moral judgment that allowed [the Transatlantic Slave Trade] to happen. We must urge present and future generations to avoid repeating history. We must acknowledge the contributions that enslaved Africans made to civilization. And countries that prospered from the slave trade must examine the origins of present-day social inequality and work to unravel mistrust between communities. Above all, even as we mourn the atrocities committed against the countless victims, we take heart from the courage of slaves who rose up to overcome the system which oppressed them."Secretary-General Ban Ki-moonListen to the Drumbeat (Video)http://www.un.org/en/slavery/#videoBROADCAST QUALITY DOWNLOAD (MPEG-2 with 8 MBPS)The three-minute video invites viewers to organize events on 25 March in Commemoration of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. It moves across cultures to show how the trade has influenced countries and artistic genres all over the world. A big bang on a drum symbolizes the beginning of the trade. From that point, we follow the dances and polyphonic rhythms of the African continent to a range of musics and dances in the Americas. From cow bells to talking drums, from mystic drums to candomblé, from ngoni to berimbau, the fighting and mystic spirit of drums accompanied enslaved black people everywhere, and the dance moves and sounds have remained almost intact. In Asia, in the Americas, in the Middle East, in Europe, rituals of African slaves and their soulful drumming touched all civilizations.With salsa, rumba, blues, jazz, rock and roll, hip hop, and fusion but also Asian drumming, qawwali and ghazals, drums were never silenced. They brought the capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian art form that makes a ritual of movements from martial arts marked by fluid acrobatic play and feints.The drum beat, slow and fast at times like a West African tempo from the Gold Coast, sad or joyful from tango to meringue, remains consistent in its universal appeal. Indeed, drums continue to carry to men and women of all color and creed a message that all understand: it is the soothing or haunting sound of freedom, even when journeys are harsh or long. Everywhere, drums give birth to a simple truth: every time you beat the drum, you break the silence.
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