Why the Left Should Look to Jackson, Mississippi

[marmar]

from truthdig:


Why the Left Should Look to Jackson, Mississippi

Posted on May 21, 2014
By Michael Siegel


A new political and economic model is emerging, and it is not appearing where we might suspect it would. In the heart of the South, in a city named after one of the most racist presidents in United States history, in a landscape that resembles parts of Detroit and other decaying industrial centers, an impressive intergenerational collection of community organizers and activists have launched a bold program to empower a black working-class community that 21st -century capitalism has left behind.

In the last two months, I have traveled twice to Jackson, Miss., first for the memorial of Mayor Chokwe Lumumba, and most recently, between May 2 and 4, for the Jackson Rising: New Economies Conference held at Jackson State University. On both occasions, I have been struck by the amazing individuals and families who have dedicated themselves to developing economic democracy in Jackson.

A Black Revolutionary Mayor in the Heart of the South

Jackson Rising is the brainchild of a coalition of local and national political forces, including the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement (MXGM), the Jackson People’s Assembly and Lumumba’s office. Part of the initial vision was for the conference to catalyze some of the mayor’s economic initiatives, including the goal of helping local workers win government contracts. Unfortunately Lumumba, who won election by an overwhelming majority in June, held office for only a brief period before dying Feb. 25 of unexplained causes.

That Lumumba won the election at all is a testament to his sustained radical human rights work and to the group of community organizers he worked with over many years. Even during his campaign for mayor, Lumumba made no apologies for his revolutionary background, including his commitment to the New Afrikan Peoples Organization (NAPO) and its claim to a homeland in the predominantly black regions of the South (described as the “Kush”), including broad swaths of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina. Lumumba’s history also included decades of experience as a civil rights and criminal defense attorney, with past clients including freedom fighters and political prisoners such as Mutulu Shakur, Geronimo Pratt and Assata Shakur. ..................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/why_the_left_should_look_to_jackson_mississippi_20140521

[Laelth]

1. Excellent. k&r for exposure. n/t

-Laelth

[xchrom]

2. du rec.

[postulater]

3. Sounds like real People Power.

The struggle continues!

[lovemydog]

4. excellent

[starroute]

5. I hadn't realized that Lumumba's cause of death is still unknown

Not surprisingly, there are a lot of dark suspicions out there, which I also hadn't been aware of. I don't known how valid they are -- and I'm not personally trying to promote any conspiracy theories -- but the the widespread presence of those suspicions among his followers is certainly part of the story.

http://newsone.com/2941051/chokwe-lumumba-assassinated-louis-farrakhan/

Lumumba, a legendary human rights activist and attorney who was elected mayor of Jackson last June, died of alleged natural causes on February 25.

Speculation has been rampant that he was killed because of his platform of self-determination for the Black community and his refusal to tap-dance around issues of white supremacy and systemic racism in the Deep South.

Hinds County coroner Sharon Grisham-Stewart insists that Lumumba, who previously battled cancer, died of natural causes, but valid suspicions can’t be soothed with words. Lumumba’s supporters want proof.


http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/weblogs/jackblog/2014/mar/03/mayor-lumumbas-son-responds-to-accusations-that-he/

Over the weekend, various media outlets—irresponsibly in our opinion—published unsubstantiated rumors that Mayor Chokwe Lumumba was murdered, but with no evidence attached.

Mayor Chokwe Lumumba's son, Chokwe Antar Lumumba, gave the following statement to R.L. Nave of the Jackson Free Press this morning responding to comments of Hinds County Supervisor Kenneth Stokes and others that his father was murdered:

"We know that our father was loved and appreciated by many and a number of people both in Jackson and around the world have inquired into the manner of his death. At this time, there has been no information provided to the family other than that provided at the time of his death by the doctors. The family will explore all possible causes of his death."


http://sfbayview.com/2014/how-and-why-did-chokwe-lumumba-die/

When a Black radical dies in Mississippi, one should never accept at face value the state’s word on the cause of death. When that revolutionary Black man dies soon after becoming mayor of the state’s capital and largest city, history and reason compel us to put assassination first on our list of possibilities.

And if that Black man has brought with him to Jackson, Mississippi, a band of fellow revolutionaries from around the state and the nation, united under the banner of Malcolm X, for the purpose of totally upending the old order of race and class, not just in the Deep South, but across the planet, then it is imperative that impartial science tell us the exact and incontestable cause of this man’s demise.

Yet, the Mississippi state coroner has refused to perform an autopsy on the body of Chokwe Lumumba, who was elected by a landslide in June and died last Tuesday after checking into a hospital. The coroner says only that the mayor succumbed of “natural causes.”