Yesterday, the last of the pro-accuser websites, ourheartsworld.com, closed down. The site was co-sponsored by three Black newspapers, the state NAACP, and the Triangle Urban League—in effect, the African-American leadership of
The sponsorship was more than nominal. The site featured a May 28 message to the accuser from Al McSurely, head of the state NAACP’s Legal Redress Committee, promising, “After you finish your undergraduate studies, I will be glad to help you get into law school, where all of the legal education you are now getting can be put to use helping other sisters whose rights have been violated by lying people.”
A message from state NAACP head William Barber asked people to let the justice system work—but based on an underlying statement of fact: “We must also be prayerful for whoever committed these acts because whoever did is suffering from a great sickness of the spirit and hatred for humanity.” Not “alleged” acts, not “asserted” acts—just “acts.” For good measure, Barber also complained about how “when the defense team announces its cherry-picked pieces of evidence, throngs of reporters, cameras and pens in hand, scramble to repeat carefully crafted announcements as if they were objective truths.” Barber cited no specifics to substantiate his claim.
In his/her good-bye and good-luck announcement, the unnamed moderator lashed out at those who have contended that the three people accused by “our sister survivor” were innocent. The moderator said that he/she believes that “those who demand justice must always comport themselves in a just fashion, or else their advocacy is meaningless.”
The unnamed moderator added that the sponsoring organizations “offer no apologies for demanding a cease to ‘trial by media,’ and that a fair and just legal process proceed, a process that would once and for all, determine whether a crime was indeed committed or not.” As far as I could determine, between May and October, the site contained no posts criticizing Mike Nifong for his procedurally improper public statements.
The unnamed moderator concluded with some revisionist history regarding the site’s many postings. He/she affirmed, “All the website has said is let her tell her story, then let the courts decide after hearing all other admissible evidence.”
Directly quoting some of the site’s posts can provide a better sense of how the state NAACP and the North Carolina Black press have defined “comport[ing] themselves in a just fashion.” I suspect that relatively few people would believe that “all the website has said is let her tell her story, then let the courts decide after hearing all other admissible evidence.”
Emphasis added in all the items below.
Many posts unequivocally stated that a rape occurred, and viewed a trial as either incidental or irrelevant.
May 16:
Please stay strong. There are many people on your side, both black and white. I know that something happened to you in that house. I can’t believe what is going on now on tv talk shows.
May 17:
I truly believe in you. I believe that something did happen in that house that was not of your consent. I believe that you will continue with much success after all this. I believe that justice will prevail if not in the courts, but in reality. So no matter what happens, believe in yourself as I believe in you.
May 20:
I must tell you that I completely believe you that the rape, indeed, happened.
May 21:
They say you were drunk, because They drugged you...They say you have fallen, because They tripped you...They say you were beaten, because They beat you...They say you were a whore, because They raped you.—Noel, Baltimore
June 4:
Your case is just one more incident to add to the list of atrocities committed against Black people with seeming impunity. But this time, many of us are behind you and, if necessary, in front of you, to seek justice. I believe that what happened to you, happened just as you say it did. You are not the guilty one and no one had the right to forcibly force you to do anything you did not want to do. Stay strong and do not give up the fight to bring justice to these animals. --- Abdurrahimk
A few posts rejected the judicial system entirely:
June 1:
Although I am a white male myself, I can’t even begin to relate to the behavior those... students showed you . . . They will get what is coming to [them] . . . Respectfully --- Chad Margolin
June 2:
Through your courage we have found our voices and WE speak. WE SAY NO to sexual violence. WE say never again will we be silent. WE will not look to the oppressor to establish innocence or guilt. It is not for him to determine the extent of the damage he has committed. We know, we feel and we validate your pain because it is ours!!!
Other posts channeled the spirit of Chan Hall, and demanded “justice” for the accuser to compensate for injustices of the past.
May 20:
We believe you, no matter how much those who assaulted you now attack your credibility... We believe you because our foremothers were raped... Hold on, and don’t give up. Black women of all ages are supporting you because you could be our daughter. - Godspeed --- Ann
May 20:
It is so unfortunate that so many forces in our world are still primarily and unfeigningly [sic] committed to protecting white male power and privileges; even when it is clear that these gifts are being used for pure evil . . . They never imagined that they were committing these acts against someone as heroic as yourself.—Kenneth J. Frazier
May 30:
Dear Sister Warrior - Chin- Up! Don’t let those mis-educated assaulters get away with what they have done to you (and to us People of Color) . . .You can see that this non-thinking ignorance has been leading not only to their criminal activities against us People of Color, it has led, unfortunately, to lynchings, castrations, beatings, injustice in the ‘criminal justice’ system - and on and on down through the years since BlackAfrican enslavement times! However, because we can understand that these little arrogant miscreant rapists... have been mis-educated and are also victims of a racist/colorist society, does not mean that they must be exonerated from paying for what they knew to be illegal and immoral.
May 30:
You need to know that many people are behind and supportive of you. For too long, white men have gotten away with this. I also want to see justice for you because Black men can still go to trials and jail [for] an accusation of raping a white woman. I also want to see that hypocrite DAN ABRAMS humiliated. I hope you have a security team with you at all times. Peace and love ---Michael Sanderlein
Another string of posts invoked the power of the Almighty to advance the accuser’s interests. These posts, too, viewed a trial as either incidental or irrelevant.
May 19:
I will pray for you to win this case... GOD is on your side each and everyday, while the devil is on their side, each and everyday. --- Richard I. Lawson, Jr. from the Bronx,
June 6:
I’ve never seen so much pride, arrogance and hatred surrounding a case, which are all attributes of Satan. This could only mean one thing that in the end GOD will get all the Glory . . . Satan’s sons didn’t know that it’s not What, nor is it Who you are that matters, it WHOSE you are . . . This is only the beginning I know more positive things are going to happen because of your courage.
June 12:
I believe that you were chosen by GOD to help those whose lives have been change or turned upside down by this crime . . . Hold on to the power of GOD, don’t loose faith because GOD is on the battlefield right now fighting for your victory!
Yours Truly, Shekera
August 19:
There are so, so many cases where people didn’t think they would be convicted of a crime but were. They thought they were too smart for the district attorney or there wasn’t enough evidence for a conviction. This seems to be the same scenario this case is following. Just remember GOD is the judge and jury. GOD knows what happen to you that day and HE says in HIS WORD, vengeance is his and HE will repay!!!!!!!
Karr,
ATL
As the summer proceeded, supporting the cause of “justice” meant turning into a cheering section for Mike Nifong.
June 8:
Today, I offer a kind word and prayer for the District Attorney --- Noel
June 19: (unnamed moderator)
Thanks to the defense attorneys’ selective spin, emerging questions about the case, and harsh media/blogger criticism of Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong, the prosecutor, it seems only fair to give Mr. Nifong space to answer some of his critics, and some of those questions. Indeed those queries threaten the very integrity of the case.
July 17: (unnamed moderator)
Resident Superior Court Judge Kenneth C. Titus today limited all attorneys involved in the Duke case in what they can say publicly about the case, making it clear that he had heard enough of the spin, leaks and blatant public release of discovery evidence by the defense attorneys, and was very concerned that it threatened what ultimately is supposed to be a fair trial when it is tentatively to take place in Spring 2007 . . . This is good news for Our Sister, though obviously a little late, and it is certainly good news for her supporters. The truth deserves to come out in a court of law, not some vile, racist website or right-wing cable TV show.
[Titus’ order, which sought to apply lawyers’ rules to all potential witnesses, was eventually modified.]
July 20:
I’m in full support of the victim and Mike Nifong’s handling of the case. I’ve also joined with
Kim Brummell
Posts to the site slowed dramatically in late summer, and all but came to a stop after the 60 Minutes broadcast in October, except for occasional commentary from the unnamed moderator. This shift previewed the recent Newsday revelations that Nifong's support from the local African-American community has all but crumbled, leaving the state NAACP and the Black press well behind the opinion of their base.
Perhaps Barber, McSurely, and the other site sponsors truly believe that the above posts represented people “comport[ing] themselves in a just fashion.” But it would seem rather difficult to contend that any of the above posts operated under the sole premise that “all the website has said is let her tell her story, then let the courts decide after hearing all other admissible evidence.”
89 comments:
Have to wonder if the word is spreading that the charges will soon be dropped?
Judge Hudson is not investigating the leaked grand jury statements.
Joyner is quoting KC and others in a fair balanced article.
No one wants to be on the train when it hits the wall.
The only act of violence these people have experienced is their stupid lies being crammed back down their throats by their betters.
JLS says.....
That was my thought too. I wonder if the sponsors of that website got word the charges are about to be dropped and did not want any blowback post there. They are the types of organizations a Democrat governor or AG might tip off so they are not surprised by the announcement. Could tommorrow be the day?
To me Rev Barber is a lot like Brodhead who spewed about the terrible behavior of the team and denounced them and then added that "oh by the way, they are innocent until proven guilty." Barber does the exact same thing, spews and spews and then says, "Oh take it to the courts."
My money is on Good Friday for the day when the charges are dropped. Ironically, a Friday again and also a day when few people are paying little to no attention to the media. Many are off work and traveling that day. Also it is the day when we honor the death of Christ which puts people in a humble mood.
opps, meant for that to say a day when few people are paying attention too..........
As I posted before, I was troubled that newspapers played a role in the establishment of that website.
"American Society Of Newspaper Editors
A STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES
ARTICLE IV - Truth and Accuracy. Good faith with the reader is the foundation of good journalism, Every effort must be made to assure that the news consent is accurate, free from bias and in context and that all sides are presented fairly, Editorials, analytical articles and commentary should be held to the same standards of accuracy with respect to facts as news reports. Significant errors of fact, as well as errors of omission, should be corrected promptly and prominently,
ARTICLE V - lmpartiality. To be impartial does not require the press to be unquestioning or to refrain from editorial expression. Sound practice, however, demands a clear distinction for the reader between news reports and opinion, Articles that contain opinion or personal interpretation should be clearly identified"
Pure delusion is the only explanation for these comments which KC had listed from this recently closed blog.
However, I wanted to address one comment specifically, the one which calls the "accuser" is deemed a brave "warrior". Seriously, how is falsely accusing someone of rape brave? What is this woman warring against? She is a prostitute who as acted in an severely unstable manner even before her charade of the last year. These people are deluded.
just in case anyone is unaware, the site belongs to Cash Micheals aka Micheal Keaton of Cary N.C.
Stupidity is forever.
Get ready for the lawsuits. A legal case for the ages.
JLS says....
re: Chicago
I would think the any excuse to burn the neighborhood crowd one would most be worried about with the announcement of dropping the charges may not be paying much attention to Easter or particularly humble on Good Friday. But maybe Nifong's support in the black community is so low this is not a worry any more and the AG is mainly interested in burying the story on a holiday weekend Friday as you suggest.
A common and persistent theme cranked out by the "supporters" of the accuser has been that she should have her chance, in court under oath, to tell her latest version of WHAT HAPPENED to her.
By all means, I agree that it is past time for this to have taken place. It is just that there is no reason, at all, that the trial in which she testifies has our three bizarrely oppressed, entirely innocent LAX guys as defendants.
If simply learning "the truth" of what happened is the actual goal of these people then I would suspect that any one of M. Nifongs up-coming trials would serve as a venue.
This sort of nonsense will continued to be spewed until we have the courage enough -- and intelligence enough -- to challenge the "metanarrative".
Well somebody needs to tell the potbangers that their pots AND kettles are somewhat black.
The issue's story make me afraid .I heard Judge hudson on EbonyFriends.com. Although the article is wonder. the author is a excellent one.
why is it ok for you all to have all these sites and forums to spew hatred at the accuser, at Nifong and the durham black community but not ok for there to be one site dedicated to the accuser?
Hypocrites!
And yes, many in the black community are very religious and have voiced the opinion that the Lax team and their bloggers and people like Ed Bradley, Dan Abrahms and Kirk Osborn( the whole defense team actually) are the servants of the Devil. you all would be appalled to know that some of the black preachers in the area have preached on the early deaths of Ed Bradley and Kirk Osborn as an example of God punishing them for how they have tried to protect the evildoers in this case and victimized the girl all over again. and that a lot of churches had prayers for Nifong when he was charged by the Bar.
"I believe that something did happen in that house that was not of your consent....."
George Costanza: "It's not really a lie if you believe it."
why is it ok for you all to have all these sites and forums to spew hatred at the accuser, at Nifong and the durham black community but not ok for there to be one site dedicated to the accuser?
Hypocrites!
And yes, many in the black community are very religious and have voiced the opinion that the Lax team and their bloggers and people like Ed Bradley, Dan Abrahms and Kirk Osborn( the whole defense team actually) are the servants of the Devil. you all would be appalled to know that some of the black preachers in the area have preached on the early deaths of Ed Bradley and Kirk Osborn as an example of God punishing them for how they have tried to protect the evildoers in this case and victimized the girl all over again. and that a lot of churches had prayers for Nifong when he was charged by the Bar.
Apr 5, 2007 5:45:00 AM
The idea that the black ministers in Durham would preach that Kirk Osborn died because he defended Reade Seligmann is obscene. Just obscene.
It is too bad that those ministers did not add the part where the scriptures say that Satan is "the father of lies." Since Crystal's story consisted of lies, and since much of the website dealt in lies, then we can say that the black ministers of Durham who preached this filth against Kirk and Ed Bradley condemned themselves with their own words.
sad part about the site closing is that now 5:45 am has no where to go and act the fool. I wouldn't be surprised by anything a black "leader" in Durham does by the way, already seen enuf of their sideshow.
The closing of ourheartsworld.com is not good news for Our Sister.
I've been to that site before. Crappy job of HTML coding for sure.
As to let her tell her story: which one? The least that website could do is to document all of the stories that she had to date.
And a retraction of the rape comments would have been helpful after December.
I am one pseudonymous commenter here.
Still, I'll state my disappointment with those preceding comments that take the Hoax as the starting point for railing agaist "these buffoons" (with no clear antecedent), or that condemn "the majority of Black Americans."
These commenters do not speak for me. I suspect they do not speak for many other readers or commenters, or for this blog's host.
I don't even know if they are speaking honestly for themselves. Unlike those who post under their real names or under a consistent pseudonym, nobody can use Google to view the record of anonymous' comments over time. Nothing prevents anonymous from adding some toxic malarkey to the thread, then scooting.
As a setup for "My gracious, look at the awful things that Durham-in-Wonderland believes!!"
Free speech will always require the exercise of good judgment by the reader.
My first thought when reading the posts from that site was a little rush of anger.
Then it hit me... these are really, really sad people that live is a world of delusion that they have constructed from themselves.
I'm sure that this is a 7X24 state of mind, not just in the LAX hoax.
re: 5:45
[why is it ok for you all to have all these sites and forums to spew hatred at the accuser, at Nifong and the durham black community but not ok for there to be one site dedicated to the accuser?]
Websites should tell the truth.
Websites should correct their errors.
Websites shouldn't rewrite history.
[Hypocrites!
And yes, many in the black community are very religious and have voiced the opinion that the Lax team and their bloggers and people like Ed Bradley, Dan Abrahms and Kirk Osborn( the whole defense team actually) are the servants of the Devil.]
What is your definition of "very religious"? Are these "very religious" Biblically litereate or do they just wing it on feelings and emotions?
Exo 23:1 "Do not spread false reports. Do not help a wicked man by being a malicious witness.
Exo 23:2 "Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd,
Exo 23:3 and do not show favoritism to a poor man in his lawsuit.
Lev 19:16 " 'Do not go about spreading slander among your people.
Lev 19:17 " 'Do not hate your brother in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in his guilt.
Gen 39:7 and after a while his master's wife took notice of Joseph and said, "Come to bed with me!"
Gen 39:8 But he refused. "With me in charge," he told her, "my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care.
Gen 39:9 No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?"
Gen 39:10 And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her.
Gen 39:11 One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside.
Gen 39:12 She caught him by his cloak and said, "Come to bed with me!" But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house.
Gen 39:13 When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house,
Gen 39:14 she called her household servants. "Look," she said to them, "this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us! He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed.
Gen 39:15 When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house."
Gen 39:16 She kept his cloak beside her until his master came home.
Gen 39:17 Then she told him this story: "That Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me.
[you all would be appalled to know that some of the black preachers in the area have preached on the early deaths of Ed Bradley and Kirk Osborn as an example of God punishing them for how they have tried to protect the evildoers in this case and victimized the girl all over again. and that a lot of churches had prayers for Nifong when he was charged by the Bar.]
There is a logical fallacy here that a lot of religious fanatics in the middle east make. Are these black preachers immortal? Has any black preacher ever died? Is Nifong immortal? Will he die? Will these preachers attribute something positive or negative to him when that happens? What about the other innocents that Nifong has railroaded?
I don't know how these black preachers can live with themselves if they are familiar with the scriptures on false accusations and justice. Perhaps it is just ignorance.
A note on the comments from ourheartsworld that KC Johnson quoted in the body of this post is in order.
That website stated that its administrators would only accept comments in the form of emails, and that only those comments whose tone and content were aligned with the site's purpose would be published (from memory--that page seems to have disappeared).
Thus, unlike the comments at D-i-W (or Huffington Post, or Little Green Footballs), those contributions that make it to an html page have been selected because they align with the purpose of the website. It seems fair that Johnson has offered selections from these comments as reflections of the beliefs and attitudes of the backers of ourheartsworld.
If Cash Michaels or another administrator of the site disagrees with that, I hope they write in to explain why.
Didn't know Crystal was a sister to the moderator. Or was that just jive talk? In other words it doesn't matter if you lied as long as you are black you are innocent and the white boys are guilty. If you are black the evidence and truth mean nothing just your blackness. The moderator is "stupid is as stupid does".
Free at last, free at last. We are finally free to hate with every ounce of being. But remember, our racism is "different/better/justified".
Thank you OJ Simpson! Thank you Tawana Bradley! Thank you Mike Nifong!
Sincerely,
The Majority of Black Americans
Apr 5, 2007 6:49:00 AM
--------------------------
The comment above is total nonsense. Most black Americans, just like all other Americans are good people, hard working, who want justice done. They too want the innocent exonerated as much as the guilty convicted. It is far off the mark to take a few bad actors and convert them into some kind of universal racial identity.
I echo 9:13 comments completely. There are certainly a number of black Americans who of course recognize that Ms. Mangum's false complaint and the complicity of public officials in furthering that false complaint and in obstructing justice works to the detriment of us all - and - frankly, works to the event greater detriment of black Americans in particular.
KC is fair and balanced in his comments - and focuses on the various enablers and their wholly unsupportable statements and conduct - in a relentless and very persuasive way. But he (as well as other thoughtful commenters) do not attempt to impute conclusions to entire classes of people, who are, as pointed out above, hardly monolithic in their views.
9:13AM
"Most black Americans, just like all other Americans are good people, hard working, who want justice done."
Probably true. However, what if "white America" had organizations such as the "National Association for the Advancement of White People"... that repeatedly made statements like those of the NC NCAACP top leadership?
This would definitely be seen as hate speech, racism or just simple prejudice.
So far I've not seen or heard anyone from the AA community speak up against the positions of their organizations which have almost universal approval.
Check out this quote from Cash Michaels posted on Ruth's metro blog N&O website on 08/29/06, vowing to leave the outheartsworld.com site up "until this case is over."
Now that the website is down, I guess Mr. Michaels didn't mean his vow.
"... The OurHeartsWorld.com website remains up, and will stay up until this case is over, in support of the alleged victim, because the African-American community simply will not tolerate racial opportunists calling her “trash,” “black false accuser” or worse when this case is far from over.
We want…check that…we EXPECT the Durham District Attorney’s Office and the Durham Police Dept. to do a better job of proving this case. That’s not a retreat, that’s a challenge, and remains fully supportive of the AV.
So in the future, before you start misrepresenting both my job status and my views, kindly contact me first.
It would be much appreciated.
Sincerely,
Cash Michaels
The Carolinian/Wilmington Journal newspapers"
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/ruth/index.php?title=seeking_response_from_alleged_duke_lacro&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1
5:45,
It is a mistake to claim that early death is a judgment from God.
The One who walked this earth who was most Righteous, Truthful, Kind, Loving and Merciful died at the early age of thirty-three.
He was also falsely accused and some of His followers will be/have been, too.
I believe Ed Bradley and Kirk Osborn's involvement and work in this case were an answer to prayer and that God is pleased with their efforts.
Your post reeks of hatred. This is a sign it's not of God. Your own words condemn you as being from the "father of lies."
Check out Cash Michael's posting vowing to keep the ourheartsworld.com website going "until this case is over." As the site is now down, I guess Mr. Michaels couldn't or wouldn't keep his promise to keep the site up.
"... The OurHeartsWorld.com website remains up, and will stay up until this case is over, in support of the alleged victim, because the African-American community simply will not tolerate racial opportunists calling her “trash,” “black false accuser” or worse when this case is far from over.
We want…check that…we EXPECT the Durham District Attorney’s Office and the Durham Police Dept. to do a better job of proving this case. That’s not a retreat, that’s a challenge, and remains fully supportive of the AV.
So in the future, before you start misrepresenting both my job status and my views, kindly contact me first.
It would be much appreciated.
Sincerely,
Cash Michaels
The Carolinian/Wilmington Journal newspapers"
Cash Michaels posted this on 08/29/06 at N&O's Ruth's Metro blog.
http://blogs.newsobserver.com/ruth/index.php?title=seeking_response_from_alleged_duke_lacro&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1
So far I've not seen or heard anyone from the AA community speak up against the positions of their organizations which have almost universal approval.
What do you mean by "their" organization? Do you have any idea of how few blacks are members of the NAACP? Do you think that being born black automatically makes you a member of the NAACP?
Like the vast majority of other black folks in this country I am not a member of the NAACP and they certainly do not speak for me. Its always annoying how whites always rush to select and promote "black leaders" as if we are incapable of thinking for, and leading, ourselves. Yet you never see "white leaders" promoted in the media.
By the way KC; I've noticed another upsurge in race baiting recently. Since all comments are now moderated and many odious comments are still posted, one has to wonder whether you subscribe to these views.
from a non-lawyer / retired professor: The only question now is when the NC AG and SPs "pull the plug".
This website's monitor could "talk the talk", but proved he couldn't "walk the walk" by closing down the site before the hoax has been completely debunked. I brand him as a coward for cutting and running immediately after issuing one last blast -- kind of like a kid who tries to get the last word in an argument with another kid by shouting insults from the safety of his house after running away from the field of confrontation. For people who claim to be religious, the site's monitor shared a trait with the decidely unreligious Amanda Marcotte, who has commented, equally irrationally, on the hoax from time to time -- comments which do not match the views of the host are not displayed. Real moral courage there ... not.
The commenters to ourheartsworld.com likely go through every aspect of their lives as confused as the comments indicate they are about this situation. I pity them. Life can be a struggle at times even when you have all of your faculties completely engaged. What must it be like to face the daily trials and tribulations when you're operating in such a fog? I hope I never find out.
BTW, who is going to monitor Al McSurely to ensure he makes good on his promise to help Precious get into law school? Would that be the Michael Nifong School of Prosecution by Hoax? Some candidates for the administration and faculty -- Nifong, of course, would be president; Wendy Murphy would be dean; Full professorships would go to Joyner, Goslee, Grace, Munson, and Cohen (from the WaPo).
To the 11.16:
On whether I approve, no.
I had taken the comment moderation off for a few days but reinstituted it in part to clean up the comments.
To reiterate: I screen comments only for their relevance to the post, not for their argument.
until regular black folks speak out in groups against race baiting people of their own race, you will get placed in the group with the rest.
Its just like the Muslims who stay silent against their fellow Muslims who caused 9/11.
Speak out against injustice caused by people of your own race and then you will get credibility. Until then, you will be stereotyped.
I think GS and JLS are on the right track.
This looks like another pre-emptive move based on feedback about the investigation, which may have come from Precious herself.
The AG would love to drop a bombshell about Nifong if and when he drops the charges, directing any attention/anger toward Nifong.
It wouldn't suprise me to see Precious rat out Nifong to the AG to save her own hide.
Many people have commented on the parallels between this case and the Tawana Brawley case, but I'm reminded of the Steven Pagones defamation suit against Sharpton, et al. If I remember correctly, at first the defendants failed to answer the suit, resulting in a default judgment that they later moved to vacate. The wishy-washy judge in the case, who continually bent over backward to be "fair" to the defendants, finally reversed himself and ruled that the defendants could introduce evidence to the effect that Tawana was telling the truth and that Pagones had done what she accused him of (i.e., that what they'd said about Pagones was true, truth almost always being a perfect defense to allegations of defamation). Of course, it was all bluster--when the time came, they didn't even attempt to put on a "truth" defense. These people who still try to insist that the Duke Lax players are guilty, ignoring real evidence in favor of myth-based "metanarratives," will likewise have their day in court; however, I doubt they will put up any more in the way of evidence than Tawana did.
11:16:
I appreciate your comments (and fairness)
I admit I am one that thought the NAACP speaks for the majority of black people. And, I also look towards black leaders (in politics and sports, etc. )
Please give me your opinion on why the false accuser is still supported in the black community and at North Carolina Central University.
panda
11:16
I think that there is some confusion due to 95% or so of the AA community voting for democrat candidates, versus the much wider diversity in opinions that one encounters amoung individual African Americans.
It is a mistake to make assumptions about how someone might think about issues such as abortion or gay marriage based on race or party affilition. I see those assumptions made all the time - it is a mental substitute for actually dealing with an individual human being.
KC:
I'm wondering why my post about the NC NAACP's website was removed. I certainly wasn't disrepectful (at least I didn't mean to be and don't think I was), and I hope I wasn't misinterpreted, as the gang of 88 love to claim.
I was simply trying to piont out the fact that as long as the NC NAACP lists the "talking points" on their website, it's hard not to consider the site as "pro-accuser."
I am certainly not "race baiting" (which is unfair and wrong as far as I am concerned) as 11:16 mentions. I'm not trying to paint any type of false picture or say anything be it negative or positive about all blacks.
Just pointing out that the current content on the NC NAACP website is very pro-accuser, therfore their website (in my mind) would be considered pro-accuser.
I'd love to hear your point of view and the thoughts of DIW readers.
Respectfully,
Mike Lee
Nifong is the all-too-easy fall-guy for the race industry and the bigots on the left. We never know his name if that lying skank doesn't file her SECOND false rape accusation.
Mark it down: the fact that she is black will be tantamount to immunity by the time the history is written of this sad affair.
To 11:16AM--
Don't attempt to play us with that BS.
Don't try to adjust this website to your liking with an attempt to paint KC as a subscriber to the views of every post that is deposited here.
First, clean up your own neighborhoods, websites, and the horrific racism and delusions that harm innocent people with abandon.
This website is about objectivity.
This website is about illuminating the third-rate black "professionals" and their support and promotion of the false accuser as a "survivor" and "hardworking mother" and as society's "victim".
YOU and others in the black community wish to come out from under your rocks now and wax surprise and injury because many of us have been fighting for the simple justice that you and your screaming, maniacal fellow travelers have forced on society for decades.....even when there are no injustices, the AA community tries to use that old tale to cover for their astronomical crime rates. Constant apologists exist for multi-generational dysfunction.
If I were a black woman, I would be yelling from the rooftops that Crystal Gail Mangum should be punished severely for her crimes. Not lauded as a "glorious and courageous sistah". What puke-inducing bile!
One has only to read the comments above deposited by black people in unbelievable support for this whore to see how much trash and deliberate delusion exist in the black community.
None of this behavior should ever be forgotten.
Debrah
We need to remember that there has been a change in the AA community in Durham regarding this case. Unfortunately, there was the rush to judgment a year ago, and it is difficult for people to admit having been so wrong.
Yet, I think that the real villains here are not Cash or even the people at the NAACP. It was Michael B. Nifong who promoted the hoax long after he had figured it was not true. A number of Durham police officers also promoted what they knew were lies.
One cannot do much about people who choose what to believe what they wish to believe, and I think many blacks in Durham have changed their minds. However, something CAN be done about Nifong and the police, and that is to conduct a criminal investigation and go from there. We have witnessed a crime wave in Durham, and the criminals need to meet the bar of justice.
To use Nifong's own words, the "guilty" will stand trial. (Oh, I forgot. Mikey now is asking that we not "rush to judgment.")
Case won't be dismissed on Friday, it's a State Holiday, Good Friday. The chances Cooper is working on a state holiday?
Slim and none, and slim left town.
Kemp
Chan Hall is, quite possibly, the most irresponsible and wrongheaded individual quoted in a news article last year. He is also the worst kind of racist - a ignorant fool who advocates vengeance and, with a single comment, perverted the civil rights efforts of an entire generation.
Nice going, Mr. Hall.
Debrah wrote at 1:35pm --
> This website is about illuminating the third-rate black "professionals" and their support and promotion of the false accuser as a "survivor" and "hardworking mother" and as society's "victim".
As an occasional commenter here, I can't speak to what "this website is about."
One thing I like about D-i-W is that it's not an echo chamber, e.g. KC Johnson links to and comments on a wide variety of posts. There's also a variety of opinions expressed in the comments--many of which I disagree with.
As long as there's a sense that arguments are fact-based and are being conducted in good faith, that's okay.
There is a great deal of anger about this case. There's a tremendous amount of anger in society in general, concerning a variety of issues. How our society deals with such strong emotions among so many people is one of our big challenges.
Michael Keaton, all those candles and that red background and funky music were slammin'.
You ought to open a love club, my man.
Maybe that's your, er, Destine.
sic semper tyrannis
11:16AM
"Like the vast majority of other black folks in this country I am not a member of the NAACP and they certainly do not speak for me.
I'm sure that the vast majority of blacks do not belong to the organization... However, the NAACP makes statements 'as if' they do speak for the AA community.
This being said, I can not remember a single public statement saying that "the NAACP does not speak for me".
If an organization that is viewed as 'white lead' makes a questionable statement, there is huge pressure for white leaders to publicly disavow it... or else they are tarred with the statement themselves.
Mike Lee, one of the most offensive postings in this case has been on the website of the NC NAACP called "Case Description."
Cash Michaels has said he believes Al McSurley wrote it.
It's tale of a premeditated racial crime based on on scenes from the Book American Pyscho. It has been on that once respected site for months, unchallenged, uncorrected, and with no other posted counterpoint.
For months,potential jurors who might reasonably feel that they could come to the website of the NC NAACP for accurate information have found it instead. Shameful!
The NC NAACP needs to be held accountable.
The biggest problem with ourheatsworld.com is that they did not try to get objective facts and then draw logical inferences based on those facts. I have yet to see a supporter of CGM take what is know about the case in total and what can be logically inferred about this case and reconcile it with her telling an honest tale.
It is bad enough that some of our intellectual leaders are attempting to skew those facts for political gain but they also attempt to belittle those of us who are trying to look at the case objectively.
Thinking has not evolved that much since I was in school. It is still an exercise in gathering the best information available and then drawing logical inferences based on the data. If that is not being taught in our schools then are we teaching our students to think or are we indoctrinating them with propaganda.
Yeah, "AMAC".
I hear ya.
This case has shown me and a great many other people much less vocal than I that one cannot sit back and wonder how to deal with "emotions".
I care not about emotions at this point. Emotions of irrational and deluded and self-serving people are what has kept this hoax alive.
I only care about obliterating the cancer in this society that is allowed to metasticize at the expense of good people. Of innocent people.
As far as I'm concerned, one can stick those "emotions" in a very dark place....left to your imagination.
You worry me because of your snuggle-fest with such deliberately harmful people such as Cash Michaels.
You see, there is no middle ground in this case.
You are either for justice.....or you are not.
Debrah
AMac 8:06
I think that is called buyer beware.
GP
My IQ is 176 so I don't usually get confused by much - so why do I absolutely NOT understand why so many of these pigheaded loons have CLUNG so ferociously to the fiction that something bad happened to that lying accuser that night? Why they convicted three innocent young men with NO evidence.
For the most part, these are people for whom the law has far too often been a complete nightmare of injustice. Why then are they so EAGER to visit that kind of insanity on someone else?
There has been a great deal of exculpatory evidence out there for a very long time. And just as I have read a lot of what the Group of 88 has written (didn't agree with it, but I read it and tried really hard to keep an open mind), despite my eventual utter contempt for their intellectual poverty, did none of them read what was on sites like this one?
Do Joyner, Brodhead, the Group of 88, et al know nothing at all about the RIGHT of presumption of innocence?
It is just really baffling to me.
The Triangle Urban League co-sponsored ourhearsworld.com?
501(c)(3) organizations need to concern themselves with having their own Plug...Pulled
Just how did this effort meet their obligation to education the community for ...the common good?
GP
Were all those posts made my the moderators? Or were some of them merely the opinions of their audience, just like this blog allows some sometimes-strange opinions to be posted?
(I think allowing weird opinions to be posted is a Good Thing, but we just need to attribute them correctly.)
directly cut and pasted from 'ourhearts' Talk about revisionist history:
http://www.triadblogs.com/ourheartsforyou/4061/GOODBYE%2C+BE+BLESSED%2C+AND+GOOD+LUCK%21.html
Apr. 4, 2007 -
GOODBYE, BE BLESSED, AND GOOD LUCK!
FROM THE ADMINISTRATOR:
snip
And just recently, word that the accuser is not cooperating with the special prosecutors of the State Attorney General’s Office has also concerned us.
If the essence of our support for her was ensuring her right to tell her story, but she isn’t doing it, then the reasons for continuing that support are fewer and fewer.
We have consulted with the co-sponsors of the website, and they agree with our assessment that the time has come to pull the plug.
We are proud of this website and what it represented to our community. It served as a positive outreach vehicle, a place where African-Americans could express their support for a young woman that all of us believed had been dehumanized and violated, thouigh we may have ben lied to.
Still, we offer no apologies for supporting someone that law enforcement assured us had been violated.
But we also offer no apologies for demanding a cease to “trial by media,” and that a fair and just legal process proceed, a process that would once and for all, determine whether a crime was indeed committed or not.
If not, then this whole episode is certainly a tragedy that should never be repeated.
No one should be falsely accused, or prosecuted. If the facts determined that there was no case there, then certainly it this episode was a travesty.
But at the same time, those who demand justice must always comport themselves in a just fashion, or else their advocacy is meaningless. Duke Three supporters have yet to learn that.
Indeed, some will never learn, because they don’t want to.
For the record, the website was also a public service. It never, EVER raised one penny for the accuser because no legal effort was ever mounted to do so for her or her family, to the best of our knowledge.
So thank you for your visit during these last days. Go through the archives and re-read some of the inspiring messages.
Pay particular attention to messages from sister survivors who reached out to the accuser. Many of them shared their touching stories of struggle with us.
We will never forget them.
We want to thank the many, many people and groups that supported the website and its cause. We want to thank our partners, The NCNAACP, the Triangle Urban League, and The Carolinian, Wilmington Journal and Carolina Times newspapers. We want to especially thank the organizations that help counsel the victims of rape, incest and sexual abuse. Their services are needed more than you know.
So for now we say goodbye to OurHeartsWorld, and GOD bless.
You served your purpose well.
The Coalition of the Concerned & C
Answer, I think, to Gayle Miller's questioning of why the black community who has been abused by the system, wanted the system to, in turn, abuse the Lacrosse Three.
It plays into their meta-narrative too.
"White people have done us wrong and now it's there turn to pay."
As other have commented; I think the NAACP is increasingly small, nowhere near the force it once was. But it appears the black community never critizes it, at least to the white community.
And with the black community voting 95% Democrat, it's hard not to think that they are monolithic in their philosophy.
I believe the Democratic Party's underlying message to the black community has always been, it's the white people's fault. And the black community has accepted that meta-narrative.
Gee, I wonder why KC has comment moderation enabled?--lol
If only Monty Python were still around--ourheartsworld would make great material
I urge everyone to read Karla Holloway's article, posted on this site--She really believes she's a genius--heaven help the losers that take her classes
Hate to go off topic, but Kara Holloway posted an article on the Dook Chronicle that is being debated. Is she actually calling for an END to race/gender classes? Or is this some kind of ploy/play on words to further her agenda? Smarter people than I need to decipher. It reads like the Sokal Hoax to me! LOL
cmf
http://media.www.dukechronicle.com/media/storage/paper884/news/2007/04/05/Columns/Producing.Difference-2825572.shtml
To the 3.36:
OHW had an editorial policy: comments were sent in the form of emails. Only those that the unnamed moderator found agreeable were posted. So there was, in effect, editorial control in the posting process.
I liked the closing comments of "Our Hearts World", except when the lump all they Duke Three supporters together negatively. I would have to say after reading this site and others daily for months that 98.9 percent of us are respectful to others.
KC- would you comment on Sports Illustrated's coverage of the Hoax. I've read it for years, but their reponse to this case seems to be negative or nothing. Why?
My pearls of wisdom for the day:
A shred of racism exists in each of us, whether black or white. It's an inherent thing. It's "who" we are, "how" we identify ourselves, and "where" we've been. Personally, I would never want to be "black", and I doubt that any black person wants to be "white".
Oppression of a group or a gender is terribly wrong, period!
3:08 It is really tacky and in bad taste for anyone to be advertising their "IQ"> But thanks for sharing any way.
6:16
I agree. How would anyone know if she's lying or not? But who cares?
Tacky.
Regarding black, white, or whatever ... I have a story to tell you about oppression (with KC's permission of course):
In the 40s and 50s my parents had a wonderful housekeeper (called maids back then). There is NOTHING my mom would not do for her and her family (extra money, clothing, groceries). It didn't mattter ... my parents went above and beyond the "hourly wage".
In turn, this wonderful housekeeper reciprocated as much as she could. She truly inspired me with her stories (her history). I was very well acquainted with her family.
HOWEVER, it was a era where whites did not mingle with blacks. In fact, get this: if a young black man looked at a white girl/woman eye-to-eye, he risked being beaten! I swear this is the truth (I lived thru this era, so I know).
Long story short, after working for my parents all those years, this housekeeper eventually had to sue my parents for not withholding social security for all those years.
My parents, although shocked at first, REALIZED that this woman had no other recourse.
I am in TOTAL AGREEMENT with that housekeeper, a cherished part of my life!
There is another website which is even more offensive than OurHeartsWorld (can you imagine that?) which is still up and running. That one should be shut down too! Here are the links:
http://www.dukelacrosse.us
or
http://www.collinfinnerty.us
or
http://www.readeseligmann.us
Check out the 'Player Profiles' shown on the right side of the main page.
Anonymous 7:57
Concerning the web sites that are up with the .US address.
I have spent a considerable amount of time looking into those web sites with the idea that they should be shut down.
My attorney and the IT people I work with tell me that they are for-profit web sites that are trying to make money off the ads that are available on the sites.
I have called the number listed and get voice mail with instructions to leave a message to include telephone number, country of origin and name.
I have received no response.
I'll assume that those web sites are known to attorneys for the guys... and the owners of these web sites will receive one of those letters from the courts soon.
GP
georgiagirl,
I was bothered by personal attacks on you but yours of 7:22 almost invites one.
You said: "There is NOTHING my mom would not do for her and her family (extra money, clothing, groceries). It didn't mattter ... my parents went above and beyond the "hourly wage"."
But then at the end you reveal that not only did your folks not comply with the law on withholding, your cherished employee had to sue them for it.
Do you not see what's wrong with that picture?
to 7:57pm
No thanks
Oh, my.
Just went over and checked out the much-discussed Our Hearts World.
Everything where I am was very quiet except for some cable in the background.
When I touched upon that website, a loud burst of gettin' down soulful vibrations woke up even my sleeping Kitty Diva. Had to turn down the volume on my computer.
Wow. I wasn't expecting such a melodramatic display......especially since it's been known for a year that no evidence of a crime exists.
They have been keepin' hope alive, I suppose, for a rape that never happened.
Our Hearts World is a great example of what can happen when you stay tethered to the emotional side of things and operate without facts.
No matter who you are, you end up looking stupid.
I enjoy melodrama as much as anyone; however, the group responsible for that website jumped the shark a long...long time ago.
Why all the melodrama used in closing down such a joke of a website is quite amusing.
They obviously have been hoping for a great crime for over a year.
I'll give then points, at least, for stamina.
Debrah
Barber's comments on OHW are obscene. That is the only way to describe them. I doubt seriously that he believed them.
At least this stage of the case will be over soon.
Duke09Parent, YES, i see your point. I don't really articulate as well as ya'll do, sooo
Let me further explain:
Even tho my family did a tremendous amount for our housekeeper and her family, it did NOT help this woman one iota when she had to stop working (health reasons). Suddenly she had no income.
My Dad had never deducted SS from her pay because she was a "domestic" working for a private family. He didn't KNOW any better and neither did his attorney. Had he known, he would have made the necessary deductions all along. Anyhow he had to make a lump payment to the government. Although it caught him off guard, he realized it was the moral and legal thing to do.
Like how else was this woman to make ends meet w/o SS income, which was barely sufficient for her to eke out a retirement.
Do you see? And even after all that, my mom made certain that she and her family had the financial means to carry on their lives.
I think the point of my story is that when you look out for your fellow man (from the heart), you're going to be blessed many times over.
KC - Is DIW about the Duke Hoax or a poorly written wishful GWTW.? Margaret is probably spinning in her grave.
I am going to take Cash at his word = the case is over. He might be attuned to the "word on the street." don't fail me Cash.
duke09parent, the housekeeper's attorney informed my dad about the unpaid SS. I think the word "sue" is pretty strong, but that's what had to be done legally for her collect. Certainly a friendly transaction among all parties involved.
Now I can't remember the purpose in my sharing this story with you. lol, I'll have to scroll up.
GG--
I understand better from your explanation. When you said "had to sue" the first time it sounded like your folks resisted making amends for what may have been an innocent mistake. Sorry I bristled.
Those kind of mistakes are not uncommon, but hopefully readily corrected when discovered. A couple of presidential appointees were publicly grilled and withdrew from consideration because of withholding errors like that regarding nannies.
UGH - UGH - UGH - UGH
sorry but I do not buy that story at all about the parents not knowing they had to withold. The whites in NC and the rest of the south had been doing that sort of things for years and they knew they were supposed to withold and counted on the black people having no legal status to sue to get out of it. it happened in my family numerous times to the older generation. The white bosses not only did this to domestic workers but they did this to laborers in construction, janitorial services, etc. Often, the fact that there was no social security was only revealed with the sudden death of the black person before retirement age and even then, all the white bosses had to do was deny the person worked there. often, blacks were paid cash instead of checks for this exact reason, so there was no trace. White people have been unfair to blacks a long time, well past slavery days, and that is just a fact. the bs by some of you on this website, specifically things like Debrah posts routinely, shows the spirit of white supremacy is not dead and you all are continuing to perpetuate unfairness and racism. you all have used this site and others to spew some of the most hateful things about the accuser, her family and the Durham black community yet you act as if our heartsworld had no right to exist. Well,slavery days are over and black people can have a website to support someone if they want it and they do not need your permission.
Also, only a fool would base their knowledge of what the black community of Durham is thinking based on a newsday article that talked to 3 people and quoted Floyd Mckissak, a man with no integrity whatsoever. I live in Durham and our pastor prayed for the accuser and Nifong last sunday. Do not believe that there is no support in the community.
I did my rant online tonight -- does anyone find it peculiar that Imus is going to hell for hurting division 1 athlete feelings -- and no one is talking about someone ruining some division 1 athletes lives? Al Sharpton had a side in both fights.And I have now heard 2 black attorneys comment that "the victim in the Duke case was denied her day in court...." But Fire Imus.
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