NJ Targets Pro-Palestine Activist w/ Phony Charge, Court Date June 18: FightBackBetter Editor’s Challenge – Achieve Charges Dropped Before Court Date!
Editor’s Note: We must bring relentless pressure per the request from Lisa in this article – we need to bring the full bearing of our movement down against this administrative, police and prosecutorial misconduct and violation of the constitutionally protected free speech of Lisa Davis and our whole movement against the US / Israel genocide operation in Gaza. If you have not sent the letters – send them now and also share this link to your discussions and stories. – Ed.
NEW JERSEY IS COMING AFTER ME FOR MY ACTIVISM. I HAVE A COURT DATE ON JUNE 18TH, 2024
by Lisa Davis
(Please read to the end and take the recommended action!)
One thing I have learned for certain throughout my decades of existence on this earth under this brutal colonialist system – THAT BLACK PEOPLE SHOULD NEVER TRUST THE STATE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES! The police falsify reports against us ALL THE TIME! And not just when we are the alleged perpetrators, but just as importantly, when we are the targets of aggression, and especially when the perpetrator is white.
On March 31st, while attending a weekly SOMA (South Orange/Maplewood) pro Palestinian Ceasefire Vigil in South Orange, NJ, an unhinged Zionist aggressively ran up on protestors as we were about to disband. He was yelling and screaming, flailing his arms wildly and at some point aggressively got into my face when I told the crowd that we shouldn’t engage him and that he was crossing boundaries. Fellow protestors interceded and made him back off. All the while I livestreamed the entire encounter.
The South Orange Police soon arrived. I was very uncomfortable talking with them at all because my entire life experiences have taught me that the police ARE NEVER FAIR WHEN IT COMES TO BLACK PEOPLE AND THEY ARE NEVER UNBIASED. But well meaning fellow protestors began telling the police how this man aggressively approached me. Because of my distrust of the police, and because I am acutely aware of how pro Palestinian supporters are being vilified in the press, I let them know that I had recorded everything. One officer, Naturale, asked me to email him a copy of my video. Since it was on my public livestream, I sent it to him (Of course, I now realize this was a massive mistake).
A few days later I received in the mail two charges that officer Naturale falsely and maliciously levied against me. One is for organizing a special event without a permit and the other is for loud, continuous, excessive noise via sound amplification equipment. Both of these charges are false! Firstly, I AM NOT THE ORGANIZER OF THESE PROTESTS, which have been ongoing since November! I simply attend them! Secondly, I NEVER lead the protests or the chants! At the end of the vigils the organizers will usually allow people to make announcements. And on the day in question I was given a miniature, plastic megaphone at the END of the vigil / for that purpose. However, I don’t even recall making an announcement as it was at that moment that the unhinged person interrupted the event. And that is how I happened to have the mini megaphone in my hand when the Zionist came at us.
And now, Naturale (whose first name I don’t yet have), South Orange, and the State of New Jersey are dragging me into court on false charges and are basically framing me as the cause of the disruption. But this is not a surprise considering that a report published about police brutality and racism in NJ called The Force Report states that Black people in South Orange are 9 times more likely to experience police brutality than White people.
The court date is June 18th at the South Orange Township Municipal Court. The hearing will be virtual.
I ask everyone to please watch the video in this post.
(Note that the faces are blurred because many minors often attend the vigils, and due to the hostile climate created against supporters of Palestine, as is evident by the charges the state is bringing against me, I seek to not subject them to undue scrutiny. Also, since the antagonist in this video is not the one making the complaint against me, I have chosen to blur his face as well.)
But no matter what – I will NOT be deterred and I will not stop. I am going to fight this with EVERYTHING THAT I HAVE, and expose the corruption of this system at every turn. And I will not allow the state to intimidate me into silence against this unjust, war mongering government, which is the cause of so much war and misery throughout the world.
As the people are my only safeguard to ensure that I get justice, I call on everyone to take the following actions as outlined below, as it pertains to my case. But just as importantly, I also call on everyone to follow the case of the Uhuru 3, in which Omali Yeshitela, the founder of the Uhuru Movement, is currently facing 10-15 years in prison for speaking out against the US Imperialism and this government’s proxy war with Russia via Ukraine. This is a very important case, as it is an attack on everyone’s first amendment right to freedom of speech. Additionally, this case is germane to what is happening to me, in that Omali Yeshitela is also the Chair of the Black Is Back Coalition for Social Justice, Peace and Reparations and I am its Vice Chair. I feel that in addition to the other reasons I have outlined, that I am also targeted because of my work in the Uhuru Movement under his leadership, of which I am very proud. Please go to www.handsoffuhuru.org for more information and to get involved! Also, please check out the Black Power Blue Print as well.
Why are they prosecuting protected free speech and going after the only Black Woman at the protest?
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ACTIONS TO TAKE:
Contact the following:
Governor of NJ: constituent.relations@nj.gov
NJ Attorney General Office at: OCS@NJOAG.gov
NJ Office of Public Integrity and Accountability – opia.siu@njdcj.org
South Orange Mayor, Sheena Collum: scollum@southorange.org
Municipal Prosecutor Gracia Robert Montilus – gmontilus@southorange.org
Please use the following script and give your name, organization and area where you’re calling from.
“I am contacting your office to demand that the spurious charges being brought against Lisa Davis in the case of The State of New Jersey vs Lisa Davis be dropped! As is clear from the video, on March 31st, 2024, an unhinged Zionist, who was white, interrupted a pro Palestine vigil that Ms. Davis was attending, yelling and screaming with his arms flailing, He then aggressively gets into her face, and other people in the crowd had to intercede to make him back off and to prevent him from doing any physical harm to her. Yet in an act of clear racism and overt racial profiling, instead of going after him, the State has chosen to protect the white man, and to instead make up charges against Ms. Davis, a Black woman activist, who was clearly trying to diffuse the situation, and who maintains that she did not organize the protest and that she was never the one leading the chants. This is an outrage and is a clear example of the state targeting an activist because she is Black and because she supports PalestineI I am also joining the call to demand that there be an immediate investigation into the township, the South orange PD, and the municipal prosecuor’s office.
Name, City and State and Organization”
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Lastly, everyone who believes in righteousness needs to get actively involved with organizations to change this world and to stop all of the wars and injustices that are happening under this brutal, colonialist system. And especially if you are Black. The Black Liberation Struggle is our social immune system and it is through our struggle for liberation that we have been able to change anything. I invite all Black people who believe in justice to join the Black Is Back Coalition for Social Justice, Peace and Reparations. We are a coalition of powerful organizations and individuals without internal reach who are dedicated to the liberation of our people and to ending the oppression of all people. For more info go to www.blackisbackcoalition.org
Related: South Orange Records from NJ.com on use of force against Black people:
https://force.nj.com/database/pd-dept/south-orange-essex
@somacollectiveforpalestine has launched a petition calling for dropping of all charges against Lisa Davis. Sign Now!
https://www.change.org/p/drop-all-charges-against-lisa-davis
