But don’t take it from me, the Guy Who Never Stops Yelling About His (Ongoing) FOIA Lawsuit. I’ll let Selma director Ava DuVernay explain:
Without video's release, there'd be no criminal charges made. Without video's very existence, there'd be no attention paid. #LaquanMcDonald
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) November 25, 2015
And Massachusetts state senator Jamie Eldridge:
#LaquanMcDonald murder charge due to #FOIA request by reporter, shows public records reform is civil rts issue, too https://t.co/cFsrM9czSE
— Jamie Eldridge (@JamieEldridgeMA) November 25, 2015
And D.C.-area reporter Surae Chinn:
Because of @muckrakery and team's yr long #FOIA fight we're seeing what happened 2 #LaquanMcDonald shot #16x https://t.co/hQastrY5hu @wusa9
— suraechinn (@suraechinn) November 25, 2015
The video they’re talking about shows Chicago Police officers killing a black Chicago teenager, Laquan McDonald, on October 20, 2014. For a long time, the video was not released. Now it is. And a police officer has been charged with murder, 400 days after the shooting occurred.
Now, it’s true, the facts of case might be more complex than these three tweets indicate. We’ll certainly get a lot more info when Officer Jason Van Dyke goes to trial. But it’s hard to argue with DuVernay/Eldridge/Chinn’s basic equation: transparency = attention = accountability.
In this case, enormous credit goes to Brandon Smith, a Chicago-based freelance journalist with the excellent Twitter handle, @muckrakery, and the even better website tagline, “showing powerful people the consequences of their actions since 2007.” It was a lawsuit from Smith that triggered the release of this video, and he should be credited every time this video is mentioned. (An example of how not to share the video: this CNN/ABC-affiliate story that says only “After a journalist filed a freedom of information request, a judge ruled that police had to release the video by November 25.”)
We live in tumultuous times. And, sometimes, transparency will lead to more tumult. There may very well be protests in Chicago as a result of this video’s release. But this is not a reason for local and national governments to draw the blinds and lock their doors. Transparency is the lifeblood of democracy.
“We the people” can only “form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity“ if we know what’s being done in our name, and with our money. This means examining our country’s mostly-secret drone program. This means learning how a former lawmaker snuck through a loophole in Rhode Island’s revolving door law. This means seeing the evidence from a trial that sent a Chicago doctor to prison for four consecutive life terms.
The video of Laquan McDonald’s untimely death is a reminder of all of this.
To learn more about the state of transparency in Rhode Island, take a look at ACCESS/RI and MuckRock’s disturbing 2014 report, “Access Limited: An Audit of Compliance with the Rhode Island Public Records Laws.” Or read about a recent instance when released documents jump-started the accountability process. Or follow some crazy local freelance journalist who, with the help of the RI ACLU and two Providence-based pro-bono attorneys (Neal McNamara and Jessica Jewell from Nixon Peabody), is suing the federal government right here in our backyard.
]]>Teny Oded Gross, executive director of the Institute for the Study & Practice of Nonviolence and an important role model for Rhode Island, is leaving the Ocean State to start a nonviolence institute in Chicago.
Ed Fitzpatrick broke the news in the Providence Journal this morning, writing:
“This is a big loss for Little Rhody. Since 2001, Gross has been helping to salvage lives and make our city streets safer, using a group of street workers (including former gang members) who mediate disputes and try to steer teenagers away from gangs. Institute staff members bring the message of nonviolence to street corners, classrooms and prison cells. They work with victims, rushing to emergency rooms, helping families deal with shattered lives. And they help people find the jobs and training they need to turn their lives around.”
Robert McConnell, chairman of the board of directors at the Institute, said in a statement:
“The great news is that the model we developed here is going to be put to work in Chicago. While we will certainly miss Teny’s role in our day-to-day operations, he will continue to serve on the board and we will have an opportunity to collaborate with him as there is still plenty of work to do here in Rhode Island.”
And here’s a sampling of how Twitter reacted to the news (You can send Teny a tweet here):
This is a tremendous loss for Providence community. An important voice in our work to bring positive change to RI https://t.co/eCzKnJTVFu
— Alex Lucini (@AlexLucini) October 1, 2015
Huge loss though sure to help troubled Chicago. https://t.co/ewS0qk6KKd
— David Dadekian (@dadekian) October 1, 2015
Bummer, sad to see an important member of Providence's community go. Good luck @tenygross ! https://t.co/RxTyiummTd
— The Wilbury Theatre Group (@TheWilburyGroup) October 1, 2015
We will miss Teny enormously. The work must go on….& best of luck Teny! @tenygross https://t.co/TNihqU2dlz
— Barbara Fields (@barbarafields_) October 1, 2015
Our loss is Chicago's gain. Good luck @tenygross. https://t.co/sUy5DTrqqR
— Chas Walker (@chasbwalker) October 1, 2015
Godspeed @tenygross. #thankyou
— Stephanie DeSilva Mandeville (@Steph_DeSilva) October 1, 2015
So happy for my friend @tenygross on an exciting new gig in Chicago. Sad to see RI lose another inspiring change agent.
— Saul Kaplan (@skap5) October 1, 2015
He will be missed! @FitzProv: @tenygross leaving R.I. to launch Chicago nonviolence initiative https://t.co/rZ0aRTWzwY
— Judge McConnell (@JackMcCJr) October 1, 2015
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