Save Tookie Williams

www.savetookie.org

For those of you who are not sure who Stanley “Tookie” Williams is, he is purported to be a co-founder of the notorious Crips gang, which originated in Los Angeles. Many of us might know him because actor Jamie Fox gave a brilliant performance as Tookie in the film “Redemption”. If you haven’t seen the film find it and watch, but please do it before it is too late. Tookie’s execution is scheduled for December 13, 2005, which coincidentally happens to be the birthday of Jamie Fox. Jamie Fox says, “The only present I want from the Governor is Clemeny for Stan Tookie Williams.

Whether or not Tookie committed the crimes for which he was convicted is not a concern for us at Rootznews. What is of concern is that the death penalty in the United States is used disproportionately on people of African decent and with the development of DNA evidence it has come to light that many African-Americans on deathrow and already executed did not commit the crimes for which they were sentenced to death. Yet the infamous Charles Manson who has admitted to mass murder sits in a California prison and will never be executed for his crimes and they have the nerve to try and send another African-American to death. Their excuse is a legal technicality in that the death penalty was not in use at the time of Manson sentence. But we do not want to hear it at Rootznews. If a beast like Charles Manson can live out his natural life in prison than so can Noble Prize Nominee Stanley “Tookie” Williams. You know if Charles Manson were an African they'd have quartered him before his trial.

To this day Tookie maintains his innocence of the crimes he was accused. He faced racial discrimination throughout his trial, as have many other African-Americans in a court system that has consistently done so against people of African decent. The prosecutor in Tookie's original case removed three African-American jurors from his jury. During Stan's trial, this prosecutor made stealthy racial remarks in his closing argument, comparing Stan during the trial to a Bengal tiger in the zoo and stating that a black community - South Central Los Angeles - was equivalent to the natural "habitat" of a Bengal Tiger.

Because there have been so many mistakes and erroneous conviction many states have either abolished or called for moratoriums on the use of the death penalty. Many innocent people have gone to their deaths and no matter how many were truly guilty of their crimes, one innocent person is too many. As of April 2002, 100 people on deathrow were declared not guilty with the help of DNA evidence. That is too many mistakes to continue with this barbaric practice. Every other so-called developed nation in the world has abolished the death penalty as cruel and barbaric. Now it is time for us to do the same. To Governor Schwarzenegger we say that not even in his home country of Austria do they execute human beings. To Marie Shriver we say, remember that you are a Kennedy and we urge you to prevail upon your husband to do the right thing and grant clemency to Stanley “Tookie” Williams.

All around the world it’s the same song. Another African on his way to an untimely death. This time it’s Tookie Williams, but next time it could be your son or daughter, brother or sister , husband or wife,father or mother. It matters not that he was nominated for a Noble Prize. It matters not that he has spent the greater part of his life discouraging young people from joining gangs. It matters not that he has never admitted guilt for the crimes that sent him to deathrow. If given clemency Tookie Williams will not go free, he will spend the rest of his life behind bars for those of you who believe that he is in fact guilty. Go to http://www.savetookie.org/ and sign to petition to save Stanley “Tookie” Williams and show the world that Americans will finally take the moral high ground and stop this barbaric practice altogether.

Thousands of people stand outside San Quentin prison in California were Tookie Williams is on deathrow and the hours to his scheduled execution draw near. Celebrities like Snoop Dogg and Whitney Houston and many others have come out to help Tookie. Please go to the website and let Stanley Tookie Williams know that we want him to live.

www.savetookie.org