https://twitter.com/AprilDRyan/status/1272760998282264577
https://twitter.com/AprilDRyan/status/1272763682553040896
https://twitter.com/AprilDRyan/status/1272764898704068608
-----
EXCLUSIVE: #CivilRights leaders are OUTRAGED after a late night Tuesday call where they learned that Lee Merritt (@MeritLaw) & family members of #AhmaudArbery are expected to be on hand at the #WhiteHouse for a photo op during @realDonaldTrump’s #PoliceReform executive order.

Pt 2: #CivilRights leaders feel @realDonaldTrump’s new #PoliceReform executive order does not address the issues Black people are marching for with #BlackLivesMatter & that Lee Merritt (@MeritLaw) & the family of #AhmaudArbery are being used for a photo op.

Pt. 3: One of the men being charged in the murder of #AhmaudArbery is Gregory McMichael, an ex-police officer.

Regardless, @realDonaldTrump’s executive order doesn’t deal with #PoliceReform on a federal level, but puts the onus on local governments instead.
-----

obviously you dont wanna tell people how to act in the aftermath of the killing of one of their relatives. im sure *their* heart is in the right place.

but we know what this is for trump at this point. after getting hammered in the polls for his response to the george floyd murder and protests...he gets headlines about his 'historic' police reform executive order (guess he gave up on legislation?) which most likely does next to nothing but sounds great to suburban white moderates who just wanna feel like hes trying his best.

I imagine to do the tough work, you have to make tough calls.
The pictures would be a dealbreaker for me, but I imagine Lee sees a bigger picture. He's doing the work, so I don't see how my words compare to his work.

From Shaun King:
Tomorrow, my best friend in the world, my dear brother @leemerrittesq is going into the lion's den to fight for families impacted by police violence and racial injustice on behalf of @grassrootslaw. ⁣
⁣
Many of these families will be going with him as he speaks in the Senate, meets with the Justice Department, and meets with the staff at the White House - including Donald Trump himself. ⁣
⁣
I don't know a single person in the world that cares more for the families that we fight for than Lee. He becomes like family, like a brother, like a son, like a father to families whose most precious loved ones have been murdered and maimed by police and white supremacists. ⁣
⁣
I also don't know a single person with more of a backbone, that will never buckle under pressure, that will always speak truth to power, rather that means in the Oval Office, or on the Senate floor, than Lee. ⁣
⁣
But I have to say something hard, that I know a lot of people don't wanna hear right now. ⁣
⁣
Lee is the attorney for the family of Ahmaud Arbery, for Antwon Rose, for Botham Jean, and for nearly 100 other families impacted by injustice in this country. ⁣
⁣
And I know that many of us are addicted to the Democratic Party, but I need you to understand something - we don't have the luxury of waiting until Democrats win to fight for justice. Hell - more than 2/3rds of Lee's clients are in cities controlled by Democrats and we can't get any semblance of justice for so many of them. ⁣
⁣
In some places, we have to work with Republicans to get justice. In Georgia, where Lee represents Ahmaud's family - EVERY SINGLE PERSON IN POWER on that case is a Republican. ⁣
⁣
The Governor. The AG. The DA. The GBI. ⁣
⁣
All of them. And Lee had to find a way to work with them, amicably, to ensure that the men who murdered Ahmaud were arrested. ⁣
⁣
And tomorrow is no different. ⁣
⁣
Please follow @leemerrittesq and give him some love and support. Tomorrow is a big day for him, for @grassrootslaw, and for what we are trying to push on the federal level. And it’s a big day for the families, many that never had cases that went viral, to finally be seen and heard.

every black person says they go meet with trump because they have a responsibility to take a seat at the table. and they all leave disappointed with nothing but a photo op and/or toothless executive order.

steve harvey, hbcu presidents, black pastors, etc. same routine.

the senate appearance is presumably different as theyre supposed to be crafting real legislation.

you dont need to stand next to trump for that.

Unlike most opinion posters, I can't look at a situation and comment like I know what's actually going on behind the scenes.
If I could enhance Black lives by taking a picture next to a dried out white piece of nazi shit, I'm taking the picture - but all the ts are crossed and the is dotted before I get to the ch in cheese.

you're right, Reeq, in that it can and SHOULD happen with out all the pomp and circumstance. Never forget that Trxmp is CONSTANTLY CAMPAIGNING so EVERYTHING HE DOES IS A PHOTO OP....this won't be any dsifferent.

For all the work Lee Merritt has done, he definitely wouldn't want to be seen as 'divisive' or partisan...and NOT RIGHT NOW, lol.

The left and right are noth wings off the same bird; I'm less leery about the opportunism goin on up front than I am of what will come after 'this'

Gotta work with the government you have, not the need you want.

he's the president.
Our people still got needs, no matter who's in office.

i wont repost the right wing personalities discussing it but...

part of trumps base is mad at his inclusion (close to shaun king and constantly called trump racist/liar/etc) plus the preliminary draft order was supposedly expected to mention 'systemic racism' in policing (allegedly kushner and moderate repubs idea).

its looking like there will prolly be no merritt or mention of systemic racism (which trump allies have been shooting down in recent interviews anyway). i dont know about the arbery family still showing up to the photo op.

all the original folks are still going to be at the senate hearing.

trump is under increased pressure to keep the base in tow especially after the 'betrayal' by trump appointed supreme court justices yesterday (lgbtq rights, 2nd amendment, sanctuary cities).

OMG GENOCIDE?! Like they didn't do it repeatedly. FOH

Those ungrateful bitches complaining about the SCOTUS decision aren't the real republicans. The real republicans got more oil pipelines yesterday.
It's the willfully ignorant, run of the mill fox news viewer that's pissed that GAY PEOPLE CAN WORK. How this shit is even up for debate is offensive to me.

2: We should be past the point of allowing ourselves to feel any kind of personal way about the actions of strangers

3. He does this a lot. This being taking the grieving families and using them as props. They don’t know what they’re signing up for. Because almost all previous stories of him doing this leads to the family members being traumatized differently from his indifference in person.

to pose with a man who literally tear gassed and beat back peaceful protesters for a photo op

& called the family rushedly & didn't even hear them out

while also saying police should rough up arrestees

...this will be used in a campaign add soon enough

just met trump briefly in private.

trump most likely caved to the reactionaries in his admin. i dont hear him mentioning 'systemic racism' either (but maybe i missed it).

But I'm glad they're not prominently displayed at this speech.

...which shocks no one.
All my life, I never even liked using the word hate, but these evil motherfuckers have me securely at hate, and that's some unforgivable shit.

Even before Reeq's post 12, my comment would have been we should wait to see what happens and see if there IS an actual photo op before getting worked up and passing all sorts of judgement.

Fast News is killing our ability to wait to hear the whole story.



**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"

https://twitter.com/MeritLaw/status/1272936079709085696

questioning why they wouldn't take the opportunity to do this:

https://twitter.com/tammy93044461/status/1272941709098471426

**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"

https://twitter.com/shaunking/status/1272939103399677952

as I thought it a good explanation as to why you do it, but didn't want to plagiarize.


That' beside the point. Do you think you don't go to the President to plea your position if you know that you won't give them a photo opp?



**********
"Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson

"what's a leader if he isn't reluctant"

in a vacuum...you got talk to the president.

but with trump? we should know better by now. but 4 years in and people apparently are still giving him a clean slate.

theres a post around here addressing the question and i think most people over time were coming to the realization that these trump meetings were almost guaranteed to be fruitless and self-serving (for him).

this instance in particular...it doesnt seem like anything came out of it but clips of arberys mom already being used for trump campaign messaging.

From Shaun King again: Grateful for @leemerrittesq and the 6 families that had the courage to go to the White House to tell Trump and the DOJ about themselves. Also grateful that they had the moral courage to get up and leave and not be used as props for a shit show.

It's.....something?

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/read-full-text-trump-s-executive-order-policing-n1231185

"(ii) the State or local law enforcement agency's use-of-force policies prohibit the use of chokeholds -- a physical maneuver that restricts an individual's ability to breathe for the purposes of incapacitation -- except in those situations where the use of deadly force is allowed by law."


So they can only choke people legally now? Is that a change in policy? Cuz it begs quite a few questions if so.

Calling them do nothing opportunists and the like.

As a Black progressive, it's frustrating to see the outright oppression and delivery of misery from the right, but to see "my side" shoot itself in the foot over and over again hurts my soul.

but Crump doesn’t come across as a good lawyer in the interviews I’ve seen. He doesn’t sound convincing when he speaks.

It's self-defeating. It reads like "I'd rather have nothing," which is the absolute last thing Black people need right now.

There has to be.

https://twitter.com/AngryBlackLady/status/1273247161086435329

Like she didn't want the meeting. Like these weren't her true impressions of the meeting.

No it's gotta be someone pulling the strings smh

If I had a link, I'd give it, but the agreeing comments below what I saw gave me "Shaun King is the devil" vibes and I did not like it.

On some if they get jury members at the trial that are racist white people it might help them win because the racist white folks might see them meeting with Trump as a good thing.

Goes without saying of course that this Arbery case should be and open and shut conviction but ultimately my hope is the family is just being strategic rather than actually being any sort of fans of Trump.

people were clowning how he was on cnn praising trumps bogus ass executive order.

turns out van was instrumental in crafting it and rolling it out.

https://twitter.com/NoahShachtman/status/1277406682960875522

Also

https://twitter.com/Ngongang/status/1277412562657632256?s=20

because she skipped out on some bullshit trump hbcu photo op on criminal justice.

https://newsone.com/3891519/van-jones-kamala-harris-trump/

it all makes sense now.

i wonder how much other shit he has done is influenced by his relationship with kushner/trump.

as far as the roc nation affiliation...yeah hes been with them for a minute. that whole cj reform initiative with him, meek, hov, michael rubin, etc is basically a roc nation outfit.

I bet she was like “this honky lover”’

smh