On the LAKE Front

Quitman 10, Rally & News Media Whiteout! Nearly 200 Citizens Ignored! —George Boston Rhynes

Received yesterday. It's a YouTube video. -jsq

Video by George Boston Rhynes for K.V.C.I. Keeping Valdosta Citizen Informed

George has written up most of this in K.V.C.I. with pictures and YouTube videos.

Also, I appreciate the shoutout, George, and I'm sure the other people involved with LAKE and this blog do, as well.

-jsq

Gov. Deal celebrates Juneteenth by recommending indentured agricultural labor

Remember 85% of people in the prison system are black, and Gov. Nathan Deal recommends during the week of Juneteenth celebrations, according to David Rodock in the VDT today, Parolees to replace migrants? Gov. Deal says put probationers in fields

With the recent exodus of undocumented Hispanic migrant workers leaving Georgia to avoid the consequences of House Bill 87, Gov. Nathan Deal made a statement on Tuesday suggesting that probationers could potentially fill the approximately 11,000 open jobs in the state’s agricultural economy.

"Specifically, I asked Department of Corrections Commissioner Brian Owens and (Department of Agriculture) Commissioner Gary Black to review the current situation and offer possible options," said Deal in his statement. "Commissioner Owens has indicated that there are 100,000 probationers statewide, 8,000 of which are in the Southwest region of the state and 25 percent of which are unemployed ... I believe this would be a great partial solution to our current status as we continue to move towards sustainable results with the legal options available."

The potential move would allow probationers who are unable to find work to have a source of income, provided they are able to meet employer standards. Income can then be used to pay probation fines, along with other state fines that are a requirement of their probation sentence.

This fits right in with Joe Pritchard's rumored suggestion to replace animal shelter employees with interns.

Hey, if there's one thing Georgia is good at, it's locking up more people even while other states realize they can't afford to do that anymore.

So if probationers don't want to pick onions, lock 'em up again, in the new private prison VLCIA wants to build in Lowndes County! That will benefit private prison executives and investors and not us in Lowndes County, but hey, that will serve those immigrants right!

-jsq

Juneteenth in Valdosta

There are at least two Juneteenth celebrations scheduled in Valdosta this year:

7PM Tuesday June 14, 2011, Mathis Auditorium

Celebration Dinner

Minister James Robinson, Guest Speaker
Greater Morning Star Baptist Church
$10/ $5 (Children 4-10)
Call 253-8313 or 460-4889 for Tickets.

10AM - 6PM Saturday June 18, 2011, Pinevale Learning Center

VSU NAACP says:

From free food to a Gospelfest, there will be various vendors, organizations, and sponsors from all over in attendance.

Jane Osborn's Community Calendar says:

Juneteenth in Brooks County: 18 June 2011

Juneteenth started in Galveston, Texas, where the news of the Emancipation Proclamation arrived on the 19^th of June, 1865. This year in Brooks County, Georgia, Juneteenth will be celebrated on Saturday the 18^th of June from 8AM to 3PM at the Brooks County Courthouse.

According to WCTV:

Brooks County Juneteenth Festival. The mission is to restore, explore and preserve African-Indian history in Brooks County Georgia. The purpose is to honor, cherish and acknowledge the sacrifices our ancestors suffered and endured to allow us the blessings we enjoy today. The theme is "Honoring Our Past to Celebrate Our Future". Anyone interested in being on committee, participating as vendor, performer or display an exhibit should call.

More details from Fannie Jackson in a facebook note dated 11 June 2011: