Kenosha, WI - The jury in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial has announced not-guilty verdicts on all charges in the case. Ground-level activists say the case shows that laws and how they're applied don't work properly when white supremacy still exists in a democracy. Comments from Kyle Johnson, Kenosha-based community organizer, and Angela Lang, executive director, both of Black Leaders Organizing Communities.

In a case that drew worldwide attention, Kyle Rittenhouse was acquitted on all charges by a Kenosha County jury. A Wisconsin group focused on improving the lives of Black residents says the case speaks to issues of democracy not working for everybody. The 18-year-old Rittenhouse was charged with killing two protesters in Kenosha last year and wounding another with a semi-automatic rifle. Prosecutors say the Illinois resident was a vigilante in a situation where he didn't belong. But the teen's lawyers say he acted in self-defense to protect property amid protests over police brutality. Kyle Johnson, of Black Leaders Organizing Communities, feels the legal system paved the way for someone to take the law into their own hands.

"The legal system in this country operates with a tint - more than a tint - with a shade, with a shadow of racism."

Legal experts have said the case hinged on self-defense laws. Reform advocates say Wisconsin's statute for these situations is too murky and needs an overhaul. Racial-justice groups add that Rittenhouse is being portrayed as a martyr by those who strongly back police. But his backers say he had no other choice but to shoot amid the surrounding chaos, while also noting that all those Rittenhouse shot were white.

Researchers have noted criminal justice issues help to further alienate BIPOC voters, making them reluctant to demand fairness through civic engagement. The Kenosha incidents happened after the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man left paralyzed by his injuries. BLOC's executive director, Angela Lang, says not taking steps to implement meaningful police reforms or change self-defense laws will only create more of these situations.

"This continues to happen because there is a space that we are giving - that it's allowing for this to happen. "

She feels white supremacy has too much influence within the legal system, arguing that people like Rittenhouse are given ample opportunity to act recklessly, while people like Breonna Taylor don't even have a chance to defend themselves. Taylor was the Black medical worker shot and killed by Louisville police officers in March 2020 during a botched raid on her apartment.

In a case that drew worldwide attention, Kyle Rittenhouse was acquitted on all charges by a Kenosha County jury. A Wisconsin group focused on improving the lives of Black residents says the case speaks to issues of democracy not working for everybody. Mike Moen reports:

I'm Mike Moen

Support for this reporting was provided by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. Reach both through Lang at 414-245-2293. WI self-defense law: https://bit.ly/3nlAV4F Justice-democracy research: https://bit.ly/3owkwK2

A schoolhouse in far West Texas has been designated as a unit of the U.S. National Park System.

The Blackwell School is a former de facto segregated school, built in 1909 and used until 1965 to educate Mexican and Mexican American children in Marfa. In 2006, the Marfa Independent School District planned to demolish the building but alumni of the school started a group to save the site and its memories.

Daniel Hernandez, president of the Blackwell School Alliance, said they fought to preserve history.

"It's just such a thrilling moment for the alliance and for the Marfa community," Hernandez explained. "I think also for so many of our alumni, this really is, I think, a moment that is really, really validating and tells a more complete history of American history, and ensure that these experiences are told in the way that they deserve to be."

The site consists of the original 1909 adobe schoolhouse and a smaller classroom built in 1927. The designation permanently protects the site and helps tell the story of Texas school districts creating segregated elementary schools for Mexican American children.

The school is open for tours on Saturdays and Sundays from noon until 4 p.m., and from 9 a.m. until noon on Mondays. Hernandez noted the hours will be extended thanks to financial support from the National Parks Board. His grandparents attended the Blackwell School and he stressed the project brought the community together.

"The museum that exists there, and all the artifacts and the repository of historical significance that exists there, is because of our alumni who donated their school records and their band twirler uniforms and their letterman jackets and photographs," Hernandez outlined.

The park was authorized by the Blackwell School National Historic Site Act, signed by President Joe Biden in 2022.

Hernandez noted the building contains photographs, memorabilia and interpretive panels featuring quotes and stories from students and teachers.

"The breadth and depth of the American experience is so wide and so vast and sometimes the history books don't always reflect those experiences," Hernandez contended. "The Blackwell School, for so many Mexican Americans, they finally have this place that now stands as a manifestation of grassroots work where history is going to be examined and interpreted."


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Columbia County, New York, is implementing new facial recognition and privacy policies, following new upgrades to the county's surveillance cameras, which include facial and license plate recognition software.

Michael Chameides, Hudson 3rd Ward representative on the Columbia County Board of Supervisors, said residents told him they want privacy, arguing the technology is overused elsewhere. He pointed out the new protections can guarantee privacy rights and more.

"We want people to have reasonable expectations of privacy," Chameides explained. "That means we would limit how people are tracked and how that information is archived. We also want to reduce the number of people who have access to that database, so it's really just a need-to-know basis as it pertains to the biggest public safety issues."

He added they will also need protections on how data is used, such as only for urgent public safety matters. Using this kind of technology resulted in Detroit's Police Department arresting a few people based on bad facial recognition matches. Now, the department uses standards endorsed by the American Civil Liberties Union. Columbia County's policies have already gone into effect.

Another concern with implementing cameras was whether the data they collect could be monitored by someone who could abuse their power. Chameides noted it is unlikely. The cameras were not turned on until the policy was completed. He added part of the policy calls for the facial recognition system to be turned on during urgent moments.

"There's a very small group of people who would have the power to both turn it on and use that data," Chameides emphasized. "And then, at the end, we also have a reporting mechanism, where every year, the people in charge of sort of turning the systems on would then report back to the board about how it's being used."

Taking such steps limits the scope of who can access the data and focuses on the moments facial recognition would need to be used.

A program in the Columbia River Gorge helps migrant farmworkers' families during harvest season.

The Resources Available for Migrant Access to Services group is led by the Oregon Child Development Coalition in Hood River and Wasco Counties. It provides support during a four-week period of peak harvest time, including food boxes to families.

Leah Hall, community philanthropy manager for the Columbia Gorge Food Bank in The Dalles, said migrant workers follow the harvest and often bring their families with them.

"We provide culturally appropriate and shelf-stable food boxes to distribute to families when they arrive during this transitional time," Hall explained. "These direct distributions just allow for an efficient use of time and resources for families while also reducing some of the pressure on our public pantry partners throughout the region."

Harvest season in the Columbia River Gorge typically happens between June and October, with cherries in season during July.

Hall pointed out the group provides more than food boxes.

"Through the coordination of all these partners that work in this RAMAS collaborative, the communities of migrant farmworkers and families receives education, nutrition, health, social services, mental health and disabilities, and family engagement education services," Hall outlined.

Coordination from the group is key for another reason. Hall noted they work with orchardists and farm owners in the region to determine when workers are expected to arrive.

"We're able to pack our boxes on our end as close to the harvest date as possible and get it in the hand of those who need it as they're arriving," Hall emphasized. "The timing is really quite amazing and efficient just based on the communication of everyone working in this program."