It’s been almost two months since the tragic gang rape and murder of a woman in New Delhi, and the women of India aren’t going to let their country or the world forget what happened.
We’ve seen it time and time again. A tragic event sparks a call for reform, and progress looks certain until a few months go by. Suddenly, the movement falls flat and support dwindles away.
Young women in India are refusing to let that happen, however, as thousands of women came together to take part in a massive dance protest for Valentine’s Day.
VOANews reported:
Nearly a hundred strangers from all over the city have come together here with one message: “Wake up New Delhi and rise up against violence,” chant the protesters.
This flash mob is just one of many gathering Thursday in the Indian capital as part of the worldwide “One Billion Rising” movement – highlighting the number of women who are survivors of abuse.
A young fashion designer by the name of Shruti Singh took part in the flash mob protest and explained that this isn’t a mere call for reformation… it’s a push towards revolution.
“If we don’t walk the talk, it’s not going to make any impact, and the patriarchal mindset and the systems that have been in place for thousands of years are not going to change overnight or with one protest,” said Singh. “It’s a starting of a revolution, it’s like another struggle for freedom, freedom of women from oppression.”
With Delhi finally reaching a point where it is known at the “rape city” women all across India are letting the government know they’ve had enough and the protests won’t go away until a drastic change has been.
Double Amputee Olympic Track Oscar Pistorius Arrest Shocks Millions
The 2012 Olypmics were full of history making moments, but the world is saddened to hear that one of those history makers may be guilty of murder.
Oscar Pistorius was the first double amputee sprinter to make his way to the Olympics, but instead of facing years of respect and admiration he is now facing years behind bars.
The South African athlete was arrested on murder charges Thursday and was seen leaving the police station with his head hanging in shame.
Bernard Lagat, the two time Olympic medalist who exchanged race bibs with Pistorius after the race, remembered his competitor as a nice guy and still can’t believe the news.
“He was always full of smiles, a nice guy,” Lagat said. “When you hear something like that it touches home because this is my sport. You feel sad because this is happening.”
Track and field analyst Ato Boldon was just as surprised by the murder charges.
“Anybody who has ever met Oscar Pistorius just simply can not wrap their heads around what this could possibly be,” Boldon said. “The last time I talked to him maybe two or three months ago; he explained to me what had happened to him in London, the success that he had in London in both the Summer Olympics and Paralympics was beyond his wildest expectations. He was literally having the time of his life right now.”
Meanwhile, the South African Olympic Committee is staying quiet but they do send their deepest condolences to everyone who is impacted by the unfortunate news.
USA Today writes:
“The organization is in no position to comment on the incident other than to say our deepest sympathy and condolences have been expressed to the families of all concerned,” a statement on the committee’s website said.
“There is a police investigation, as is customary with any shooting incident, and it would be irresponsible and inappropriate to comment until the investigative process has been completed,” the statement said.
The International Paralympic Committee offered condolences to the families involved but declined further comment.
Companies that sponsor Pistorius, who won two golds and a silver medal at the London Paralympics, had little to say beyond expressing their condolences to Steenkamp’s family.
Mayor Cory Booker Scolds His City, Calls Newark Citizens ‘Evil’
Mayor Cory Booker is going to be running for Senate next year, but that doesn’t mean he’s ready to kiss any butts to earn votes especially after thousands of people refused to identify the men behind a “disgusting” crime in Newark that went viral.
Mayor Booker made no attempt to hide his anger, and he shouldn’t have. A video filmed in August was posted online and showed three men forcing another man to strip naked before brutally beating him with a belt.
With the video being posted on the internet, police were certain somebody would come forward to identify the criminals but instead there was a shocking silence that the Mayor called a “blow to the conscious of our community.”
The Newark mayor went on to explain that those who refused to speak up about who the men in the video were, were just as guilty as if they were whipping the man themselves.
Atlanta Black Star reported:
“In the face of evil, those who remain quiet are participants in that evil,” said Booker, who is running for the U.S. Senate next year. “We’re better than this.”
In a city that is predominantly African-American, the video is also disturbing because it recalls savage whipping scenes from American slavery. In the video, after the victim takes off his clothes and admits he owes $20 — apparently it was actually his father who owed the $20, which the men took from the victim — they forced him to say repeatedly, “(It’s a) dog eat dog world.” One man then whips the victim, using a belt borrowed from another man, and laughter from those watching the beating can be heard in the background.
Police eventually tracked down the suspects with no help from any of the 40,000 people who actually tuned in to watch the violent crime.
Newark’s police director, Samuel DeMaio, said that the police were able to track down the assailants after viewing the video because they could see it took place in an alley off Irvine Turner Boulevard. They canvassed the neighborhood, finding several people who knew about the attack, and used that information to find the victim, who the police said was 21 and had moved away out of concern for his safety. According to DeMaio, the victim had not reported the assault because he feared his assailants.
Carolyn Murray, acting prosecutor for Essex County, said the men could each face 10 to 20 years in prison if convicted of armed robbery, and 5 to 10 years if convicted of aggravated assault. [ABS]
Chubby Checker isn’t too happy about Hewlett-Packard exposing the length of his penis… so he’s suing. [SFGate]
Jacob Zuma prepares for for his annual State of the Nation address. [BBC]
Finally some good news about the state of the U.S economy? [Bloomberg]
