Can we save Troy Davis? Can we make Justice work for anyone?

In moments of immense sadness, moments that shake the foundation of our faith in the justice system and mankind, adequate words are scarce.

Today, the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles co-signed on the decision to execute Troy Davis.

Despite overwhelming evidence pointing to his innocence -- evidence that prompted former FBI Director William Sessions and more than a million others to write in support of clemency -- Troy's execution is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Wednesday, September 21.

His family has been moved by the efforts of the NAACP and supporters around the world. They have asked us to express their thanks to you personally.

They also asked us to tell you that this is not the hour to give up.

For the past two decades that Troy has been on death row, miracles have interceded at crucial moments. Can you help us make a miracle happen now?

Please stand with Troy and his family. Tell District Attorney Larry Chisolm that he has to intercede:

http://action.naacp.org/Ask-DA-Chisolm-To-Help

Chatham County District Attorney Larry Chisolm is the man who requested the death warrant against Troy Davis. He's the glue that holds the case together and, even after today's news, he remains in a unique position to petition the judge to withdraw the death warrant against Troy. It's a long shot, but it's Troy's best hope.

Please, our last hope is to change the heart of District Attorney Chisolm. Sign today, and we will make sure that every name is hand delivered to his office:

http://action.naacp.org/Ask-DA-Chisolm-To-Help

We will soon reach out to tell you how you and your families and communities can organize gatherings in your hometowns to reflect on Troy's experience, and to offer prayers for his family. But tonight is the time to redouble our efforts, not to back down. Tonight, we hold on to hope.

Please, take one last action and sign the petition today:

http://action.naacp.org/Ask-DA-Chisolm-To-Help

Thanks for all of your support,

Edward Dubose
Georgia State Conference President
NAACP

Will you act to spare Troy Davis from execution?

Guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

It's the foundation of our justice system, built to serve and protect the wrongly accused. But in the case of Troy Davis, it's a principle that has been defied, ignored and trampled on.

I'm writing to you once more, Nimrod, because Troy's execution is scheduled for next week, and there is simply too much doubt in his case for us to allow this to happen.

A week from today, on Monday, September 19th, Troy has his final hearing in front of the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles. They have the power to halt the scheduled execution and commute Troy's sentence, permanently preventing what could be a wrongful execution.

It is now up to us to make sure the Board hears our voices loud and clear. Send a letter to the Board asking them to grant clemency for Troy Davis, and make sure it's something from the heart:

http://action.naacp.org/write-the-board

Earlier this month I visited the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification State Prison, where Troy Davis awaits his fate.

Troy spoke to me about the pain of life on death row: his uncertain future, the isolation from his family, and the frustration that comes from being unable to tell his side of the story.

It is hard to fathom that our justice system would sentence a man to death when there is so much doubt. Consider this:

• Seven of the nine original witnesses in Troy's case have recanted or changed their story;
• One eyewitness testified for the first time in 2010 that he saw his relative, not Davis, shoot Officer MacPhail; and
• At least 10 individuals have implicated the alternative suspect as the actual perpetrator.

Right now we have two options. We can admit defeat and accept that some things are too big to change. Or we can stand behind our brother, like the NAACP has done for generations, and demand justice.

I, for one, cannot sit idly by as a justice system that is supposed to protect the most vulnerable among us imprisons and executes a man like Troy Davis. And as part of the organization that has led every major civil rights battle for generations, I know you feel the same.

Now is our chance to speak out and save Troy's life. The members of the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles have the power to do this. Write to them and ask for clemency now:

http://action.naacp.org/write-the-board

Together we can save a life.

Ben

Ben Jealous
President and CEO
NAACP

Establishing a Criminal Justice Committee for All NAACP Units - Will you joint the committee and help the community on this issue?

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is the nation’s oldest, largest and most widely-recognized grassroots based civil rights organization. Formed in 1909 by a multiracial group of progressive thinkers, the NAACP is a nonprofit organization established with the objective of ensuring the political, educational, social, and economic equality of people of color. For over 102 years, the NAACP has challenged this nation to uphold its promise of equal opportunity toward the goal of eliminating racial prejudice and removing all barriers of racial discrimination through democratic processes.
In a process established by the NAACP Constitution, this resolution was adopted by the delegates to the 101st Annual Convention in Kansas City, Missouri, during the legislative session in July, 2010. It was subsequently ratified by the NAACP National Board of Directors at its meeting on October 15, 2010. This resolution is now the policy of the Association, and is “binding on the Board of Directors, the Executive Committee, the Officers, and all units.”


Establishing a Criminal Justice Committee for All NAACP Units


WHEREAS, the NAACP reiterates its commitment for NAACP units to establish subcommittees to solve problems in the community; and

WHEREAS, in 2008 there were an estimated 2.4 million people in United States jails or prisons; and WHEREAS, African-Americans constitute about 12% of the non-incarcerated residential population, but in 2007 black males comprised 30% and black females 27.8% of the incarcerated population; and WHEREAS, 1 in 3 African-American males born in 2001 run the risk of serving time in prison or being dead before their 34th birthday; and

WHEREAS, the United States spends $70 billion/year incarcerating people, 6 times more than on higher education; and WHEREAS, Criminal Justice Committees at the unit level will strengthen families and communities through advocating for a decrease in violence, advancing voter and employment rights of the formerly incarcerated and to downscale prisons while shifting dollars/resources from prisons to schools; and WHEREAS, the purpose of the Criminal Justice Committee is to advance the Smart and Safe Campaign at the state and local levels by promoting alliances, research, legislation

and initiatives that will reform criminal justice policies and advocate for public safety as a civil right.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Board of the NAACP calls on each State Conference and unit to establish Criminal Justice Committees, and to develop Criminal Justice Action Plans that will advance Criminal Justice Strategies at the state and local levels.

Roslyn M. Brock
Chairman
National Board of Directors

Leon Russell 


Benjamin Todd Jealous 
Chairman President & CEO Committee on Resolutions 

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