{"id":2291,"date":"2007-08-19T08:32:55","date_gmt":"2007-08-19T13:32:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/?p=2291"},"modified":"2007-08-24T20:45:06","modified_gmt":"2007-08-25T01:45:06","slug":"a-life-worth-saving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/?p=2291","title":{"rendered":"A LIFE WORTH SAVING"},"content":{"rendered":"

BY TONY E. FORD<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Many people by now are hearing about Kenneth Foster Jr., a death row inmate who is slated to be executed by the state of Texas on August 30th.\u00a0 God willing this does not happen.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve just concluded a legal visit with Kenneth, in which he updated me on his legal situation and his plans.\u00a0 He also spoke of his state of mind, heart and spirit.\u00a0 His legal writ, he informed me, has been denied.\u00a0 Not on its merits, but on legal technicalities, ie. late introduction of evidence that further highlights his innocence.\u00a0 Mentally, he is strong.\u00a0 His heart is strong.\u00a0 And of course, his spirit is strong.\u00a0 But, the main thing for me is this:\u00a0 I was able to see him.\u00a0 And to me that is everything.\u00a0 A blessing.\u00a0 A gift.\u00a0 And I am better for it.<\/p>\n

People think they know or can imagine what it is like for us here on death row.\u00a0 In all actuality, you can\u2019t.\u00a0 It\u2019s impossible.\u00a0 This doesn\u2019t mean we\u2019re ungrateful to the people who lovingly and graciously stand by our sides, as we battle to save our lives.\u00a0 Just that death row is a hell within a hell\u2026.\u00a0 It is a torture that cannot be imagined.\u00a0 Yet, for many of us \u2013 we\u2019re not broken.\u00a0 No, we\u2019re not.\u00a0 We fight.\u00a0 We fight not only for ourselves, but also for others who really have no chance to fight, or who refuse to fight.\u00a0 The difference is just this.\u00a0 To put into perspective what it means to be broken, consider that about 3 weeks ago I was placed on disciplinary punishment level 3.\u00a0 When I got moved to lockdown later that night, an inmate I knew back on Ellis Unit, cut his throat while the nurse looked on!\u00a0 Think it\u2019s not hell here?\u00a0 So when I say we\u2019re not broken, that we fight, please understand I am not talking about something that merely has to do with the courts.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrah, this is insane!\u00a0 This is inhuman!\u00a0 We have to do something about the abuse and living conditions here on death row!\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 These were the words of my Kenneth Foster Jr, my \u201clil brother\u201d a few years ago.\u00a0 I love him so much \u2018cause he has a heart of gold.\u00a0 No one really had to tell him to get involved to fight to better the conditions here on death row.\u00a0 He saw what I saw.\u00a0 Abuse of authority from top to bottom.\u00a0 People with mental disorders who live in their own filth – who\u2019re covered in faeces and who drink out of disease infected toilets because guards won\u2019t feed, shower or rec them.\u00a0 Bird droppings all over the rec yards and water fountains we\u2019re supposed to drink from.\u00a0 Foul and spoiled foods \u2013 a few years ago dead rats found on a few trays.\u00a0 A few days ago five dead birds lay on the outside rec guard and they remained there four or five hours more despite guards not only being told about them but seeing them.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t until Major Nelson came through and I \u201cmentioned\u201d it that they were immediately cleaned up.\u00a0 Hell.\u00a0 And Kenneth knows this.\u00a0 But rather than be broken by all this and more, he chose to stand up and fight to make things better.<\/p>\n

A few years ago, when I was given an execution date, I let Kenneth know my plans to protest my execution date.\u00a0 Not just him, but a few other close \u201cbrothers\u201d.\u00a0 But, it was only Kenneth who got back with me immediately to say he\u2019d \u201cride\u201d (participate).\u00a0 Was I surprised?\u00a0 Not really, because Kenneth knows me.\u00a0 Kenneth loves me.\u00a0 I\u2019m his \u201cbig brother\u201d and he was hurting because I had an execution date.\u00a0 We were joined by Rob Will and Gabriel Gonzales \u2013 they all would be the foundation behind DRIVE \u2013 the death row activist group who\u2019d make up the core of individuals who\u2019d fight consciously and non violently to change death row conditions.\u00a0 And fight to end the death penalty.<\/p>\n

Kenneth has an August 30th execution date.\u00a0 I\u2019m hurting.\u00a0 It hurts real bad to think my lil brother is under threat of death\u2026.\u00a0 It hurts\u2026\u00a0 I think of the victims in Kenneth\u2019s case and think, surely they can\u2019t want my lil brother to die!\u00a0 I mean, we all know Kenneth didn\u2019t kill anyone.\u00a0 Nor did he encourage the killing of anyone.\u00a0 In fact, the person who did kill Mr Lahood was executed last year\u2026\u00a0 Yet Kenneth, my lil brother, faces the needle\u2026\u00a0 Is this justice?\u00a0 Truthfully, ask yourself, IS THIS JUSTICE?<\/p>\n

The facts are not disputed \u2013 Kenneth urged his friends that night not to commit robbery.\u00a0 Kenneth didn\u2019t know one of is co-defendants left the car with a gun.\u00a0 Kenneth attempted to drive off when he heard a gun shot, only to be urged to wait for Maurecio.\u00a0 No one says Kenneth benefited in any way from the crime.\u00a0 Yet, he is on death row.\u00a0 He faces an August 30th execution date.\u00a0 Is this justice?<\/p>\n

One thing that Kenneth and I firmly believe is that the power to change things rests with the people.\u00a0 See, Kenneth is not the first or only person who has faced execution for something he didn\u2019t do.\u00a0 Convicted under the Texas Law of Parties.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t matter.\u00a0 But Kenneth did try and change the Law of Parties, both through political means and also through the courts.\u00a0 Both means failed,\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Because the people in both instances refused to act in a manner which would\u2019ve made a difference.\u00a0 See, Texas politicians have been known about Kenneth.\u00a0 Yet, have they brought forth bills to change or amend the law of parties?\u00a0 Rodney Ellis?\u00a0 Harold Dutton?\u00a0 Sheila Jackson Lee?\u00a0 Texas anti death penalty groups neither fully got behind Kenneth\u2019s \u201cVisions For Life\u201d campaign.\u00a0 They verbally \u201csupported\u201d it.\u00a0 But, didn\u2019t physically move to build it.\u00a0 Thus, other brothers, like Joseph Nichols-Bey, are dead.\u00a0 A Law of Parties victim.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 But Kenneth and I still firmly believe in the power of the people.\u00a0 It has been and always will be the people who can make the changes necessary for us to have a justice system which truly reflects the just standards of the society we live in.<\/p>\n

There is no doubt Kenneth Foster Jr\u2019s life is worth saving.\u00a0 The question is, will the people step up and do so?
\nPlease contact your local and statewide political representative, and urge them to step up and help save the life of Kenneth Foster Jr.<\/p>\n

Always,
\nIn Strength and In Spirit!
\nTony Egbuna Ford<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BY TONY E. FORD Many people by now are hearing about Kenneth Foster Jr., a death row inmate who is slated to be executed by the state of Texas on August 30th.\u00a0 God willing this does not happen. I\u2019ve just … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2291","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pdXTf-AX","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2291","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2291"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2291\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2291"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2291"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/karmalised.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2291"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}