
Pack the courtroom — Dept. 12 at 850 Bryant — at 1:30pm today for the arraignment on bogus charges of DeBray Carpenter, better known as Fly Benzo, resistance leader in Bayview Hunters Point. Public Defender Jeff Adachi has assured he will be well represented, but he needs and deserves a crowd of supporters too. Fly is the keynote speaker Saturday at the October 22nd rally to stop police brutality. The mayor is in charge of the police department. Hold Mayor Ed Lee accountable for this attempt to silence a community leader. Call him at (415) 554-6141. Free Fly Benzo!

The Hunters Point Rebellion, touched off Sept. 27, 1966, 45 years ago today, by the police murder of Matthew Johnson, 16, was put down after only 128 hours with massive force. The repression left scars that make it hard for people who lived through the rebellion to talk about it 45 years later. The Bay View encourages those who remember to share your story so that what should be a proud chapter in Black history of defying injustice is never forgotten. Those who remember the 1966 rebellion are encouraged to email their recollections to the Bay View at editor@sfbayview.com.

The MAGIC Program’s Back-to-School Celebration and Backpack Giveaway, the largest of its kind in San Francisco, will kick off the academic year Saturday, Aug. 13, by distributing health information, school uniforms and 3,200 new backpacks stuffed with school supplies to kids and teens.

The latest target of a San Francisco police wave of terror is Kilo G. Perry, videographer, freedom fighter, peacemaker and educator and the disabled single father of a 3-year-old boy. Ever since the July 16 killing of Kenneth Wade Harding Jr., 19, at Third and Oakdale by the SFPD thugs in blue, our Bayview Hunters Point community has been threatened, harassed and terrorized by the police more than in recent memory – some say more than in 45 years since the September 1966 rebellion.

In the face of the U.S. power structure’s continuing attempts to force communities of color to hide in our own hoods, a 19-year-old Afrikan youth, Kenneth Harding, was shot to death Saturday over not having a transfer for a $2 light rail ride. As he lay dying in a pool of his own blood, reaching out for help, raising himself up and crying out in agony, only to be surrounded and circled by police who were armed to the teeth with assault rifles and other tools of war …

Celebrate the arts with two fantastic events at the Bayview Opera House.

Black History Month was very exciting at the Bayview Opera House, featuring such major local talents as Mastamind filmmaker Kevin Epps with two screenings, musicians Unidentified Flying Objects with Doc Smith and BVOH drum instructor Akinyele with his Troublemakers Union, Mary Booker’s Actors Workshop and the Providence Church Gospel Choir.

With the original floor from 1888 restored, The Bayview Opera House continues to provide arts education and cultural enrichment to San Franciscans on a low or no cost basis. The recent Dare To Dream arts program and upcoming Black History Month celebrations are just a few of the events.

Preliminary numbers from the 2010 Census put the remaining African American population for the city of San Francisco at around 3.9 percent! How did we get to this point? Why are we leaving this city in such droves? Why isn’t City Hall doing more to stop the mass exodus of African Americans from this city? Join the discussion on ‘The State of Black San Francisco’ – screening of ‘Straight Outta Hunters Point’ and panel discussions – at the Bayview Opera House, 4705 Third St., SF, Sunday, Feb. 13, 2-5 p.m., child care provided.

Davey D interviews Minister Christopher Muhammad, leader of the Stop Lennar Action Movement, on Hard Knock Radio about Lennar’s latest mischief-making. Tell the SF Board of Supervisors to tell Lennar ‘No guns at community meetings’ Tuesday, April 20, 2 p.m., SF City Hall Room 250. Pack the Supervisors’ Chambers as they vote on a resolution condemning Lennar.

Set on the banks of the Mississippi during the Civil War, “…and Jesus Moonwalks the Mississippi” is a poetic journey of forgiveness and redemption inspired by the myth of Demeter and Persephone. This thought-provoking play combines traditional storytelling, gospel music and a wicked sense of humor to create a rich, imaginative world that allows trees to preach, rivers to waltz and Jesus to moonwalk. The run has been extended through April 25.

In an email to the San Francisco Bay View, Laurence Pelosi verified that he was a Lennar senior executive in March of 2004 at the time San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, his cousin for whom he had served as mayoral campaign treasurer, had signed the Hunters Point Shipyard Conveyance Agreement at the behest of Laurence’s Aunt Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Today we had an exclusive interview with Troy Anthony Davis’ sister Martina Correia, who has been standing for justice for her brother for 19 long years. Troy Davis is scheduled once again for execution Monday, Oct. 27, by the state of Georgia if a stay is not granted.