Home Residence of African
American Male State Prisoners
(Incarcerated and Released)
Today in the City of Milwaukee Municipal Court the trail of Bob Graf versus Marquette University set for July 15, 2013 at 1:30pm. The issue is my arrest on 11th Wisconsin for my failed attempt to do research in Marquette Library archives on Dorothy Day on May 1, 2013 despite have received a No Trespass Notice from Marquette University on March 1, 2013.
The assistant city attorney tried to get me to make a deal, lower fine for no contest plea. I just said No and it was time to wait and wait for my case number to be called. As I was waiting I looked around and saw nearly all minority persons, Hispanic and African American waiting to be called before the Judge. Everyone seemed to be poor. Many of the cases called before me were plea deals involving the lost of drivers licenses. One Hispanic young adult was told via a translator that he needed to be paid a certain amount of his fine to get his license back. He explained via the translator, that without his licenses he could not work and thus could not pay any of the fines. The Judge worked something out with the defendant via the translator.
This reminded me of some of two recommendations at the end of a recent report from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Employment and Training Institute. Wisconsin’s Mass Incarceration of African American Males: Workforce Challenges for 2013. They are:
• Restoration and repair of the driver’s license for current prisoners and released ex-offenders with fixable problems should be a priority. Those unable to secure or repair their license should be given assistance obtaining a state photo ID.
• Driver’s license recovery programs also should be supported for the 27,874 non-offender African-American men in Milwaukee County with driver’s license violations (many for failure to pay fines and civil forfeitures) preventing them from legally driving to employment.
But back to the Trial that puts Bob Graf, me, the defendant against Marquette University, the complainant. The real issue is not trespassing but my participation with others in resisting Marquette University teaching war and killing on the Jesuit Catholic campus. I will need some legal help on how to do this since the case is dependent on the No Trespass Notice I received. The assistant city attorney said it does not matter why the ban was given to me and it did not matter that the Marquette Security officers told me if I left the library I would not be arrested. The power of major institutions to ignore religious and ethical values yet prosecute little people like me needs to be a trial. Hopefully we can use the trial to deliver the real message that Marquette Teaches Killing in violation of the Gospel and Catholic Church values.
The two issues I am involved with, using the million dollars of Catholic Church money from closing parish for a sustainable fund for corporal works of mercy and to resist Marquette, A Catholic Jesuit University from hosting Schools of Army, Navy/Marines and Air Force on campus in violation of Christian faith and values, are starting to come together.
The young Hispanic man trying to keep his license so he can keep his job and me, the elderly white adult trying to act on his conscience are one in the same in the struggle for human dignity and human rights.
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