'Emergency': Three Frightening Lynchings in Two Days

Three American people of color in different parts of the nation have been found dead in jail cells soon after arrested for minor offenses within one week this month. Officials say two of the deceased in custody, both women, were suicides while the other mysterious death of a man was found with broken bones. Families, loved ones and rights advocates across the country are demanding answers from officials and are galvanizing for today’s “racism emergency” to impact 2016 presidential candidates throughout campaigns.

“At Netroots Nation, #BlackLivesMatter leaders called on all of us to use our power to respond to the current state of emergency,” stated Charles Chamberlain, Democracy for America’s executive director in a statement released by TIMES over the weekend. “Democracy for America is ready to heed that call to action and make sure it has real electoral consequences in 2016 and beyond.”

The emergency escalated again this weekend when Cleveland police assaulted Black Lives Matter members for rallying for civil and human rights of people of color.

(Photo above: Rev. Arthur Prioleau of Goose Creek, South Carolina, carries a sign at a North Charleston, South Carolina rally April 8, 2015. Courtesy: Business Insider)

Two of the jail “suicides” were well known human rights advocates in their communities, prime targeted individual candidates. The third who died in jail was a happy 18-year old female. Officials attributed two of the deaths to suicide by hanging, leaving many inconsistencies in their explanations. Families of the deceased disbelieve authorities’ “suicide” statements and all three families have demanded independent investigations.

“At a time when the nation is focused on the terrible circumstances of the brutal death of Sandra Bland, it is critical to expose the many ways in which Black Americans, Native Americans and other minorities are being arrested for minor charges and end up dead in jail cells,” Syracuse University Janis McDonald said in a statement.

A private autopsy has begun on Rexdale W. Henry, a 53-year-old American Indian found dead on July 14 in Neshoba County Jail in Philadelphia, Miss. Detention officers found Henry’s body around 10 a.m. Reports and logs reveal that he was seen alive and fine only half an hour before that, according to WTOK. The state crime lab in Jackson conducted an autopsy and the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is looking into the case. What is known thus far is that Mr. Henry suffered two broken ribs before he died.

Local concerned citizens have raised substantial questions about the cause of his death. His family wants to know what or who caused their healthy, fifty-three year old loved one to die in that cell. The Chief Medical Examiner in Jackson, Mississippi has refused to inform the family or their representatives of either the cause or manner of death. The family made the difficult decision to postpone burial after the funeral Sunday. They are determined to learn what really happened. Funeral services for Mr. Henry were held July 19 in Bogue Chitto. A few days later, his body was flown to Florida for an independent autopsy paid for by anonymous donors.

Henry was a Choctaw tribe member. He was well known in the community and by his opponents in law enforcement. He was a lifelong community activist and coached stickball. The week before his “suicide,” he had been a candidate for the Choctaw Tribal Council from Bogue Chitto. He was arrested on July 9 for failure to pay a fine.

Helping with the family’s independent probe are civil-rights activists John Steele, a close friend of Henry’s, and Diane Nash, cofounder of Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, Janis McDonald plus another Syracuse University law professor Paula Johnson of the school’s Cold Case Justice Initiative.

Sandra Bland allegedly committed suicide 72 hours after police in Texas happened to be near her and see her fail to use her turn signal and then jailed her for the minor traffic offense. Was she a Targeted Individual due to her activism, and thus being stalked? The public want answers.

[Read: Police Cover-Up: Chilling Final Words Mysteriously Slain Targeted Woman Screamed to Brutal Texas Cop after Ripped from Car, Slammed to Ground]

Among the Bland mystery questions, is did police tamper with video evidence? The video that police released is missing minutes – three whole minutes. Soon after the dashboard camera video was released, the public began scrutinizing a moment in the video when a white car driving along suddenly disappeared. Later, a tow truck driver is seen walking off camera, only to reappear from inside his truck. Officials claimed that video segments were affected during the original upload. The following day, the Texas Department of Public Safety re-released the footage — three minutes shorter than the original.

One day after Ms. Bland was found hanging in her jail cell, another young black woman, Kendra Chapman, was found hanging in a jail cell in Homewood, Alabama. The 18-year-old was arrested July 14 on accusations she stole a cell phone, according to AL.com. 

Booked just before 6:30 p.m., Ms. Chapman was found unresponsive in her cell at 7:50 p.m. Like Ms. Bland,, authorities blamed Chapman’s death on suicide by hanging. Family said the teen had a full and happy life and do not believe she committed suicide.

Black Lives Matter activists have joined each of the families in demanding answers through private investigations.

The one-million-member progressive grassroots network Democracy for America decided this weekend to change its presidential candidate endorsement proposals for addressing racism among the central criteria for DFA’s endorsements, according to an advance copy of the announcement obtained by TIME. The decision followed a The group’s change to its endorsement process after a protest at Netroots Nation, the largest gathering of progressives in the country, where a few dozen Black Lives Matter activists interrupted a town hall meeting featuring Democratic presidential candidates Martin O’Malley and Bernie Sanders.

“The protest flummoxed the candidates and left them scrambling over the following days to address racism,” TIMES reports.