Federal Lawsuit Initiated Against City of Fresno
Rev. Floyd D. Harris, Jr.
National President - National Network In Action
At a press conference in front of Fresno City Hall on December 17, 2007, Reverend Floyd D. Harris, Jr. - National President of National Network In Action - gave public notice of the intent to file a Federal law suit by Betty Harmon against the City of Fresno. Betty's mother, Lilly Mae Harmon, died under tragic and suspicious circumstances. Betty had reported to law enforcement officials her belief that her mother was murdered by poison and had presented evidence of this and other crimes committed against her mother. She believes that the Fresno Police Department not only failed in any type of response but also discriminated against her deceased mother and her because of age, race, and social status.
The City of Fresno and its Police Department have clearly demonstrated that people of color do not share in the same equal protections under the law. Based upon the attitudes concerning investigating crimes against people of color, it has become clear that Fresno is actually two cities. One is black; the other is white. They are totally separate and unequal. However, we cannot allow fifty years of progress to slide backwards when it comes to justice and equality toward people of color.
pictured, front, left to right
Charles Harmon, Betty Harmon, Gloria Hernandez
Betty Harmon is a community member who lost her mother under tragic and suspicious circumstances. When she took her concerns to the Fresno Police Department, she found that their motto to "protect and serve" had limitations. Not only did she have to hire a private investigator to track down and prosecute her case, but she had to pay out of her own pockets for services that taxpayers delegate to the police. The people of color in Fresno demand justice and equal protection under California law and the Constitution of the United States.
If we allow the police and city officials to turn their heads and ignore social harms towards citizens of color (as they did in the case of the late Lilly Mae Harmon); If we allow the trend to continue that people of color must hire their own private investigators to achieve social justice (as they did to Betty Harmon); We allow a standard to be set in this community that people of color must pay for their own autopsy in order to qualify for police investigative intervention; then we bring back an era where people of color do not matter. No hope; No voice; No vote; No power.
All photos and video on this page by Mike Rhodes