Greetings Economists,
Oakland Print Artist, Casper Banjo, was shot to death last week by the
Oakland Police. Casper had been on Pushing Limits, the disability
rights program of KPFA radio in Berkeley, and was a friend of our
collective.
Casper was 71 years old African American at the time of his shooting.
He lived in section 8 housing in Oakland and was in poor health after
a quadruple by pass operation last year.
The police claimed he was waving a handgun 'replica' therefore they
were justified in killing him. They said they told him to put it on
the ground. He refused.
I mention this on Pen-L because this is quite common in the mentally
disabled community to be shot dead on the streets by the police. This
is an economic crime in that poor people are forced into such
situations. Casper got by on little. He had a small apartment he had
his printing press in, and was collected by various museums and was an
Oakland cultural figure.
Pushing Limits will follow up on this police murder. But this murder
is not about an individual, but about the constant killing of mainly
depressed people by the police on the streets across the U.S. Like
lynching this is so common it merits no press coverage and the police
are never made to pay except in hidden proceedings in the back rooms
of courthouses where the shoot to kill rules are made.
thanks,
Doyle Saylor
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