What Started As a Regular Day At the BarberShop...

A graduate of John Jay College of The City University of New York, Miguel Reyes, always wanted to be involved with Criminal Justice.  Reyes instead went on to become an entrepreneur, supplying barber shops with products needed for their everyday operations.  

One fateful day at a barber shop, in Reyes' hometown of Garfield, New Jersey, the news of the day concerned the young kid who was gunned down and murdered by police officers of Garfield, New Jersey.  A barber's razor would not have cut Reyes as deeply as this devastating news.  This was personal.  Malik Williams lived down the street.  He was only 19 years old.  

Reyes spoke out that day at the barbershop, but he did not stop there.  Reyes spoke to anyone and everyone who would listen about this grave injustice.  What can be done about this?  When will police brutality end?  How can it end?  These conversations turned into an organized movement to march in protest, in solidarity, and in defense of this senseless killing of a young black teenager.  

The first protest, which was an organized march to the courthouse, was a success and the people of Garfield waited for justice.  As they waited, the people of Garfield realized they needed more.  There were other pressing issues concerning the people of Garfield such as dangerous levels of cancer causing chronium, cleaning up the hurricane stricken Jersey Shore, political control in the hands of nepotism, and so U.R.G.E.N.T. was formed.  United Residents of Garfield Engaged in Neighborhood Transformation.  URGENT became a watchdog organization, a place for residents of Garfield to come to with the concerns that face their community.

URGENT gained media attention and through the actions of URGENT The Malik Williams case garnished the attention it merited.  The police officers faced a grand jury.  The police department came under scrutiny.  Most importantly, the memory of Malik Williams is preserved forever in the hearts and minds of the residents of Garfield.

Reyes hopes to address the many concerns affecting the residents of his community within his organization of URGENT.  His hopes are to continue to hear the concerns of the community, to motivate the community, and to empower the community politically.

What started as a regular day at the barber shop became a sharp turn in Reyes' life and he has no intentions on turning back.

NAACP Bergen County Chapter Honors URGENT President Miguel Reyes

The Bergen County Chapter of the NAACP is holding its 76th Annual Freedom Fund Gala on

Saturday, September, 28, 2013 
at the Elan in Lodi, New Jersey.

And the Community Service Award goes to ...
none other than U.R.G.E.N.T.'s President Miguel Reyes.

We are very proud of him.  


Buy your tickets for this gala event at http://bergennaacp.org/.  

Molinelli Leaves a Mixed Record - Solved Cold Cases, Faulted in Others

According to an article in The Register, Bergen County prosecutor is being replaced and his record shows that he faulted in the Malik Williams case, and this was brought to light thanks to local activists URGENT.

Here read for yourself.  The article is not found online, not every article in the hard copy newspapers appear online.

The article's first paragraph:

"John Molinelli's decade as Bergen County prosecutor was marked by the resolution of numerous cold cases, the conviction of a mayor from a prominent family on misconduct charges and an investigation into a police shooting that riled a city."

As we know all too well, it was U.R.G.E.N.T. that "riled the city".

Another pertinent part of the article states:

"Molinelli was faulted last year for the way he handled an investigation into the shooting of a Garfield teenager. Local activists and the family of the teenager, Malik Williams, criticized him for not releasing details about the case.  Molinelli said he tried to balance the public's right to know with protecting the integrity of the judicial process.

"I certainly understand the frustration by community members that want details," Molinelli said in an interview with The Record at the time.

After a grand jury determined last year that there was not enough evidence to charge the officers involved in the shooting, Molinelli said he reached out to the Williams' family's attorney, Victor Urbaez, to set up a meeting.  Urbaez, however said he never received a phone call."

As we all know too well, the "local activists" that criticized Molinelli was URGENT.

Read more: 

http://www.northjersey.com/news/Christie_nominates_assistant_US_Attorney_to_replace_Molinelli_as_Bergen_County_Prosecutor.html

URGENT riled the city.

FIGHT BACK: Families Against Police Terror

National conference organized to fight police brutality: FIGHT BACK

 

With our very own Reggie Buggs, VP of U.R.G.E.N.T. as a panelist on "Strategies for Moving Forward"

 

Saturday, June 1, 2013

 

RIVERSIDE CHURCH

South Hall 120th St. & Claremont Ave. 

Harlem, New York

12pm-10pm

2 panels and live music

1st panel 1:00-3:30 p.m. 

"Voices of Resistance" 

 

2nd panel  4:00-6:30 

"Strategies for Moving Forward"

 

8:00- 10:00 p.m. LIVE PERFORMANCES by The Welfare Poets & Aidge 

The full schedule is as follows:

12:00 p.m.- 1:00 p.m. Welcome
1:00- 3:30 p.m. "Voices of Resistance" Panel (MC- Brian Jones)

• Ramona Africa, MOVE Organization, Survivor of 1985 Bombing of MOVE, Philadelphia, Pa. 
• Danette Chavis, Mother of 19-year-old Gregory Chavis, left to bleed to death after being shot by the NYPD on October 9, 2004
• Mark Clements, torture victim of Jon Burge, Chicago police chief and wrongfully convicted & incarcerated for 28 years in Chicago, Illinois
• Natasha Davis, sister of 23-year old Shantel Davis, shot by the Brooklyn NYPD on June 14, 2012, while sitting in a car
• Askia Sabur, police brutality victim in Philadelphia on September 3, 2010, Askia Coalition Against Police Brutality
• Fred Bryant, father of Keaton Otis, murdered by the police on May 12, 2010 in Portland, OR
• Margarita Rosario, mother of Anthony Rosario, murdered by the NYPD in the Bronx along with his cousin Hilton Vega, on January 12, 1995.
• Juanita Young, mother of Malcolm Ferguson, shot point-blank by undercover NYPD in the Bronx, on March 1, 2000.

3:30- 4:00 BREAK

4:00 - 6:30 "Strategies for Moving Forward" Panel (MC- Amir Amma)

• Frank Graham and Constance Malcolm, parents of Ramarley Graham, killed in his home in the Bronx on February 2, 2012, by the NYPD
• Jack Bryson, father of two sons who were with Oscar Grant when he was murdered on an Oakland, CA, subway platform by police on January 1, 2009
• Adam & Jeralynn Blueford, parents of 18-year-old Alan Blueford, murdered on May 6, 2012 by Oakland police
• Yusef Salaam, one of the Central Park Five wrongfully convicted of rape in New York’s Central Park in 1989
• Rev. C.D. Witherspoon, President, SCLC Baltimore Chapter, Organizer, Baltimore Peoples Power Assembly
• Reggie Buggs, Vice President of activist group U.R.G.E.N.T. Garfield, New Jersey

6:30- 8:00 p.m. BREAK

8:00- 10:00 p.m. LIVE PERFORMANCES by The Welfare Poets & Aidge!!

Hosted by: Campaign to End the New Jim Crow
Endorsed by: Campaign to End the Death Penalty, Haymarket Books, International Socialist Organization, Justice Committee, Parents Against Police Brutality, Stop & Frisk Freedom Fighters, Socialist Alternative (list in formation – contact jonessa@rowan.edu to endorse)

URGENT Member, Wayne Harper Found Guilty

U.R.G.E.N.T. member Wayne Harper exercised his First Amendment right of Free Speech, and was charged with harassment.  Then Harper exercised his Right to Trial, instead of taking a plea, and the final outcome is that the judge found him guilty.  

Guilty of harassing the prosecutor's office for making 3 phonecalls and sending text messages.  Harassment is a petty disorderly persons offense.  The municipal prosecutor, Donald DeDio, had asked that the maximum possible fine, $500, be imposed.  Judge Corradino instead ordered Harper to pay a $200 fine plus court costs.

Wayne Harper - a law abiding citizen of Garfield New Jersey, who never had a run in with the law, who is a coach for the youth, was moved, as was the whole community of Garfield, New Jersey, after the police shooting of a city teen, Malik Williams.  Wayne demanded an answer and called the prosecutor's office for the status on the case.  He called three times.  He was told that if he called again he would be charged. The prosecutor's office made good on their threat and charged Wayne with harassment.  Keep in mind that the police officers involved in the shooting of Malik Williams,  were not even charged.  The only charges made related to this shooting was to Wayne Harper, a concerned citizen exercising his right to know.

The judge's decision is being criticized as it should be, read the comments northjersey.com, .

Walter Luers, president of the New Jersey Foundation for Open Government said, "If they don't want to deal with the public, then they shouldn't work for the public.  This is a misuse of prosecutorial resources. They should be going after real criminals, not concerned citizens."

We applaud Harper for taking a stand.

This decision might stifle some to speak up, but for us and because of Harper's determination we will not stay quiet it there is an injustice.  We will continue to fight for injustice.

No Justice.  No Peace.   Know Justice.  Know Peace.

Read more here:

http://www.northjersey.com/news/bergen/bergen_prosecutor/Garfield_man_found_guilty_of_harassing_Bergen_Prosecutors_Office_.html

 

Right now in my heart, I’m not satisfied. I think it was one of the worst mis-justices ever.
                                                         -Wayne Harper

URGENT Headquarters

We are working on getting office space, or as we prefer to refer to to it:  URGENT Headquarters, in Garfield, New Jersey.

An office will allow us to have a place where we can conduct business in a more centralized all the operations it takes to run an organization such as URGENT.

We are working diligently on this and will let you know when the plans are finalized.

Stay tuned....!

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you can see what we have done and

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tell us your concerns or just tell us how you're doing!