5 Months Later - Beaten Hip Hop Journalists Struggle
| 5 Months Later - Beaten Hip Hop Journalists Struggle |
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| Written by Robert ID3442 |
| Wednesday, 14 March 2007 08:41 |
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Hip Hop Stand Up- Recognize & Speak Out: this could be any one of us. Five months after being beaten and brutalized, black hip hop journalists still struggle for freedom in Canada. It has been five long months since African American journalists, Tonye Allen and Ann Brown hailed that cab last year on October 16, 2007. Blatant victims of racial profiling and police brutality, the couple has struggled since then to share their story, gain public support, and raise funds in their bid for freedom in a foreign land. On that fateful day, police from Toronto Division 51 detained the two without explanation. When the couple asked questions, the police turned violent, beating up and arresting Tonye Allen, while assaulting Ann Brown. Mr. Tonye Allen is an African American hip hop photographer whose work has appeared in many hip hop related publications as L.A. Weekly, The Village Voice, Rolling Stone, Vibe Magazine, and The Source among other. In his 45 years, he has never once been arrested but his recent visit to Toronto, Canada, with his fiancée, Ann Brown, has shed light again in the hip hop community on the police brutality which, according to the numbers, is becoming rampant in Toronto; and now American tourists seem to also be at risk as in the case of African American hip hop photographer Mr. Tonye Allen. Allen was eventually charged with assault and resisting arrest. The couple had hoped by now the charges would have been dropped. The journalists, whose combined writing and photography credits include Essence, Black Enterprise, VIBE and Rolling Stone to name a few, have been trapped in Toronto ever since, fighting for justice while trying to maintain their daily livelihood. Both are professionals with no prior criminal records. The Crown, (the city of Toronto's office of prosecution) is now filing formal charges and pursuing a case against Allen; two counts for resisting arrest and two counts for assaulting a police officer. Allen still does not know what he was initially being arrested for, and maintains he never fought back. Photos of his brutalization pretty much corroborate his story. Allen and Brown are still struggling to raise monies for lawyer fees and their hotel bill. Their blog, which posts details of their drama, can be accessed at www.TonyeAllenandAnnBrown.blogspot.com . To sign a petition in their support go to http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/946246942 . And finally, financial support can be forwarded to www.Paypal.com , Account: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Their lawyer, Jason Bogle can be reached at http://www.bogleslawoffice.com . "We are exhausted and traumatized," expresses Brown. "I keep trying to find a bright side in all this, but right now I''m hard pressed. We are humbly asking for prayers and support and we come through this ordeal." Read more on this in this previous articles on ThugLifeArmy.com – |
