Tom Ridge, Racist Justice and Homeland Security Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit source - Bill Koehnlein Granma Internacional (Havana) http://www.granma.cu October 31, 2001 TOM RIDGE, THE NEW CHIEF OF TERRORIST REPRESSION - The "Strong Man of Philadelphia" is notorious for his championing of executions, crowded prisons, and the merciless repression of racial minorities - The new Office of Homeland Security has the mission of controlling and directing the multiple tentacles of a fearsome and gigantic investigation apparatus - As governor of Pennsylvania, he spent $1 billion-plus USD per year on keeping an average of 36,000 people, in their majority blacks and Hispanics, in jail BY JEAN-GUY ALLARD (Special for Granma International) GEORGE W. Bush did not hesitate in selecting the head of new Office of Homeland Security, which from now on is responsible for supervising 40 government agencies linked to the repression of terrorism in U.S. territory: the "Strong Man of Philadelphia", Tom "get-tough" Ridge, governor of Pennsylvania, champion of the death penalty, crowded prisons, and the merciless repression of racial minorities. As part of his dramatic response to the terrorist attacks, Bush has granted "Homeland Security" the mission of controlling and directing the multiple tentacles of a gigantic apparatus of investigation and repression. And Ridge, the new "czar" of Homeland Security, who had virtually converted his state into a cage for tens of thousands of non-whites, has the blind trust of the president. Under the administration of Ridge and his get-tough policy, Pennsylvania spent more than $1 billion USD per year to keep an average of 36,000 people, in their overwhelming majority blacks and Hispanics, in jail. Of all the U.S. states, Pennsylvania has the highest percentage of minorities behind bars. It has the sinister record of the highest disparity between white and non-white prisoners. In this state, where whites comprise 86% of the population, racial and ethnic minorities are incarcerated 13 times more often than whites. More precisely, African Americans are incarcerated 16 times more often than whites, while with Hispanics the ratio is a little less than nine times as high. When the incarceration of whites in Pennsylvania is compared to the ratios in Western Europe, those of African Americans and Hispanics are, thanks to Tom Ridge, some of the highest in the world, according to a study published in August by Barry Holman, director of the National Center for Institutional Alternatives (NCIA); Alan Knowlton Boal, also of the NCIA; and Jason Ziedenberg, senior analyst at the Justice Policy Institute. In the middle of Tom Ridge's Pennsylvania, in Union County, correctional racism has reached such a high level that one has to read the data two or even three times to be convinced of the reality. The following data comes from official sources, the April 2001 publication from the Office of Research and Evaluation of the United States Bureau of Prisons: - In Union County, 97% of African-American males aged from 20-55 are incarcerated in one of three federal prisons. - In the same county, 94% of Hispanic males aged from 20-55 are likewise incarcerated. Tom Ridge, on the other hand, doesn't confine himself to incarcerations; he has also devoted himself to executions, and at the same rate as that of the former governor of Texas, George W. Bush. As governor of Pennsylvania, he signed more than 200 execution orders. But Tom Ridge's fame is not restricted to the issue of abusive repression. He is also notorious for his inability to act against any form of corruption. On several occasions, the new chief of Homeland Security rejected proposals from his Democrat adversaries to take tougher action against white collar crime. As governor, he turned down various judicial complaints arguing for an increase in the budget for the Pennsylvania educational system, noted for its low student test scores, decrepit buildings, and inadequate teachers' salaries. Finally, Tom Ridge has exemplified himself with his tolerance of environmental polluters. Under his administration, Pennsylvania became the largest importer of toxic waste in the country, when he accepted the entry of enormous quantities of refuse from neighboring states. Now in charge of managing the anthrax panic -- among many other -- things Tom Ridge is to supervise the work of around 40 government agencies linked to the repression of terrorism. His dangerous wide powers extend from the civil aviation security and foodstuffs vigilance to coordinating the utilization of information on terrorism gathered by various specialized agencies. In his new post, Tom Ridge has the rare privilege of having an office a few feet from President Bush's. As he explained at a press conference: "He calls me Tom, I call him Mr. President". The two have known each other for more than 20 years. Shortly after resigning from his position as governor of Pennsylvania, Ridge was sworn in by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. The ceremony was to have taken place in the presence of Vice President Dick Cheney. Demonstrating the reigning climate in Washington, at the last moment it was announced that Cheney was being taken to a secret location far from the White House. Mr. "get-tough" from Pennsylvania is the Bush team's latest acquisition of certain pearls from the Reagan school, such as Eliot Abrams, John Negroponte, Roger Noriega, Otto Reich and Condoleezza Rice. One final detail: Czar Tom Ridge is a highly decorated veteran of the Vietnam War. ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytrc-11.01.01-16:47:03-29402