Lawrence Lucas, Marcel Reid, Michael McCray present Pillar Human Rights Award to by W.E. Calbert Jr.
Senator Charles Grassley Opens Whistleblower Summit and Recieves Prestigious "Pillar Human Rights" Award
By Michael McCray (about the author)
Refusing to be intimidated or forced into the shadows, Michael McCray and dozen's of other whistleblowers from across the country are speaking out and converged on Capitol Hill to convene the sixth annual Whistleblower Summit. McCray has a passion for justice, and is on a mission to speak out against corruption through the halls of the Nation's Capitol.
The ACORN 8 and the USDA Coalition co-hosted this year's Whistleblower Summit a Civil & Human Rights Conference in Washington, DC. "Our conference theme was "WoW" Obama?' We were focusing on the Obama Administration's War on Whistleblowers; and federal workforce violence, or Obama's War on Women at USDA."
Lawrance Lucas, President of the USDA Coalition of Minority Employees states, "We will ask President Obama to promptly intervene and bring the long history of widespread discrimination to an end. We want USDA top officials held accountable, and the USDA Office of Civil Rights --administration and process-- put into receivership."
An initial organizer of Washington Whistleblower's Week in 2006, McCray was one the chief organizers for the Whistleblower Summit which took on Capitol Hill last week.
"We are very excited about this year's conference, because our coalitions have grown, and our partners are stronger. We are honored to present Senators Charles Grassley a perennial supporter of whistleblowers and Susan Collins the sponsor of the original Whistleblower Protection Act the prestigious Pillar Human Rights Award for their support of whistleblower rights first amendment advocates," concludes McCray.
The Opening Plenary took place in the Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing Room included a symbolic "Empty Chair" welcome ceremony (pioneered by Dr. James Murtagh, M.D.) honoring courageous whistleblowers who cannot be present due to retaliatory imprisonment, untimely death or increased prosecution under the Obama Administration.
Marcel Reid, Pacifica Board Member and ACORN Whistleblower adds, "We are proud to announce that MSNBC Host Dylan Ratigan had agreed to participate and that the PACIFICA Radio Network is committed to broadcast the historic event nationally."
Courtney Dillard, candidate for Georgia's Fourth Congressional District said, "We need more people to support the brave whistleblowers who to step up and speak out abut inequality and unfairness. We must stop mortgage and foreclosure fraud, and judicial corruption." Dillard attended this year's Washington Whistleblowers' Summit.
The conference included a press conference on the National Mall took place in celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the passage of the No FEAR Act, which was the first civil rights legislation of the 21st century. "We will stand on the National Mall in the shadows of Martin Luther King Jr. to continue the fight for civil and human rights," said Marsha Coleman Adebayo, Co-chair of the No FEAR Coalition, "We are here to present No FEAR Report Cards for the worst federal agencies in terms of discrimination and retaliation."
"We are in the middle of a 13 year battle to enhance whistleblower protections. We were blocked by a cowardly secret Senate hold last year--but we not let that happen again," adds Tom Devine, Legal Director for the Government Accountability Project. "We are here to support increased legislative protections and to strengthen the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, and we will bring it over the top with the Whistleblower Summit this year."
Friends and Patriots, thank you all for coming here today to discuss whistleblower, civil, and human rights. I welcome you all. But, I want to pay special recognition to the whistleblowers here today that have come forward to expose wrongdoing, waste, fraud, and abuse. These courageous whistleblowers have risked their careers, livelihoods, and personal well-being. I thank all whistleblowers and those who support their cause.
You've gathered here in Washington from across the United States to promote, celebrate, and educate Congress about the courage and patriotism of whistleblowers. Welcome.
In regards to the folks here today with the USDA Coalition of Minority Employees, I want to say thank you for all you do to push for change.
I've been working with you for many years to bring about improvements in how USDA handles discrimination claims.
The Coalition played a crucial role in raising awareness of some of the difficulties facing USDA employees who filed complaints.
I'm proud to stand with you and demand USDA officials ensure there is a process for employees to have their discrimination claims heard in a fair and timely manner.
And our work hasn't gone unnoticed. But we haven't finished our work.
I'm going to continue my oversight of USDA until I am satisfied they have a system in place to properly handle discrimination and retaliation claims.
The dean of Whistleblowers, Ernie Fitzgerald once said that the only crime whistleblowers commit is that they "commit truth." For it, they're as welcome as a skunk at a picnic. Today's event highlights the uphill struggle that whistleblowers overcome. I commend each and every whistleblower that, like Ernie, fights to make sure that the truth is heard.
It's a tremendous honor to stand before such a diverse coalition of individual whistleblowers, friends, and other supporters.
Today's event provides a forum to discuss a number of important bills pending before Congress that will strengthen and expand existing whistleblower protection laws. I am proud to report that one important bill, the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, which I have cosponsored with Senator Akaka, recently passed the Senate by unanimous consent.
This legislation makes a number of important changes to the Whistleblower Protection Act for Federal employees. It overturns a number of court decisions and rulings of the Merit Systems Protection Board that have limited whistleblower rights. It clarifies court jurisdiction and appeals of whistleblower cases.
Most importantly, it provides federal whistleblower protection laws to members of the Intelligence Community for the first time. I strongly support this provision. It provides protections without harming national security. Coupled with a new process to challenge suspensions of security clearances, it provides real protections for Intelligence Community employees.
This important bill is now pending in the House. I know that Congressman Issa is a supporter of this legislation and that the bill has been referred to his Committee, along with some others. I'd encourage all of you to work constructively with the House to make sure that this legislation continues to progress.
It would be a great victory for all whistleblowers to have this bill signed into law. Protections for federal employees need to be strengthened, and this bill does that.
I've said it for many years--I'd like to see the President of the United States have a Rose Garden ceremony honoring whistleblowers. This would send a message from the very top of the government to the bottom about the importance and value of whistleblowers. They deserve it, and we all ought to be grateful for their efforts. It would be the perfect event for the President to sign a bill like the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act.
But, federal employee whistleblowers are only one story in a fight on many fronts. Other legislation provides significant protections for private sector employees working in critical sectors.
I was an original sponsor of the False Claims Act Amendments Act of 1986, the Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower protections, and the new whistleblower protections at the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Corporation. These groundbreaking laws represent a commitment on the federal level that recognizes the good that whistleblowers bring when they are free to speak. They provide an opportunity to ensure that the truth comes out in our financial sector.
However, these important laws are only as strong as the resolve of the whistleblowers to stand up, speak out, and fight to bring the forward the truth. Every day whistleblowers like you are doing your part. By attending events like this and coming forward to tell your stories, you help to put a face and a name on whistleblower issues. I thank you for coming here today to tell these stories in a public setting.
In closing, I'd like to again thank you all for putting together this forum. It represents the hard work and patriotic spirit of individuals. As long as I'm around in Congress, I'll keep fighting for whistleblowers right beside you. Thank you.
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The conference also included a historic panel discussion with distinguished authors of whistleblower books who were present to autograph and discuss their books and advocacy, following a whistleblower film screening at Busboys and Poets at 14th and V. Street.
A native of the Arkansas Delta Region, Michael McCray traveled to Washington during the Clinton Administration and worked at U.S. Department of Agriculture on the Federal Empowerment Zone Program, which was a Clinton White House Initiative. But he blew the whistle on over $40 Million of waste, fraud and abuse at USDA and the mismanagement of millions of dollars intended to benefit low and moderate income communities. He became a federal whistleblower.
After suffer devastating discrimination and retaliation at USDA, McCray continued his advocacy on behalf of marginalized people by joining ACORN. You can say he wrote the book on ACORN corruption, because he really did. His new book ACORN 8: Race Power & Politics describes the inner struggle within the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now and how it exploited the low-income and minority members it was founded to serve.
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Today is
A Thunder Storm Heading toward the Government Employment System
The Evidence of Abuses have been on the table for decades, the victims are numerous and growing, the types of abuses read like something one would see in a morbid movie with a story line of abused employees who are forced to accept rape, verbal abuse, physical humiliation, degradation of one's person..., all while the big boss watches from the big window on the top floor, looking down on the peasant workers
As idiotic as this introduction sound..., what is more idiotic is the types of abuses that are taking place within the largest employment pool in the U.S., which are the employees of the United States Government, who seemingly are treated as poor peasants that don't rate civil rights, legal representation, or on job professional treatment.
The Abuses that have been taking place for decades have gone un addressed, and yes, as egregious as it may sound, rape has taken place, and during last week's meetings "Whistleblower Panel Discussion May 22", in Washington D.C., woman who came from as far always as California to tell their story to U.S. Senators, were met with accusations of "partisan politics"..., and comments of " these woman should not be able to use the capitol hill, dirksen hearing room in doing so, they would be able to be fired per "hatch act violations" ". {More on Hatch Act}
Decades of Abuse... Ignored by All Past Presidential Administratione... is coming to light.
Many Groups & Many Supporters around the country are shedding light on the government's programs that are immune to justice associated with employee abuse, to the extent that even the government itself is defended its own employee abusers, wasting millions of tax payers dollars, on defense for abusive employees, failed management over site of abuses, and top leadership who speak well but do nothing when learning of abuses.
Recent Correspondences on the subject of abuses associated with Government employees, all in an aggregated effort to reign in some semblance of resolve for the employee victims of abuses, are listed below, to include a link to a letter written by Senator Grassley, directly siting the abusive past that federal employees have been subjected too.
Collation for Change (C4)
USDA Coalition of Minority Employee's
Senator Grassley Demands Obama Administration Reign In Rogue Elements In Government Agencies--correction
Whistle Blower News
FOIA Request to Department of Health and Human Service Reveals
Federal Agency in Violation of No Fear Act Law
Federal Wall of Shame-Michael Branch, Jana Brooks, David Duke, Terry Fred, Craig Littlejohn, Sara Revell & . . .
Whistleblowers Unite to Fight Obama's War on Women, May 21-23, 2012
A System of Abuse Requirements:
The Perfect System of Abuse is within the U.S. Government, in that, there are 3 Elements required to allow abuse and victimization to take place in any working environment...,
The Victim, The Abuser, & A System of Unaccountability.
The Victim:
The Perfect Victim is a person that can easily be discredited. Woman, Minorities, Immigrants, the uneducated, people with criminal backgrounds, people with possible immoral pasts, and those who "need" a job to feed their children.
The Victim must have vulnerabilities that can be exploited by management, and it's these vulnerable traits that either ensures that the victim does not report abuse, or when reporting abuses, management would feel that they're refusal to take action can easily be substantiated, based on character dehumanization that would render the victim un-credible.
The Abuser:
The Abuser, a person that generally have a bully personality type, supported by management and colleagues who would be willing to take his/her side if allegations of abuse are levied.
The Abuser gains confidence when his/her actions are un-investigated,
protected by a system of complicit leadership,
when the management or top person refuse to acknowledge that abuses are taking place,
when top leadership supports the abuser and not the abused,
or if their exist a foundation of consciousness of class positioning.
Failed Leadership represent the fuel for an abusive working environment and Failed Leadership ensures that abused employees receive no help, due to lack of accountability and denied employee representation...
Failed Leadership "endorses" employee abuses and allows impunity for the abusers.
The System of Non-Accountability
The System can condone or create an abusive working environment when the system is to large too manage,
when
to many chiefs and not enough workers,
when racist are in decision making positions,
when supervisors or managers are good friends with certain employees,
if the top person refuses to address concerns associated with abuse, when the top leader is out of touch,
when the top leader is one that actually condones the abuse of specific groups under his/her department,
when the victims are pressured to keep quiet or feel that reporting abuses will result in their removal,
when victims who do report abuses are accused of being disgruntled employees or suffer retaliatory acts and actions,
when victims are denied legal representation and the abusers are supported by management and by the system legal team.
The Elements of Abuse:
The System Leader:
President Obama selected former Iowa Governor to head the USDA, Secretary Tom Vilsack, who was the Governor of Iowa during a class action law suit,
against the state of Iowa, for abuses of employees, to include racism and discrimination.
Understanding that Obama was probably recommend that Tom Vilsack fill the top position over the USDA, Vilsack now represent the face of the problem associated with lack of employee abuse investigations.
After all, how can we expect a strong appointed leader when that person was the subject of a class action law suit against the state that he served as governor?
The Victims:
Thousands of law suits have been filed by government employees, and their satisfaction of resolution has not been fulfilled. Abuses prevail to this day, while class action law suits are being stone walled by the federal government itself.
Tom Valsack walked into office with words of promises, but he isn't doing his job, which is to oversee and intervene when any and all employees report abuses by fellow employees. Is it President Obama's fault if Valsack fails in his position of authority?
Tom Valsack, the person that initially fired Shirley Sherrod, hours after learning of a video she purportedly was in that seem to suggest that she was a racist, but, the subsequent results of further investigation forced Tom Valsack to apologize, publicly, when it was established that the video was edited, causing his quick actions to appear as actions of a flawed leader who doesn't thoroughly investigate a scenario before acting.
Tom Valsack reaction in Shirley Sherrod case can be construed as a rush to respond in a case when a black is accused, while the exact opposite take place when a white employee is accused..., as what seems to be the case based on the number of abused employees who are minorities.
The Victims:
Woman and Minorities that work as a federal employees are more apt to become victims primarily for their easily susceptibility of being discredited during cross examination.
The Government is spending millions to lawyers to defend employee law suits, all because they refuse to practice accountability for abusive employees, abusive managers, and weak top leaders who have a history of not taking actions against employee abuses.
Real Lives are involved and Tom Valsack, serving as the top dog for the USDA, must be removed, based on his lack of actions..., or he can prove that he can be a leader by identifying the abuses that have transpired..., and ensure that employee concerns are being addressed while training is provided that focuses on employee rights, professionalism in the work environment, and management accountability is part of the professional requirements.
It doesn't take a brain scientist to conclude that the leaders in the government have failed in their leadership positions, but, you would be very surprise to see how affective a leader can be when a victim comes forth with the type of evidence that provides visual or verbal evidence associated with her pain and suffering that she has been subjected too during her career working as a gov. employee.
1 Person, with the evidence that can be corroborated, is all it will take to provide the example of an institution of denial, and a system of condoned abuses, and a system of flawed leadership.
1 Strong Case of Employee Abuse will stand as the example of how an entire government system of mal behavior is condoned and not corrected.
Thousands of people are victims but one face will set the example that brings down flawed leadership and correct future appointments of people who come from a history of a system of lack of accountability in their previous position.
The Storm of abuses validated and corroborated by government employees will soon come to the light, and all in leadership positions, who chose not to take action, will be on public displayed for all to see.
In My Opinion
ASMFMB
5/29/2012
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