Monthly Archives: March, 2012

MAR 26, 2012 - Willie Nelson, longtime activist musician from Farm Aid to Occupy the Food System, has agreed to take care of 2 severely neglected and abused horses. One named "Whisper" was undernourished when rescued, and had kerosene burns when the bonehead ex-owner tried to cure a fungus. "Whisper", along with a mare called "Traveler", will go into the care of LEARN (Livestock and Equine Awareness and Rescue Network), a non-profit in South Carolina that has been a private animal rescue farm for more than 20 years; where they rescue and rehabilitate, and then find the animal a "forever home" where they can live their life out in peace. On their website LEARN says their mission is to "educate our youth, prospective owners, and owners concerning the proper care of animals.  We also support the local Animal Control departments with the care and housing of abused and neglected farm animals. We are dedicated to the management of reported neglect cases and work with law enforcement to insure the animals receive the care and feed needed for optimal health."

Eric Elkins of LEARN told SummervillePatch.com that "Whisper" has gained 25 pounds since arriving at the rescue farm, and his wounds are healing. Check out LEARN's website here. , and don't forget to thank Willie!  (Photo credit: LearnHorseRescue.com)

MAR 26, 2012 - Justice Through Music has added a "hoodie" to our logo to show support for Trayvon Martin's family, and to join the calls for justice for Trayvon Martin. We think a young man getting shot for wearing a hoodie, or quite possibly because of his skin color, is a horrible crime, and we add our voice to the calls for the arrest and prosecution of his killer. If you would like to add your voice to the call for justice, sign the petition over at Change.org.

(photo courtesy of RockBeyondbelief.com)

MAR 26, 2012 – A group of freethinkers mainly compromised of men and women in the armed services, are holding a “Rock Beyond Belief” concert at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and will be sponsored and funded by the Stiefel Freethought Foundation and the American Atheists Association. This is being held in response to the US government funding, coordinating and allowing the use of the military base property by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association back in September of 2010 for a “Rock the Fort” concert that was very “evangelical in nature” to say the least. Estimates are that over $50,000 of taxpayer funds spent on that event that was basically an Evangelical Christian church service. Rock Beyond Belief's event’s chief organizer Sgt. Justin Griffith said, "This is perhaps the first step in a new direction away from the evangelical proselytism that has permeated the military for decades.” He also added that at first he and his group were met with resistance, and it was a “bitter pill” for his superiors to swallow. They tried putting paperwork roadblocks up and Sgt. Griffith felt they were not getting the same support the Christian-based “Rock the Fort”” event got.  After a cancelling and some pressure, they eventually gave the green light for the event.

The event will have music from freethinker musicians and bands, such as Aiden, rapper Baba Brinkman, music/comedian Jeffrey Lewis, Spoonboy,  Words Such as Burn, and Roy Zimmerman. There will also be speakers such as Richard Dawkins and others. Many organizations will be also be a part of the event who have been dealing with the issue of religious freedom (including the freedom to be left alone about religion) such as the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, who point out that soldiers take on oath to defend the Constitution, a document that is completely secular and contains no reference to “God” whatsoever. Mikey Weinstein from MRFF said, "You are basically told that you lack intellectual integrity, courage, character and honorability. Rock Beyond Belief is an attempt to stick a fist up in the sky and say, 'We have our rights.'"

This follows the heels of the Reason Rally week here in DC, where freethinkers, humanists, secularists, atheists, agnostics and others gathered on the National Mall calling for science and reason. To learn more about the concert and to get involved, check out the Rock Beyond Belief website. 

MAR 26, 2012 - Last Friday on March 23, 2012 in Tampa, Florida Bruce Springsteen performed his controversial song "American Skin (41 Bullets)", a song he had only performed twice before. The song was written back in 2000 and was about the horrible shooting death of Amadou Diallo, who was shot by police 41 times when he was taking out his wallet. When Bruce performed the song in Atlanta back in 2000, the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association called for the boycott of Bruce Springsteen when he came to Madison Square Garden in NYC, where he sang the song again. The call for a boycott had no effect, Springsteen did an amazing 10-show run at MSG.

Many people are saying it is obvious the recent shooting death of Trayvon Martin in Florida last month inspired Springsteen to perform the song again. Millions of people and us here at JTMP have been shocked and horrified by the hunting down and murdering of a young man, and that the murderer is free. There is a petition over at Change.org with over 2 million signatures calling for the prosecution of the killer. The lines from the song unfortunately show in America you still can get shot for the color of your skin:

Well, is it a gun, is it a knife 
Is it a wallet, this is your life 
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret) 
No secret my friend 
You can get killed just for living in your American skin

Listen to audio of the performance of "American Skin (41 Shots)" below.

MAR 23, 2012 - UPDATE: JTMP earlier reported on the anti-gay band Junkyard Prophet that put on a a hate-filled attack on the LBGT community at a high school and shocking the students who were unable to leave. (Watch the video below). The principal of Dunkerton High School facing heavy pressure resigned his position, but tried to assert he was leaving the position anyway for a superintendents position. Yeah right. A promotion for him? Turns out the band has spouted their hate at the school several times before.

Junkyard Prophet is part of this hate "ministry" called "You Can Run But You Cannot Hide" where they set up tables and pass out flyers filled with hateful attacks on the LBGT community, and they even vowed to return to Dunkertown, Iowa after getting all the heat following their tirade at the school back on March 8. The Dunkerton Community Hall board of directors denied them access, and the superintendent says they will NOT be performing at the school. "It won't be here" said school superintendent Jim Stanton. They ended up meeting Dunkerton parents at a church and tried to "explain themselves".

Bradlee Dean, founder of You Can Run But You Cannot Hide, clearly lays out their anti-gay, anti-equality stance on the ministry's website: "...we cannot accept the proposal that homosexuality is either private or moral." They also ridiculously assert that the gay community "is nothing but a political opportunity to the liberals".