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Demonstrators call for equality and fairness following firing of assistant public defender

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A protest outside Viera courthouse over the firing of Alton Edmond, who believes that the Black Lives Matter tie he wears was one of the reasons for his dismissal. Video by Tim Shortt. Posted 2/9/17.

About 20 people gathered to show support for fired assistant public defender Alton Edmund at Moore Justice Center in Viera on Thursday.(Photo: Lamaur Stancil / FLORIDA TODAY)Buy Photo

VIERA More than 30 supporters of an assistant public defender fired last week gathered in front of the Moore Justice Center to highlight what he described was an overtly political atmosphere at his former employer.

The rally happened betweennoon and 1 p.m. Thursday. The demonstration wasorganized by Alton Edmond's friends with participation by the NAACP, the National Action Network, Brevard County Democrats and local pastors. Edmond, 27, said he was targeted for his decision to wear a tie with the words Black Lives Matter.'

The phrase, which has sparked controversy in some quarters, is also embodied by Black Lives Matter, a loosely organized group that highlights systemic discrimination and police abuse involving blacks.

Edmondsaid he is not asking for his job back but is focusing on opening his own law practice.

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I loved seeing white people andAsian people here today," Edmond said during the rally. "I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought this needed attention."

Public Defender Blaise Trettis dismissed the attorneys claims.

I think that this demonstration is baseless and meritless," he said."(Edmond) was fired for misconduct and multiple incidents and not discrimination.

Staff writer Lamaur Stancil contributed to this report.

Contact Gallop at 321-242-3642, jdgallop@floridatoday.com and on Twitter at @JDGallop.

FLORIDA TODAY

'Dream of America' at stake, say anti-ban protesters at Port Canaveral

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Black Lives Matter rally held in Viera - Florida Today

NewsBusters (blog)

Fox's 'Star' Ironically Proves Black Lives Matter's Violence NewsBusters (blog) As they take him away, he says they have the wrong man and This isn't Black Lives Matter! Actually, that is EXACTLY Black Lives Matter, as evidenced by the rioting and violence across the country the last few years at their events. The final scene ...

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Fox's 'Star' Ironically Proves Black Lives Matter's Violence - NewsBusters (blog)

USA Today Network J.D. Gallop, Florida Today, Melbourne, Fla. Published 2:08 p.m. ET Feb. 3, 2017 | Updated 6:06 p.m. ET Feb. 3, 2017

An assistant public defender says he was fired this week after complaining online about what he believes is an overtly political atmosphere at the Brevard County public defenders office.

Alton Edmond(Photo: J.D. Gallop / FLORIDA TODAY)

MELBOURNE,Fla. --- Anassistant public defender who sported a Black Lives Mattertie to court says he was fired this week after complaining online about what he believes is an overtly political atmosphere at the Brevard County public defenders office.

Alton Edmond, 27, a Cocoa, Fla., resident who handled misdemeanor division cases for the agency, was escorted by two armed investigatorsfrom the office Wednesday after someone printed out Edmond'sFacebook posts and delivered them to Public Defender Blaise Trettis office for Trettis to read.

Edmondwas hired last April. He was one of three minority attorneys in the Brevard Public Defender's office, an agency that has 42 attorneys representing criminal defendants.

It is accurate to say he was fired. But it was an accumulation of things ... the tie had no significance in his firing, Trettis told FLORIDA TODAY.

People can talk about politics, of course. But theres a big difference about talking politics and wearing politics on your tie, Trettissaid.

The controversial Black Lives Matter movement is a loosely organized grassroots effort highlighting systemic disenfranchisement and police-involved shootings. Edmond said he was showing support in principle as an attorney who represents poor clients.

In recent years the movement has been seen as more of a political entity drawing thousands of people to rallies across the nation. The issue also has gotten several attorneys in trouble nationwide. Last September, in a similar case, a Las Vegas defense attorney refused to remove a Black Lives Matter button after a judge condemned the pin as political speech and demanded it be removed.

The attorney citedfree speech in refusing. In Ohio, another attorney wearing a Black Lives Matter pin was jailed on contempt charges after she refused to take it off.

Edmond, who is the choir director at Mt. Moriah AMEChurch in Cocoaand a motivational speaker, said he wore the black and purple tie several times, including in court without any issues or comments from a judge. He said hebelieves it is his First Amendment right.

"This was my way of representing a struggle. It's very personal to me," he said.

While at the public defenders office in Viera around the time of the presidential election, a secretary spotted the tie and told him, "No, all lives matter,"prompting a discussion, Edmond said.

I think this situation has made it clear to me that there is some intolerance in the public defenders office. People in the office are overly sensitive, very conservative and talked openly about their support of (President) Trump. Even the public defender, he was at a Trump rally last year, in the front row, he said.

Blaise Trettis, Brevard Public Defender.(Photo: for FLORIDA TODAY)

Trettis, a Republican, confirmedhe did attend the Sept. 27, 2016, rally thatdrew more than 10,000 people to hear Trump at Orlando-Melbourne International Airport.

I did go, but if thats a criticism, its absurd. The big difference is that what I did was not during work hours or at a work place," Trettis said."Whatever he wants to do in his own time, thats his business. Its not right for an attorney to be wearing that in the courthouse.

He also fended off criticism that his office was intolerant or overly political. "I've actually hired more minorities than the other firms," he said.

Trettis said he admonished Edmond about the tiebut that other issues played a role in the dismissal including an episode in which Edmondrecorded his colleagues talking about politics and another instance in whichhe left behind a loaded gun on the desk in his office before he wentto court.

Trettis said he was told Edmond posted the recording of his colleagues on his Facebook page, but quickly removed it. Edmond said hewas recording himself and posted it online, buttook it down when he learnedit picked up the voices of his colleagues.

Edmond said he knowsthe recording and the gun which heapologized for hastily leaving behind in his closed office were part of the reasons he was let go from the $43,000 a year job. Hehas a concealed carry permit, like several other employees at the office. He said heclosed his office door,but another employee went in without permission. The gun, which is allowed in the office with a permit, was returned to Edmond.

The last straw, Trettis said, were recent Facebook posts the millennial attorney made regarding what he felt was discrimination against him for wearing the tie. The posts were printed out and left for Trettis to read.

He was posting on Facebook during working hours, and the posts were about me. When youre at work, criticizing your boss, thats not a good thing, Trettis said, adding that he did not put any of the admonitions or the reason for termination in writing.

Edmond contends his postings were not made during hiswork hours. He said his focus now isopening a private practice.

Ive wanted to be a lawyer since I was 5 years old, he said.

Follow JD GalloponTwitter at: @JDGallop

Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/2k4nSkY

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Fired public defender says his Black Lives Matter tie ...

You probably never heard of Yusra Khogali before.

As the co-founder of the Toronto chapter of Black Lives Matter, Khogali is used to being an outspoken leader for a movement that has seen more publicity than nearly any other activist group in North America over the past two years. She has been at the forefront of nearly every racialized controversy in Toronto and is one of the most visible members of the organization.

And now, respectfully, it is time for her to resign.

Yusra Khogali (centre). (Photo: Lucas Oleniuk/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

Now, normally my white skin would admittedly preclude me from even suggesting that a black activist should hang up the megaphone, but Khogali has made a habit of directing violent, hateful language towards people with white skin, so much so that I feel comfortable calling her out. She once mused that just by having white skin, white people are sub-human. She tried to qualify that statement by saying white people did not have a high amount of melanin, which prevents them from absorbing light, and with it a sense of moral clarity.

Now, maybe if this was her only controversial statement all could be forgiven, but this is a pattern of hate that can't be ignored any longer. In April 2016 Khogali tweeted "Plz Allah give me strength to not cuss/kill these men and white folks out here today. Plz Plz Plz."

The tweet was widely covered, and many media outlets faced scrutiny for focusing on that tweet instead of the issues black communities are facing. This was and is a legit criticism of the media. Black people are treated unjustly by the criminal justice system at all levels, and the press is almost as bad, and that's why I support the underlying credo of BLM.

But that can't absolve Khogali from being held accountable for constantly inserting hate speech into the ether of Toronto activism. If I were a member of BLM, I'd hopefully understand that her words are harmful to the movement's stated goals of ending institutionalized racism, and the more she speaks the less credibility the movement carries.

There is a strange trend that some activists use to provide themselves cover for engaging in hate speech. They say that because the system they live under has racial problems, they should be absolved from being held accountable when they make violent, absurd statements, especially against whites.

Recently, Khogali labelled Justin Trudeau a "white supremacist terrorist" for not changing our refugee policy as a response to Donald Trump's executive order that would temporarily halt the flow of refugees and immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim countries. Trump's decision is controversial even among Republicans, but to saddle Trudeau with a label as hyperbolic as "white supremacist terrorist" is to engage in a kind of activism that belittles your own cause.

I get it, being controversial gets people talking and spotlights the issues you are trying to champion, but that strategy only works if you do not place yourself in the centre of the controversy. You are not absolved from being held accountable for hate speech just because you hate Donald Trump and want Trudeau to take action on the refugee file.

It's patently counterintuitive to believe this is a viable tactic, and BLM should either force Khogali to the background or martyr her as a way of trying to maintain the momentum they found after they forced Toronto Pride to give them a seat at the table last year. Instead, after winning that controversial fight against Pride, BLM likely squandered the gains made with the public and may even face a Pride team not comfortable with having a person so vitriolic occupying a spot side-by-side with Pride leaders.

Members of Black Lives Matter sit and block the Pride Parade from the normal parade route. (Photo: Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket via Getty Images)

And to be honest, I really don't care if this comes off as "whitesplaining." That's a word designed to get white people to shut up about important issues. It's part of the lexicon among some activists that doesn't serve the greater good, which is supposed to be justice and equality for everyone.

But if you continuously isolate and vilify white folks -- without crafting your language in a way that separates actual racists from white allies -- how can you ever expect to grow the movement to a size where the system would have no choice but to change for the better? Moreover, how do you reconcile using divisive, prejudicial language to describe an entire race of people when part of your fight is to stop white people from doing the exact same thing?

Let me put all my cards on the table here: I am pretty sure it is privilege that stops me from caring what Khogali says about white people. I honestly don't care if she thinks I am sub-human, or that she needs Allah to stop her from killing me. And I don't really care that she called Trudeau a terrorist, even though that statement is asinine and evidence of a sloppy intellect. None of that bothers me at all, because it isn't as important as the issue that does resonate with me -- that non-whites need a justice system, and a society for that matter, that treats them with dignity, respect and as equals.

So when an individual at the helm of what could be a transformative movement distracts the public with hate, it is time for that individual to go. And if she really believes black lives matter, that's exactly what she will do.

Because optics matter, too.

Also on HuffPost:

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TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - Pascale Diverlus yells into microphones during a Black Lives Matter protest that marched from Gilbert Avenue to Allen Road on Eglinton Avenue. The protest shut down the southbound Allen Road for around 30 minutes, causing traffic to reverse and exit through Lawrence Avenue. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - Uranranebi Agbeyegbe screams into a microphone during a Black Lives Matter protest that marched from Gilbert Avenue to Allen Road on Eglinton Avenue. The protest shut down the southbound Allen Road for around 30 minutes, causing traffic to reverse and exit through Lawrence Avenue. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - Black Lives Matter protesters march down Allen Road, which was closed off because of the crowd. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - Josh Cedro (centre), 16, holds in fist up in demonstration during a Black Lives Matter protest that marched from Gilbert Avenue to Allen Road on Eglinton Avenue. The protest shut down the southbound Allen Road for around 30 minutes, causing traffic to reverse and exit through Lawrence Avenue. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - Janaya Khan (centre) screams during a Black Lives Matter protest that marched from Gilbert Avenue to Allen Road on Eglinton Avenue. The protest shut down the southbound Allen Road for around 30 minutes, causing traffic to reverse and exit through Lawrence Avenue. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - Demonstrators chant during a Black Lives Matter protest that marched from Gilbert Avenue to Allen Road on Eglinton Avenue. The protest shut down the southbound Allen Road for around 30 minutes, causing traffic to reverse and exit through Lawrence Avenue. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - A Black Lives Matter protest, which started on Gilbert Avenue, marched to Allen Road on Eglinton Avenue. The protest shut down the southbound Allen Road for around 30 minutes, causing traffic to reverse and exit through Lawrence Avenue. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - Pascale Diverlus yells into microphones during a Black Lives Matter protest that marched from Gilbert Avenue to Allen Road on Eglinton Avenue. The protest shut down the southbound Allen Road for around 30 minutes, causing traffic to reverse and exit through Lawrence Avenue. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - Demonstrators chant 'black lives matter' during a Black Lives Matter protest that marched from Gilbert Avenue to Allen Road on Eglinton Avenue. The protest shut down the southbound Allen Road for around 30 minutes, causing traffic to reverse and exit through Lawrence Avenue. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - Uranranebi Agbeyegbe chants with the crowd during a Black Lives Matter protest that marched from Gilbert Avenue to Allen Road on Eglinton Avenue. The protest shut down the southbound Allen Road for around 30 minutes, causing traffic to reverse and exit through Lawrence Avenue. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 27 - Pascale Diverlus (left) and Alexandria Williams scream into microphones during a Black Lives Matter protest that marched from Gilbert Avenue to Allen Road on Eglinton Avenue. The protest shut down the southbound Allen Road for around 30 minutes, causing traffic to reverse and exit through Lawrence Avenue. (Melissa Renwick/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

TORONTO, ON- JULY 16 July 16, 2015 . Members of Black Lives Matter including Rodney Diverlus(second from right) stage a protest during Toronto Police Services Board monthly meeting at Toronto Police Headquarters Vince Talotta/Toronto Star (Vince Talotta/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

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Black Lives Matter Toronto Co-Founder Needs To Resign - Huffington Post Canada

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Updated: Wednesday, February 8, 2017, 1:42 PM

The NYPD must disclose documents and video revealing surveillance of Black Lives Matter protestors at Grand Central Terminal in 2014 and 2015, a judge has ruled.

The case, brought by protester James Logue, challenged the NYPDs denial of a Freedom of Information Law request for information on its monitoring of rallies following the police killings of Eric Garner in Staten Island and Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo.

Logue decided to file the request after suspecting that police were compiling dossiers on individuals at the peaceful protest, his attorney David Thompson said.

The NYPD had argued that revealing its tactics would interfere with law enforcement work.

Undercover NYPD, MTA watched Black Lives Matters protestors

But Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Manuel Mendez ruled the NYPD could not decline to comply with the law on such overly broad grounds.

NYPD authorities make blanket assertions and fail to particularize or distinguish their surveillance or undercover techniques and records, Mendez wrote, adding that the department had failed to show why the use of redactions could not protect ongoing investigative work.

The judge noted that the MTA and Metro-North, which also monitored the rallies, responded to Logue's FOIL request with some paperwork. Mendez ordered the NYPD to comply with Logues request within 30 days. He signed the ruling Monday, though it was made public Wednesday.

Thompson said NYPD routinely flouted state law regarding disclosure of documents that should be public.

Black Lives Matter says NYPD spied on group during Garner protest

Their practice is to simply deny all the requests, he said, adding that he hoped the ruling would lead to a change in practice.

We have a right to expect law enforcement to obey laws.

In August 2015, it emerged that the MTA and NYPD had undercover and plain-clothes cops to monitor die-ins at Grand Central.

We are reviewing the decision with the NYPD, and will respond accordingly, a city Law Department spokesman said.

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EXCLUSIVE: NYPD must disclose surveillance of Black Lives Matter protesters at Grand Central Terminal - New York Daily News