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by: Greg Coy Updated: Feb 20, 2017 - 8:01 PM

Memphis, TN - FOX13 Investigates has learned Memphis Police engaged in political surveillance of protesters connected to Black Lives Matter.

Several law enforcement sources told us the intelligence collected helped to create the so called watch list at Memphis City Hall.

The intelligence gathered included vital information such as date of birth, height and weight. Protesters told us MPD got the information through surveillance.

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For example, cell phone video recorded and posted on the Facebook page of Keedran "TN" Franklin shows Memphis Police outside his union headquarters.

It was posted on to his Facebook page on February 6th.

Union organizer Antonio Cathey told us protesters have been under surveillance by Memphis Police.

"Sometimes they sit outside our offices, sometimes they sit outside our house." Asked whothey were. Cathey replied "the police."

Local minister and peace activist Elaine Blanchard was surprised to find her name on the list that doesn't allow people inside city hall without an escort.

Blanchard's only connection to the Black Lives Matter protests was when she crossed the barricade without problem during the Graceland protests last year.

The list had information about Blanchard that she doesn't readily share.

"My weight was on this list. I am curious to know where did the mayor's office and the police department get my weight."

Law enforcement sources told FOX13 Investigates police began gathering information on Blanchard after the protest at Graceland.

Cathey for his involvement at both the Graceland demonstration and the one at the bridge.

FOX13 caught up with Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland at and event downtown.

We asked him about allegations that his police department had engaged in political surveillanceNow that's a separate issue from the list. I've asked the police director to review the procedure with respect to the list" said Mayor Strickland.

Sources said the lawyers for the Memphis Police Department and the City of Memphis conferred regularly to make sure they didn't violate a federal agreement that states the Memphis and City of Memphis do not engage in political intelligence.

FOX13 asked the mayor if he had any knowledge of meetings between the lawyers representing both the City and the MPD.

"All the more reason I have asked the trusted police director to review the situation," The mayor told FOX13 the list was developed in response to the early morning protest outside his home in January that left him angry and his family shaken.

The front page of the list includes legal language forbidding a certain number of people from being on his property.

The police used that criteria to develop the list to keep people away from his home.

He claims the notation on the top of the page with the hand writing that reads " also have to be escorted while in city hall" was written by MPD Lt. Albert Bonner and the mayor was unaware until the media requested the document in an open records request.

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FOX13 Investigates: Secret surveillance of Black Lives Matter protesters - FOX13 Memphis

Robin Bridges, Managing Editor February 21, 2017 Filed under Arts & Life, Book Reviews

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The police-involved shooting of 19-year-old Timothy Thomas in April 2001, sparked days of riots and protests in Cincinnati, OH. The riots occurred specifically in and around the predominantly poor black neighborhood of Over-The-Rhine.

Six Days in Cincinnati: A Graphic Account of the Riots that Shook the Nation a Decade Before Black Lives Matter is a graphic-journalist account by Daniel Moore. The book tells the story of the days before and after the civil unrest that resulted from the shooting of Timothy Thomas.

The second release of the limited print book is set to hit shelves in June 2017. The book was first printed in 2002 with the title Mark Twain Was Right. That title was taken from an unknown protesters sign that read, Mark Twain was right; Rodney King 1991; Timothy Thomas 2001.

The sign refers to the quote attributed to Mark Twain in which he said, If the world comes to an end, I want to be in Cincinnati. Everything comes there 10 years later.

The book is pulled straight from the headlines of that fatal day, featuring a new personal testimony to map out each day. Moore mixes his own experience living in the area with these testimonies to create a comic that lays the foundation for the events of those six days.

For those unfamiliar with the 2001 riots, the book can be hard to follow. This works to the books advantage. News surrounding police-involved shootings and subsequent protests can also be hard to follow.

To the same end, the book references similar police-involved deaths which add to the convoluted nature of the book.

I would recommend the book to anyone. Its a great graphic representation of events leading up to the riots and a perfect example of some of the events that led to the formation of the Black Lives Matter movement.

For me, the book was not my cup of tea, but it provides a learning tool and introduction for understanding and growth.

See the rest here:
Before Black Lives Matter, Six Days in Cincinnati: A Review - The Independent

Uber has hired former U.S. attorney general Eric Holder to help lead an investigation into claims of sexual harassment and discrimination that a former female employee made public over the weekend in a highly circulated blog post.

Chief executiveTravis Kalanick told employees in a memo Monday that the review will be conducted in short order and that it will involve, among others, the participation of Arianna Huffington, founder of the Huffington Post and an Uber board member, and Liane Hornsey, the companys recently hired human resources chief.

Susan Fowler Rigetti wrote that during her year working as an engineer at Uber she and other female staffers reported multiple instances of sexual harassment and discrimination to the companys human resources department.

Rigetti wrote that soon after starting at the company she received messages from a manager stating he was in an open relationship and that he made advances toward her. When she reported the incident to human resources, Rigetti wrote, she was told it was the managers first offense and she was advised to transfer teams. Rigetti wrotethat she later learned other women had also complained about the same manager.

It was such a blatant lie that there was really nothing I could do. There was nothing any of us could do. We all gave up on Uber HR and our managers after that, wrote Rigetti, who now works for online payment firm Stripe, according to her LinkedIn profile.

In a tweet on Sunday, Kalanick called the behavior described in Rigettis blog post abhorrent & against everything we believe in and pledged that anyone who behaves this way or thinks this is OK will be fired.

The allegations come as the San Francisco-based ride-hailing service is still containing fallout over Kalanicks former role as an adviser to President Trump and the companys response to the executive order banningtravel by citizensfrom seven Muslim-majority countries.

During last months protests against the travel ban, Uber continued to provide rides to flyers arriving at New Yorks John F. Kennedy Airport even after the citys taxi cabs went on strike to show solidarity with protesters. That sparked a social media campaign calling on users to #DeleteUber, and those calls were renewed this weekend following Rigettis blog post.

In another incident, Rigetti alleges that all of the teams male engineers were given leather jackets as a company perk, but the female engineers were not because there were too few of them to qualify for a bulk discount. Rigetti reported the unequal treatment to human resources and was subsequently called into a meeting, she wrote.

The HR rep began the meeting by asking me if I had noticed that *I* was the common theme in all of the reports I had been making, and that if I had ever considered that I might be the problem, Rigetti wrote.

In his memo, Kalanick told employees that the review conducted by Holder will investigate both Rigettis claims and diversity and inclusion at Uber more broadly.

What is driving me through all this is a determination that we take whats happened as an opportunity to heal wounds of the past and set a new standard for justice in the workplace, Kalanick wrote to employees.

Uber is not the first Silicon Valley firm to face allegations of sex-based harassment and discrimination, and tech culture has been criticized in the past for being inhospitable to women and minorities. Many of the regions high-profile tech firms have come under fire for their lack of female and minority employees, particularly in engineering and other technical roles.

Kalanick wrote that 15.1 percent of Uber employees in scientist, product management and engineering roles are women, and that the company plans to publish a more comprehensive report on Ubers diversity in the coming months.

Uber representatives declined to comment for this story.

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Uber hires Eric Holder to investigate sexual harassment ...

Uber said on Monday that it is tapping former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to help conduct an investigation into sexual harassment claims made by a former employee.

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick announced the move in a letter sent around to company employees which was seen by ABC News.

The announcement came a day after Kalanick vowed to immediately investigate the allegations contained in a long blog post written Sunday by Susan Fowler, who said that she faced sexual harassment while working as a site reliability engineer at the ride-hailing technology company from November 2015 to December 2016, and that her complaints to management had gone unheeded.

In his note to employees, Kalanick said he hired Eric Holder, Attorney General under President Barack Obama, and Tammy Albarran -- who are both partners at the Washington D.C.-based law firm Covington & Burling -- to "conduct an independent review" of Fowler's claims.

"I believe in creating a workplace where a deep sense of justice underpins everything we do," Kalanick said in the memo. "What is driving me through all this is a determination that we take whats happened as an opportunity to heal wounds of the past and set a new standard for justice in the workplace."

The company plans to hold an "all hands" meeting on Tuesday to "discuss whats happened and next steps," Kalanick's note said.

Fowler, who currently works for the online payments provider Stripe, wrote in her Sunday blog post that a manager of hers when she worked at Uber had sexually harassed her over online chats. She wrote that after she took screenshots of the conversation and sent them on to HR, no action was taken.

Upper management told me that he was a high performer (i.e. had stellar performance reviews from his superiors) and they wouldnt feel comfortable punishing him for what was probably just an innocent mistake on his part," Fowler wrote.

Kalanick on Sunday called the descriptions in Fowler's post "abhorrent," saying that the actions described have no place at Uber.

"I have just read Susan Fowler's blog," he said in the Sunday statement. "What she describes is abhorrent and against everything Uber stands for and believes in."

"It's the first time this has come to my attention so I have instructed Liane Hornsey our new Chief Human Resources Officer to conduct an urgent investigation into these allegations," he added. "We seek to make Uber a just workplace for everyone and there can be absolutely no place for this kind of behavior at Uber -- and anyone who behaves this way or thinks this is OK will be fired."

Kalanick also posted his reactions to Twitter on Sunday, embedding a link to Fowlers blog post.

Uber board member and Thrive Global CEO Arianna Huffington also promised a full investigation on Sunday and asked people to email her directly about the allegations.

According to Monday's memo, Huffington, along with the company's human resources chief, will attend the "all hands" meeting on Tuesday and will conduct "group and one-on-one listening sessions" to get feedback from employees.

ABC News could not independently verify the details of Fowlers story.

See more here:
Uber hires former Attorney General Eric Holder to probe ...

Uber is bringing on former U.S. Attorney General Eric HolderEric H. HolderUber taps Eric Holder to investigate sexual harassment claims Ellison needles Perez for 'unverifiable' claim of DNC support With party in trouble, Dems hit voting laws MORE to "conduct an independent review" of sexual harassment claims made by a former employee.

"I believe in creating a workplace where a deep sense of justice underpins everything we do," Uber CEO Travis Kalanick wrote in a memo to the staff obtained by The Hill. ABC Newsfirst reported on Holder's hiring.

"What is driving me through all this is a determination that we take whats happened as an opportunity to heal wounds of the past and set a new standard for justice in the workplace," Kalanick said in the memo.

Arianna Huffington, an Uber board member, is also taking part in the review.

The announcement comes days after a former Uber reliability engineer, Susan Fowler, wrote a blog post claiming that her complaints about being sexually harassed by one of the managers over online chats went unanswered.

Upper management told me that he was a high performer (i.e. had stellar performance reviews from his superiors) and they wouldnt feel comfortable punishing him for what was probably just an innocent mistake on his part," Fowler wrote on Sunday.

After reading Fowler's blog, Kalanick denounced the behavior described, calling it "abhorrent" and "against everything we believe in."

"Anyone who behaves this way or thinks this is OK will be fired," he added.

According to the memo, Uber plans to have an "all hands" meeting on Tuesday to discuss the event and the appropriate next steps.

Here is the full memo from Uber.

Team,

Its been a tough 24 hours. I know the company is hurting, and understand everyone has been waiting for more information on where things stand and what actions we are going to take.

First, Eric Holder, former US Attorney General under President Obama, and Tammy Albarran -- both partners at the leading law firm Covington & Burling-- will conduct an independent review into the specific issues relating to the work place environment raised by Susan Fowler, as well as diversity and inclusion at Uber more broadly. Joining them will be Arianna Huffington, who sits on Ubers board, Liane Hornsey, our recently hired Chief Human Resources Officer, and Angela Padilla, our Associate General Counsel. I expect them to conduct this review in short order.

Second, Arianna is flying out to join me and Liane at our all hands meetingtomorrowto discuss whats happened and next steps. Arianna and Liane will also be doing smaller group and one-on-one listening sessions to get your feedback directly.

Third, there have been many questions about the gender diversity of Ubers technology teams. If you look across our engineering, product management, and scientist roles, 15.1% of employees are women and this has not changed substantively in the last year. As points of reference, Facebook is at 17%, Google at 18% and Twitter is at 10%. Liane and I will be working to publish a broader diversity report for the company in the coming months.

I believe in creating a workplace where a deep sense of justice underpins everything we do. Every Uber employee should be proud of the culture we have and what we will build together over time. What is driving me through all this is a determination that we take whats happened as an opportunity to heal wounds of the past and set a new standard for justice in the workplace. It is my number one priority that we come through this a better organization, where we live our values and fight for and support those who experience injustice.

Thanks,

Travis

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Uber taps Eric Holder to investigate sexual harassment claims - The Hill