Category: Uncategorized

It is with dismay that we note the appearance over the weekend of an AP news story about Abdel-Jabbar Hamdan, an “unindicted co-conspirator” in the federal case against the Holy Land Foundation. With a Dallas jury in mid-deliberation on the fate of the five who have been indicted, we wonder what purpose is the story about Hamdan supposed to serve?–gm

NEWS ADVISORY

For Immediate Release: November 19, 2007
Contact: Camm Lary – (512) 756-2156

Who: Concerned residents of Burnet County.
What: A public meeting with the Burnet County Commissioner’s Court.
When: Monday, November 19th at 7:00pm.
Where: Old courthouse on the square in Burnet, Texas.

Burnet County Residents Oppose Private Detention Center
Proposed 500-bed Jail Would Hurt Burnet’s Reputation

“No Private Jail” Group to speak at Monday meeting

Burnet, TX – This Monday, concerned Burnet County residents will hold a public meeting with Burnet County Commissioners to discuss their opposition to a proposed 500-bed private detention center. The meeting will take place Monday, November 19th, at Old Courthouse on the square in Burnet at 7:00pm.

Burnet County residents are concerned that the proposed jail will be operated by a Louisiana-based for-profit private prison corporation, that out-of-county prisoners will shipped to the prison, and that Burnet County has taken steps to float revenue bonds to pay for the prison, which could endanger the county’s future bond rating, without a public vote.

Private prison corporations have a track record that include human rights abuses, lawsuits, higher rates of violence, and financial mismanagement. Research shows that prison construction has no positive economic impact on communities. Counties that finance private prison construction have been held liable for abuses that take place in the prisons.

We begin with a the Rio Grande Guardian tribute by Michele Angél: “Tributes have poured in from South Texas for Equity Center founder Craig Foster for the pivotal role he played in helping property-poor schools receive a fair share of state funding.

“Foster, whose encyclopedic grasp of school finance and the tax system was used extensively in court during the landmark Edgewood ISD v. Kirby lawsuit against the state, is credited with helping change the way the state of Texas funds its public schools.”

To study a problem, to know it well, to speak credibly about human inequities: the life of Craig Foster shows how these things do make history.

NOTE: this event is being re-scheduled, probably for mid-November.

Friends, I am letting you know the dates of our 3-day Hutto Walk III 10-14/16) so you can mark these on your calendar right now. Details will be forthcoming soonest and are being worked out by the local T. Don Hutto opposition group from Taylor and the surrounding area…we’re also in the process of selecting a snazzy name for ourselves).

That’s a Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday in mid-October, winding up at the weekely meeting of the Williamson County Commissioners’ Court in Georgetown, TX that begins at 9:30 a.m.

We’re seeking your participation as you are able on any or all of these three unprecedented days!

Thanks,
Jane Leatherman Van Praag