Archive for the 'Jah Cure' Category

berkman@10

Published by nesson on May 20, 2008 in berkmania, beyondbroadcast, Brazil, China, family, harvard, IVY, Jah Cure, jamaica, Jamaica Express, Kevin Wallen, lessig, liberty, marijuana, nessons evidence, obama, poker, rhetorical space, sapporo, SET, the wire, trust and university. Closed

i want to thank everybody for coming here today and especially the people who were here from the beginning

eric wiseman
tom smuts
dave marglin
jon zittrain
john perry barlow
larry lessig
alex and wendy
myles berkman
fern and eric saltzman

we are here to talk about the future of the net.

my vision of the future of the net is the same as the vision i enunciated ten years ago.

cyberspace is an integrated media realm of stories told and shared by digitally connected and enabled hearts and minds.
WE are the Future of the Internet. We have good stories to live and to tell.
let us make our stories represent our values of
open code
open access
open talk
open education
let’s bridge the digital divide
let’s build the commons of the net

sitting in limbo – bless you kevin

Published by nesson on April 15, 2007 in General, Jah Cure, Kevin Wallen, rhetorical space and SET. Closed

just found this post in my unpublished draft, as far as i can tell it’s kevin in london with me at a conference some time back, just as it came off his fingertips first time.

As i sit here in London England as an international Blogers confrence i wonder what this really meas to jamaica. and as a result i have been haveing conversations with indivduals i have met oter the past few hours. the thing i am getting out of all this is that there is a great interest in jamaica however people really want to see Jamaica better represented on the internet. after having that conversation i started wondering to my self exactly what it is that the world is seeing of Jamaica on the web and the first thing that came to mind was “you are in tuned to the thinking man’s talk show, Perkings on line on power 106” and then when you tune in there is just this huge amoung of redoric and it is always the same . now i start to ask myself the question if that is what is up there and that is what the world is heartin and seening on a daily basis how can jamaicans get to where they want to do. so far we have done ok by having other peoople tell our story however i think it is time that we tell our own story. we need to find the positives and get them out there. with bloging through the Jamaica Express we are creating a different and unique kind of news paper, with pod casting we are creating radion

what if we could get agrop of Jamaicans who have the same ideas that we have, the idea of wanting to make a difference, by becoming the change they wish to see in the world thus creating the world that they would want to live in. so rether than haveing to listen to Perkings Online they could listen to something that made more sense. In the prison in Jamaica we have seen where the inmates have made a change, they have first change the way they view themselves then proceded to change the way they view they ones closest to them and now they are better equiped to make a meaningful contribution to Jamaica.

Jamaica’s story is being told, who is telling it and who do we want to tell it. there is also the thought that Jamaica’s story is worth something and that is the level of interest that others seem to have and nothing else, as a result we find ourself in a situation where people are taking from the land and planting nothing in return in some case they are destroying the earth so nothing else can be planted on it and as a result there is not much for the people to benifit from.. What would it mean if we put ourself in a position where we can recognize what is happening and some how position ourselves to better take advantage of the products that comes out of Jamaica without taking anything away from the people, sensoring or supressing the people.

sset radio kingston – 88.5fm

Published by nesson on January 27, 2007 in General, Jah Cure, jamaica, Kevin Wallen and SET. 2 Comments

Kevin Wallen (Destiny Productions) says:
hi
charley says:
hi
Kevin Wallen (Destiny Productions) says:
just got back from a meeting at dcs
charley says:
yes
Kevin Wallen (Destiny Productions) says:
we’ve got a radio station
Kevin Wallen (Destiny Productions) says:
88.5fm
charley says:
!!!!!!
Kevin Wallen (Destiny Productions) says:
the radio network is a go
charley says:
let’s not waste a minute

ANTENNA ALLIANCE

focus on my class

Published by nesson on January 31, 2006 in Brazil, China, General, harvard, Jah Cure and jamaica. Closed

i’ve been keeping a journal on the wiki of my Evidence class and finding that the focus of my blogattention has shifted from here to there.

Okay, i’m proud. Thank you Scooby. You are welcome.

Published by nesson on January 24, 2006 in General, harvard, Jah Cure, jamaica, Kevin Wallen, nessons evidence, rhetorical space, SET and trust. Closed

What you read and link to below is from the wiki for my class about Evidence, from a student in my class, Scooby, still just a name to me. As i read it here on this blog-edit page meta to what you see i see a flowering of links that could be there, grounding each reference to the foundation of our class. How do we make the wiki live?

Scooby
From CyberlawWiki

Since the first Jah Cure discussion, and particularly since the first Wendy Murphy visit, I’ve been contributing rather long-winded discourse to the Wiki in the following sections: Nuremberg, Wendy Murphy, the Confrontation Clause, etc. Typically these contributions occured at 12-2 am, whenever I had finished my reading for the next day. They contain my thoughts outside of class and not while my nose was in a book. Short of discussing a few telephone conversations or bills, that was my day, each day, during the weeks of Evidence: shower, class, retype notes, read, write the Wiki, watch 30 minutes of TV, sleep, rinse and repeat.

Weekends were somewhat different. The first weekend back, I had about 10 people over for a huge prime rib and premium wine. I really miss having gatherings like that from my previous life. I also miss having 10 funny but mature drunk people in my house. I batted about 50% that night: five HLS’ers, my closest friends, were awesome guests. Five decided to wrestle, break glasses, have newspaper fights, and generally act like 5-year olds. I thought it was the wine.

It wasn’t the wine. Speaking of whine…the first day of class, I walked in and there, under a calm, low light, with soft reggae playing, was Professor Nesson. As the class filled, he led us in stretching exercises which about half the class joined. The first week of class was incredible. Big picture stuff. Why we have a jury. And then…”why aren’t we learning “Evidence?” (Evidence without a jury isn’t Evidence)…turn up the lights, speak louder/softer/sing/dance…what about the exam…the Exam…the EXAM!” I suppose I could have gotten a few better grades had I focused on exam banks and mastering how others have issue spotted in concise prose. Having focused on the class at hand and actually enjoying myself, however, I couldn’t believe how anxiety tore this class to shreds. Within one week, the smiles and relaxation were turned to nervousness and bickering. I contributed, don’t get me wrong: part of growing up in this course was to try (and per this paragraph, not completely succeed) to stop bitching about people bitching. But come on! Maybe it’s my previous career, or maybe it’s the way I was raised, but the insulting tone of the class toward Professor Nesson was embarassing.

[nesson here: no insult seen intended, no insult taken. Anxiety is real, so deal with it.]

* I know I should…deal with it that is. I spent many years in an alternative universe that frowned upon revealing weakness or questioning the system. The last hurdle for me has been this “why isn’t everyone else where i am” arrogance. It occurs to me more and more that it’s not “them” but me that needs to adapt.

But back to the weekends, which, as I have said, were my “free time.” The rest of weekend one was spent nursing a hangover and watching movies. But as always, reading kicked in on Sunday afternoon, and we were off to the races again.

The second weekend was our three-day MLK weekend. I was getting excited. Finish notes and stuff Friday afternoon and then smooth sailing…four days to go re: reading. This class went too fast. Then, our Fearless Reader announced on that Friday, The Takehome….now, I know that he is a good hearted man. He was only trying to make things less stressful. A complete non-takehome would be: 1) focused question(s) and 2) discuss a dispute real to you and whether you think the law’s architecture can handle it…you have 3 hours. But no, Nesson’s being nice and letting us peck at question 2 in advance. But announcing it on a Friday before a long weekend? I mean, I’m not that mellow. I knew what was in store from the class with this one. The Wiki proved it: worry, worry, read into the question, negotiate…whine. I approached the question like it was on an exam with a three-hour limit. But the Friday announcement ruined the weekend for me. Sort of a guilt reaction, I suppose. As in, others are going to work on papers and I know I’m not, and thus…emotional meltdown. I finished my notes on Friday afternoon after eating a long lunch with Phil and his girlfriend, and then watched TV. On Saturday, I didn’t get out of bed until 2pm. What was I to do? Too early to start a paper, and the Little Bitter Boy remnant in me was thinking, “my classmates are going to hone their papers to a fine edge, and I miss my secretary.” So moping set in; all of Saturday was wasted. Sunday I caught up on some reading and football. Monday was a blur.

Thursday night I attended the event featuring Courtney, Kevin and Hurricane. I have a picture of Hurrincane and me…I think of Solomon and the quarter in which hand: did he murder people or is he really innocent? The best way to look at it is does it really matter what the truth is, as long as his dispute has been resolved? I spoke with Kevin for 20 minutes after most had left. I wish I could work with him in Jamaica, or somewhere similar. These stories go beyond redemption but toward a deeper understanding and societal healing, and frankly, I’m tired of picking a side and fighting and insulting the other. Let’s try to figure all of this out, shall we?

I can’t help but wonder what I can do to change or redefine the law. It’s pretty clear that the Law Lord must fashion more of a friendship with the Media Lord. Right now, the two seem to be acquaintences but not friends. Law lets Media in, he trashes the joint, but he’s invited again and again because Law believes that turning on Media may destroy him. Maybe if Media could be convinced to help educate society about the resolution phase of disputes…what the final narrative is…rather than inflame things by taking sides. I think of Nancy Grace and how pissed off she looks, how sure she is of guilt, on Court TV. Nevermind the story, “those children are dead…D-E-A-D…dead!” Criminal cases would go much faster if Ms. Grace were allowed to roam the courthouses of America with her executioner’s axe. Who needs a trial when Ms. Grace has society pissed off and unable to see, unemotionally, both sides? I wonder if any of her audience regulars will serve on juries: God help that defendant.

The last week of class was sad. We finished Expertize and moved past the last reading hump: Privilege. It was downhill from there. This class was amazing. We were educated in history, policy, trial law, evidence rules, and strategy in three weeks. The only strain was reading (and I was going outside the box on that anyway). I looked forward to class every day. I will miss this class every day.

Yesterday I read through my notes. The course fits like a glove. I feel like Nesson has taken me behind the scenes and let me see why the law runs the way it does. From a traditional standpoint, the rules makes sense. Principled sense. Except for hearsay, which makes sense if you realize the principles are inconsistent and don’t always make sense(!). Oh, and except for 412, which should be relabeled 512…that’s where it belongs. And all hail Crawford and Blakely…say what you want about Scalia, but don’t knock my libertarian hero when it comes to the criminal justice system. I’ve watched two movies today: some ridiculous werewolf movie with Christina Ricci and Snow Falling on Cedars. I highly recommend the latter. I found myself thinking of Evidence while I watched the trial and presentation of evidence and testimony. I thought of Archie Cox and integrating narratives. It was painless, and it was beautiful. I’m not only ready for the exam, I’m ready to be a lawyer.

Hurricane Came

Published by nesson on January 20, 2006 in harvard, Jah Cure, jamaica, Kevin Wallen, nessons evidence and SET. Closed

News

Carter Storms Law School

Former boxing champion bashes abuses

Published On 1/20/2006 1:20:26 AM
By PARAS D. BHAYANI
Crimson Staff Writer

Rubin Carter, know to many simply as “The Hurricane,” delivered a stirring speech to a crowd of 150 yesterday at Harvard Law School in which he lambasted the criminal justice systems in the U.S., Canada, and Jamaica for what he claimed was a high incidence of wrongful convictions and a system that is based more often on prejudice and “tunnel vision” than on evidence.

“Wake up!” he implored the crowd. “And learn that liberty and the pursuit of happiness are actually the same thing.”

Carter recounted the details of his conviction for triple murder in 1966 when he was at the height of his middleweight boxing career. He spoke of how he was saved from the electric chair only because of the quality of his legal representation, and how he still spent nearly twenty years in prison, ten of which were in the pitch dark of solitary confinement.

Carter also said that when a court granted his 1985 petition for a writ of habeas corpus—one of only three granted that year out of 8,500 filed nationwide—it effectively gave him back his freedom. In overturning Carter’s conviction, the court wrote that “the trial had been based completely on racism and not on legal evidence.” Carter, who still carries the original writ in his breast pocket, repeatedly referred to habeas corpus as “the great writ” and said that without it he would have “languished and died behind bars.”

Carter also lashed out at the criminal justice system, saying that capital punishment had turned the system into “assembly lines of death,” and pointing to the large numbers of incarcerated minorities—blacks in the U.S., Muslims in France, and Aborigines in Australia—as evidence of its shortcomings.

Carter ended with a plea for his new group, Innocence International, which he said will expose abuses and wrongful convictions in justice systems across the world.

Carter was joined at the event by Courtney Kazembe and Kevin Wallen, both of whom work in Jamaican prisons to promote “restorative justice,” and Charles R. Nesson, the Weld professor of law and the co-director of the Berkman Center for Internet and Society.

Kazembe and Wallen first spoke of their work in rehabilitating Jamaican prison inmates, and how after six years in operation, their program, Students Expressing Truth, has kept every one of its participants from becoming repeat offenders. Kazembe, who addressed the crowd first, outlined the theoretical contours of their program and how “transformation” can be used to reduce redicivism and to give people a “reason to live.”

“Our program makes people ask, ‘Why am I getting the results I’m getting in my life?,’” Kazembe said. “It’s a powerful realization where you cause people to step outside of themselves [and] take and accept responsibility.”

Immediately after Kazembe, Wallen began to fill in the details, starting with an extended anecdote about his path to becoming a teacher and motivational speaker. He told of his first meeting with Carter and how the two were invited to visit a Jamaican prison after inmates attended one of their events.

“The prison that was designed to hold 600 inmates was holding 1,800,” Wallen said. “The prisoners were in 8.5 by 5.5 by 11 foot cells, and there were a minimum of four and a maximum of nine people in each one. The inmates were locked down in their cells at 3 p.m. each day and not released until 9 a.m. the next morning.”

Wallen also spoke of the rampant homophobia in Jamaican prisons, saying that the prisons have sections labeled “Boy’s Towns” where homosexuals are isolated from the other inmates.

“If someone calls you gay and you don’t deny it, you have to go to ‘Boy’s Town,’” Wallen said. “If a cup hits the floor and you drink from it again, you’re gay. It sounds stupid and it is, but [it’s] something they have to live with.”

Of his own prison sentence, Carter said, “I sat in that cell feasting on hatred for ten years.”

—Staff writer Paras D. Bhayani can be reached at pbhayani@fas.harvard.edu.

Kevin says: nesson says:

Published by nesson on January 11, 2006 in Jah Cure, jamaica, Kevin Wallen and SET. Closed

Kevin: hay
nesson: hi
Kevin: tried callling rubin not home at the moment
nesson: ok
Kevin: will try him later
nesson: ok
Kevin: i have not heard from c&w about the machine
Kevin: or anything else for that matter
nesson: they certainly don’t seem very eager to help
Kevin: we don’t seem to be c&w top priority
Kevin: are you there
nesson: yes, thinking
nesson: you are right
nesson: what does it take for them to see us as a priority?
nesson: it has to be a story that has some media muscle
nesson: so far we haven’t done an event that will bring us to notice
Kevin: we should organize a conference that takes place in the prison
nesson: you’ve done the event, the radio transcript of jah cure. you could announce that you will use your Unchained program to play it out in serial, with commentary.
Kevin: that they would sponsor?????
nesson: and do a press conference to announce it, with rubin
nesson: get the attention first
Kevin: that could work
nesson: once you have the audience the sponsors come
Kevin: yes
Kevin: i agree
Kevin: we need to do something that has not been done
Kevin: dialogue between men and women behind bars would work
nesson: start playing rubin’s book in serial as well
Kevin: that sounds good
Kevin: however there will be a lot of beeps
nesson: yes, but bleeps are great
nesson: they make radio exciting and stimulate interest in hearing the original, which you have to offer
Kevin: ah
nesson: we could also start talking about specific post prison employment projects that we want to start up, like the landscape business, which we could get going with a pledgebank of prospective customers who say they would use the landscape/lawn service when SET sets it up
Kevin: that would definitely work
nesson: we could do the same thing with the plan to invite AFRIKA UNITED and employ SET in setting up the tour, which could be linked with the work you will be doing in partnership with Bert.
Kevin: yes
nesson: The pledgebank is an idea you can really use. You have access to a potentially huge radio audience twice a week. You can be the guy who is urging Jamaica to go broadband, extolling its virtues with demonstration of how it can help a grass roots inmate driven program like SET, and help a nation. Make yourself irresistible to C&W as a spokesperson for broadband, and if not to them then to one of their competitors.
Kevin: that sounds good
Kevin: if they see something that looks to have national appeal then perhaps they will get excited about it
nesson: Yes, and it would surely be a great thing for Jamaica if the island and its Diaspora connected with broadband. This could be the primary goal of the Diaspora effort Douglas Orane is chairing.
Kevin: i think however that if we get a conversation with the ministry of national security to meet with the men of set and have discussions on crime and violence that will have the kind of national and international appeal tha will gram the nations attention
nesson: you have the invitational power to call that meeting and put it on the air
Kevin: it was only yesterday we discussed it with the men at SET
nesson: gotta go
Kevin: cool
***

STATEofPlay JAMAICA

Published by nesson on November 28, 2005 in General, Jah Cure, jamaica, Kevin Wallen, rhetorical space and SET. Closed

Berkman Center SSET CyberStrategy
Growth Facilitators is facilitating the growth of SSET
Grow Growth Facilitators

SSET Projects to be grown by Growth Facilitators.
SSET Radio
SSET CyberSchool
SSET Landscape Care
SSET Connection with CHINA through AFRIKA UNITED
SSET Production of THE HARDER THEY FALL
SSET Creation of JAMAICA as a VIRTUAL WORLD
SSET …

Reading Jah Cure’s Trial Transcript

Published by nesson on November 24, 2005 in General, Jah Cure, jamaica and nessons evidence. 14 Comments

my study, early morining, thanksgiving, 2005, cambridge, massachusetts, united states of america, planet earth, sitting before the blinking lights of my modem, back against the roller of my massage chair, stevie nicks singing in my ear, jah cure’s transcript now finally open before me on my lap. thank you roderick for obaining it for me and sending it fedex to me. hello my evidence class. let your advance reading and preparation for nesson’s winter evidence begin. hello jackie, alex and diane, hello first year reading group, hello fans of socrates and poker, hello to the categories listed to the right, a taxonomy of thought and action i&i will organize. shall we reproduce copies of the transcript at the copy center? shall we ask pitf fellows to help us reconstruct the crime? shall we use flash software that will enable all to ask their questions, with each question represented by a pyramid that shows up along a time line so that we can see where our questions and suggestions cluster?

read with respect and empathy for the victim. she has been twice victimized, once by being robbed and raped, a second time by the pressure she has felt from some of those who would free Jah Cure. she must not be victimized again.

This man needs legal help, but …

Published by nesson on November 11, 2005 in General, Jah Cure, jamaica, rhetorical space, SET and trust. Closed

Irie FM bans Jah Cure’s music

Basil Walters, Observer staff reporter
Thursday, November 10, 2005

JAH CURE. serving a 15-year sentence for rape robbery with aggravation and illegal possession of a firearm

Irie FM has slapped a ban on the music of Jah Cure after staff at the popular radio station received threats from persons claiming to be associated with the singer who is serving time in prison for rape, robbery with aggravation and illegal possession of a firearm.

Yesterday, marketing manager for the Ocho Rios-based all reggae radio station, Brian Schmidt, told the Observer that the station had vowed not to be intimidated by the threats.

“Over a period of time, people who are associated with Jah Cure have been calling the station issuing threats to members of staff, demanding that they play more of his music,” Schmidt said. “We have therefore taken a principled decision that we’re not to bow to any threats of any kind.”

Schmidt declined to give details about the nature of the threats, offering only that “they were threats against the personal security of staff members”.

Jah Cure, whose real name is Siccaturie Alcock, was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment on April 26, 1999 for two counts of rape, robbery with aggravation and illegal possession of firearm, all arising from the same incident. At the time he was 19 years old.

In recent time, specifically through the new music component of the penal system’s rehabilitation programme, Jah Cure has been given the privilege to record a number of songs which have become instant hits.

His current hit song, True Reflection, was recorded for producer Joe Bogdanavich’s Downsound Records label.
Bogdanavich could not be contacted yesterday for comment on the Irie FM action.

Jah Cure has made history of sorts, being the first entertainer who has come to national prominence while being incarcerated.

Last year, Jah Cure, who was transferred to the Tower Street Adult Correctional Centre from the St Catherine Adult Correctional Centre two years ago, had an application for parole turned down despite a passionate campaign by concerned friends, family and entertainers. He had become eligible for parole on July 28, 2003.