“There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.– Nelson Mandela Malveaux Looks Beyond Zimmerman See Page 21 •
C e l e b r a t i n g 4 8 Ye a r s o f S e r v i c e
•
Serving More Than 50,000 African American Readers Throughout The Metropolitan Area / Vol. 48, No. 40 July 18 - July 24 2013
If Veto Comes, Wal-Mart Stays By Barrington M. Salmon WI Staff Writer Mayor Vincent C. Gray (D) is in the hot seat. He has the unenviable task of deciding whether to veto a D.C. Council bill that would set $12.50 as a living wage for employees of large retail companies. On July 9, the council voted 8-5 for the measure, called the Large Retailer Accountability Act (LRAA). It would require businesses that make more than $1 billion annually or which operate in spaces 75,000-squarefeet or larger, to pay their employees $12.50 an hour. That vote drew the ire of WalMart officials who have accused councilmembers of operating in bad faith. Prior to the vote, one senior official threatened to abandon the six stores the company proposed to bring to the city unless Gray vetoes the bill. Alex Barron, a regional general manager for Wal-Mart U.S., describes the legislation as “arbitrary and discriminatory” that “discourages investment in Washington.” Because the council passed the bill, Wal-Mart has decided not to build proposed stores at Skyland, Capitol Gateway or New York Avenue. And with passage of the bill, Wal-
See WAL-MART on Page 14
The Rev. Al Sharpton and other prominent ministers make an appeal for a federal investigation into the shooting death of Trayvon Martin in front of the Department of Justice in Northwest on Tuesday, July 16. /Courtesy Photo
Zimmerman Walks Acquittal Spurs Protests, Outrage By Stacy M. Brown and Barrington M. Salmon WI Staff Writers In the days since a six-woman jury returned a not guilty verdict in the George Zimmerman trial, protests have broken out in communities across the country and people representing a rainbow
of cultures and ethnicities have vowed to fight against a system they assert places no value on the lives of African Americans. The jury deliberated for 16 hours over two days and at 9:59 p.m. Saturday, July 13 found Zimmerman not guilty of murdering Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teen who he fol-
lowed after seeing him walking in a gated community in Sanford, Fla. The verdict brings to a close a three-week trial in a racially-charged case that polarized the nation and illustrates the deep divide that still separates America. Some blamed the prosecution for a poorly prepared
Visit us online for daily updates and much more @ www.washingtoninformer.com. WPAS, Others Receive White House Honors Page 4
Gray Supports Tougher Paraphernalia Law Page 10
case but the verdict illustrates the primacy of Florida’s ‘Stand Your Ground Law’ which came under intense scrutiny as a result of the killing. The law grants immunity to those who use deadly force inside and outside of the home, if the person can “rea-
Follow us on
Informer Exclusive with Poet Nikki Giovanni Page 23
See VERDICT on Page 8 and on DCTV 95 & 96