By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on July 12, 2024 I started my journalism career on July 14, 2013 with an article on the wrongful death of Trayvon Martin in Florida. I used Facebook as my free news distribution platform.  My Trayvon Martin article, which was shared 44 times, had less than 300 viewers. By 2018, my readership had grown to the point where I needed my own news website and the freedom to publish content without the risk of Facebook censorship.  This is when I launched www.donaldwatkins.com. Two things have happened since this website was launched.  First, my readership has grown to over 260,000 readers per month.  Second, my Facebook page drives less than 10% of the Internet traffic that feeds this website. Access to this website is free and publicly available. There is no pay-wall for print or video content on the website. Furthermore, we do not sell our Google analytical data to anyone. I will continue to co-publish my news articles, editorials, and investigative reports on my Facebook page, but I will use Facebook primarily for news of state and local interest. This publication change is effective immediately. Since January 2024, I have been flooded with unsolicited offers to: (a) place ads on my website, (b) implement and manage subscription fees for access to news content, and (c) publish third-party articles for a fee. All three revenue-generating offers have been summarily rejected. With a library of over 1,000 copyrighted news articles, editorials, and exclusive investigative reports, we can easily increase our readership to well over 500,000 per month across all four of my interactive digital media platforms by the end of 2025.  Readers around the world are accessing these articles -- for free -- 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.  We can track the readership for each article. Our articles cover a wide range of issues of significant public interest in America and abroad.  My leading articles detail the Royal Bloodline of Jesus and Mary Magdalene and profile the Rothschild family's banking empire.  Over 510,618 readers have viewed these two articles, alone. Our readership has transformed from a mostly Black audience in 2013 to a mostly Caucasion one today. This audience is economically diverse, global in scope, very sophisticated, and extremely loyal. We Represent the Future of Multimedia Digital News We have come a long way since November 7, 1999, the date upon which the Birmingham News (known today as AL.com) published a racist cartoon encouraging then-Birmingham Mayor Bernard Kincaid to squash me to death, as though I was a blood-sucking insect. As you can see, the News published the same kind of racist cartoon on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1967. Four years after white supremacists killed four little girls in the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, the News deliberately and falsely portrayed the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize winner as a very violent man. We survived this form of Old South, Alabama-based racism, and much worst from the guardians of white supremacy in the state. They simply can't help themselves. As the ultra-conservative U.S. Supreme Court affirmed on June 8, 2023, the guardians of this kind of racial hatred thrive on keeping Alabama's Black citizens downtrodden, "from the cradle to the grave." Today, the Birmingham News/AL.com is just another one of those dying media organizations that peddles favorable news coverage for cash. We leave the "bought" news and "Happy News" operations to AL.com and other "pay-to-spin" news media hustlers. There is a thirst for independent, un-spun news coverage on domestic and international matters of significant public interests. We are working to position our digital news platforms to quench this thirst. We are off to a great start in this regard. We are committed to bringing our readers hard news, high-quality editorials, and solid investigative reports that are informative and free of spin.  We can only do so by remaining “unbought” and “unbossed.”

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on July 5, 2024 An Editorial Opinion The daily shootouts and killings on the streets of Birmingham, Alabama are continuing at an alarming pace.  Six homicides have occured in the last seven days. Right now, Birmingham is as dangerous as any war zone. Until Mayor Randal Woodfin can be replaced or the state of Alabama takes over the police function in Birmingham, the city can retake control of its streets and neighborhood from drug dealers and gang members by aggressively implementing the following crime-fighting measures: 1. Declare war on violent crimes within the city and mean it.  Put the city’s money on the front-line of the fight against violent crime. 2. Hire the amount of new police officers needed to fully staff the police department with 900 sworn officers. The city's police chief has publicly stated that 900 is the number of sworn officers he needs to provide adequate police protection within the city limits. Right now, the police department only has 430 sworn officers, including the 10 who guard Woodfin and his immediate family. 3. Pay a one-time signing bonuses of $10,000 to each new officer hired and a one-time retention bonus of $10,000 to each existing officer on the force. The officers must agree to remain on the force for a minimum of three years after accepting their signing and/or retention bonuses. 4. Pay a $2,000 per month housing stipend to any police officer who is willing to relocate to the top ten most violent crime areas in the city and live in those communities for a minimum period of three years. 5. Saturate high crime areas with sophisticated surveillance cameras that are actively monitored by a dedicated force of not less than 36 police department employees (i.e., 12 employees per 8-hour shift, 365 days per year).  The police department’s deployment and increased use of visual information technology systems will give it a strategic advantage over street criminals. 6. Ramp up and expand the use of random street checkpoints throughout the highest violent crime areas in the city.  This law enforcement tool is particularly effective between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m., seven days per week. 7. Expand and enhance the use of the police department’s vast network of paid informants. Offer a cash reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the prevention of a planned mass shooting, drive-by shooting, or gang-sanctioned “hit.”  Likewise, a reward of $10,000 should be offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of a person who committed an unlawful homicide within the city limits of Birmingham in cases where the suspect is not already known.  Reward money is the most effective tool in the crime fighting arsenal because there is no loyalty within the ranks of drug dealers and gang members. Any one of them will sellout a relative, fellow drug dealer, or gang member for money. 8. Coordinate with the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office to vigorously oppose bail bonds in all unlawful homicide cases where a firearm, physical force, arson, or a cutting device was used to kill the homicide victim. State court judges who facilitate the easy release of violent criminals must be targeted for defeat in the next election cycle. 9. Use overwhelming force when arresting drug kingpins and gang leaders. These arrests should be recorded on video, when possible, and made available to news organizations in real-time.  This technique will embarrass and humiliate drug kingpins and gang leaders in front of their peers and underlings. 10. Demand that the hundreds of paid and unpaid police informants spread the word within their respective criminal networks and/or communities that the police department is implementing a new program that is specifically designed to crush drug kingpins and gang leaders and quash their violent street crimes. The law enforcement tools needed to retake the streets of Birmingham already exist within the world of professional law enforcement. The city has the money to implement this crime-fighting plan but it is being diverted to (a) pay useless consultants and (b) fund pet projects that have been successfully pitched to City Hall by over-the-mountain panhandlers. Nothing short of these practical and effective law enforcement measures will curb the surging violent crimes in Birmingham.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on July 4, 2024 EXCLUSIVE BREAKING NEWS --- The Washington insiders who told us in March 2024 that the U.S. Supreme Court would rule in Donald Trump’s favor on his claim of presidential immunity by a 6-3 vote, now tell us Joe Biden will drop out of the presidential race next week.  Biden is simply too old, infirmed, and senile to continue in the race. Things came to a head last weekend when Biden had his crack and cocaine-addicted son Hunter Biden giving him advice on whether to stay in the race.  News of that shocking event sent Democratic-leaning mega-donors fleeing. Democrats are expected to have an open mini-primary between now and the Party's national convention in August to determine who Biden's replacement will be. Any selection process other than that one would be an unmitigated political disaster. My group of California-based independent mega-donors would support a nominee like Michelle Obama, if she is drafted by convention delegates to run against Donald Trump. A Reuters/Ipsos poll released Tuesday shows Michelle Obama leading Trump 50% to 39% in a hypothetical matchup.  No other Democrat leads Trump in the poll. We will NOT support any Democrat who does not have a credible poll showing him/her leading Donald Trump in a head-to-head match-up.  We are not interested in financing the political egos of would-be nominees who cannot defeat Trump. Meanwhile, we are committed to delivering up to $75 million to the presidential nominee of our choice. We don’t need a star-studded Hollywood gala to deliver our group’s mega-donations.  We do, however, require a private meeting with the nominee to go over our group’s political agenda to determine if it is compatible with the nominee’s agenda. We will not meet with surrogates who seek to stand in for the nominee for the purpose of collecting our money. This is not a photo-op exercise for us. It is serious political business and it must be treated as such by the nominee.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on July 2, 2024 An Editorial Opinion Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Donald Trump has absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for his official acts as president.  This immunity is a new weapon that no president enjoyed before yesterday’s court ruling. Because an old, frail, and senile Joe Biden refuses to drop out of the 2024 presidential race, Donald Trump will likely become the 47th president of the United States.  According to a Rasmussen Poll released yesterday, 63% of Americans think the country is heading in the wrong direction and 55% of them disapprove of Biden's handling of the job as president. Joe Biden’s close family members will not permit him to exit the race in a graceful manner. "If You Go After Me, I’m Coming After You" -- Donald Trump, August 4, 2023 Donald Trump believes in administering retribution to those whom he perceives have wronged him.  This has been the story of Trump's life. After Trump defeats Biden in November, he will immediately mobilize government agencies like the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and Department of Justice (DOJ) and direct them to target and prosecute his designated “enemies of state.”  Without hesitation or reservation, these agency heads will oblige Trump and work together to carry out an unbearable Blitzkrieg against Trump’s designated enemies. Here are the Americans who are most likely in the first group of Donald Trump’s list of “enemies of state:” Special Counsel Jack Smith, Attorney General Merrick Garland, and top officials in the Department of Justice, Criminal Division. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and her former lover, Nathan J. Wade. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Dr. Anthony Fauci. New York Attorney General Letitia James. Actor George Clooney. Actor Robert Di Nero. Members of the Biden family who made money from foreign companies while Joe Biden was Vice President. Members of Congress’ January 6th Committee. New York State Court Judge Juan Merchan. New York State Court Judge Arthur Engoron. U.S. District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. The Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling has given Donald Trump a greenlight to order a full-scale Blitzkrieg against these Americans.  No Trump-appointed IRS, FBI, SEC, or DOJ agency head will refuse to obey his Blitzkrieg orders. The Blitzkrieg, which is described in Congressional reports, was a favorite technique of these government agencies during the COINTELPRO-era (1956 to 1971).  It destroyed tens of thousands of innocent lives. Donald Trump is prepared to take COINTELPRO Blitzkrieg activities to an unprecedented level.  There is nothing anybody in or out of MAGA world can do to prevent these activities from happening because the Supreme Court literally made Donald Trump a "King" on July 1st. Once again, tens of thousands of innocent lives will be destroyed simply because Donald Trump, who has now been armed with presidential super-powers, believes in retribution against his perceived “enemies of state.”

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on June 29, 2024 An Editorial Opinion The American public has reached this consensus on Joe Biden: He is too old and senile to serve a second term as president.  Despite this consensus, Democrats intend to “ride or die” with Biden. As such, Donald Trump will win the 2024 presidential election by default. There is no credible national poll showing Joe Biden leading the presidential race.  Biden is trailing Donald Trump by at least 6 points.  Biden’s debate performance was revealed his deteriorating mental acuity to the American people – he’s senile. No Special Counsel or district attorney is going to knock Donald Trump out of the race.  On Monday morning, the MAGA-dominated U.S. Supreme Court will hand Donald Trump presidential immunity for every state and federal crime he is alleged to have committed. Rank and file Democrats can “crash and burn” with Joe Biden, but I cannot and will not do so.  As a registered political independent, I will not subordinate my political interests to the ego and aspirations of an old, senile, 81-year-old, washed up, career Washington politician. My California-based independent political friends and I must now decide what to do about the race under these fu*ked up circumstances, which are NOT of our making.  In the coming weeks, we will determine what course of action is in our best interest. Those who have hijacked the Democratic Party are still trying to sell a repackaged version of Joe Biden to donors and the American public.  These peddlers of spoiled political meat have zero credibility with us. For all practical purposes, Democrats have handed an unhinged and deeply flawed Donald Trump a political victory he could never have won on the merits against a mentally competent, politically savvy, high-quality nominee. In the end, Democrats have failed all Americans.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on June 28, 2024 An Editorial Opinion The first presidential debate is over. It was a complete disaster for President Joe Biden! Democrats, I warned you that Joe Biden’s time in Washington has come and gone.  You ignored my numerous prior warnings. During Thursday night’s president debate, Americans saw for themselves that Biden is not mentally or physically fit to serve another four years as President of the United States. Democrats, you must dump Joe Biden now and draft a presidential nominee who has a reasonable chance to defeat Donald Trump.  That nominee cannot be Vice President Kamala Harris.  Her approval ratings are lower than Biden’s. I am a California-based registered independent voter.  Presently, I am not committed to any presidential nominee.  I will make not my decision on who to support for president until after Labor Day. I am also part of a tight circle of friends, entrepreneurs, and independent voters in California who plan to donate up to $75 million to a Super-PAC affiliated with the presidential nominee of our choice after we caucus in September.  All of us are uncommitted voters at this juncture. I can tell you now that Joe Biden will NOT be getting this Super-PAC money!  He simply cannot win! We have absolutely no interest in being politically wedded to a "loser." For the record, here are some of my many prior warnings about Joe Biden’s deteriorating mental and physical condition: 1. Democrats Must Dump Biden in 2024, published on January 16, 2022. 2. I Am Saying It Again: Donald Trump Will Win the Presidency in 2024, published on July 11, 2023. 3. The Objective Evidence Today Points to Donald Trump’s Election as America’s 47th President, published on March 27, 2024. 4. The Ten Reasons Why I Will Not Support Joe Biden in 2024, published on April 30, 2024. Barring "Divine Intervention," Donald Trump will win the presidency in November if Joe Biden continues as the Democrats' nominee for president. I know it, and now the whole world knows it.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on June 21, 2024 U.S. District Court Judge Liles C. Burke. An Editorial Opinion I will make this Op-Ed article plain and simple. Transgender Americans are hated by the political oligarchy that runs Alabama – a state with a long, ugly, well-documented, and proud history of discriminating against blacks, women, LGBTQ Americans, and other marginalized groups, from the “cradle to the grave.” Transgender Americans and their attorneys are the latest targets of an unrelenting campaign of political attacks by state officials and a small group of federal judges in Alabama. Today, brave attorneys who litigate cases for transgender rights in federal court are being subjected to a form of judicial tyranny, bigotry, and hatred by four federal judges in Alabama that has not been seen in the state since the judicial lynching of the nine Scottsboro Boys in the 1930s. The reign of judicial terror that that has been directed at this group of attorneys is far greater than the racial hatred experienced by the attorneys for the Scottsboro Boys. In the last two years, United States District Court Judges in Alabama -- Jeffery U. Beaverstock (Mobile), W. Keith Watkins (Montgomery), and R. David Proctor (Birmingham), and Liles C. Burke (Huntsville) -- have taken it upon themselves to: (a) crush the budding transgender movement in Alabama, (b) trash the legal rights of transgender citizens in the state, and (c) terrorize the attorneys who skillfully and aggressively represent transgender Americans in federal courts located in the state. I refer to these four judges as the "Gang of Four." The Gang of Four's shameful judicial abuse of the targeted attorneys for LGBTQ Americans and their causes is discussed in detail in my June 8, 2024, Op-Ed article on this subject. Judges Beaverstock, Watkins, and Proctor assigned the role of “executioner” to Judge Liles Burke, a right-wing, ultra-conservative Donald Trump-appointee who displays a fanatical hostility to members of the LGBTQ Bar in Alabama and around the country. Burke will decide what judicial sanctions, if any, are needed to drive the targeted LGBTQ attorneys out of Alabama. Burke will also determine the manner, means, and timing of his judicial "execution" of these attorneys. Judge Burke is a bigger threat to the constitutional and civil rights of LGBTQ Americans than any bigot who wears a white robe and burns crosses in the dead of night. Burke's black robe projects to the public a presumption of legitimacy that bigots wearing white robes lack. The venom that has spewed from recent Orders issued by the Gang of Four after they commenced a 2022 Star-Chamber "inquiry" into whether the targeted and railroaded attorneys for LGBTQ Americans engaged in impermissible “judge shopping” has reached toxic levels. This venom also threatens the basic civil and constitutional rights of all transgender people, other marginalized groups in Alabama, and their legal counsel. On June 14, 2024, Judge Burke issued a 51-page Order that reeks of personal animosity toward four of the eleven attorneys for transgender litigants who have been targeted by the Gang of Four. Burke's Order evidences a form of heightened judicial bigotry that exceeds the level of hatred spewed by the most bigoted judge in the Scottsboro Boys case. [Read the Order by clicking here.] Judge Burke’s June 14th Order amounts to anti-transgender bigotry on steroids. Like the ringleader of a lynch mob, Burke is eager to sanction these four brave attorneys. In fact, he can barely contain himself in carrying out this judicial lynching. At a time when the public’s confidence in the federal judiciary is at an all-time low, Judge Burke feels compelled and empowered to drag it all the way down to the gutter. While Burke has a First Amendment right to be a flaming bigot against LGBTQ Americans, he has absolutely NO right to use the imprimatur of the United States Judiciary to push his personal hatred of transgender Americans onto their attorneys or anyone else.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on June 20, 2024 An Editorial Opinion An immediate family member of Birmingham First Lady Kendra Nicole Woodfin (nee Morris) was shot and critically wounded in the Ensley community last week.  The Birmingham Police Department (BPD), which releases daily reports on shootings in and around the city, has suppressed all news regarding this violent crime. Mayor Randal Woodfin has failed to publicly disclose this shooting, as well. The victim of this shooting remains hospitalized in critical condition.  We are aware of the victim’s name, the circumstances surrounding this shooting, the critical nature of the injuries sustained by this crime victim, and where he is hospitalized.  Out of respect for this crime victim and the Morris family, we are not naming the victim until the BPD releases his name in one of its daily briefings on gun-related crimes in the city. Normally, BPD's daily gun-related crime briefings are issued at the time of the crime. This BPD protocol was not followed in the case of Mayor Woodfin's in-law. BPD's suppression of a daily news release on the shooting in this case has not been explained by Mayor Woodfin, or City Hall, or the police department. Additionally, news of the shooting has not appeared in any local media.  For example, AL.com has not reported on this violent crime in any fashion. This Birmingham-based news organization receives city tax dollars (that are funneled through another local news group) to publish favorable articles on Mayor Woodfin.  Carol Robinson, AL.com’s beat reporter who covers BPD daily crime reports, has not published a single article about the shooting of Mayor Woodfin’s in-law or the victim’s critical condition. It should be noted that the shooting incident involving Mayor Woodfin’s in-law occurred during the same week that two state lawmakers introduced a bill to take over Birmingham's police department until law and order can be restored in the city.  Presently, the BPD operates with only 430 police officers of the 900 it needs to be fully staffed. While Mayor Woofin enjoys a bevy of bodyguards for police protection, his in-law did not. Now, this shooting victim is fighting for his life. The last time a Birmingham police chief tampered with government records for the purpose of suppressing a crime report, he was indicted on December 10, 1990, tried in May 1991, and found guilty of violating §13A–10–12(a)(2), Alabama Code (1975) on May 24,1991.   Authur Deutcsh was that man.  Chief Deutcsh, along with officer Bob Howell and Jail Administrator Robert Stone, were convicted of this offense. It's too early to tell whether history is repeating itself with respect to current Police Chief Scott Thurmond and his handling of city crime records involving the shooting of Mayor Woodfin’s in-law.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on June 18, 2024. Charles Colcock Jones Sr. (December 20, 1804 – March 16, 1863) was an American Presbyterian clergyman, educator, and planter in Liberty County, Georgia.  He was both a slave owner and an evangelical missionary to slaves. Jones, who owned plantations in Arcadia, Montevideo, and Maybank, Georgia, published several books, including "The Religious Instruction of the Negroes in the United States" (1842).  This book was an appeal to slave owners and ministers to provide religious instruction to slaves. During this period, Jones wrote additional tracts and papers on the religious instruction of slaves that were eventually published in 2006 as a book with commentary and analysis by Kamau Makesi-Tehuti. Titled, "How to Make a Negro Christian,"this book raised the central question, “What will be the benefit of giving enslaved Afrikans Christianity?” Jones answered this question directly and clearly as follows: "It is a matter of astonishment, that there should be any objection at all; for the duty of giving religious instruction to our Negroes, and the benefits flowing from it, should be obvious to all. The benefits, we conceive to be incalculably great, and [one] of them [is] there will be greater subordination . . .amongst the Negroes,” (Page 52). The lessons of Christianity that was beaten into American slaves by Jones and other slave owners in slaveholding states were: Ephesians 6:5: “Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ.” Colossians 3:22: “Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord.” 1 Peter 2:18: “Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh.” The evangelization of slavery created a system that made slaves and subsequently freed Negroes more submissive, subservient, and easier to control by converting them to Christianity.  Over time, Jones' methods proved highly successful and became standard operating procedure for controlling slaves. Jones' brand of Christianity also achieved essentially the same results for most freed Negroes in America over the 159 years since slavery ended. "Those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it." -- George Santayana

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on June 16, 2024 BREAKING NEWS --- On May 29, 2024, California-based OxyNol Solutions executed a Master Services Agreement with New Delhi, India-based Marquee Equity to raise $200 million USD in debt financing and an additional $100 million USD in eligible carbon credit monetization transactions (for 280,342 to 841,026 tons of carbon credits produced per year over a 20-year period) for OxyNol Solutions’ planned waste-to-fuel facility in the Durban/Mandeni Region of South Africa. OxyNol Solutions (formerly known as Masada Resource Group, LLC) is a competitive and responsible provider of proven and environmentally friendly waste-to-fuel technology solutions.  Due to sustained geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East, Masada rebranded itself in May 2024 as OxyNol Solutions. OxyNol Solutions has assembled a team of world-class professionals, risk mitigation experts, information technology firms, EPC management firms, and key external vendors for the construction, start-up, and operation of its CES OxyNol facility in South Africa. The company's innovative Green Energy Program is second to none. OxyNol Solutions is also working with Dr. Amin Y. Ghanem, General Manager for North Africa and the Middle East, to develop, construct, commission, and operate CES OxyNol facilities in Tangier and Casablanca, Morocco. Finally, OxyNol Solutions offers the world smart, clean, environmentally friendly solutions for waste-to-fuel conversion. As a global industry leader in the green energy space, OxyNol Solutions knows that the surging demand for clean fuels conquers all adversity and presents exciting international business opportunities for those who are prepared for them.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on June 14, 2024 An Editorial Opinion Saving the city of Birmingham, Alabama from violent street gang shootouts and cartel-level drug dealing is NOT a racial issue.  It is NOT a Democrat versus Republican issue.  It is NOT a political power grab.  It is NOT a political stunt. This responsible government action is simply the right thing to do for Birmingham residents whose tax dollars entitle them to adequate and effective police protection. What is more, adequate and effective police protection is one of the seven basic city services to which every Birmingham resident is entitled in exchange for the payment of his/her local taxes.  Birmingham is obligated to provide adequate and effective public safety regardless of who serves as the city's mayor and city council members. Today, public safety in Birmingham has collapsed.  Drug-dealing and gang violence has spiraled out of control.  Property values have plummeted.  The city is a war zone.  Bullet casings and bodies are piling up in the streets.  Birmingham is dying, literally and figuratively. A Fully Staffed Birmingham Police Department Requires 900 Sworn Officers A fully staffed Birmingham police department requires 900 sworn police officers.  Today, the city only has 430 officers working in three shifts of 143 officers per shift to provide administrative services, special operations, around-the-clock mayoral security, and public safety in 99 neighborhoods and communities.  This drastic reduction in force has created an immediate and extreme risk of danger to police officers on the force and the public. For the first time in its history, the city of Birmingham is failing to provide adequate and effective police protection for its citizens.  Furthermore, City Hall has failed to offer any practical and effective solutions for combatting skyrocketing violent crime in the streets.  What is worse, the city is totally unprepared to deal with the most violent and ruthless street gang in town --Tren de Aragua. Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan street gang, infiltrated Birmingham in 2021.  These gang members are more violent than the fictional drug gang members depicted in Al Pacino's 1983 movie, "Scarface."  Within a year, the members of this gang, alone, will outnumber the 430 sworn officers on Birmingham’s police force.  Sadly, Birmingham City Hall is unprepared for the threat-level posed by Tren de Aragua. A Practical and Effective Solution to Birmingham's Runaway Violent Crime This week, State Rep. Reed Ingram and State Senator Will Barfoot proposed legislation that would allow the state of Alabama to take over police departments that fail to provide the basic public safety function of adequate and effective police protection. Rep. Ingram likened this proactive public safety measure to the state's takeover of failing public school systems. Reed says the state would work with a city’s mayor while taking over the top positions in the police department. Birmingham is familiar with this takeover concept. The city experienced a state takeover of its failing public school system from 2012 to 2015.  Randall Woodfin, the city's current mayor, was president of the Birmingham City School Board from 2013 to 2015. Before the state could take over a city’s police department, the number of sworn officers needed for full staffing must be down by 30%.  Today, Birmingham employs less than half of the officers it needs to provide adequate and effective police protection for its citizens. The proposed legislation has been endorsed by Everett Johnson, President of the Alabama Chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police.  I endorse it, as well. In fact, on May 19, 2024, I called upon Gov. Kay Ivey to activate the National Guard to restore law and order in Birmingham as a temporary solution to this law enforcement crisis.  The Guard could supplement the city’s woefully anemic police force until it is brought back up to 900 officers. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, proactively deployed her state's National Guard to provide much-needed public safety for New York City's subway system. It worked. Unless Gov. Ivey calls a special session to address skyrocketing violent crime in Mobile, Montgomery, and Birmingham, lawmakers will not consider the Ingram-Barfoot bill until the regular session of the Legislature begins in January 2025. As a former Birmingham resident and taxpayer whose ultra-modern Class A office building in the upscale Highland Avenue South section of the city lost $3.2 million in value due to rising crime and other negative demographic factors, I strongly encourage the passage of the proposed Ingram-Barfoot public safety legislation. It's a solid, practical, sensible, and workable solution to the out-of-control violent crime problem that has plagued Birmingham. Any mayor who enjoys 24-hour police protection at home and at work that is provided by a heavily-armed executive security detail (of up to 10 police officers) should NOT object to this reasonable, non-partisan, and effective public safety legislation.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on May 19, 2024 An Editorial Opinion Numbers don’t lie. Here’s the cold, hard truth about the deteriorating public safety situation in Birmingham, Alabama. Fully staffed, the Birmingham Police Department requires 900 sworn officers to provide adequate public safety in the city. During the past seven years, the money needed for a fully staffed police department has been diverted to support an army of highly-paid department heads, assistants in the mayor’s office, non-essential consultants, and pet projects for rich and powerful special interest groups. Much of this spending was pure “pork” for political cronies who brought no real value to the table. Today, the city budgets for only 725 sworn officers while employing only 430 officers. Morale within the dwindling ranks of Birmingham police officers is at an all-time low, according to a May 17, 2024, investigative report by WVTM13 reporter Jon Paepcke. The city plans to remedy this chronic understaffing by organizing and implementing a 200-person Civilian Observer Patrol. Members of the Patrol will monitor criminal activity in the city's most dangerous neighborhoods and call the police department whenever they see these crimes in progress. This ill-conceived, knee-jerk plan will only get more innocent people -- namely, the unarmed members of the Civilian Patrol Observers -- killed or wounded when they encounter hardcore gang members and drug dealers in the midst of committing their various violent crimes. This is particularly true for crimes like drive-by shootings, turf wars, carjackings, armed robberies, and the street execution of rival gang members. In the last seven years, more than 914 people have been victims of violent homicides in the city. The victim count increases everyday. During the same seven-year period, more than 17,630 have fled the city like war refugees. No one is safe in Birmingham except for privileged city, county, state, and federal officials who have full-time security details. Property values in the city have plummeted. Residential properties and commercial buildings in the most dangerous parts of the city have almost no fair market value as collateral on bank loan applications. Historically white and private Birmingham-Southern College, which is located off Arkadelphia Road, is closing its doors at the end of the month rather than trying to survive in a war zone. Its students have transferred to safer locations. For the past seven years, city schools, which are NOT underfunded, have occupied a permanent place on the state’s list of failed schools. Unbelievably, there are two "Magnet" schools on the list of failed schools. Once booming businesses within the city are collapsing, and many of them are fleeing to safer locations. The numbers confirm that public safety is NOT a priority at City Hall, even though public safety is one of the seven basic services that a city is required to deliver to its taxpaying residents. Today, public safety is virtually non-existent in Birmingham. Fueled by drug trafficking and street gang turf wars, violent crime has spiraled out of control. As part of their initiation into street gangs, new gang members are sometimes required to kill targets designated by the gang. Recently, local drug dealers and street gangs in Birmingham formed powerful alliances with international drug cartels and national street gangs to expand their lucrative fentanyl trade into Birmingham's suburbs. As a result of these alliances, the city is now facing a homegrown breed of super-criminals. Veteran police officers characterize the city as a "war zone." Puppet Government at City Hall Seven years ago, Alabama Power Company installed a puppet government at City Hall in Birmingham. The company’s headquarters, which is located one block from City Hall, is where public policy decisions for the city of Birmingham are actually made. The city's puppet government has done a wonderful job of protecting and advancing Alabama Power’s corporate interests at the expense of everything else. Using taxpayers' money, this puppet government has funded more than $120 million in projects favored by Alabama Power. For example, City Hall provided $90 million in funding for a football stadium for the University of Alabama at Birmingham. It also provided over $10 million in cash and indirect support to bail out the failed World Games 2022, which was headed by an Alabama Power executive. City Hall contributed $5 million to the construction of a downtown amphitheater for the rich. It also gave a dying Birmingham-Southern College $5 million to help pay off its creditors. Finally, City Hall poured over $10 million into a variety of other Alabama Power pet projects that would have never seen the light of day in a more enlightened, prudent, and fiscally responsible city hall. As expected, the explosion in crime in Birmingham created the need for a new city jail. Because City Hall chose to waste taxpayers' money on Alabama Power’s pet projects, the city does not have the money to build a new jail. Gubernatorial Intervention is Required to Save Lives and Preserve Property Values in Metro-Birmingham It’s time for Gov. Kay Ivey to activate the Alabama National Guard to restore law and order in Birmingham. If Ivey does not provide adequate police protection for Birmingham's residents, nobody else will. Gov. Ivey must act now. It is the only hope metro-Birmingham has for (a) containing Birmingham’s increasingly violent crime wave within the city limits and (b) keeping it from spilling over into Homewood, Vestavia Hills, Hoover, Mountain Brook, and other nearby suburban communities. If Birmingham's surge in violent crime is NOT contained, it will flood the nearby suburban communities with a wide range of horrific criminal activity that is perpetrated by increasingly dangerous and violent gang members and drug dealers who have no fear of prison or death. Gubernatorial intervention is also needed to save lives in these communities and preserve their property values. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, proactively deployed her state's National Guard to provide much-needed public safety for New York City's subway system. It worked. Deploying the National Guard to Birmingham will NOT offend Alabama Power Company in any way. This giant electric utility has no permanent allegiance to the individuals who occupy elected positions within City Hall. Privately, Alabama Power views this group of officeholders as petty “political whores.” The company can always find a replacement group of elected officials to tote its political water. Saving metro-Birmingham from violent street gang activities and cartel-level drug dealing is NOT a racial issue. It is NOT a Democrat versus Republican issue. It is NOT a political power grab. It is NOT a political stunt. It is simply the right thing to do for metro-Birmingham residents whose tax dollars entitle them to adequate police protection. This is the cold, hard truth.