Mistah F.A.B., Oscar Grant, Police Brutality

Mistah FAB: “Oakland Police Are Hired Assassins”
January 10th, 2009 by Julia Beverly
No, it’s not 1991, but police brutality in California is still prevalent. After an Oakland police officer shot and killed an unarmed 22-year-old black man in the back on New Years Day, protestors have taken to the streets and organized rallies to demand justice. Here, Bay Area rapper and “voice of the community” Mistah FAB gives OZONE an eyewitness account of the widely-reported “riots.” FAB, however, isn’t asking, “Can’t we all just get along?” He is enraged by the blatant police brutality of the Oakland Police Department, who he describes as “malicious, hired assassins” and vows not to let Oscar Grant’s murder be forgotten or “swept under the rug” by the ignorant behavior of some protestors. Most of all, he reminds us that there is an Oscar Grant in every city.


Photo: Vibe.com

A lot of news outlets have referred to this situation as the “Oakland riots.” We get the impression that there’s a lot of violence going on. Is that an accurate description? What are you seeing?
[The media] is trying to make it seem as if it’s anarchy and the people are trying to overthrow the judicial system, and it’s not like that. Unfortunately there were some demonstrators who allowed their frustration to overcome them and caused them to destruct some things and demolish a few things but it was nothing to the extent of what we would consider a riot. When people hear about “riots” they think of things like the L.A. [Rodney King] riots and the Watts riots and things of that nature, but it’s nothing comparable to that.



Do you think it’s going to get to that level or are things calming down at this point?
If there aren’t any answers and a confirmed decision as far as what’s going to be done and what justice will be brought, I think it can definitely get worse. You have a group of young kids who have unchanneled energy. It’s built-up frustration mixed with adrenaline, and that combination is a deadly concoction. A lot of those individual kids with nothing to lose will react as their emotions are telling them to react, and it will definitely get worse. It can get dangerous. Some of those guys are homicidal and suicidal. They’re willing to kill and they’re willing to die. They don’t care. They’ll go kill a cop and put it on film. If they feel like no justice will be served by the judicial system, they’re gonna govern themselves. That’s how they feel and they’re wild enough to do it.

Since you have a voice in your community, what are you advising your peers to do? What’s a productive way to move forward and what direction are you pointing people in?
I’ve been asked to speak at a few rallies, which I attended. The message I delivered was: “I know you’re frustrated.” The people in our community are flustered. They feel that there’s always an Oscar Grant going on and no one gets recognition. A lot of people feel like their family members have been victims of similar situations. They feel like it’s the right time to react. If y’all don’t give a fuck, we don’t give a fuck. I’m trying to convey the message to them that I understand their pain, but we have to first demand that justice be brought. The only way to do that is to keep it in terms [the government] understands. If they wanna play games, we’ll demonstrate and show why this [officer] should be tried as a murderer and convicted as an assassin. We’ll prove that. We’ll handle it in a way that [the police] understand. They can’t just sweep it under the rug because we’re “rioting” and acting primitive. The “rioting” is taking away from the fact that this guy isn’t in jail.

In your mind, what needs to be done for justice to prevail?
When I say “I,” I’m speaking for various members of the community. We in the community feel as if this man should be captured and arrested. We feel that he should get treated the same way a normal man would get treated if he shot somebody. Or even more, because these are paid officials. They’re paid to govern us. We’re paying you, and you kill us? This is the respect that you serve the public with? We think there should be an Oscar Grant Law. I just put out a [tribute] song with Jennifer Johns, and she has an idea to present the Oscar Grant Law: if there’s any police officer convicted of police brutality he has to be sentenced to a minimum of five years. If there are any police officers convicted of murder, they should get the maximum penalty for murder plus an additional ten years.

Do you think there’s any validity to the argument that this was an unfortunate accident?
Definitely not. No form, no fashion, no way, no how. A man pulled out a gun and shot a man in his back while he was handcuffed face down. They gave an excuse saying that he thought it was a taser [gun]. Anyone who is a professional at what they do – if you’re a police officer, you should be a professional at handling situations like that. You should know what a taser is and you should know what a gun is. I bet if it was your life on the line, you would know where your gun was. You wouldn’t accidentally reach for that taser. So there’s no justifiable excuse. By saying that, they’re only adding insult to injury. That’s like slapping his mama in the face.

For those that aren’t familiar with the crime rate and murder rate in Oakland, can you describe the atmosphere over the past few years? Do you feel like this is the last straw in long-standing tensions between the community and the police?
This is what broke the camel’s back. In 2008, the Oakland police themselves had over 18 murders. Oscar Grant happened approximately 18 times in 2008, and those were just the names that were released to the public.

Do you think most of those situations were due to racial profiling, or what is the underlying cause of those high numbers?
It has nothing to do with racial profiling to a certain extent. It’s the fact that these cops are a gang. Their rival gang is inner-city youth, whether they’re Mexican or even white in the hood and you’re [gang]-bangin’. If you’re part of a rival gang, they will shoot you. These police officers are malicious. They are hired assassins, and they’re a gang. They act accordingly to how gangs act.

With that said, how can the situation ever get better? How can there be justice?
If killers govern killers, it’s gonna be a cutthroat world. Either you’re gonna kill me or I’m gonna kill you. That’s war. There’s a war here. These trigger happy police officers are actually afraid. That’s why they react the way they react. They’re cowards. We need someone to govern them. Who’s governing them? Nobody. That’s why we hope and we wish that our mayor would stand firm and take the power to have this officer [who shot Oscar Grant] arrested.

The mayor actually came out to the protest and talked to concerned citizens, right? Do you think he’s handling this situation well?
I think he is concerned. I voted for the mayor. He’s a good guy, a great guy, and I felt that if he had been at the first initial rally there would’ve been a lot less problems; less bullshit. By the time he got there, people were already on some “fuck it” shit. But the mayor is trying his hardest.

Here, Hip Hop journalist and Bay Area representative Davey D blasts Mayor Ron Dellums


How can people outside the Bay Area help support the cause?
We want people to know that there’s an Oscar Grant that happens in every city, on a weekly and a daily basis. This isn’t just a case pertaining to our city. This happens everywhere. Don’t allow these injustices among your community to continue to occur without you guys voicing your opinion. We must voice our opinion but we must be artful and intelligent in the way we conduct ourselves while coming up with a solution. We’re in the process of making the “Don’t Shoot” shirts. The proceeds are going towards [Oscar Grant’s] daughter’s college fund. Everything is relatively new, so none of the websites are set up yet, but these are all things we’re going to be involved with to raise awareness. “Don’t Shoot.” That’s our new thing, man.

Do you think that having a black president will bring any changes in the future when it comes to racial tensions in these type of situations?
This man has a trillion dollar debt he has to worry about. This man has churches and schools getting blown up around the world. His problems are so big, police brutality is not an issue he’s going to attack. That’s going to be handled by the states and the cities before it ever comes across his desk. He’s got his own issues. We’ve gotta govern this ourselves. We’ve gotta let people know that shit like this happens in every city. Miami, Atlanta, New York, Philly, Baltimore, this happens everywhere. As the voices of the community, the modern day Hueys and Malcolms, we artists have to speak up. Some of us feel like we’ve got a lot to lose, but so what? You’ve gotta sacrifice for a cause. The same day Oscar Grant got killed, a 22-year-old in New Orleans got killed by a cop. It’s happening everywhere, man. There’s an Oscar grant in every city.

How can people holla at you?
Myspace.com/mistahfab or twitter.com/mistahfab but it’s not about me, you know? Look up Oscar Grant. It’s bigger than me, man. I’m just one on the front lines, out of all these artists. Nobody came out [to protest], and I’m not throwin’ jabs at no artists, but none of these other rappers came out. Groups like Zion I and the Heiroglyphics and some of the underground brothers that support all the time came out, but none of the big names. I’m just a voice in the community. I’m out here.

Tags: Mistah F.A.B., Oscar Grant, Police Brutality