Category Archives: UMass in Springfield

#BlackSpringfieldMatters 2017

Happy New Year! We begin 2017 very excited to engage in deep study of New Afrikan urban affairs, particularly in the city of Springfield, MA. We especially welcome students who live in or who call Springfield home to enroll or be involved with our class. This is not, strictly speaking, a lecture course. #BSM2017 is a team-based, civic engagement research seminar. This semester I will be a CESL Faculty Fellow studying with my colleagues how to make this class a more dynamic, engaged service learning course. I also continue to work on the creation of a UMass Amherst Racial Justice Institute. Please contact me at shabazz@umass.edu with any questions or concerns, and please let folks know about the course who might want to be involved in this work. I will announce key research themes for the course so keep checking this site for more information. One key area I will introduce in this post is the issue of criminal justice reform, which, more commonly known as the problem of mass incarceration, is one of the most important issues of racial justice facing the City of Springfield.

In the previous offerings of this course I connected students with the case of Charles Wilhite. We were there in the fight for Justice for Charles when he was in prison serving a life sentence, during his second trial, his release, and, just recently, his winning an historic $1.4 million settlement for his wrongful imprisonment from the City of Springfield. Below are some news stories that can acquaint you with Charles’ landmark struggle for justice against police and prosecutorial forces that are a textbook example of social injustice and systemic racism. As we study matters this semester State Senate President Stan Rosenberg has announced* that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts will be pursuing criminal justice reform as a top priority of legislative action this year. Let us do our part to advance that critical process through our work to identify, document, and analyze problems in policing and prosecuting, the problem of mass incarceration in Springfield, MA. More to come…

Charles-Wilhite – MassLive.com

December 23, 2016 – Charles Wilhite of Springfield wins $1.4 million for wrongful imprisonment after …. Activists with Arise for Social Justice and Justice for Charles stood outside the … topics.masslive.com/tag/charleswilhite/

2 Unjust Perjury Prosecutions: Are They Revenge For Charles Wilhite …

Mar 23, 2015 – At that first trial Wilhite was found guilty for the October 2008 … his own, “falsely testified that Charles Wilhite was involved in the shooting of Alberto … Velis recognized that “justice may not have been done” in Wilhite’s first trial.

2nd trial finds Charles Wilhite not guilty of murder in Springfield …

Jan 17, 2013 – Vira Douangmany Cage, the aunt of Wilhite and one of the organizers behind the group Justice for Charles, thanked everyone who had stood …

Re-trial Date Set for Charles Wilhite – NEPR News

Jul 25, 2012 – Wilhite’s new trial is set to begin January 7th, 2013, and the Hampden … Members of the group Justice for Charles, who are advocating for …

Springfield vigil marks 1,000 days of ‘wrongful incarceration’ for …

Jun 13, 2012 – Today marks the 1,000th day that Wilhite has been incarcerated in connection with the Springfield killing, according to Justice for Charles, the …
Jun 21, 2012 – Professor Shabazz wrote in an attached statement, “Given the travesty of justice that has put Charles Wilhite, an innocent man, behind bars for …
   – Senate President Stan Rosenberg Announces Creation of Working Group on Criminal Justice Reform http://www.stanrosenberg.com/article/senate-president-stan-rosenberg-announces-creation-working-group-criminal-justice-reform

Strategies for Change Readings

The readings below are courtesy of Fred Rose who served as a community organizer in Springfield for 15 years with the Pioneer Valley Project, a faith-based organizing project.  He now works through the Center for Public Policy and Administration to co-direct the Wellspring Cooperative Corporation, a community development project to create worker-owned companies that provide living wage jobs in Springfield. For background and context, see “Springfield Economic Development Project Receives Grant from Merck Fund” news story.

Springfield’s Food Deserts

Patricia Leboeuf, “Food Deserts in Springfield: How Many Buses Would You Take to Buy Groceries?” in Valley Advocate. Online at: http://www.valleyadvocate.com/2015/04/14/food-deserts-in-springfield/

Amanda Drane, “Food Deserts in Springfield: Lack of Access to Healthy Food in Springfield Underlies High Rates of Diabetes and Obesity,” In Valley Advocate, November 12-19. 2015. Online at: http://www.valleyadvocate.com/2015/11/09/food-deserts-of-springfield/

Springfield Community Newspapers

African American Point of View. Online at: http://www.afampointofview.com/

Reminder Publications. Online at: http://www.thereminder.com/

El Pueblo Latino. Online at: http://www.masslive.com/elpueblolatino/

Pay for Success

George Overholser and Caroline Whistler, “The Real Revolution of Pay for Success: Ending 40 years of Stagnant Results for Communities” +
Daniel Stid, “Pay for Success is Not a Panacea” in San Francisco Federal Reserve, Community Development Investment Review, Volume 9, Issue 1, 2013. Read pp. 5-18. Online at: http://www.frbsf.org/community-development/files/review-volume-9-issue-1.pdf.

Towards a new economy

Gar Alperovitz, “Inequality’s Dead – And the Possibility of a New, Long-Term Direction.” in Nonproft Quarterly, March 10, 2015. Online at: https://nonprofitquarterly.org/2015/03/10/inequality-s-dead-end-and-the-possibility-of-a-new-long-term-direction/

Another UMass faculty member doing interesting work in Springfield is Krista Harper in our Anthropology department. Learn about her Springfield Futurescapes.