Letters
September 2003
Dear AIH,Here's a lead for you.
The attached is from a fascinating man named Edward Lawson, who has recently been arrested in California. I think you might find Edward a great radio interview. Not only is he highly articulate, opinionated and educated, he has a wonderful radio voice -- and a powerful personal story to tell.
Here is what I know of him:
I met Edward in Vancouver, in 1971. He was performing in the Vancouver Playhouse production of Othello, to rave reviews. He was an extraordinary physical specimen. Very tall, with a dancer's build and grace, jet black skin with brilliant eyes and teeth, and an enormous crop of what we now call dreadlocks. He had (and has) a Laurence Olivier voice, with the power to shake windows.
Edward's celebrity status on that gig was greatly enhanced when he was arrested one evening by the Vancouver police. The cops thought he was a hippie vagrant, and when he declined to produce ID they roughed him up and threw him in the tank. The following morning he called a press conference.
In a grand Shakespearean soliloquy, he described his ordeal. The cameras loved him, and he managed to embarrass the police force into a public apology. It was a fine moment.
I lost track of Edward for many years, but this much I know of his later exploits:
He was again arrested under virtually identical circumstances by the La Jolla, California police in 1983, and this time took the case to the Supreme Court.
He won a landmark civil rights decision (KOLENDER v. LAWSON.)
Edward formed a civil rights action group and began appearing on national talk shows and town halls.
Now, as you'll see from the documents, he has been arrested yet again for, as he says, "breathing while being black."
And as you'll see in the attachments, he is not going down quietly.
Edward's email address is
email: EdwardLawson@EdwardLawson.com |
His phone number is 310 289-4700.Over to you.
Love the show.
Trevor
Trevor McConnell
email: tmcc@telusplanet.net |
403 809 5389
3, 321 13th Street NW Calgary AB Canada T2N 1Z3