Call to Action for Charles Mackey

A little over two weeks ago, I did an interview on Facebook Live with Traci Fant, the founder of Freedom Fighters, and the family of Charles Mackey, who was shot at his home last summer. The video of the interview was shared about 30 times and reached over 2000 people. Well over 1000 people watched the video.

If you haven’t watched the video, I want to encourage you to watch it. You will hear from the family what kind of a man Charles was. You will hear about the harassment that led up to the shooting. You will hear how the sheriff’s department responded to the conflict between Mackey and his neighbor and how it responded to the fatal shooting of Charles Mackey. You will hear about the progress that has been made with the help of the FBI and the new sheriff’s administration, and you will hear about the challenges that remain.

You will also hear about the reasons the family believes that racism played a role in the shooting and in the way the previous administration handled its responsibilities to Charles Mackey and his family. I don’t want you to miss this part. If you are concerned about allegations of racism being used to mainstream new ideologies than to uphold the law or do what is right, I don’t think you will find evidence of that kind of problem here. I have been in touch with the Mackey family and with Traci Fant since September of last year, and I can tell you there is nothing fake about them.

I am not trained in investigative journalism, but I think I know an important story when I see it. I believe you will find helpful information and perspective in the interview that you will not find in any conventional media coverage of this story. I am continuing to follow this story, and I am talking with more people who are involved in it. Soon, I will be talking with the new sheriff of Anderson County, Chad McBride. You will get an inside look at the sheriff’s department, and hopefully you will also learn more about the Mackey story.

I want to ask you to stay engaged with me here. Traci Fant and the family are hoping that I and you, my viewers, will be able to reach people they can not. I have gotten some significant response from new people, but I think most of the people who have commented, shared, and reacted to this video are people who watched because they already know Traci or the family. I don’t want to ask any of you to pull back on your advocacy for Charles Mackey and his family. What I do want to do is to encourage others to get involved.

I was at the Greenville County Republican Convention last week. I happened to sit next to someone at breakfast who was visiting from the Anderson County Republican Party. I mentioned this story to him, and I mentioned the different sheriff’s administrations involved. His answer was very politically correct, but he mentioned that the Anderson County Republican Party has heard from Sheriff McBride about the improvements he has made to the department as sheriff. If you are involved in the Anderson County Republican Party, I need your attention and your help. Find out what changes the sheriff’s office is making and what changes still need to be made. I want to hear from you, and I need you to advocate privately and publicly for justice.

If you are a Republican or even just a resident in Upstate South Carolina, I need you doing your research and getting involved. Some friends and family of Charles Mackey live in Greenville, where I live. The people and issues involved in this situation touch the entire surrounding area. Look for accountability in law enforcement. Be alert to evidence of racism or racially motivated hostility. Do what you can to encourage witnesses of crime to cooperate with law enforcement. Follow up on unsolved homicides. Traci Fant has been in contact with Sheriff Will Lewis of Greenville County to see progress made on homicide investigations. Follow Traci Fant or Freedom Fighters for updates on this and similar cases.

If you are an advocate for liberty, I need you involved. Charles Mackey felt unsafe at his own home, and he was ultimately shot there. The family has complained about his unequal treatment by law enforcement at every stage of this unfolding tragedy. We need your help to assure that legal rights translate into reality. We need you to advocate for equality of everyone before the law.

If you are politically pro-life, opposed to abortion and euthanasia, the chairman of the Democratic Party and the organizers of the Women’s March have told you that you are not welcome. Well, I want to tell you that I welcome your voice and your involvement in this case. Traci doesn’t have a problem with saying that All Lives Matter, and I believe that unborn lives matter. Black unborn lives matter. This case is not about unborn lives, but it is about life. This is a chance for you to shine.

If you are an advocate for minorities who are targets of violence, whether they are blacks, Hispanics, Jews, Muslims, or anyone else, I need your help. If we fail to protect one group, we put every group at risk.

If you are an advocate for the rule of law, I need you to be engaged. Law enforcement agencies need to be held accountable, and officers who do exceptional work should be praised. We should want communities where the FBI does not need to get involved in local matters. If they do have to get involved, we need to make it as easy as possible for them to do their job.

If you are an advocate for law enforcement reform, this is the kind of case you have to take an interest in. I would encourage you to watch the upcoming interview with Sheriff McBride and do your own research. Please promote this story.

Finally, I want to say a word to those of you who are overloaded with information and appeals for help. You have plenty of responsibilities with your church, family, and friends. Some of you are busy students and working at the same time. Perhaps you prefer to keep politics at a distance. You carefully limit your involvement in activism or social work like this. You don’t want to get involved in controversial issues without having all of the relevant facts, and you often don’t feel you have time to search out the relevant facts. You want to hear all sides of the story, and you don’t always have all sides of the story. I know how you feel.

I am not going to ask you to give time you don’t have. I am not going to ask you to say things you don’t believe. What I do ask is for you to take time to learn something about this situation. If you are not African American, try to understand why so many African Americans feel so strongly about this situation. Have some empathy for the family. Recognize that there are unanswered questions here. Pick up on the known issues that we are highlighting, like respect for life, government accountability, respect for Second Amendment rights, and giving law enforcement what they need to do their job. Find an angle that works for you, and promote this story from that angle.

Thank you for taking the time to watch. Please stay tuned and help us promote this search for justice. Follow my Facebook page, OwenCrewblog. For more information on this story, go to the Facebook page Justice for Charles “Snake” Mackey. Thank you.