Every two years, this proposal goes up for debate. U.S. President Barack Obama is still avoiding this request
like the plague. However, backers are taking another swing at getting a posthumous pardon for boxer Jack Johnson. From the Associated Press: "Lawmakers seeking a presidential pardon for Jack Johnson, the world’s
first black heavyweight boxing champion imprisoned a century ago for
his romantic relationships with white women, renewed their efforts on
Tuesday. Sens. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and John McCain, R-Ariz., joined Reps.
Peter King, R-N.Y., and William 'Mo' Cowan, D-Mass., to reintroduce a
resolution urging President Barack Obama to pardon Johnson because he
was wronged by a racially motivated conviction."
The article continues: "A similar resolution passed both houses of Congress in 2009, but
Obama did not act on it. The Justice Department has told the bill’s
backers its general policy is not to process posthumous pardon requests.
The White House declined to comment Tuesday on the measure."
More: "Authorities first targeted his relationship with Lucille Cameron, who
later became his wife. She refused to cooperate. They then turned to
Johnson’s former mistress, a prostitute named Belle Schreiber, to
testify that Johnson had paid her train fare from Pittsburgh to Chicago,
for immoral purposes. An all-white jury convicted Johnson in 1913, and
he skipped bail and fled the country. But in 1920 Johnson agreed to
return and serve his sentence."
The "Where Da White Women At?" Act Of 2013...
