BY JULIE IRWIN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Kweisi Mfume
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NAACP President Kweisi Mfume urged a Cincinnati audience Friday to observe Sunday as a day of mourning for a black man dragged to his death in Texas.
"The NAACP believes the perpetrators of this crime must receive a quick and speedy trial, and that justice should be both swift and deliberate," said Mr. Mfume, speaking at the Albert B. Sabin Convention Center. "We believe these cowards must never walk the streets again."
James Byrd Jr. of Jasper, Texas, was killed nearly a week ago after he was tied to the back of a pickup truck and dragged to the point of dismemberment.
Three white men, who investigators say have ties to white supremacist groups, are charged.
Mr. Mfume is traveling to Texas today to attend Mr. Byrd's funeral. He said he had asked U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno to explore charging the three suspects with federal hate crimes.
He also urged "a reactionary Congress . . as they continue to bash one another over foolishness, to get to serious work and pass the Hate Crimes Act of 1998."
Mr. Mfume spoke before the National Baptist Sunday School and Baptist Training Union Congress.
