Profiling and police brutality are  topics very close to the hearts of those that contributed to the just released Police Brutality Profiling Mixtape - the new CD compilation of krip-hop artists that is now available at Amoeba Berkeley and will soon be in stock at Amoeba San Francisco. The new pro civil rights compilation is a joint production of 5th Battalion  Entertainment in Los Angeles and the Berkeley based Krip-Hop Nation that is headed by Leroy Moore who has been interviewed here on the Amoeblog in the past. 

Krip Hop Nation links hip-hop artists with disabilities around the globe and to date, under Moore's direction, has produced several previous compilations of krip-hop artists. But this one one is the first to thematically tackle the topic of the (mostly unspoken) often unhealthy treatment of people of color with disabilities at the hands of police. Moore says that discrimination by police, as well as violence, are all too common and hence the inspiration to put together this new collection. Album collaborator DJ Quad, who is a part of 5th Battalion in LA, is a person with a disability who frequently falls victim to profiling. A Latino who is confined to a wheelchair, DJ Quad (his name is inspired by quadriplegic) has had many unnecessary run-ins with the law that he explains on the new CD in both a spoken word track and a music track.

"We've all experienced it. So the album is based around police brutality against people with disabilities - minorities," said Leroy Moore at a Berkeley coffee shop recently. He noted how police make the assumption that any black or Latino in a wheelchair is a gangbanger who got that way as the victim of a gun shot. "The cops thought that way with DJ Quad, but he was not shot. He was surfing one day and had an accident and got disabled," said Moore. Meanwhile, the duo Kounterclockwise (who were spotlighted on the Amoeblog six months ago) also contribute two tracks to the new CD including "Neil Ladson's Story," which is the story of how an autistic man was arrested by the police and taken to the lock up. Another standout track is Toni Hickman's heartfelt song "PoePoes" that also features Big Yo & Thorough.

Krip-Hop Nation & 5th Battalion  Ent - Police Brutality Profiling Mixtape is now available at Amoeba Berkeley and soon will also be available at Amoeba San Francisco.