Young endorses new SCLC leadershipBy A. Scott Walton
He'd become so disenchanted with infighting at the organization founded by his friend and colleague, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., that King's vaunted dream seemed more like a nightmare to him. "Frankly, I said the original SCLC had outlived its usefulness and out to close down and go away," Young said in an exclusive interview with the Atlanta Voice. But Young's view has brightened recently, thanks to a ruling by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Alford Dempsey that allows Dr. King's daughter, Bernice, to assume control of the venerable 53-year-old organization. Though elected last October, Bernice King had declined to take office while the SCLC was ensnared in a power struggle that involved allegations of fund misappropriation, an attempted takeover and months of court wrangling. Dempsey ruled that the splinter faction that had installed Atlanta minister Markel Hutchins as interim president amidst the squabble had no right to do so, and that legal directorship of the SCLC belonged in the hands of plaintiffs in the case; including chairwoman Sylvia Tucker and longtime board member Bernard Lafayette. "(Lafayette) has been one of the people who has kept the spirit of non-violence alive and relevant," said Young, who previously had warned Bernice King about the potential pitfalls of trying to lead the SCLC. Once the legal tussle was decided, Lafayette told the press: "We believe in forgiveness. But we are very firm that the mission and purpose of our organization will include people who share that mission." In a prepared statement, Bernice King said, "God answers prayers paving the way for progress. The firestorm ignited last year after former chairman Raleigh Trammell of Dayton, Ohio and former treasurer Spiver Gordon of Eutaw, Alabama were accused of mishandling about $569,000 in SCLC funds. Government officials are investigating. Meanwhile, Trammell was slapped with a $1 million sexual harassment lawsuit last week. A former SCLC employee in Dayton claims she carried on a 20-year affair with Trammell – starting when she was 16 – and that she was fired after complaining about Trammell's conduct. Young said he has rising hopes for the SCLC's future now that its stewardship is clearly defined. He said people who haven't shown a willingness to struggle, sacrifice and serve have no place at the SCLC helm. "Bernard Lafayette, who seems to have emerged as one of the leaders, was there at the sit-ins, he was an original Freedom Rider," Young said. Unlike Lafayette, "there were not a lot of people jumping up to lead when the price (of one's life) was clear." Young, 78, said he's happy that the leadership issues has been resolved, but he stopped short of offering direct advice to Bernice King and her tea,. "I leave it up to the new leadership," he said. "I think Bernard and Bernice will have no problem. AP contributed to this report.
'Sisters' conference coming to AtlantaBy LaJenine Wilson More than 40,000 visitors are expected to converge on the Georgia World Congress Center for the 19th Annual For Sisters Only Expo, September 11th and 12th. The two-day event also is expected to draw more than 300 vendors and exhibitors all prepared to sample and sell their products to the public. Everything from jewelry to clothing, cosmetics to hair accessories will be on display. Once touted as an event primarily for black women, For Sister Only has grown to include something for the entire family. For the sports and gaming fanatics, the event will feature the Sports Bar and the Gaming Zone. For the health conscious, the Health Pavilion will offer free seminars and health screenings. And for book lovers, the Literary Café will feature authors and their most recent publications. Children will be able to enjoy the event, as well. Over in the Kids Zone, children will be able to wind their way through the obstacle course, get their faces painted, jump around in the bouncy houses and play Nintendo Wii. In addition to the shopping and seminars, FSO 2010 also will feature a number of big name entertainers. Some of the performers expected to appear at this year's event include: T.I., Keri Hilson, Fantasia, Kelly Price, El Debarge, Jazmine Sullivan, Kandi (from the Real Housewives of Atlanta), Lloyd and Jagged Edge.
Experts shun DEA's 'ebonics' planBy A. Scott Walton If the federal Drug Enforcement Agency truly needs qualified "ebonics" translators to help them prosecute narcotics cases, there's an abundant supply in Atlanta. Local experts in "African-American vernacular English," however, seem reluctant to accept the invitation. Atlanta is one focus of the DEA's search for translators. Local college campuses are dotted heavily with professors who deal with variations on "ebonics" daily. But academics greet the new DEA's initiative with skepticism. Their main concern is that law enforcement agents could entrap many black youth in the snares of perception. The assistant professor of rhetoric and composition shares the feeling among academics that "ebonics" is too poorly defined, misunderstood and in flux to be applied fairly in a criminal context. "It raises too many questions," Jordan said. "Who is that (translator)? What is their background in terms of African-American vernacular English? How fluent are they? And how current are they with some of the newer colloquial expressions, which change very frequently." In 1996, public school administrators in Oakland, Calif. sparked a national debate over the legitimacy of "ebonics" as a language. The term has since been used in derisive terms by social conservatives and alternately mocked or commended in the black community. DEA spokesman Mike Sanders said last week that "ebonics" translators were being recruited out of necessity. "You need someone to say, 'I know what they mean when they 'ballin' or 'pinching pennies'," he said. "The 'truth' gets produced in ways that typically discriminate against those that don't have access to the machines that produce the 'truth'," Burns argued. "The danger is that you could have experts who are paid by the prosecution to say whatever they want to win the case," he added. "The defendant won't have access to experts to refute the prosecution." "And we'll have a system that takes advantage of individuals who are not able to afford adequate representation that says, 'No, this is actually what they meant'." Other local academics agree with Burns that there are too many regional variations that occur too swiftly within the vernacular for any so-called "Ebonics" expert to be trusted in a court of law. "The language changes depending on which artists someone's influenced by, or whether they're from New York or down south," said Morehouse College professor of cultural studies, Dr. Stephane Dunn. "Will (translators) be trained on an ongoing basis for a language that is not stagnant? There is no dictionary that has it all in it. It's distinguished by time and place. Last year's terms for a certain street drug are already out by now." Morehouse English professor Jamil Lyn opposed the idea for an entirely different reason: the "no-snitching" code in the African-American community that frustrates law enforcement efforts. A reliable translator would have to be embedded among drug dealers in order to know the nuances of their verbiage, Lyn said. And the pervasive mistrust of police in urban centers like Atlanta would restrict someone testifying for the prosecution from doing the DEA's bidding for very long, she said. "The vernacular changes so quickly that it would have to be part of that (translator's) lifestyle," Dr. Lyn said. "The level of contact is vital. You would literally need someone who teeters between the worlds of crime and law enforcement. And we in the academic world typically don't do that."
Deal a no-show at candidate forumBy A. Scott Walton Deal or no Deal? That was the question looming over the Fulton County Commission's Assembly Hall on Monday night.
The Atlanta chapter of the National Black MBA Association had partnered with three other black organizations to invite all three registered gubernatorial candidates to a forum called, "Have The Informed Vote." Since Republican nominee Nathan Deal failed to appear, their votes may be swayed by his absence. The Democratic candidate, former Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes, and Libertarian candidate John Monds of rural Grady County thus were left to field queries from a panel of journalists and an audience of about 200 observers. Speaking discreetly, Fulton County Commission Chairman John Eaves said it was a shame that the Republican candidate couldn't fit the forum into his campaign schedule. "It's disappointing," Eaves said. "We all have to participate in the process. We have to give our constituents an opportunity to hear our platforms and ask tough questions. Whenever you duck and dodge, it's not positive." On his own behalf, Monds devoted most of his speaking time to arguments against intrusive government and high taxation. "The answer to most of our problems is freedom," said Monds, who suggested that the Jim Crow-era education his father received in south Georgia is superior to the schooling most urban youth receive today. Admittedly under-funded compared to his rivals, Monds insisted: "It's not (Deal's) race to win. I'm not out here simply to be a spoiler. Nathan Deal and Mr. Barnes better watch out because there are voters out here looking for solutions." The crowd reacted in silence to most of Monds' stern recommendations for easing tax burdens on small business owners, empowering local governments to set their own infrastructure agendas, and scaling back the state's involvement in awarding contracts to minority-owned firms. Barnes, in contrast, often inspired spates of laughter as he detailed his outlook on creating jobs via overseas outreach, upgrading public schools through increased funding, and consolidating the resources of smaller municipalities. Asked why he'd decided to re-enter politics after years spent establishing a successful private law practice and settling into a role as a doting grandfather, Barnes responded: "I became mad. I saw us stepping backward, and I couldn't take it."
School board votes not to change
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Just months ago, civil rights icon Andrew Young appeared ready to wash his hands of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.
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Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Beverly Hall |
Some observers saw the vote as part of a power play intended to position the board to oust its current chair, LaChandra Butler Burks, in the wake of the district's controversial cheating scandal.
Rancor has risen among board members ever since more than 100 district staffers were implicated earlier this month in an alleged pattern of cheating on the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests.
The vote may have been influenced by calm, plaintive persuasion from Mayor Kasim Reed, who appeared before the board and requested a "cooling off period."
"That move has very important policy implications," Reed told board members Monday night. "And I respectfully ask that we hold off."
Reed also suggested that the board seek an opinion from the state's Attorney General, Thurbert Baker, before casting a final vote on the matter.
Monday's vote to table the matter suggests that the current board may remain intact at least through end of the current tenure of Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Beverly Hall. Her contract expires in 2011.
Hall and school board members got a healthy dose of criticism from a standing-room-only crowd of agitated parents and teachers Monday night during a two-hour community meeting in the APS auditorium downtown.
Vivian Ingersoll, the retired Executive Director of the Atlanta Committee for Public Education, caution the board not to get "bogged down in illegal power plays."
For their part, board members declined to respond to questions from citizens or to even raise their hands when asked how many of them lived in the areas most affected by the CRCT scandal, how many were single mothers, how many had visited a school recently, or how many remembered taking their oaths of office.
A sign-in list of 47 people were offered three minutes each to voice their concerns about the education Atlanta kids are receiving, how teachers and school staffers are treated, and how board members interact with concerned citizens.
Most speakers came to support school principals who had been "re-assigned" in the wake of the CRCT scandal – a controversial move that raged like wildfire through dozens of elementary and middle schools.
"We want our principal back, and we want (him/her) back now," was declared often. A large contingent in the crowd wore yellow "We Are Not Cheaters" T-shirts.
Some citizens rose and spoke eloquently about Atlanta's rich legacy of committed educators. Others pointed fingers and angrily scolded the board for its performance. A few stood at the podium and shed tears for the overall state of Atlanta's public schools.
At times, the scene was like a pep rally, and at other moments like a prayer meeting. Many speakers vowed that they would hold board members more accountable when they come up for re-election.
Hall said after the community vent session: "I understand. Those principals are well thought of in their communities, and they run good schools."
She added that completing the investigation of suspicious CRCT testing results remains a top priority.
"The sooner we can get this finished, the better we can determine what occurred here," she said.
| August 20 - 26, 2010 |  |
'Kneel-in' campaign at churches recalled
By JOYCE FREDRICK
Contributing Writer
This August marks the 50th anniversary of members of the Committee of Appeals for Human Rights (COAHR) visiting churches with all-white congregations – a daring campaign that became known as the "kneel-in demonstrations."
Local activist Lonnie C. King recalls in 1960 when he and 24 other students from the Atlanta University Center split up into groups to integrate well-known Atlanta churches with all white congregations.
"The ushers were shocked as we entered the church," King recalled after he and two others arrived at Druid Hills Baptist Church, "and they kept the doors closed as they rushed to find the lead deacon."
The lead deacon rushed to the entrance of the church and told them that they had their own churches and asked them to leave, he said.
As the students prepared to leave, King picked up the pen to sign the guest book, but the deacon reached to take the pen away from him before he was about to write.
King said he and the deacon both held onto the pen for what seemed like a minute while staring at each other until he finally released it, filed out of the church, and told the deacons, "You do not want us to worship, but we will come back."
King, then chairman of the student-based movement and a former president of the Atlanta NAACP, reflected on what happened 50 years ago this month.
"The kneel-in concept was designed to awaken the sleepy consciences of whites that were not in key with Christian values," he said.
Southern white Baptists were running the city and going to church on Sunday praying for their sins while blacks had few rights in the South, King said.
The students did not actually kneel at the churches, he explained, but the term "kneel-in" was a title given for church demonstrations as the word "sit-in" was used for public accommodations like stores and restaurants.
Northwestern University professor Aldon Morris of Northwestern University said students joining with established leaders helped fuel the civil rights movement.
King said the "kneel-in" demonstration should be recognized as one of the many events that helped African-Americans gain civil rights in the United States.
"The "kneel-in" demonstrations should not be looked upon (in) isolation, but as a civil rights tapestry, which collectively over a short period of time formed a critical mass of people, some whites who joined along with blacks," he said.
