Most black students now attending school systems around East Alabama and West Georgia, don’t have a clue that their schools are under a Federal Court Order.  But, they are.

The simplest explanation for why they don’t know is because several generations of students and parents have come and gone through the schoolhouse doors since the first federal court order was handed down.   Many schools are now returning to Federal Courts to apply for “Unitary Status.”  If this status is granted, it would literally remove all court supervision and the School System would be declared free of all vestiges of racial segregation.  I predict that very soon, parents and students in Roanoke and Randolph County may very well be asked to either agree or disagree with “Unitary Status.”   Some may even have to appear in Federal Court in Montgomery. 

The People’s Voice believes that school systems have a duty to see that parents and students fully understand what they are being asked to agree to before any action is taken. 

In this article, I will try to explain, exactly what the court order is all about, and why many school systems now want to petition the courts for “Unitary Status.”

How It All  Began

All students and parents, especially black ones, need to understand the far-reaching impact of racism as it was practiced before school desegregation. 

It is an inarguable fact that racial discrimination was prevalent all over the United States….IN EVERY AREA OF LIFE.   Blacks were considered second class citizens, and were treated that way in public hotels, restaurants, filling stations, businesses, and schools. 

Blacks could not go to a filling station and use the restroom as they do now.  They had to stop on the side of the road, and walk down into the woods and urinate or defecate on the ground — then clean themselves the best they could..   They could not even walk up to a drive-in window and order food as they do now.  They had to walk around back and have their food handed out to them in a greasy sack.   Forget about checking in to a hotel.  They either drove all night, or stopped on the side of the road and slept, and hoped they wouldn’t be harassed, tormented, ambushed or hanged by hate groups like the Ku Klux Klan which was notorious for lynching Negroes during the “Jim Crow” period. 

From 1856 up until 1954, roughly 97 years, race relations in the United States was dominated by segregation.   In the most hostile practice of racism, blacks and whites had to go to separate schools.  It was the law.  And for 97 years, the law had been the worst enemy to racial equality.

The black leaders who were fighting for racial equality at that time believed that the way to end second class treatment was to take their fight to the courts, and test it by suing for desegregation in public education.  They did this in a case called Brown Versus The Board of Education.   This lawsuit was filed on behalf of a student named Linda Brown, against the city of Topeka, Kansas.

Brown vs Board of Education ended in a victorious landmark decision on May 17, 1954, when the Supreme Court unanimously voted to outlaw racial segregation in government-run (Public) schools.   

Problems with Brown vs Board 

The problem was that “Brown” did not immediately solve the problems of separation of the races.  For the moment, all blacks had was a court decision.   In the minds of many whites who had believed in and practiced “White Supremacy” all their lives, confusion set in as to how to accomplish desegregation.  Now, all of a sudden, everybody was dumb and ignorant, and nobody could figure out how to do it.   

Civil Rights organizations such as the NAACP and others worked hard in communities all over the country, trying to promote the change, but full and complete desegregation did not come.    One has to understand that just because there was a court order on the books, that did not immediately change the minds of a white power structure who had been indoctrinated for generations that they were better than blacks.   

Long story short, because of the mass resistance to this new federal law, suits had to be filed all over the country in practically every state, where segregation had been declared legal.

In Alabama, the desegregation lawsuit was Lee vs Macon.   In Georgia the lawsuit was Geier vs Bredesen and  Hightower vs West LDF 

What Happened In Roanoke and Randolph County?

In the case of Randolph County, many of us recall the closing of our Alma Mater, The Randolph County Training School.  For sixteen years after the Brown decision, Randolph County had continued to operate racially segregated schools, until  “On March 22, 1967, the United States Federal District Court for the Middle District of Alabama issued a court order and decree (Civil Action #604-E) ordering the Randolph County and Roanoke City School Boards to desegregate their public school systems….After the Court’s order, Earnest Stone, State Superintendent of Schools reluctantly informed the community of the need to comply with the order.   The Roanoke School system was informed that $65,000 to 75,000 in federal funds would be withheld, under the authority of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, if desegregation did not proceed immediately.   Desegregation evolved in a three-stage process in the city and county with students in lower grades at RCTS being permitted to enroll at the previously segregated schools where only White students could enroll.”

Three black individuals (all of whom are now deceased), Herman Shaw, Ida Shaw, and J. Tom Tucker were summoned to Washington D.C. to testify about the pace of desegregation in the city and county.  White school officials were disappointed with their testimony as they noted that the pace of desegregation remained problematic.”  

(Thornton, Thornton, Thornton, and Thornton: Behind These Silent Walls, page 56).

Similar events occurred in many other communities all over the country.

More Problems After Implementation

Finally, all the black schools were closed at the end of school year 1969-1970.  This forced all black students to have to attend previously segregated white schools.  

Despite the 1954 Brown Decision and Lee vs. Macon court orders, many school systems continued (even to this very day) to have problems that could only be solved by returning to Federal Court under Lee vs Macon.

Despite claims of being “law-abiding citizens,” public officials and school personnel frequently found it difficult to comply with the “De-Seg Orders.”

Down through the years, these are some of the problems that have been observed:

1. Uneven/unfair discipline between black and white students

2. Failure to hire a representative number of black teaching staff

3. Failure to recruit qualified black teachers

3. Failure to promote blacks to administrative or coaching positions

4. Denial of student participation in certain “exclusive” clubs, or organizations, and/or

    extracurricular activities

5. Tolerance of use of racial epithets

7. Failure to incorporate or take into consideration the needs for cultural diversity in the

    school curriculum; or failure to make allowances for cultural diversity.

6. Failure to recognize or incorporate black history in the curriculum or school program.

7. Overrepresentation of black students in special education programs

And the list could go on and on.

The continual cropping up of race-based disagreements in public education is what has necessitated the continuation of Court-Ordered School Supervision.

What Is Unitary Status?

School systems under court orders ideally are working to achieve “Unitary Status.”  This means that they are working to eliminate all forms of racial segregation.   When they have done this, then the court order can be lifted.   According to the National School Board Association, “Unitary” is a term courts use to describe a school system that has made the transition from a segregated or “racially dual” system to a desegregated or “unitary” system.”    Until 1991, many school systems didn’t even understand what “Unitary” meant.   So, in 1991, a school system in Oklahoma went to Federal Court to have the term “Unitary” clarified.    In this case, The Supreme Court has held that a declaration of unitary status is only appropriate after a hearing at which the defendant school district bears the burden of proving that it has:

(1)   complied with the desegregation order for a reasonable period of time;

(2)   eliminated all vestiges of past discrimination to the extent practicable; and

(3)   demonstrated its good faith commitment to the constitutional rights that were the predicate for judicial intervention.

Summary

In summary, I would implore black citizens and parents to consider the following:

In your opinion, has the school system your child attends complied with the desegregation order for a “reasonable” period of time. 

Question:  What is considered “reasonable?”  

Question:  Have you read the “De-Seg Order”  Are you familiar with the actions the school is required to take under the court order?

Suggestion:  I suggest you familiarize yourself with it.

In your experience, has the school system your child attends ELIMINATED all vestiges of past discrimination to the extent practicable? 

Question:  What is your understanding of “vestiges” of discrimination.

Question:  Are you aware that “vestiges” of discrimination transcends people of different races merely being together?   Are you aware that these “vestiges” might involve hostilities, and feelings, or climate, language used, intolerance, and many other kinds of intangible attributes than make students or teachers feel uncomfortable in that environment?

In your experience, has the school system your child attends shown good faith to commit to the constitutional rights that (existed all along) that compelled the court to intervene in the first place?

As a long time educator, community activist, and advocate for civil rights, I implore every black parent to consider carefully, each one of these questions, and in the event you are ever asked to agree or disagree with a school’s application for Unitary Status, be as sure as sure can be, in your position. 

It took our ancestors 100 years OR MORE actively fighting in the courts of this nation, to work the case of desegregation in public education down to the point where little black children in Roanoke and Randolph County, Alabama could enjoy the right to a free and appropriate public education.   

The People’s Voice is always open for your comments or questions regarding this issue.

Well, here we are again.  We’ve reached a turning point both in history, and in the passage of time.  On January 1, 2007, we will mark the beginning of a New Year, signifying a fresh start. 

We also mark the observance of 144 years since President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing approximately 4,000,000 slaves.

For more than 30 years, my father, the late Wilkie Clark in his capacity as President of Randolph County’s NAACP, took on the personal responsibility of seeing to it that an Emancipation Day Observance was staged in Randolph County, annually.  He upheld the teaching of the NAACP, that in order to experience racial progress, black people needed these constant annual reminders of their journey from enslavement and oppression to liberation. 

Reflecting back, I recall vividly how poorly attended the early Emancipation Proclamation Services were.  How well do I recall, black Randolph Countians’ hearts were so tightly gripped with fear that something bad would happen to them if they participated in NAACP functions.  But, as the years passed, and the burden of racism and Jim Crow began to lift, these programs began to experience better participation and interest.  The Annual Emancipation Proclamation Observance began to serve as an eye-opener for many blacks, who’s understanding of “Emancipation” had been long obscured by the veil of ignorance of black history.  This annual affair came to serve as a catalyst for change and a reminder that every opportunity that has come to black people in America involved struggle.  Nothing has been given to us.  Every opportunity we enjoy today…whether it be jobs, home ownership in the neighborhood of our choice, or equal access to services in public restaurants and bathroom facilities…. all were bought with a steep price.   The price often involved bloodshed and even loss of life.   I would always emerge from the Emancipation Proclamation programs with a new awareness and better appreciation for the compelling history of my African forefathers.  

The question arises, do we need to continue to stage these annual reminders of black history?   I believe that we do.    In a large measure, we have failed to pass the torch that was ignited by the patriarchs of civil and human rights.   We have failed to continue teaching the lessons our forefathers taught us about real freedom.   This failure has resulted in an unexcuseable and frightening lack of appreciation and respect for the struggle for equality among modern black youth.  As I observe them, I see a bleak picture that can only send them on a downward spiral unless we go back to “The Old Landmark.”  This is a place they cannot take themselves…because many of them have never been there before.   Rather, this is a place where we must take them to.   

Today’s black youngsters need to be infused with the understanding that for black men, women and youth, the idea of “freedom” must transcend any other level or concept that can be imagined by any other race of human beings.  

Too many of today’s black youth have a warped, faulty idea of what “freedom” is all

about.  To many of them, “freedom” means they can cuss you out – don’t care if you are an adult.   For many of them, “freedom” means they can walk the streets and smoke all the dope they can get their hands on; it means that they can even stand right in front of your house, AND YOU, and peddle it….they don’t care about the little 6, 7, and 8-year-olds watching them do what they are doing, and receiving faulty perceptions about what is acceptable behavior.  For too many of them, “freedom” means they don’t have to care.   For too many of them, “freedom” means that they don’t have to display any degree of respect either for their parents or neighbors—they do just whatever they want to do.   For too many of them, if they run low on cash, “freedom” means they can walk right into your home and steal your belongings and pawn them in exchange for some quick cash.  Consequently, their faulty concept of “freedom” results in their loss of it.  Hence, at this very moment, our nation’s prisons are filled beyond their capacity with black youth.

When President Lincoln signed The Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, black slaves for the first time in centuries, experienced something that they had never experienced before. The freeing of the slaves brought an end to the bondage; the restrictions on their movement, their thinking, their intelligence.  The real appreciation for freedom can only come, when one has experienced restrictions and limitations on their life.  Only then can there be a real appreciation for liberation.

For too many of our children, proper limits have never been set, so there is no appreciation for or understanding of real “freedom.” Many of them have never had any limits set in their lives.  They’ve never been told “NO” by their parents.  For many of them, there is no parent to ask.

Our children need to know and understand the real meaning of freedom. But, they will never learn how to appreciate freedom unless and until we begin to set limitations on them.

Abraham Lincoln, The Great Emancipator said:

“Freedom is not the right to do what we want, but what we ought. Let us have faith that right makes might and in that faith let us; to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it.”     

We’ (Black America), have given our young folk too much liberty.  So much to the point, that they’ve taken un-realistic liberties, often overstepping their boundaries, disrespecting authority; refusing to obey anybody.  We’ve led many of them to believe that everything is free; few of them know or understand how to work and make an honest dollar; they have poor work ethics because they have been given everything and have never been made to do a task the absolute best it can be done. Many of them don’t have chores or responsibilities at home. Consequently, they have a poor and irresponsible understanding of “freedom.”

Real freedom is a state of mind.  Real freedom makes one more – NOT LESS responsible for his or her actions.  Real freedom makes one think longer and harder about their actions – BEFOREHAND, not as an afterthought.  Real freedom respects life and health and property.  Black America, it’s time to reclaim, re-define and re-teach the real meaning of “freedom” for future generations of black boys and girls.  It’s imperative that we do this…for the salvation of our youth.

It seems that the more we have integrated into mainstream middle-class society, the less emphasis we are placing on our own historic institutions — the very bridges that carried us AND OUR FOREPARENTS over, when we weren’t allowed to go any place else.  The Prince Hall Masons have been a major contributor to the growth and progress of black people.  It is one of our long-standing historic institutions and a very worthy cause to support. The Prince Hall Masons have a long-standing history of providing scholarships to youngsters, as well as supporting other noble and worthy causes to advance humanity. 

It has always been my belief that we as blacks still have much work to do within our own communities.   But, the more we integrate, the more pronounced the social problems in the black neighborhoods are becoming.  Many of us who aren’t observing, don’t even realize what is happening.

East Roanoke used to be the “mecca” of  black progress in our city. It would be a disgrace for our Lodge Hall to end up condemmed because of the lack of concern on the part of the black folk in Roanoke. Are we having such a good time socializing and traveling in white social circles, that we would neglect OUR OWN neighborhoods?

A Word To The Community

Irregardless of whether you are a member of Lodge 538, or Lily White 352 or not, ALL OF US should get involved in the repair and maintenance of the Masonic Lodge Hall.  If everybody got together and just donated some time and effort and a few dollars, we could bring our —   THAT’S RIGHT, I SAID OUR —  Masonic Lodge Hall up to standard.

Are we really that selfish, and lacking in community pride that we wouldn’t give a little time or effort to help out with this black historic site?  

A Word To The Lodges… Don’t Give Up!

Let’s look at it this way:  It really doesn’t matter what the Grand Lodge has done or is doing.  Years of loyalty, monetary contributions, and a valuable piece of real estate is at stake here.   It stands to reason, as in every other national organization, there is an obligation to keep current on state or national assessments in exchange for the privilege of using the name, logos, and publications and put yourself out as Prince Hall Masons.  Any time we fail to meet the obligation to the state or national level of our organization, then, we fall from grace with them, and they no longer have a duty to provide any assistance to us.   I believe that we can do it.  But, we can’t do it with a handful of aging members.  The first consideration is, “What can be done to attract young energetic men to the lodge?”   Every organization understands that its survival is dependent upon a large youth population.  If you don’t have youngsters, you have a dead organization.  A group of “aging men” can only do so much.  You possess the wisdom; so you serve as the brains….your young men will be the brawn. And as they continue to associate with the lodge, they will learn the leadership skills (that you too once had to learn) that will be needed to carry the lodge forward.   Once they join, let them lead!  

So, let’s think in terms of what we may be able to do to attract new members.  The Prince Hall Masons is an excellent vehicle through which lodge brothers could implement “mentoring” programs.  A good starting point might involve taking young boys in as members, or “Junior Members” and utilizing the very lessons learned in masonry to teach these youngsters character and values.  No need to re-invent the wheel!  Folks kill me, going out trying to start up something new.  Somebody got up a BBC and all kinds of  “boy-clubs,” when the same kinds of things could have been accomplished through the Masonic Lodge. African-Americans have excellent organizations already in place, that can be utilized to develop our young black men.  Let’s USE WHAT WE HAVE!  There is grant money available to groups and organizations who work with youth.  Grab some!  This may provide a means to help with the restoration efforts for 538.    

A community restoration project would be a great way to develop community pride, and team-work among African-Americans.   We need a good community project.

“Black-Balling”

I don’t pretend to know a whole lot about masonry, but I do remember my father’s  many conversations about Masonry.  He was a member of 538, and loved it.  He also was a 33rd Degree Mason.  Although there are many secrets about Masonry, it was no secret that there is a practice known as “black-balling,” a way for Masons to bar someone thought to be “undesirable” from membership.  As I understood it, this was a means of keeping the organization “exclusive.”  At one time, it was rumored that a various times there were young men who tried for a very long time to join 538, but never could because of this “black-balling” practice. Sometimes, the effort to keep the organization “clean” can end up being the nail in the coffin.  We certainly don’t need to get so “exclusive’ until people lose interest in becoming a part of it.

If 538 wants to attract new members, I would suggest suspending the practice of “black-balling” and adopt an OPEN DOOR POLICY. The lodge needs help!  Now!  It needs everybody’s help.  Perhaps if “undesirables” are admitted, then in the process of helping to re-build the lodge, an undesirable might be smitten by the influence of the brothers and develop more desirable qualities…. Thus the lodge would be meeting its goal of “making a good man better.”      

Appeal To The Community

I’m appealing to the black community in Roanoke, to get involved and let’s save 538. I know in my heart that WE CAN DO IT!  We owe it to our forebearers who labored in the vineyard of Roanoke in an effort to make it a great place for us to grow up and mature in.  Without a doubt, back then, times were much harder, financially than they are now.  Would they not be highly disappointed in us if they could only come back for a moment and revisit our neighborhood?

I emerged from our meeting with an appreciation for Lopez, for the work he does, for the successes he has experienced in helping drug addicts overcome their addictions, for the vision and the beliefs he professes.  I pray for his continued success in the ministry.  His goals are admirable, but are they achievable?

I do however, have reservations about his vision of bringing people of the faith communities together under the banner of Christianity.  I don’t want anyone to read this and think that I believe this kind of unity to be undesirable.  But, I do believe it to be an unrealistic and un-achievable goal—at THIS  particular time and place in history.

He said that blacks isolate themselves because of their previous hurts.  True.

My personal belief:  Even without the multi-racial piece, many Christian leaders are too fanatical, too strict and too stern in our interpretation of scriptural ideologies to blend without major disharmony. 

And from a racial perspective, there are too many unresolved conflicts OUTSIDE OF RELIGION that have their origin in lingering racial discrimination and old prejudices and beliefs, for a multi-racial practice of Christianity to be genuine, pure and untainted.  Conflicts in the legal system, conflicts in the way blacks are treated in certain venues, and conflicts in the social structure of our nation.  I just don’t believe it can or will happen, not in this lifetime, and not in this part of the country.  

It is hypocritical for us to claim to desire Christian unity, when we are not really striving for unity on ANY OTHER LEVEL.   Yes, it would be wonderful!  But, how can you ask me to worship with the Judge who over-exerts his sentencing authority when dealing with black men and boys at a rate that is causing the massive overrepresentation of black men in our nation’s prisons?   How can you ask me to worship with Educators, who may smile and grin with me outwardly, but deep within, don’t really think I’m intelligent enough to teach their little angels?   How can you ask me to worship with the school superintendent who hires me ONLY because there’s a court order hanging over his head, that compels him to do so by law, and not his spirit that tells him it is the right and fair thing to do?

God knows, I love the Lord for every good and perfect gift that he has bestowed upon my life.  But, I’m only human.  I relate to others out of my life experiences.  And my experiences as a black woman trying to grow up and live in a society that has been dominated by the white middle class have not always been pleasant or positive ones.  How can I worship and serve my God with my oppressor? 

Lopez was right.  As long as there is distinction, there will be division — On every level.

My oppressor can’t talk to me about Christ, until we talk about how to fix all the other social, political and economic, conditions that caused me to be treated differently because of my race.  

Those of us who are watching, and understand the reality of black life, recognize the decline in black economic progress for what it is.  It is symptomatic of a grave illness that has infected many African American people resulting in detachment from the struggles of yester-year.  Among our folks― especially youth― there is a shameful lack of appreciation for the struggle that practically every black person went through trying to get ahead. 

One major reason is the intentional failure of the general media to address issues that directly impact black life.  Another lies in the fact that neither public nor private schools are being compelled (either by law or by the citizenry) to incorporate black history, or black newspapers in their classroom curricula, and not apologizing for their attitude about it.  They have never, nor do they currently care that black children are not being properly exposed to information that provides some cultural identity for them.  But, the most discouraging truth of the matter is that a lot of our own folks acquiesce with the long-standing practice of institutional racism, by passively rejecting the idea of black empowerment. 
We believe that because we are committed to taking positive action in that direction, we ought to have the full, complete support of African Americans in every community.    If you are not reading The People’s Voice, we believe that you OUGHT to be reading it.   We don’t apologize for our attitude, because we are finding that black folks by and large, aren’t reading much of ANYTHING.   And it’s frightening!  Are we really that careless and unconcerned?  
Rather than to consider us as an “afterthought,” we want to be considered FIRST.   We should be the first to come to mind, when and if anything important is happening in our culture and community.   But, we find that many of our people are still infected and affected with the slave mentality, thinking that whatever we do will be inferior.  Or just not thinking about us at all. 
It has been said that we are our own worst enemy.  As badly as I hate to believe that…at times, I’m forced to believe it.
Truth is, it will be inferior  as long as our own people ignore us…we create a self-fulfilling prophecy, dooming ourselves to failure, because WE didn’t consider it important, what our own constituency had to say; because WE continued to take our stories to other papers FIRST, instead of bringing them to our own; because WE considered ourselves LAST, after everybody else had gotten ahold of it; then we subject ourselves to harsh criticism because we didn’t have the information early enough.  
After a full year of publication, as a black news media, we ought to be, and could and should be ON TOP OF OUR GAME right now.   But, when somebody recently told me to consider the fact that a lot of blacks are sitting back waiting for The People’s Voice to flop, I was quite taken by shock…. And I thought  “No, not in this day.”    But, I had to re-think my reaction.  Then, I had to think about where we’ve come from.  And I thought again, “Maybe.”
Black folks, we don’t even realize our own power!  However, right now it is more necessary than ever that we USE that power, to liberate ourselves and our youngsters.  Contrary to popular belief, we are not FREE!!  
Our bible tells us “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.”
We can readily see one example of this lack of knowledge in our youngsters of today, who have more “access” to education than ever before in the history of our country. But, we need to think about how and where they are getting this education?  In the malls; from video games, television, media? 
What are WE AS A COMMUNITY OR AS INDIVIDUALS doing to teach our children?  Who’s telling our children OUR story?   What are the schools doing for our youngsters?  Many of them graduate from high school, and STILL have to take remedial courses in college, before they can even take their first college level course.  They can’t read.  And if they can’t read, their thinking is certainly impaired!   They cannot read CRITICALLY, because they are not really exposed to situations that require them to do it!   But, you can change all of that right now, by exposing them to the People’s Voice Black Weekly News.  Give them something to THINK about! 
In the People’s Voice Black Weekly News, you’ll find timely and reliable information by, for, and about black people from every walk of life or every level of interest. We are committed to being the preeminent print publication designed for the purpose of empowering through information regarding Black life, politics, business, economics health, education, and general welfare.  We are committed to creating and serving as that very necessary platform that is so badly needed, for us to carry on constructive conversations about our collective growth and the progress of our people.
The People’s Voice is committed to telling OUR story from OUR vantage point.  But, if we are to succeed in accomplishing this goal, we must have your undivided attention and support!!

If and WHEN we succeed, it will be because of the overwhelming support of the black communities throughout the East Central Alabama and West Central Georgia Region…
All we have to do is leverage OUR collective buying power.  There are 77,000 black inhabitants in the 7 counties that surround Randolph.  Just by virtue of the mere numbers of black inhabitants in our own and our neighbor counties, we have the potential to be on TOP.   But, what will we do with it?
Similarly, we have that same potential voting strength, to affect the outcome of every election.  What will we do with that?   Use it!  Use that power.  Use the power of numbers!  Use the power of unity!  Use the power of the vote! Use the power of collective action!
It’s no secret.  We can’t do it unless you make a decision to support.  I am asking

you to make that commitment TODAY!   There is a simple roadmap to our success.  

We are a long long way from the 77,000 subscribers that we are looking for.   But we are on a mission to get there.   You can help us to achieve that. 
Support The People’s Voice.   Support by pledging to spend only $.50 cents EVERY week to buy a paper.   Support The People’s Voice by READING it and embracing its message.  
What follows are several things that you can do, to ensure that we succeed.

1.  Start a “Church Readership” Club in your congregation, by encouraging members of your church to buy the paper and read.   We will gladly offer a special rate to church groups who agree to purchase a bulk quantity of papers, on a monthly basis.

2.  Volunteer some of your time weekly, to assist in distributing The People’s Voice in YOUR community.

3.  Volunteer some of your time weekly, to assist in soliciting advertising in our paper.

4.  Start a distributorship of your own.

5.  How many people have you told that YOU read The People’s Voice?  How many other people have you encouraged to read it?   Call at least five (5) of your friends, and tell them about The People’s Voice.  Let them know that YOU read it, and encourage them to do the same!

6.  If you Teach, USE THE PEOPLE’S VOICE in your classroom, to motivate your student’s curiosity.  They love it!  Let them complete the “KidScoop” activity page in the paper.  This will encourage them and teach them how to read the paper.

7.  Of the merchants that YOU trade and do business with, how many have you encouraged to share some of their advertising business with us.
I would like to invite you to go to our informational website, at www.peoplesvoiceweekly.com and browse that site, and get inspired.  Start reading The People’s Voice. 
 REMEMBER, Our success depends on YOU!!

© 2006 by Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson

We have heard a lot of preaching and prophesying both in the media and in the streets, about the 401k.  But, that day, we learned that the employees’ 401k contributions were not lost, as had been previously asserted all over the place.   Yet, the media ain’t talkin’ ‘bout that!
 
I believe the whole passel of overzealous media hounds owe Mr. Terry an apology for all the lies and half-truths that have been published and perpetrated generating far too many undeserved presumptions, speculations and prejudices about his life-style and his intentions in whatever acts he may have committed.  
 
As the proceedings neared the end, it appears that the longer this case has continued, the less severe the proposed actions against Mr. Terry have grew.  
 
On a spiritual level, I believe that anything Mr. Terry may have done as CEO of Terry Manufacturing Company, was done in an effort to preserve the integrity of the company and enable him and his family to continue to employ those who depended on Terry Manufacturing Company for their livlihoods.
 
Although Monday, September 11^th was a dreadful day, I celebrated my birthday by remembering who I am ― and whose I am.   I remember that God allowed me to come into this world in the month of September, a month ruled by the earth   ― it is a sign of love, deep loyalty, and integrity, and a strong sense of commitment to that in which I believe.  On Monday, September 11, I celebrated my loyaly to a life-long friend and comrade.
_______________________

Copyright 200t by Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson
This article was composed and written by Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson, and appeared in the September 15, edition of The People’s Voice African American Weekly News (www.peoplesvoiceonline.com).   This article may be reprinted with permission from the author:
Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson
email:  caclarkfrieson@msn.com
322 Wilkie Clark Drive
Roanoke, Alabama 36274
334.863.4885
256.276.8640

By Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson,
Associate Editor
As we continue to work to make The People’s Voice more responsive and sensitive to the specific interests of it’s audience, we have devoted a lot of time to considering the kind of information that would be most meaningful to people of color.

As we continue to work to make more responsive and sensitive to the specific interests of it’s audience, we have devoted a lot of time to considering the kind of information that would be most meaningful to people of color.Early in our publishing conquest, many readers inquired as to why we don’t publish arrest reports and articles of that nature as other print media do?  Our answer was a loud, resounding and emphatic NO!  After surveying the interests and opinions  of black consumers, we were impressed by their opinions that they found it very distasteful to read arrest reports, especially when many of those featured in the arrest reports are black.  Many see it as another strategy that allows the majority to stigmatize and brand blacks as criminal.

What is gained by demeaning an individual who may be a victim of alcohol or drug use?   What is gained from publicly humiliating an individual who may have committed a minor offense?

Thus after careful consideration, we believe it would be more meaningful to those truly concerned with the well-being and interest of African American people, to provide reports that shed more light on the numbers and/or percentages of individuals by race and gender, who are most affected by the Justice System and the nature of the charges leveled against them.

For African-Americans, the more important question goes back to the issue of how many(?) as opposed to who(?).

It has been established throughout numerous black venues that blacks are more frequently profiled and have more confrontations with law enforcement, despite the fact that we are in the minority in the general population.  Thus, a sensible conclusion is that the percentage of blacks in custody should be no higher than the percentage represented in the general population….and already, most of us could conclude that to be a joke!

So, believing that this kind information would be more meaningful…we are beginning to have conversations with some of the municipalities throughout the area to arrange to get the information weekly.   In pursuit of this goal, we recently spoke with Susan Cooper who works with the Municipal Court for the City Of Wedowee.   As a result of our conversations with  Cooper, we certainly gained a new respect for Mayor Tim Coe after Cooper explained to us that “Several years ago, Mayor Coe was against people’s names being put in the paper for arrest in the City, because he thought the families of the subjects were going through enough without their names being put in the paper.”

We couldn’t agree more.  And although we realize that such criminal proceedings are a matter of public record, we believe that if people want to know that bad, let them go dig up the information for themselves.    

So, all things considered, we plan to publish weekly reports that give numerical data regarding arrests in selected municipalities; we would like for our reports to include the nature of the charges also, however, the actual content of our report will remain a work in progress as it evolves.   We will gradually add other locations as the information becomes available to us.  Our report will more than likely appear in tablet format.

With this knowledge then, we as a people should be compelled to ask the question, “Why are blacks overrepresented in jails and prisons?”    Finally, as proactive and concerned citizens, hopefully we will be about the business of seeking solutions to these dilemmas.

As we gather this data weekly, we will share this information with you in the form of a Weekly Justice Report.  Please look forward to the inclusion of the weekly “Justice Report (or whatever we choose to title it).”

Our hope is that after reading our weekly reports, you will be able to put the numbers to the test for yourself.  Then, judge for yourself.   Is our system fair?  Is there racial equality in the criminal justice system?   It will be quite interesting to see how this data unfolds.
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Copyright 2006 by Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson
This article was composed and written by Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson, and appeared in the September 1, edition of The People’s Voice African American Weekly News (www.peoplesvoiceweekly.us).  
This article may be reprinted with permission from the author:
Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson
email:  caclarkfrieson@msn.com
322 Wilkie Clark Drive
Roanoke, Alabama 36274
334-863-4885
256-276-8604

Make A Will

Charlotte A.Clark-Frieson
Associate Editor

For nearly 40 years, my family has operated Clark Funeral Home in Roanoke, Alabama. This allowed me to observe many commonalities among African-American families.

During those years, one of my saddest observations was the number of black families who had not prepared financially for their homegoing.  My father, who served as a funeral director in our community for more than 20 of those years, used to sometimes say that “black folks live like we think we’re never going to die.”  Maybe we don’t believe we have anything worth willing.   Because of people’s refusal to make their will, I witnessed a lot of unnecessary sadness and disappointment:  I’ve seen families break up; siblings fall out; spouses die of broken hearts because they are literally left with nothing, OR they are left in a position where they have no say over property that may rightfully be theirs.  You can drive through the black neighborhood in our community today, and see numerous properties laying waste, because ownership is yet unresolved because title was never legally passed through a will or deed.   On many an occasion I cried in sympathy for those who often became the victims of the deceased who failed to take care of this very important matter.

Let me share a true story with you:

There was a couple, both of whom were in their senior years (late 60’s).  Although this couple had never married, they lived together as husband and wife for more than 20 years.  During the relationship, she had worked and helped him pay for the property they were living on; helped furnish the home; and literally conducted all kinds of financial business as a married couple.   The male partner had been married and fathered several children during his marriage; however, he had never divorced the first wife, who years before had migrated north, and raised all their children who at the time of his passing were now adult.  When he died, the common-law wife bore all the funeral expenses and the grief associated with the loss of a spouse.  Assuming that after the funeral she would return to their home and live out the rest of her days, she was literally taken by storm ─ at the graveside ─ before the body was even completely covered, when the first wife and all the adult children abruptly confronted her, challenged her right to return to their home, and demanded that she vacate the premises.  With nowhere else to go, disappointed, heartbroken, it wasn’t three months before she, too, died ― aging, ailing, homeless and heartbroken.   Our conversations with her led us to believe that he had taken for granted that everything would be alright; and she being “a woman, (the lesser partner in this relationship),” never pressed the issue or bothered to ask any questions of him.

Most people know that they need a will. Most people without a will have intentions to make out their wills. Yet, surprisingly, many African-Americans — even people of considerable means—die without directing the disposition of their property.

This simple document known as your Last Will and Testament, is one of the most critical – but often neglected – parts of a sound financial plan.
There may be those who are frightened or intimidated by the expense of hiring a lawyer to write their will.  This leads to another fact that most people don’t realize  ―  that you do not need an attorney to make a legal will.   You can sit down and write out your own will with pencil and paper, and have it be just as legal as if an attorney wrote it.  All you need is to make sure it is signed and dated.  Having more than one person witness your will makes it a stronger document.  Having it notarized makes it even stronger.    
Seeing so many black families without wills often complicated the completion of funeral arrangements, which affected our ability to conduct business with many of these families.  So, as a service to our communities, we began to offer assistance in helping families prepare their wills.   Sometime believing that a will wasn’t legal unless prepared by an attorney, people would disregard our offer, but we still continued to offer it.  But, by the same token, we had scores of people who did come in and let us help them prepare their wills. 

At days end, I think we helped a lot of individuals and families.   We have not had a single family come back and say that they had a problem with a will we helped them to write.
Your will allows you to keep control of what happens to your possessions after you are gone.  It allows you to state who you want to be in charge of your affairs.  It allows them to easily manage your affairs without the complication of having to account to any individual or agency.

If you don’t own anything but a mule and wagon, will it to somebody― even if you don’t have children or relatives; find someone you trust to oversee your financial affairs not only while you are alive, but after you die.   Put your wishes down on paper.  What you say won’t be worth a dime unless you say it in black and white. 

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Some Important Considerations:

What’s surprising is that the rewards from preparing a Will are many, and tremendously valuable. So why do so many of us put it off?   For many people, the stumbling block is a number of simple, understandable, but faulty and potentially costly assumptions. While it may seem that common sense would dictate where your assets go or who will take care of your children in the absence of a Will, it doesn’t work that way.
Why? The answer in a word: Procrastination.
“We’re waiting until __________.”
…until we have children;
…until we buy a house;
…until the business is organized;
…until the investment outlook changes;
…until The grandchildren arrive.
 
But waiting is a big mistake. Change and uncertainty will always be with us: the “perfect time” is unlikely to occur. That’s why the best time to make a will is now.
 
In your will, you can:

1.      Name whomever you choose to receive your property, what each of them is to receive and whether they are to receive it outright or in trust.

Without a will, your state’s intestacy law will make all the decisions for you.

2.     Choose whom you wish to serve as the executor of your estate, someone who will see that your directions are carried out in a timely and orderly manner.
 

Without a will, a court will appoint an administrator to carry out these duties. The administrator chosen may not be the person you would want to serve.

3.     Acknowledge personal and business circumstances. Name a guardian for minor children; make special provisions for loved ones who are in ill health or otherwise unable to handle an inheritance; continue a program of charitable giving; provide how a going business will be continued or liquidated.
Without a will, state law will distribute your estate to your nearest relatives, outright, without looking any further.

4.     Take advantage of opportunities to reduce taxes and administrative costs associated with settling your estate.
Without a will, there are few, if any, opportunities to reduce these expenses.

Making your will is the important first step in estate planning—the process of arranging for the preservation of your property while you live and for the distribution of your property at your death.
 
Another important step is to name an executor who will manage and protect the assets in your estate and see to it that the instructions in your will are carried out. When you name us to serve as executor of your will, you have the security and peace of mind of knowing that what you plan for your heirs to receive, they will receive.

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Copyright 2006 by Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson
This article was composed and written by Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson, and appeared in the August 25, edition of The People’s Voice African American Weekly News (www.peoplesvoiceweekly.us).   This article may be reprinted with permission from the author:
Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson
email:  caclarkfrieson@msn.com
322 Wilkie Clark Drive
Roanoke, Alabama 36274
334-863-4885
256-276-8406

He was very much in tune with the flaws in our legal system.   Just as I now understand more clearly how our legal system victimizes so many black men, back then, my father understood the part that our flawed legal system had historically played in the legalized mistreatment of black folks in every area of American life, and especially in the Southeastern part of the country.   

In addition to this awareness, my father had a high respect for the law.  He came along at a time when Howard University was unrivaled in its reputation for producing great black legal minds who were well indoctrinated in the principles of making that law work to benefit black people, despite the inherent mechanisms within it that frequently worked against blacks.  Black law grads coming out of Howard University had been drilled, and had soaked in every aspect of the law, and knew it so well, until they became masters at what would it would take to turn it upside down, and inside out, to make sweeping changes that would ultimately make life better for black America. 

Through my association with my father, I was privileged to meet many of them, and I believe that at that time, the lawyers who graduated from Howard University came out of law school on a mission.   They were aggressive and determined to liberate black folks. 

But, no such lawyers are being produced any more.   I do not believe they are even being taught how to practice law aggressively any more.  Everywhere you go, all you see in law offices, are a bunch of sell-outs, who are looking for money, an easily winnable case, and a name.   Now, in many civil litigations, they want to run all over the golf course, or sit at the bar, and negotiate your fate with your enemy.   And they’ve come up with a fancy word for it…they call it arbitration.

At this stage of my life, I can boast many accomplishments.  I was privileged to earn a Masters Degree in Education; to teach in both the public and private sector; to be elected to public office which I held for 18 years;  to own and operate my own business; to author and publish books; and to help establish and write for a black news media  – But, I also have a few regrets, too.  One of them is that I didn’t follow through with my father’s pleadings that I go to one of the most prestigious black universities and take up the law profession.

Oddly enough, I have observed so many areas in life wherein black people are victimized without reservation, until I have had a lifetime of difficulty trying to decide where my own personal abilities could be the most effectively used to help rectify these disparities.

I have posted in this week’s People’s Voice, an article related to the Death Penalty study recently released by the American Bar Association.  

After reading such a report, I am livid. 

I am angry over how We The People, we, the politically correct, the affluent of the community, the pillars of society, the religiously self-righteous, the academia, the high and mighty  ― acquiesce with a system so riddled with flaws and so ridiculously and shamefully unjust and uneven and still go to bed, sleep soundly, and get up day after day, and not show any signs of concern or remorse over the lives that have been snuffed out with no sensitivity or regard for the possibility that mistakes may have been made; defenses may have been incompetent or inadequate; evidence may have been tainted; investigative work may have been sloppy; a jury may not have understood their instructions.      

I am angry over how incompetent lawyers “get over” economically ― and even get wealthy ― on the poor, the ignorant and the illiterate with their half-baked, half-hearted practice and mis-application of the law.  

And I regret that I didn’t go ahead and major in law and establish a practice in Alabama. 

Because if I had, I do not believe that I could have stood quietly and idly by and participated in a centuries-old penal system that casually victimizes the innocent as a matter of routine.

I couldn’t have stood to spend my lifetime sitting in the halls of justice, day after day, getting wealthy and fat preying on the ignorance of the innocent and the naïve, working within a system that would knowingly convict people to death without assuring the existence of a fair and just process through which to do it.  My conscience could not have allowed me to do it.

No.  I would have been another Thurgood Marshall or Constance Baker Motley.

I can just hear my daddy saying “Charlotte, I told you so…. I told you what to do, but you were listenin’ to your ma.  Yaw’ll didn’t think I had no sense.”   

I really regret it, because in today’s society, so charged with foolishness, and professional mediocrity, some one is needed, who is able to stand up and challenge the status quo, by demanding fairness, justice, and equity.    I don’t know one single attorney practicing today who has the guts to do it.

Today, God only knows how many black folk are suffering for not having listened to the wisdom of our elders.   In modern society, we have more blacks than ever entering every field imaginable.   It is unbelievable how our young  upwardly mobile blacks are now using these opportunities to advance themselves personally and economically without thinking about giving back to their communities or their people.   We must get committed to putting all our education and technological know-how to use, by applying what we know to become part of the movement to help liberate those who cannot help themselves – such as those who fall prey to the unfair judicial system.

Fairness, Justice, Equity…. It is our constitutional right.    It should not have to be bought or paid for.  It is a guarantee.  And under that constitution, our government has an obligation to all of us, to make it a reality, we the people must demand it, and we must have it (in the words of Malcolm X)  BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY! 

Recently I asked several black individuals if they had read “The Covenant With Black America?”

“What’s that?” was the most frequent response I got after asking this question.

Ask the average young black male “Who is Tavis Smiley?” he can’t tell you.

Ask the average black youngster “Who was Martin Luther King, Jr. and what did he do?” they are barely able to demonstrate even a vague understanding of what M.L.K was all about, and the civil rights struggles of African Americans.

I often stop people on the street and ask, “Have you read The People’s Voice?”

Most frequent answer: “Oh, Yeah! I heard about it but I havent’ read it yet?”

“Why not?”

“Well, you know, I don’t really like to read…..”

We ought to be ashamed to let anybody hear us say that we don’t want or like to read!

Young African Americans understand that they are victimized by the judicial system, they are profiled by law enforcement, and they understand about prison, but they have no earthly idea why this is. They are unable to make the connection between a long-standing history stemming from the enslavement of Africans dating back to the 1600’s and before, and what is happening to them now.

My late father used to make a statement that would have us all rolling around on the floor with laughter. He’d say something like: “I done just made up my mind to get clean out of the Negro race!” I’m sure he really didn’t mean that. But, I think when he said that, he was trying to show how ashamed and embarrassed he would be about certain demeaning conditions that we as a race allow to persist. He would often say that we are too lazy and sorry to get up and do something about our condition, and it would almost make him want to “divorce” his blackness.

Today, I believe he would be even more ashamed of our condition. He along with many of our black icons, and leaders, would be ashamed of the conditions that we now allow to exist and persist in our race: the lack of knowledge of our history by black youth, the lack of interest in civic responsibility on the part of many of our adults; the way young black men often flee from the responsibility of fatherhood, and manhood. The way our young women are throwing themselves around sexually, and allowing the AIDS epidemic to destroy our population unchecked; the way we have allowed an unfair judicial system to imprison millions of black men all over our country.

I think that one of the biggest reasons for these problems is that we are not “Tuned In.” We are not paying attention to what is going on around us. We are too busy being materialistic and superficial, and listening to everything but what we ought to be listening to.

We have forsaken the black family, an institution that has held historical significance for black folks since the beginning of time. We have given the responsibility of child-rearing over to the after-school tutorial program, the boys and girls clubs, the schools, and juvenile court system. And we have turned deaf ears to the cries of our babies. We have forgotten that nothing takes the place of good old-fashioned parenting, and genuine love.

But, we have forsaken everything that has traditionally been near and dear to us. And for what? Jobs, homes, cars; material wealth?

We have an obligation to future generations of black youth, to tune in to our surroundings, and take notice of what is happening in our midst. We must do this, before it is everlasting, too late.
_________________________
This article was composed and written by Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson, and appeared in  The People’s Voice  Weekly News (http://www.peoplesvoiceonline.com/).   This article may be reprinted ONLY with permission from the author:
Charlotte A. Clark-Frieson
email:  caclarkfrieson@msn.com
322 Wilkie Clark Drive
Roanoke, Alabama 36274
334-863-4885
334-338-1149