EMERGENCY RED ALERT: SAVE OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION FROM DRACONIAN BUDGET CUTS

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

Hello All!

THIS IS A DIRE EMERGENCY! !
OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION IS THREATENED BY GOVERNOR CUOMO'S BUDGET CUTS!  
WE NEED YOUR HELP IMMEDIATELY TO PUT A STOP TO THIS MADNESS.  
CONTACT: 
SAM BROWN - EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION 
AT 212-316-7040 - 
THERE IS NOT A MOMENT TO LOSE!!!
THIS MESSAGE IS ALSO TO ALL ELECTED OFFICIALS - REGARDLESS OF WHERE YOU ARE  - MANHATTAN, BROOKLYN, BRONX, QUEENS, STATEN ISLAND, CONGRESS!!
ALL OCF ALUMNI!!
ALL PEOPLE WITH CHILDREN!! 
ALL PEOPLE WHO LOVE CHILDREN!! 
ALL NEW YORKERS, AND PEOPLE THE WORLD OVER!

SAVE OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION!!

Now that I have your attention,  let's talk:

Our Children's foundation was founded 47 years ago by Sam Brown, who at the time was a social worker in Harlem.  He was working in communities were at risk children were surrounded by drugs, apathy, no recreation facilities, and either lived in a single parent family, where there was  working mom or, mom on welfare as head of household; or where both parents worked, but the child came home to an empty house after school, with no adult supervision - a sure fire formula for delinquent activities.

In 1968, when the Black community was being flooded with drugs, Sam Brown implemented a concept and a dream that he had been working on for years - OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION - an organization that provides after school and year round activities for at risk youth -free of charge - 365 days a year, from 9:00am to 9:00pm!  His theory was that drug dealers didn't take holidays - they were out there trying to addict our youth 365 days a year, so Our Children's Foundation, in order to be affective, also had to provide 365 services in drug prevention and keeping OUR CHILDREN off the streets - if they were to be affective in changing the paradigm!  

Using a combination of grants, including that of the DEA, and other private and public foundations, Sam Brown took an abandoned building and transformed it into an urban oasis of learning and personal development for inner city kids - who come as far as the Bronx and other boroughs to be a part of his program.  He was out to change the stigma and stereotype so many have had for OUR CHILDREN.  He was determined to change the paradigm.

And change the paradigm he did!!!  Not only has he maintained that policy for providing services and keeping the doors open 365 days a year - INCLUDING HOLIDAYS -  for 47 years; his staff are held to the highest standards of integrity and behavior.  They have to be role models for the children of Our Children's Foundation: NO PROFANITY! NO GUM CHEWING! NO SLOPPY CLOTHING! POLITENESS AND PATIENCE, BUT FIRM DISCIPLINE AT ALL TIMES!  And it works - and has been working for 47 years (I said that already, didn't I? Well it's important - it goes to the effectiveness, the dedication and success of his methodology).

So why is Governor Cuomo trying to short circuit a program that works by cutting their budget, while there are so many other bogus programs out there that are sucking up money and only look good on paper, but have little to no impact, and very little to show in the way of accomplishments?  Good question!  I think it might be because no one has informed him of the tremendous success of OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION!  Maybe we've been too quiet about the most successful program not only in Harlem, but in the world.  

Sam Brown is not one to toot his own horn.  He's more focused on delivering on his promise  there is NOTHING TOO GOOD FOR OUR CHILDREN, WHO MAY BE 10% OF THE POPULATION, BUT ARE DEFINITELY 100% OF OUR FUTURE!  

As a result of his efforts and dedication, Sam Brown, and OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION, have taken children from the threat of low self esteem and failure, to that of self-empowerment, academic and educational excellence; youth who might have been doing drugs, are instead making contributions to their community.  Every year Sam takes some 400 youth to Black College Tours, and a two-week "vacation" to historically Black sites - where they stay in top hotels, thereby dispelling the concept that they aren't good enough, or can't enjoy the finer things in life.  OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION staff teach etiquette, study skills, elocution, and proper comportment (that's what they used to call it when I was in school) so that, instead of a rowdy bunch of adolescents, you have young ladies and gentlement that are welcomed and respected everywhere they go.

Twenty years ago, Sam Brown's OUR CHILDREN FOUNDATION took 360 students to Selma, Alabama, to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge, after a month long study of the Civil Rights Era - that's twenty years before the Fiftieth Anniversary Commemoration!!! When the movie came out, the first person I thought of was OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION - I wondered if they had been included in the movie.  They certainly should have been.  But, no matter, the experience, the significance and the memory will last those children a life time - as will the principles upon which Sam Brown established OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION.

Each day, after their regular school day is completed, the children come to the foundation.  They have to check in. They are not allowed to lounge on the streets outside the building.  Their first task is to complete their homework.  OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION coordinates with the schools to make sure the children are progressing appropriately in their classes. Completion of homework is the key to participating in the myriad of activities they provide. But it doesn't stop at homework - each child has to have signed a pledge upon being accepted into the program to participate fully, be polite and respectful of the other students there, to have a major project of interest that they are required to complete and present - this is about self development - not just sports.

They learn table manners,  public speaking, project management, dance, music - I could go on - but right now THIS IS AN EMERGENCY RED ALERT TO SAVE OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION FROM GOVERNOR CUOMO'S DRACONIAN BUDGET CUTS!!

THEIR SUCCESS RATE THUS FAR HAS BEEN 99.44/100% - NOBODY'S PERFECT - BUT THEY COME CLOSE ENOUGH!

OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION has been instrumental in the college education of at least 1,200 students over it's life time, as well as helping countless others complete their high school education and go on into careers of their choosing.  

THIS IS NO FLY-BY-NIGHT ORGANIZATION 

SOMEBODY NEEDS TO TELL GOVERNOR CUOMO - Keith Wright, Charles Rangel, Denny Farrell, Bill Perkins, Charles Barron, Eric Adams, Letitia James, Latrice Walker, Yvette Clarke,  Gregory Meeks, Ruth Hassell Thompson, Inez Dickens, Jose Serrano, Andrea Stewart Cousins, Carl Heastie, Annette M. Robinson, Walter Mosley III   -  
HANDS OFF OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION!   
This has absolutely nothing to do with political territory - this has to do with the very lives, the very future of our youth.  So don't stand on ceremony and pontificate about where your constituency is.  When it comes to OUR CHILDREN your constituency is the whole of New York!!

A rally will take place in front of OUR CHIDREN'S FOUNDATION, which is located in Harlem at  527 W. 125th Street in Harlem - but there so much more that needs to be done to drive the point home that, instead of cutting the budged to OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION, Governor Cuomo should be rewarding them by increasing the budget and giving them the support they need to do even more.

NOTE:  (Please do not confuse them with another organization "Caring For Our Children Foundation" - they are two totally different organizations).,

Save Our Children Foundation - New York, New ... - Facebook

Save Our Children Foundation is on Facebook. To connect with Save Our Children Foundation, s

ign up for Facebook today. Sign UpLog In.

 

Or call to offer your assistance - 212-316-7040 - Ask for Sam Brown, or one or his competent staff 

members,  who will be happy to update you on the status thus far.

Or call/write/email Governor Andrew Cuoma immediately, if not sooner - for your convenience, I've replicated

a form from Governor Cuomo's contact page; but you can feel free to utilize other methodologies - like TWITTER,

FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, or even A PERSONAL VISIT TO ALBANY!

 

Far too often, organizations that are essential in the Black community are overlooked by the larger superstructure,

not necessarily because they're not doing a good job, but because it's a widely held secret in the community,

but not as well known in other circles.  THE NECESSITY FOR OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION is 

even more critical than ever before.  They have proven that their methodology works - to destroy them would

be a critical blow to the future of the children of Harlem - and evidence that there is little to no concern or regard  

for the welfare, wellbeing and future of our youth.

 

AGAIN, THIS IS AN EMERGENCY RED ALERT - IT REQUIRES YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION AND

ACTION - SAVE OUR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION FROM THE STATE'S DRACONIAN BUDGET CUTS - stop

them from trying to balance the budget on the backs of OUR CHILDREN. 

 

NOW THAT YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?

CALL THE GOVERNOR

1-518-474-8390
Office hours: 9:00am to 5:00pm

 

WRITE LETTERS

The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo
Governor of New York State
NYS State Capitol Building
Albany, NY 12224

Stay Blessed & 
ECLECTICALLY BLACK
Gloria Dulan-Wilson 
www.gloriadulanwilson.blogspot.com/ECLECTICALLY BLACK NEWS

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Governor of New York State
NYS State Capitol Building
Albany, NY 12224

 

 

 

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Our Dear Brother Elombe Brath is now an African Ancestor Angel Activist

by Gloria Dulan-Wilson



It is with great sadness that I announce the transition of our dear, valiant, courageous, creative, talented, brother Elombe Brath, who made his transition earlier today, May 20, 2014.

Elombe Brath Champion of Beauty, Justice, Independence for Black People The World Over

I have nothing but praise and admiration for this wonderful brother and his family, whom I have known since 1966.  And yes, I'm crying - but these are as much tears of gratitude as they are of sorrow, because that was such a long, wonderful, beautiful, blessed friendship.



I think, spiritually, Elombe had already moved forward - but has just finally released himself from his physicality -  He was always, always so far ahead of us in so many ways. The strokes he had begun to suffer in 2009 necessitated his being in a nursing home where he could receive contiuum of care. During that time, his wife and mother of their seven children, the lovely Nomsa Brath, was likewise facing challenges of her own. She has, however, managed to rally and was a participant at the recently held 2013 tribute to his life and times in Harlem.

Kwame Brathwaite, Elombe's Brother at 2013 ELOMBE TRIBUTE

Nomsa Brath, Elombe's Wife and Lifemate at 2013 ELOMBE TRIBUTE

My knowledge of, and friendship with,  Elombe might not ever have happened had it not been for Sam Anderson, my Lincoln University Classmate, who brought Elombe (then Cecil Brathwaite) and the Grandassa Models to Lincoln, at a time when we were all wallowing in our "negative negroness."  Elombe was the first ever to assemble Black female models with natural hair, modeling beautiful rich African colors and designs, and walking to African music.  This was at a time when you'd rather be caught dead than to have nappy hair. This was Spring, 1966!!  Along with Elombe was his brother, Kwame, then future wife, Nomsa, producer Frank Adu of AJASS (African Jazz and Art Society Studios), and a host of African (American) drummers and dancers under the personage of Gus Dinizulu!

LINCOLN UNIVERSITY ARCH

We were thrilled.  Elombe was the master of ceremonies.  He taught us our heritage and love for our natural beauty and Blackness.  And if you have ever heard Elombe give you a standing lesson on Black people, you know it's long, detailed, animated and unforgettable.



At the time Naturally 66 came to Lincoln University, in spring 1966, there had been a horrible schism between African and African American students on Lincoln's campus. The friction led to arguments, disrespect, and bordered on physical confrontations. This and more were issues that were healed and rectified as a result of that one program!  It helped form a bond between Black African and African American that probably had not existed since the mid to late forties.  Lincoln University has always had a large African population - but prior to Naturally 66, AJASS and Black power, there had been very little real positive, cohesive interaction between African and African American students.



I have to smile when I think about the fact that there were only 16 coeds at Lincoln U on a campus of 600 males at the time, and all our male classmates were falling all over themselves as they watched those beautiful Black sisters - the Grandassas - (deep dark chocolate as opposed to the almost pass for white variety that had heretofore been the standard), walk - no, undulate - across the stage.
Elombe's words of wisdom that day to this have never been forgotten, and were the catalysts for so many of us who on that very evening were reborn from being "negro" into being Black and Beautiful.



Then, later in the year, Fall, 1966, Stokely Carmichael came and made us Black and Proud as he enunciated the principles of BLACK POWER.  As a result of those two catalysts, and the prodding of Sam Anderson, Tony Montiero, and Paul Moore, I and a classmate, Maxine Steward (deceased) became the first two coeds at Lincoln University, to wear naturals.  Maxine was subsequently named Homecoming Queen, and was the first Homecoming Queen in the US to have an “Afro.”

Stokely Carmicahel of SNCC Enunciating the Principles of BLACK POWER

Of course, subsequent to that time, the majority of coeds on Lincoln's campus wear some form of natural hair style.  But back in the days when it was better to be found walking down the street naked, than to have "nappy" hair, it considered was a bold move.  One that almost had me exiled from my family.  And, proudly, I've never processed (straightened) my hair since.



The pride Elombe engendered among my fellow classmates, was replicated world wide as his Grandassa Models became the new standard for Black beauty.  And as we began to embrace and appreciate our African heritage, it opened up the flood gates for contemporary studies on all that had been held away from us for hundreds of years about our ancestry.  Elombe spawned such an outpouring of self love and unity, that magazine covers of Ebony, Jet, Tan and other Black publications began to be reflective of the teachings.  It spawned beauty and hair care products especially designed for natural hair, as well as a fashion industry trying to outdo one another in the design of then popular African clothing styles.  Black studies flourished in the classrooms and churches; Black people began to greet each other as "brother" and "sister" - something that I continue to do til this day. Ajass, Grandassas, and Naturally 66 (67, 68, 69, etc., became the standard bearer of things Black and Beautiful).

This was all thanks to the vision of Elombe Brath, who dared to break a tradition founded on the brainwashing Blacks had suffered as a result of enslavement and hostile self destructive messages.



Throughout the decades following, Elombe has been friend, educator, activist, creator.  A graphic artist by trade, he was the light behind brother Gil Noble, who had been tagged by ABC-TV in NYC, to do a lightweight TV show geared to us then emerging Black revolutionaries.  The show later emerged to become LIKE IT IS, and was the greatest source of Black information and issues ever.  Elombe not only served as the graphic artist, he was the behind the scenes conduit for those great interviews that Noble was able to bring to the forefront.  I used to run into Elombe, and he would give me an earful of how ABC had been trying to control, and/or eliminate him from the show.  They had had no intention of LIKE IT IS becoming such a seminal success, and when they found that Elombe had been the conduit for many of the guests, as well as many of the on location programs, they first sought to curtail it by removing him from the show and putting him in another department.  When that didn't work, they eventually found a way to terminate him completely.

The Late, Great Gil Noble of Like It Is

When I asked him what he was going to do, he just said "What I always do, my sister.   I needed the job, but they can't stop me from spreading the truth. Gil and I will be alright."  It was following that that Elombe formed the Patrice Lumumba Coalition and began holding forums at the Harriet Tubman School in Harlem.  And, while he never looked back, and never went after ABC for wrongful termination, his relationship with Gil Noble remained as strong as ever.



Always in the background, but ever at his side, was his brother/partner, Kwame Brathwaite - photographer and quiet activist in his own right.  It was Kwame who quietly chronicled all that happened via his ever ready camera, preserving history for posterity.

Kwame Brathwaite, in a tribute to his brother that appeared in the Black Star News, 11-16-09, writes:

"Elombe was one of the founders, and the lifetime president of the African Jazz-Arts Society & Studios, (AJASS) a cultural group which had been founded during the summer of 1956 in the South Bronx but moved to Harlem in 1961. The group was a collective of Black artists, photographers, performers, and students (including Kwame Brathwaite, Robert Gumbs, Chris Acemendeces Hall, Frank Adu, Jimmy Abu and others) who gathered to promote Black Arts and Culture. This was the beginning of what became “The Black Arts Movement” which many believe started in 1965, nine years later.

"Influenced by the ANPMs Garvey Day celebration and their “Miss Natural Standard of Beauty” contests formed to install pride and confidence in Black women, who at the time were looked upon as less than beautiful by the mass media, the fashion world and by Black people themselves. After the 1961 contest, AJASS formed the nucleus of a group of models to explicitly promote the African standard of beauty, The Grandassa Models under the direction of Elombe. The image of darker women had been long overlooked by such magazines as Ebony, Jet, Tan, contradicting their very names.

"Thus the “Naturally” series of “cultural extravaganzas designed to restore our racial pride and standards” was born, beginning with the production of “Naturally ‘62” on January, of that year."

Last year, in May of 2013, New York State Senator, Bill Perkins hosted a statewide tribute to Elombe Brath at the Harriet Tubman School.  There were so many who came to honor him, that even the driving rain  and high winds could not deter them.  The program was filled with so many tributes, including the now late Amiri Baraka, Congressman Charles Rangel, and so many others, it literally ran two hours over the alotted time.  So much outpouring of love for Elombe and his wife and family, the auditorium was literally standing room only. 

New York State Senator Bill Perkins at the 2013 ELOMBE BRATH TRIBUTE

RandyWeston performing in honor of Elombe at the 2013 ELOMBE BRATH TRIBUTE

ANOTHER SAD NOTE: Dear Friends: I originally started writing this article on May 20, the day after Malcolm X's Birthday, after having learned about the transition of Elombe to the realm of Ancestor/Angel.  In the midst of my writing this article, I received the news that my friend Sam Greenlee, author of THE SPOOK WHO SAT BY THE DOOR, had also passed.  I was/am in a complete state of shock that I could possibly lose two friends practically on the same day!  It's taken me a while to process it and get back to paying homage to my friend, Elombe - which will be followed by an homage to Sam Greenlee as well.



Though I am a journalist, losing friends that I've known nearly a lifetime, such as Elombe, is a terrible personal blow. Notice, I did not say loss – because I have too many things to be grateful for during our long friendship to feel as I could count it as a loss. So I am expressing what is I am sure a heartfelt thank you from all the Black community – Nationally and Internationally – for the long life of love and service we've received as a result of the heart, hand, and love of Elombe. He has gone on to take his place along with the pantheon of other Black ancestor/angels who constantly, continuously and consistently watch over and guide us.


Contemporaries such as the late Amiri Baraka and his wife, Amina performed at the ceremony in tribute to Elombe in May 2013 as well.  Now these two great warriors are among our ancestors and are fondly looking down on us as we try to cope, recoup, regroup, and begin to see our way forward.

The Late Poet Laureat Activist Amiri Baraka Performing at ELOMBE BRATH TRIBUTE 2013  

Poet, Writer, Entertainer, Amina Baraka Singing at ELOMBE BRATH TRIBUTE 2013

Journalists Bernard White (L) and Herb Boyd (R) at ELOMBE BRATH TRIBUTE 2013

Producer Woodie King, Jr., and Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce  Lloyd Williams at ELOMBE BRATH TRIBUTE 2013

I have nothing but high praise and congratulations to us all, amidst the sorrow for having been blessed with having Elombe among us for a wonderful, positive, empowering, creative, productive 77 years.

As you can see, I'm doing this blog in real time.  I just received such a wonderful from brother Dawad Philip -  former managing editor of the Daily Challenge (the only Black Daily Newspaper in the US) on my FaceBook page, and I wanted to include it in this blog in tribute to Brother Elombe:

"Gloria, It is with deep sadness that I receive the news of Brother Elombe Brath's transition. A soldier and revolutionary of the highest order, educator, scholar, writer, Pan Africanist and friend, his was a life of full service. We Africans the world over owe much to Elombe in ways that we may not collectively or fairly measure, from Harlem to Bed-Stuy, the Spanish and French Caribbean, from Cuba to Namibia, Angola, Mozambique, to Grenada and South Africa, this son of Barbadian heritage personified the creed: Serve the People! I cannot help but smile as I picture him stepping into The Daily Challenge to deliver his regular columns and engaging all with the latest victory from the Front, of Fidel Castro snubbing the luxuries of Midtown choosing instead to stay in Harlem, or Brother Maurice Bishop and his NJM executive visiting the United Nations and Elombe ensuring that Fordham University had a full house to receive Maurice, to Nelson and Winnie Mandela visiting Harlem and Bedford-Stuyvesant, to his weekly revolution behind the cameras of Gil Noble's Like It Is, to Kwame Ture and at the end the African community's celebration of Ture's life with a Harlem send-off. He was our man with his ear to the global African drum. Elombe Brath walked among giants and led the struggle from the front so that generations today and onward may walk proud. I have just come back from Cuba and I have seen the vision that Elombe articulated for African youth, in music, in science, in the arts. Your dream is Alive, Elombe. Walk Good!"  - Dawad Philip May 23, 2014

Homegoing Services for Elombe will held at Abyssinian Baptist Church on Saturday, May 31, 2014

Stay Blessed &
ECLECTICALLY BLACK
Gloria Dulan-Wilson



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June 26 2012 - A DAY OF VICTORY FOR NEW YORK - A TIME OF VIGILANCE FOR AMERICA

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Wednesday, June 27, 2012

June 26 2012 - A DAY OF VICTORY FOR NEW YORK & A TIME OF VIGILANCE FOR AMERICA
By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

If June wasn't already an event-laden month, June 26th may well have been the zenith of a period that many felt would either make or break the New York Political realm for all times.

Of course,there were many of us who predicted that there was nothing to worry about - that the candidates who were stacked against the incumbents didn't have a snowball's chance in hell of unseating them. And we were absolutely right:

Congressman Charles Rangel held his seat in Manhattan, with a 56% lead at the time of this writing. No surprise when you figure there were so many running against him it easily split the votes.

Congresswoman Yvette Clarke will be returning to DC in Brooklyn, despite efforts to totally decimate her congressional district through the most heinous redistricting ever. At her victory party, held at Tropical Paradise in Brooklyn, she thanked her supporters, including Ms. Andrea Dawes, who had volunteered in every way possible; her mother, former City Council member Una S.T. Clarke, Mary Bishop, Latrice Walker and others, for making sure that she was able to conduct a campaign and maintain her responsibilities of representing her constituents in Washington. "We had a 'scrunching' of the opponent!" she stated enthusiastically, as her many well wishers toasted her victory. Scrunch or no scrunch, anyone following the Congresswoman's activities wonders what could her opponent have been thinking - no game, no track record, she was hopelessly out matched by Ms. Clarke across the board.

Congressman Gregory Meeks likewise prevailed in Queens; while Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez returns as well.

However, the most watched race, and what almost turned out to be the most acrimonious contest was that between City Councilman Charles Barron and New York State Assemblymember Hakeem Jeffries for the congressional seat recently vacated by Congressman Edolphus Towns.

What started out as a three way contest between Town, Jeffries and Barron, was turned into a two-way battle after the congressman announced that he was not going to seek re-election, after having served 27 years in Congress in Brooklyn's 10th Congressional District.

The announcement came as a shock to many who had supported Congressman Towns, and were now left with the dilemma of who to throw their support behind. The decision came so closely after fellow Congressman Donald Payne (D. Newark, NJ) had so suddenly succumbed to cancer, many speculated this may have played into Town's sudden decision to retire. The two had served together in Congress for more than a quarter of a century, each ably representing their constituencies, and simultaneously supporting each other in important legislation.

That said, the field was now narrowed down to two contenders. Both Barron and Jeffries had great track records in their service and devotion to their constituencies. Both have been known to go to the wall when necessary to ensure their districts had what they needed. So, to say the least, it was a perplexing problem, both inside and outside the Black community.

VIDA, the Vanguard Independent Democratic Association of Central Brooklyn had apparently decided to support Jeffries long before Congressman Towns backed out of the race. Under the leadership of State Democratic District Leader Robert E. Cornegy, Jr., who was recently elected President of the organization, they led a vigorous campaign to get the rest of the community on board. Still, with new lines drawn, and with the decimation of the old 10th Congressional District, reaching out to bring a new and diverse community together to coalesce behind Jeffries was no easy task.

Couple that with the fact that few, if any, of the Brooklyn voting population were aware that June 26th was substituting for the regular New York Primary that had traditionally been held in September; and you had what could have been the making of a political disaster.

Two weeks prior to the election, Barron had received the blessing and support of Congressman Towns, and it looked as if those who had supported him in the past may have followed suit as well. There were, however, others who were not persuaded that this was a good fit for Brooklyn, owing to the fiery nature of Barron, whose militancy and clarity has been known to rub more moderate political figures the wrong way.

So, while the voter turn out was "predictably low", the percentages were sufficient for a landslide in Jeffries' favor. Garnering 73% of the votes, more than enough to send him to Congress in 2013, it was clear that the voters of Brooklyn had spoken.

At his victory celebration, Jeffries thanked his staff and his campaign leaders, and pledged to continue to represent the poor, the middle class, the seniors, and those in his district who had been pushed out as a result of unaffordable living conditions, unemployment and other negative conditions. On hand to congratulate him were Assembly members Annette M. Robinson, Karim Camara, State Senator Kevin Parker, former Assembly members Roger Green and Clarence Norman, Elizabeth Holtzman, Public Advocate Bill DeBlasio, Professor Leonard Jeffries and his wife, Roslyn Jeffries (Hakeem Jeffries' aunt and uncle); 2013 Mayoral candidate Bill Thompson, and others too numerous to mention.

In looking across the room packed full of well wishers, it was obvious Jeffries had drawn support from practically every quarter of Brooklyn. Amazingly so, when the new maps themselves had actually not been completely finalized until just days before, leaving many in a quandry as to where they actually were supposed to be as of the day of the primary.

In closing Jeffries pledged to now focus his attention on the re-election of President Barack Obama. Our congratulations to him for having secured the victory as our new Congressional Representative in DC.

This is the point that I now remind everyone that, as in Brooklyn, and everywhere else, your vote absolutely counts!!! If you did not participate in this primary, if you have not registered to vote, make sure you do so before the September statewide primary. And most definitely before the Presidential election.

We've still got so much more to do to secure the future of our country from the hands of those who would roll back the clock to pre-civil rights and voting rights days.

I truly hope, as well, that now that this phase of the elections are behind us, those who were contenders will begin to work with the victors to move forward and make sure that we New Yorkers continue to move forward as well.
We've got to re-elect President Barack Hussein Obama. And with battle ground states surrounding us, and the combined rep-ugh-blican tactics of voter nullification and re-districting, as well as the Supreme Court bogus "Citizen's United rule" giving big business the right to buy elections wholesale, we had best be uniting across the boards to hold the lines and save democracy - or end up in a fascist version of the US that will make other repressive governments look like a cakewalk by comparison. **

So celebrate a great victory, New York. Pat yourselves on the back. But be very afraid, because states like Florida, South Carolina, Alabama, Pennsylvania, Arizona, are still trying to exert racist, repressive, revisionist, control over our rights.

And we absolutely cannot allow that to happen.

**(Just a foot note to this - We know that so-called Citizen's United and the Tea Baggers are pouring millions of dollars into trying to prevent Obama from being re-elected. So there are many in the meanstream media that try to convince us that Mitt Romney is getting bigger contributions. That may well be the case in quantity. However, while we may not have thousands to contribute, we do have thousands of us who can each give $3.00; $5.00; $7.00 or $10.00 to help in the campaign. If we each give $3.00 per week, President Obama will be able to continue with his campaign, while continuing the great job he is doing as Our President. You can either contribute online or via the many campaign headquarters in your area. For those of you outside New York, particularly those of you in the Battleground states, if you need to find a way of getting your contribution to the President, log on to www.Obama2012.com, and they will reach back out you.)

Stay Blessed &
ECLECTICALLY BLACK
Gloria Dulan-Wilson

HANDS OFF CHARLIE RANGEL & MAXINE WATERS: Ethnic Cleansing And The Ethics Committee: McCarthyism in the 21st Century

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

Well, it’s déjà vu all over again. The so-called ethics committee is going to “investigate” Congressman Charlie Rangel, for alleged unethical practices.

Don’t you find it interesting that this is similar to the b.s. investigation they leveled against Adam Clayton Powell Jr., when he became head of the House Ways and Means Committee, and attached more bills in favor of African Americans to any bill on the floor in the history of Congress? They came up with trumped up charges against him as well, and finally were able to use their bogus allegations to drive him out of office.

Interesting isn’t it that both men are Black, both from New York, both take principled stands, and both were head of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee?

Does anyone see the parallel between that and now? Is this a familiar issue to us? You bet your sweet a___ it is! Who here really believe that Charlie Rangel is guilty of anything egregious enough to be brought before the so-called "Ethics" committee. Who really understands that the same yellow journalism that has been leveled against President Obama, by mainstream media has been leveled against Congressman Rangel? The mainstream media have been used by the right wing to hound him, in much the same way they did Bill Clinton, to blow out of proportion issues that should not have even made a quarter inch column.

Compared to his track record, this is minutiae blown out of proportion. But, as with anything, we are not only ten times more talented, we are generally painted as ten times more guilty and culpable than any white (yes I said it) white congress person, white president, etc.

We have to see it for what it really is.

There is no ethics in the ethics committee. It’s in name only. It’s convenient when they have allowed the court of media-fanned public opinion to push them into knee jerk action.

Case in point: Where was the ethics committee when people like Strom Thurmond or Robert Byrd were around? Both were blatant racists; both card carrying members of the KKK. Both were segregationists, racists. Their just making an apology does not mitigate what African Americans suffered at their hands. How many were hung, burned, or castrated under their watch, while they were still in office?? Apology from them brought exoneration. Now isn't that special!

How can we be sure that Charlie Rangel is being dealt with ethically, equitably, with the same criteria the give their Caucasian peers. Why should we give credence to this trial; where they tie his feet to the fire, while the others are able to skulk around, flying low under the radar.

Where was the ethics committee when the Vice President Cheyney under George Bush, Jr., accidentally on purpose shot someone during a hunting trip? Where were they when Cheyney was running the White House and ruining America by fiat? Where were they when the entire bottom dropped out of our economy, under the advise and consent of key people in the Republican dominated administration?

I find it highly unethical that the ethics committee is basing its so-called investigation of Rangel on media hype and dirt digging; kind of funny, because I’d be willing to bet that most of our elected officials have one or more homes; have one or more business connections; and have raised funds in some of the most "creative" fashions..

My suspicion of this witch hunt grew even more when I found that they are investigating 8 (eight) Black congressmembers, among them the honorable Maxine Waters of California. It then begins to smell like exactly what is is. Not ethics - but a kind of ethnic cleansing under the guise of ethics. If it looks like a snake and hisses like a snake, it's a snake. Shades of McCarthyism running rampant in the halls of Congress, under the guise of ethics -- trying to assuage the yellow journalists -- we see you for who and what you are.

If the Democrats are worried about this splitting the party, they should be.

But the Republicans should be petrified with fear. Because we truly do recognize where this is coming from. These are the same people who tried to have Clinton impeached. These are the same people who brought you Sarah Palin, Richard TD Nixon, George Bush (1 & 2); Ford, Goldwater, and the ever unpopular Reagan. Each time they've had a hand on this country, we've been left eviscerated, disgraced, embarrassed and broke. And they leave with their pockets lined with our money, while they tread on our dignity and our trust. We have just had a blatant example of how little the Republicans care for Americans, when they filibustered over the extension of Unemployment funds to desperate families, who lost jobs as a result of their completely bankrupting the country under the Bush Administration. We know who you are.

We over understand the situation. That does not mean that so-called "blue dog Democrats" are not on our radar, but character assassination is the province of the Republican party. In either case, both parties will be walking on eggs if harm politically, socially, financially or emotionally comes to Congressman Rangel, Maxine Waters or any of the other Black congress members undergoing this ignominiously disgraceful grilling.

And always remember, there is the LARRY FLYNT FACTOR. The rep and office you save may be your own.

WE ARE WATCHING AND REGISTERING AND VOTING. Consider the consequences.

In case you missed my point, I reiterate, the blatant issue is that both Charlie Rangel and Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. were and are Black, and in charge of the most powerful committee in the nation. So the racist hounds of hell went after them the way they do whenever a Black person wields power. The allegations are pure racist b.s.

Yes, I said it! It’s racist b.s.

Charlies apartments and real estate were purchased nearly 30 years ago. It wasn't an issue then, and it's not an issue now. Having a property in the Dominican Republic is not a crime. And as far as I know, no one has died as a result of either of these two acts. But, I can almost bet you that under KKK Byrd in West Virginia many a Black man and woman have become "strange fruit"; segregated, denigrated, violated. Where is the real standard? Where is the real moral compass? Since the ethics committee didn’t deal with Byrd, or any of the other characters who have committed egregious acts against America, Republican and Democrat, they get a vote of no confidence from me.

By the way, exactly what does the Ethics Committee’s standard, or code of ethics consists of? Share them with the world, so we can see if they are truly equitable. List them so we can all see them. Then I think we should have full disclosure as to where each member of the ethics committee stands or falls along that criteria. Additionally, who are their contributors? How did they get elected? Who’s in their closet? What’s their track record? If they can’t stand the litmus test, they shouldn’t serve on the committee.

Biblically speaking, he or she who is without sin can cast the first stone.

Otherwise, HANDS OFF CHARLES RANGEL, MAXINE WATERS AND THE MEMBERS OF THE CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS.

To all of you who are likewise reading this, don't just sit there and nod your heads in agreement. Pass this on, and get your people together to make sure that we are VOTING OUT OF OFFICE THOSE WHO WOULD UNDERMINE THE PEOPLE WHO ARE SUPPORTING PRESIDENT OBAMA -- because this is really where it's coming from. Let's make sure we send home a few more Republicans. Let's not be sitting on our hands and sitting at home when we need to be at the polls. It's the bigger picture time. And it's time to let them know those days are over.

Time to take out the trash.

Stay Blessed &
ECLECTICALLY BLESSED
Gloria Dulan-Wilson

STAY BLESSED

PS: ADDITIONAL NOTE

I mentioned that there were at least 8 Black Congress members under scrutiny via the so-called ethics committee, I decided to do some additional research. There are actually 9 African American and 2 Hispanics under investigation. (wikipaedia)

Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, Donna Christensen, Donald Payne, and Bennie Thompson are under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for taking part in a private trip organized by the Carib News Foundation. The Carib News Foundation is an organization that focuses on closer ties between the United States and the Caribbean. The allegation is that the funds for travel were provided by businesses. The error is in trying to make it look as if big business and/or major Wall Street based corporations had a hand in their accomodations, when nothing could be further from the truth.

Additionally the Carib News Foundation is a Black, nonprofit organization, and each one of these congressmembers, in the interest of their constituency, were actually appropriately participating in the conference. What would happen had any of the caucasian congressional members visited Great Britain, Scotland, Ireland or Germany for a conference? Would that have likewise come under scrutiny? What about Greece, Italy, France?

The ethics committee is on a witch hunt, trying to legitimize their existence via bogus allegations. There are too many other things they need to be taking care of to put the country back on track. How about investigating the Republicans who filibustered to keep from expanding unemployment benefits while millions of Americans, white and Black, were twisting in the wind?

Stop wasting our time with this McCarthy Era type lynch mob mentality and get on with the business at hand.

The following are the Black Congressional Members who are being harassed by the (un)Ethics Committee:


Sen. Roland Burris (D-Illinois)

Currently Burris is under investigation by The Senate Ethics Committee and the Illinois Sangamon County State Attorney for continually changing his testimony regarding his appointment to the vacant Illinois Senate seat left by President Barack Obama. He has given more than three different explanations for his appointment to the seat. While Burris did not claim he spent money on legal fees, he has stated he has accumulated more than $500,000 in legal fees surrounding his appointment to the Illinois Senate seat. After being appointed to the Senate, Burris filed an affidavit stating that he had not had any contact with Blagojevich or anyone involved in the Blagojevich campaign concerning the vacant Senate seat. Three days later, Burris testified in person before the impeachment committee and when asked if he had spoken with anyone "closely related to the governor, including family members or lobbyists connected with him," Burris named only former Blagojevich chief of staff, Lon Monk. A month later, the Chicago Sun-Times reported that Burris sent an additional affidavit to the head of the Illinois House impeachment committee revealing that Robert Blagojevich, Rod Blagojevich's brother, had spoken with Burris three times in October and November 2008 about raising funds for the then-Governor. Initially, Burris stated that he refused to contribute to the campaign. However, a few days later Burris offered yet another version, telling reporters that he had in fact contacted several people about holding a fundraiser, but that he had abandoned the idea. According to this version, it was not until their final conversation that Burris told Robert Blagojevich that his interest in the Senate seat prevented him from raising money for the then-Governor.

Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-Georgia)
Sanford Bishop is under investigation for allegedly giving a local youth program, where his stepdaughter and her husband work, $200,000 of federal funds in which Bishop earmarked. Bishop did not know of his stepdaughter's, Aayesha Owens Reese, employment with the program and said he immediately asked the marshal to terminate her when he learned of her employment. Bishop claims he learned of his stepdaughter's employment on February 20, 2009, months after the earmark was proposed. An internal audit was performed on the program and revealed more than $7,000 was deposited into Bishop's wife's account on behalf of her son-in-law, Stephen M. Reese. The audit also showed Mrs. Reese received $7,575 from the program. In early 2009, a GBI agent claimed that while the FBI was aware of the situation, currently, there is not a criminal investigation.Del. Donna Christensen (D-Virgin Islands)

Donna Christensen is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for taking part in a private trip organized by the Carib News Foundation. The trip was to an annual Caribbean business conference held on St. Maartens Island. The trip came under scrutiny after it was revealed that the conference was sponsored by businesses, a violation of new ethics rules passed in the 2007 Honest Leadership and Open Government Act.

Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Illinois)
Jesse Jackson Jr. is under investigation by the Office on Congressional Ethics and the Department of Justice in relation to his bid to fill the Illinois Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama. Jackson was anonymous "Senate Candidates #5" "whose emissaries Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich reportedly offered up to $1 million to name him to the U.S. Senate. Both the OCE and the DOJ have asked for documents showing correspondence between former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich and Jackson. The DOJ has subpoenaed several individuals who have knowledge of possible fundraising efforts by Jackson’s supporters to encourage Gov. Blagojevich to appoint Jackson to the Senate. In December 2008, Jackson stated that he denounces "pay-to-play politics" and that he had "no involvement in any wrongdoing, including authorizing or initiating any promise to Gov. Blagojevich."

Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Michigan)
Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for taking part in a private trip organized by the Carib News Foundation. The trip was to an annual Caribbean business conference held on St. Maartens Island. The trip came under scrutiny after it was revealed that the conference was sponsored by businesses, a violation of new ethics rules passed in the 2007 Honest Leadership and Open

Rep. Donald Payne (D-New Jersey)

Rep. Donald Payne is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for taking part in a private trip organized by the Carib News Foundation. The trip was to an annual Caribbean business conference held on St. Maartens Island. The trip came under scrutiny after it was revealed that the conference was sponsored by businesses, a violation of new ethics rules passed in the 2007 Honest Leadership and Open Government Act.

Rep. Charles Rangel (D-New York)
On September 24, 2008, the House Ethics Committee launched an official probe to investigate discrepancies in his finances upon Rangel's request. The investigate subcommittee is looking into the following charges:

* Using official congressional stationery to solicit contributions for an educational center bearing his name.
* His living in four rent-stabilized apartments in his Harlem district while claiming his Washington, DC home as his primary residence for tax purposes.
* Failure to report $75,000 in rental income or pay taxes on a beach property in the Dominican Republic, which included a interest free loan deal.
* Storing his Mercedes-Benz in the House parking lot, contrary to House rules and tax laws.

It was also reported, that from 2004 to 2007,he funneled almost $80,000 in campaign cash to a company run by his son to build a pair of campaign websites that were riddled with misspellings and so poorly designed, an expert estimated the cost for making and operating the site at $1,000.

Since 1978, Rangel has also failed to report assets 28 times on his financial disclosure forms due to an investigation that revealed sums hundreds of thousands of dollars disappearing and appearing without notice from his disclosures.

In December 2008, Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, expressed hope that the Rangel investigation would be completed by the end of the 110th Congress’ term on January 4, 2009. Following the defeat of a House GOP resolution to have Rangel removed, on February 10, 2009, the Ethics Committee voted to continue investigations into Rangel. In early 2009, Rangel paid approximately $445,000 in legal fees.Despite Rangel's hope that the investigation would soon clear him, on February 10, 2009, the House Ethics Committee voted to prolong the probe.

Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-California) and Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-California)
Loretta Sanchez and Linda Sanchez are currently under investigation by the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. The Committee is reviewing whether Loretta Sanchez broke House rules when three of her aides were put on the payroll of Congresswoman Linda Sánchez, who also happens to be her sister, in late 2006. This occurred after an embezzlement scandal left Loretta Sanchez's office short on funds. Then-staffer Caroline Valdez embezzled somewhere between $5,000 and $10,000 for personal use and pleaded guilty to a felony embezzlement charge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in May 2009. Loretta Sanchez's attorney, Stan Brand, confirmed on May 18, 2009 that the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct was investigating her and her sister's behavior.

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-California)

Maxine Waters is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee. The committee has not yet disclosed why the congresswoman is under investigation, but it is believed to be related to her role in securing funds from the Treasury Department's TARP program for the bank, OneUnited. The congresswoman's husband was a board member and stock holder in OneUnited. The Treasury Department did not initially view OneUnited as eligible for TARP funds until Waters intervened.

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Mississippi)

Bennie Thompson is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for taking part in a private trip organized by the Carib News Foundation. The trip was to an annual Caribbean business conference held on St. Maartens Island. The trip came under scrutiny after it was revealed that the conference was sponsored by businesses, a violation of new ethics rules passed in the 2007 Honest Leadership and Open Government Act.


Time to tell the truth and shame the devil. Time to expose the ethics committee for the ethnic cleansing machine they really are. We are not amused, nor are we sucked in by their authoritarian modus operandii. We have been the brunt of the media lies and manipulations for far too long and understand very well how character assassination works.


This has to go out coast to coast - North, South, East, West and Central. Wherever we are, we have to be vigilant about our rights, and have the backs of people who have been backing us. I urge you to pass this on - get the word out.


BY THE WAY, IS THERE A JOHNNY COCHRANE IN THE HOUSE? If so, you're very much needed. In fact, let's groom a series of Johnny Cochrane's; NAACP Legal Defense Council - whereever you are -- time to step out front and center. Your people need you.

Those of us who are not lawyers, remember we still have the right to vote. Thanks to so many who risked their lives in the 60's and before. This is no time to take it for granted. Register, get your 18 year olds registered. Get your neighbors and friends, and acquaintances registered. We have to get them any way we can, and some are no more powerful than the next vote. Check with your local political leaders, but realize that we are linking up nationally.

Don't sleep your upcoming local elections. They are key to the next major thrust - send the Republicans back under the rocks from whence they came.


Stay blessed &

ECLECTICALLY BLACK

Gloria Dulan-Wilson

HANDS OFF CHARLIE RANGEL!!!!

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

Well, it’s déjà vu all over again. The so-called ethics committee is going to “investigate” Congressman Charlie Rangel.

Don’t you find it interesting that this is similar to the b.s. investigation they leveled against Adam Clayton Powell Jr., when he became head of the House Ways and Means Committee, and attached more bills in favor of African Americans to any bill on the floor in the history of Congress? They came up with trumped up charges against him as well, and finally were able to use their bogus allegations to drive him out of office.

Interesting isn’t it that both men are Black, both from New York, both take principled stands, and both were head of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee?

Does anyone see the parallel between that and now? Is this a familiar issue to us? You bet your sweet a___ it is! Who here really believe that Charlie Rangel is guilty of anything egregious enough to be brought before the committee. Who really understands it’s the same yellow journalism that has been leveled against President Obama. The mainstream media have been used by the right wing to hound him, in much the same way they did Bill Clinton, to blow out of proportion issues that should not have even made a quarter inch column.

Compared to his track record, this is minutiae blown out of proportion. But, as with anything, we are not only ten times more talented, we are generally painted as ten times more guilty and culpable than any white (yes I said it) white congress person, white president, etc. We have to see it for what it really is. There is no ethics in the ethics committee. It’s in name only. It’s convenient when they have allowed the court of media-fanned public opinion to push them into knee jerk action.

Case in point: Where was the ethics committee when people like Strom Thurmond or Robert Byrd were around? Both were blatant racists; both card carrying members of the KKK. Both were segregationists, racists. Their just making an apology does not mitigate what African Americans suffered at their hands. How can we be sure that Charlie Rangel is being dealt with ethically, equitably, with the same criteria the give their Caucasian peers. Why should we give credence to this trial; where they tie his feet to the fire, while the others are able to skulk around, flying low under the radar.

Where were the ethics when the Vice President Cheyney under George Bush, Jr., accidentally on purpose shot someone during a hunting trip? Where were they when Cheyney was running the White House and ruining America by fiat? Where were they when the entire bottom dropped out of our economy, under the advise and consent of key people in the Republican dominated administration?

I find it highly unethical that the ethics committee is basing its so-called investigation of Rangel on media hype and digging; kind of funny, because I’d be willing to bet that most of our elected officials have one or more home; have one or more business connections.

If they Democrats are worried about this splitting the party, the Republicans should be petrified with fear. We do recognize where this is coming from. The same people who tried to have Clinton impeached. We over understand the situation. That does not mean that so-called "blue dog Democrats" are not on our radar, but character assassination is the province of the Republican party. In either case, both parties will be walking on eggs if harm politically, socially, financially or emotionally comes to Congressman Rangel. WE ARE WATCHING AND REGISTERING. Consider the consequences.

In case you missed my point, I reiterate, the blatant difference is that both Charlie Rangel and Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. were and are Black.

Yes, I said it! It’s racist b.s.

Charlie has apartments that are under market value? When did he purchase them? How can you tell when the New York market, particularly in Manhattan, and especially in Harlem, has been so jacked up and over inflated over the past ten years that no one really knows what the market it.

Since the ethics committee didn’t deal with Byrd, or any of the other characters who have committed egregious acts against America, Republican and Democrat, they get a vote of no confidence from me.

I would love to know what the Ethics Committee’s standard, or code of ethics consists of. Share them with the world, so we can see if they are truly equitable. List them so we can all see them. Then I think we should have full disclosure as to where each member of the ethics committee stands or falls along that criteria. Additionally, who are their contributors? How did they get elected? Who’s in their closet? What’s their track record? If they can’t stand the litmus test, they shouldn’t serve on the committee.

Biblically speaking, he or she who is without sin can cast the first stone.

Otherwise, HANDS OFF CHARLIE RANGEL!!!!

Stay Blessed &
ECLECTICALLY BLESSED
Gloria Dulan-Wilson

NNPA III: Motown Mogul Berry Gordy and Cong. Charles Rangel Receive NNPA LEGACY OF EXCELLENCE AWARDS

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

How do you put top off an already successful conference that is comprised of some of the sharpest Black Newspaper Publishers and writers ever? It’s not easy. Most of them have seen it all - from the bad, the shabby, the tacky, from racists to criminal, through to the most positive, power, erudite and elegant of experiences. So you have to plan carefully, keeping in mind that your audience is comprised of reporters, photographers, editors, advertising and marketing specialists (sometimes all rolled up in one person).

It is safe to say that Danny Bakewell and those who worked with him to plan this event, not only far exceeded expectations, but left them totally “wowed!”

The NNPA wrapped up its historical 2010 summer convention in New York with an awards ceremony dinner and gala which honored Harlem-based Congressman Charles Rangel and Motown founder and mogul Berry Gordy, who is celebrating Motown’s 50th Anniversary this year.

(50 years??????? That’s amazing, when so many of us can remember as kids dancing to Smokey Robinson’s “Really Got a Hold on Me” and “Mickey’s Monkey” -- but I digress).

From beginning to end the evening was one of congeniality and excitement. Berry Gordy is most definitely a celebrity many speak of in whispers and wonder. He is mythic and legendary in his accomplishments during a time when Blacks were still being relegated to the back of the bus.

No one expected him to be as down to earth, pleasant, approachable, as he was when he walked through the crowd of admirers waiting to be seated at their respective tables. Stopping to shake hands with one, be photographed with another, accepting business cards from yet another. Slim, trim, in an elegant evening suit, you look into those soft brown, smiling eyes and think, “Wow! I’m talking to the great Berry Gordy. This is really fantastic!”

Unlike many celebrities who come in through side doors, not wanting to interact with their admirers, Mr. Gordy took time to really converse with several of the NNPA members and guest, leaving them with an even more wonderful impression of him as a person, as well as a giant in the music industry.

It's hard to encompass so much history in such a short time. Even more difficult to convey the camaraderie that permeated the gala, as we viewed a video stream of the member newspapers that make up the NNPA, and their combined historical contributions to Black Culture.

The program began with Congressman Rangel, who succeeded the great Adam Clayton Powell Jr. in Congress, receiving the first award. The Congressman always has a great smile, no matter what’s going on. "He’s served in Congress for 20 terms," stated a voice over that chronicled a pictorial of his accomplishments. It continued: “His irresistible energy, his self deprecating sense of humor, and his distinctive voice are a legend on Capitol Hill. Even after having served 20 terms, his eyes are on new horizons. The next chapter. The next challenge.”

When Chairman Danny Bakewell presented Congressman Rangel with the award for exemplary courage in the time of need to our community and our nation,” Rangel received a well deserved standing ovation.

Rangel, who is part of the legendary “Gang of Four“, consisting of David Dinkins, Basil Paterson (father of Governor David Paterson) and former Mayor David Dinkins, and the late Percy Ellis Sutton, always makes reference to them in his speeches: “To my brother, David Dinkins who believed in me, we believed in each other and what we set out to do. "

Congressman Rangel also spoke of the legacy of those who had gone before him, including Amsterdam News journalist, the late Jimmy Booker; the Hon. Percy Ellis Sutton. “Some of the people that we’re most proud of are no longer here. Yet the dreams and the aspirations live on. The fact that during our lifetime we were able to get an African American elected; or that we’ve been covering the dreams and aspirations of people around the world, doesn’t mean that our kids are guaranteed a better life, education, and better home. There's still much work to be done. I feel so individually proud to receive this award because I receive it on behalf of so many people!”

Before we go forward, let me tell you a little about the symbology of the Legacy of Excellence Award. It was personally designed by NNPA National Board Chair Danny Bakewell. Not only is it one of the most distinctive, beautiful, and eloquent designs ever; is speaks volumes about the mind, heart and intense love and dedication that Danny Bakewell has for Black” people. The care consideration and artistry that went into the execution of this symbol is both majestic and touching; and at the same time motivational. Who wouldn’t want to be worthy of what that symbol stands for such that they likewise such an honor bestowed on them? Who wouldn’t want to have such a beautiful testimony to their accomplishment prominently displayed in a favored spot for friends, family, associates to see? It’s an incentive to do your utmost to be deemed worthy.

Per Bakewell, when he was coming up with the concept: "It was an American Eagle because it had to be a model of excellence. It had roots around a African drum; the roots are like the grapevine. Someone said like Tarzan? I said, no, grapevine, it’s how we Black people communicated. The drum, how we communicated when we were in Mother Africa. The Eagle is holding a newspaper in his talons; the object is that wherever we need the word; it has a pen in its beak. He carries the truth with him everywhere he goes.” This is the award that was bestowed upon Congressman Charles Rangel and Motown Music Mogul Berry Gordy.

Danny Bakewell’s reverence for Berry Gordy was unmistakable In fact, Bakewell and Gordy may well have what is called a mutual admiration society." Per Bakewell: “I want to bring a new perspective to the people who don’t know Berry Gordy. Yes he is the legendary promoter. He is a man of extraordinary means; he is an exquisite producer; but he is a man who has a heart. He is a man who has a profound sense of family; and a profound sense of tenacity and courage which is what this award is about. He is all that we know about him in the media; but he has all the things that we try to teach our children. He has all the things that we try to emulate to be better parents; to be better brothers and sisters.”

Bakewell recounted Gordy’s many accomplishments: “He brought to the world Smokey Robinson and The Miracles; he brought to the world Diana Ross and the Supremes; he brought to the world Mary Wells; Marvin Gaye, The Marvelettes, The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Martha and the Vandellas, Chuck Jackson, The Four Tops, Junior Walker and the All Stars; The Spinners; Tina Marie; the Isley Brothers, Gladys Knight and the Pips, The Jackson Five, Ashford and Simpson, Germaine Jackson; Commodores, Ric James, Lionel Ritchie, and the greatest entertainer in the world, Michael Jackson!!!”

After a standing ovation for the memory of King of Pop, who died suddenly a year ago, Bakewell continued: “So if those talents are geniuses, what is Berry Gordy? And he’s still doing the business of setting standards of excellence. And in many instances, despite the fact that he wants to bring us all along with him, he stands as a beacon light for all that we want to become. And as I inscribed in this award, ‘he put through his dreams;’ and that’s what people don’t understand. He puts through his dreams with excellence in mind, refusing to take a substandard; making people around him understand who he is and what he’s trying to do; what he’s trying to get them to understand. Many times people don’t understand what’s in his heart - the passion, the commitment that drives him… Berry Gordy created Motown and the entertainment industry became an entertainment legend. But Motown’s contribution to the world made him and American Icon. And it is for that reason that we love him and we honor him.”

As the voice over narration touted Gordy’s triumphs, image after image of the Motown greats flashed across the screen. “Fortunately for the young people in Detroit who wanted to pursue music Berry Gordy was there and he was the guy who had the dream the struggle could become truth.”

What followed was a musical tribute produced by Bakewell! A fantastic music documentary chronicling all the artists who came through Gordy and achieved greatness in their own right: Diana Ross and the Supremes, Michael Jackson, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles; Stevie Wonder; the Four Tops, the Temptations, Marvin Gaye, Martha and the Vandellas, Gladys Knight and the Pips; Jackie Wilson, and on and on, that had the well dressed audience snapping their fingers and clapping in rhythm with the music.

(I want that DVD !! I would definitely play it over and over. It was both spectacular and nostalgic. Most of us could relate to at least one, if not all of the artists who have come thru Motown).

When Danny Bakewell presented Berry Gordy with NNPA Legacy of Excellence Award “for 50 years in the music industry as the founder of, and inspiration behind Motown and some of the most dynamic covey of Black artists ever” Berry Gordy was visibly moved -- both by the magnitude of the award, and the musical tribute itself.

After accepting the award, and gathering his composure, Gordy spoke very softly and humorously: “Incredible! This is a very important night for me for so many reasons. I hope I can convey them to you. So many things were happening to me sitting at my table, I was like writing stuff, scratching it out, writing stuff, scratching it out. And just when I thought it was really great, he said something about excellence, and I said I can’t have it, I gotta go back. So you put me in a lot of trouble.”

As the audience’s laughter subsided, Gordy continued, “The point is that I’m here tonight, and it really is an important night for me. I’m so thrilled to be here with so many of my friends; my fellow honoree, the great Charlie Rangel. Marc Marial President of the National Urban League, which is celebrating 100 years of excellence), David Dinkins, Xernona Clayton and others. And to receive this award from my dear, dear friend, Danny Bakewell is the icing on the cake.

“Danny Bakewell has been an idol of mine for many, many years for his commitment, and devotion to the many causes that he champions. I have never seen him lose. His leadership in some of the roughest situations that I’ve seen, I’ve never seen him fail when he was dealing with the worst of us, in terms of drug addicts, young kids going the wrong way; and he had a way of dealing with that -- giving them jobs, doing things, moving them into areas; teaching them things that they could do; things that they thought they were beneath, he taught them how to be great waiters, great busboys, great computer techs. All of these things I’ve seen him do over and over again. And I’ve never seen him fail. So he’s been one of my champions!

Then, with the quick wit and humor that has obviously sustained him through fifty years of putting together a musical empire, he switched gears: “Okay, Danny, enough about you! I’m going to talk about me. I was 11 years old when I was first introduced to the Black press. I worked for the Michigan Chronicle in Detroit. I thought of myself as a marketing genius; a distribution executive. My friends thought of me as a paper boy. And that was cool! Because I actually sold more papers than anybody else. So one weekend I took my show on the road, downtown to the white folks. I always felt our similarities were so much more powerful than our differences. And I was right. They loved me and they loved the Michigan Chronicle. I sold out in no time. I was in incredible shape. The next week, I took my brother Robert with me. Loaded with papers - we were going to clean up! We sold nothing. Not one. And it seemed to me, one Black kid was cute, but two were a threat to the neighborhood. That was my first real marketing lesson. Later when I started Motown, I didn’t put Black faces on some of the first album covers -- I wanted people to hear the music first. I worked, and once it did the rest was history.

“For me, our Motown 50th celebration was not about me or the Motown Superstars, it was more about the unsung heroes of Motown. The people behind the scenes who gave us love, support, and kept us going. And I’m here tonight to make sure that all of you know that you are a part of Motown’s great family.

“You, the Black Press, not only Detroit, but all over the country, have no idea how much you meant -- what your love meant, and your support meant to me and all of us at Motown at a time when we needed it most. You were there. And it was such a wonderful feeling.

“And, I’m somewhat sentimental, because Danny Bakewell gave me the opportunity to stand here and tell you that, because I never had a chance before. I know you’re here to honor me, and I appreciate that; but tonight I’m here to honor you. And it’s a big thrill for me just to stand here and look at all of you and see your faces and realize how much you meant to us in those early days, when we knew we could always count on you to bring out the truth, and to help us in whatever we were doing. And I didn’t even know some of the people I met tonight; and I thanked them personally, you know, and, uh, the Black Press of America is just awesome to Motown. I always think of you as part of the Motown family. And thank you again for allowing me this opportunity to say, Thank you, thank you, and again, thank you!”

It goes without saying that so many Black businessmen and women have no idea how much the positions they are currently enjoying are because of the vigilence and diligence of the Black press, who at every turn is countering and reversing race-drenched material cooked up by the mainstream media to disparage them. It was indeed gratifying to hear those words from Berry Gordy, who, even through his triumphs, has definitely been besieged with invectives and inuendos. It is even more gratifying to celebrate 50 years of an organization that took the music industry, stood it on its ear and made it bow to his standards.

The balance of the evening included the great Gerald Levert of the OJAYS, who definitely rocked the house and make the NNPA regret not have set up some space for dancing. The guests, especially we New Yorkers, finding it difficult to sit while Levert and his band were turning out so much soul, found spaces where ever we were, and “boogied” to the music (which of course was our way of communicating our appreciation for a wonderful evening and a job well done).

As stated in the previous section, the Black Press started in America 183 years ago. There are many who try to say it is no longer relevant or necessary because of computers or because we now have diversity. However, diversity never has and never will replace the virtue of having and maintaining your own means of communication.

Will Rogers (a personal hero of mine from Oklahoma) once said: “I don’t know much, all I know is what I read in the newspapers.” Well if the newspapers you get your information from are self affirming, pro Black and culturally aware and supportive, you will end up knowing a great deal.

Congratulations to the NNPA for keeping Black People Informed and involved for 183 years. Here's to 183 more.

Stay Blessed &
ECLECTICALLY BLACK
Gloria Dulan-Wilson