February 14, 2021
GREATER HOUSTON EDITION
“Addressing Current & Historical Realties Affecting Our Community”
Vol. 26, Issue 04
THINK ABOUT IT! • Blacks make up 15% of U.S. Population • Blacks make up 33% of U.S. Prison population • Blacks count for 16% of U.S. COVID deaths
HOUSTON BLACK HISTORY:
OVIDE DUNCANTELL
By: N.L. Preston
‘BLACK LOVE’ UNDER ATTACK IN AMERIKKKA
By: Roy Douglas Malonson
Ever since they brought us to AmeriKKKa in chains, they’ve been on a mission to emasculate the Black man and tear apart our families. And while in slavery, they categorized us as nothing more than “stud breeders” and our women as livestock for ownership purposes. Not once, not ever, did they realize our ancestors had souls. Their children had souls. And their future offspring - WE - were souls waiting to be born free. Free to love. Free to live. Free to just “be.” Have you ever heard of the “Double consciousness” of the American Negro Male? It is about the internal “twoness” of our men struggling with “the strange meaning of being Black” with describing the “spiritual world” and the “spiritual strivings” of “the American Negro.” The concept is often associated with William Edward Burghardt (W.E.B.) Du Bois, who introduced the term into social and political thought, famously, in his groundbreaking “The Souls of Black Folk” (1903). To tear a man down, you must first conquer
his soul. You must chip away at it one piece at a time, until there is a hole that can hardly ever be repaired. The way to kill a man’s soul, is to take away his woman and family. For generations - no matter what, no matter how dark the days were, there was always a proud Black man leading his family. Whether he was a slave, a pullman porter, a dishwasher, a carwash attendant or a revolutionary, Black men came home after a long hard day of work to the wife and kids waiting to help him take off his shoes. That is -- until poverty and recessions left a path of financial devastation and the “public welfare system” stepped in claiming to provide a “lifeline” of help to Black women and kids with one exception -- the Black husband and father had to be removed from their lives. Welfare workers would walk around the homes of the mothers, checking in pantries and closets to make sure the women would not have “fancy” appliances (like televisions, etc.) or any men’s clothing, ensuring that there was no male presence in the house. And as the Black women Black Love cont’d page 2
For more than the last four decades, Houstonians proudly line the streets for the annual Black Heritage Society’s MLK Parade, but do you know who is responsible for its creation? Civil Rights ‘warrior’ Ovide Duncantell. As noted on the Black Heritage Society’s website, Duncantell was born in Natchitoches, Louisiana, on August 7, 1936. After graduating from school in 1955, he entered the United States Air Force and was honorably discharged in 1959. After returning home, he got married and set out for Los Angeles, California. But after making a stop in Houston to visit with his new wife’s brothers, his plans changed, and he remained in Houston until his death. In 1969, Duncantell began working for the AntiPoverty Program-Houston Community Action Association. There, he organized youth adults and senior citizens to ban together and improve their communities from 1970-1973. He later created his own organization entitled “The Central Committee for the Protection of Poor People.” The organization’s mission and goals were to assist the community in obtaining much needed social services. Duncantell eventually went to work for then newlyelected Commissioner, Tom Bass, from 1973-1977, where he assisted in the appointment of several new key county office positions, including placement of the first black Harris County Constable, A. B. Chambers, along with several Justices of the Peace. He also earned his Bachelor and Masters degrees from Texas Southern University. In 1974, Duncantell be came Founder and Duncantell cont’d page 2
WASH YOUR HANDS FREQUENTLY • AVOID PUBLIC SPACES OR EVENTS WITH MORE THAN 10 PATRONS • SANITIZE AND STOCK UP • AVOID TOUCHING YOUR EYES, NOSE AND MOUTH • PRACTICE GOOD HYGIENE