Remembering
DICK GREGORY 1932-2017 “God Bless”
Serving North East Texas
www.GarlandJournal.com
VOL IX ISSUE 24
RUN KAMALA RUN
My Truth Publisher Cheryl Smith
Your journey is your journey Everyone has their own journey. The task of understanding your journey is enough without trying to figure out another’s. For example, you see someone screaming and shouting at a graduation and you give them a side eye; probably thinking they are a bit over the top and just way too much. But you don’t know what it took to get them to that point. You don’t know what obstacles they overcame to walk across that stage and who was there to support that journey. Which brings me to my truth.
Tamecka Grate Frazier
I read Tamecka Grate Frazier’s book last month, but it wasn’t the first time I had heard her story. Her journey is definitely one worth knowing and sharing. Veteran award-winning journalist Gary Reaves reached out to me about Tamecka 24 years ago and asked if I wanted the story. He was already covering her brutal attack for Dallas-based ABC affiliate WFAA-TV and like a good friend he gave me an opportunity that I immediately accepted. It was a story that would be carried not only locally and regionally, but nationally and internationally. The 24-year-old began the year 1996 in a long, complicated surgery after being assaulted by her neighbor’s boyfriend, 26-year-old, Emanuel Moffert. As she was turning 25 in May, Mr. Moffert was sentenced to life in prison for attempted capital murder. He is eligible for parole review January 1, 2026; 30 years to the day of his vicious attack. When she was able, Tamecka joined me on Soul 73 KKDA-AM to talk about coming home from a New Year’s Eve affair and extending a courtesy to a man who repeatedly stabbed her with scissors before attempting to rape her. What a way to start the new year! Fortunately the police arrived before he could complete the rape, but the pair of scissors protruding from her skull was another story. She was in surgery for 13 hours to remove the weapon that had been thrust four inches into her skull, missing
see MY TRUTH, page 5
Biden chooses Senator Harris for VP slot From Staff Reports The presumptive Democratic nominee’s much-anticipated decision was announced last week to mixed reviews. Former vice president Joe Biden heeded the wishes of many as he announced the selection of Sen. Kamala Harris as his running mate. In 2017 the Howard University graduate and Oakland CA native became the second Black woman and the first Asian American U.S. senator. After an unsuccessful presidential bid, Sen. Harris remained at the top of many lists as a potential running mate for whomever was victorious in a very crowded field. The former San Francisco District Attorney and California Attorney General was optimistic after the announcement and so were others. Dale Long, retired City of Dallas administrator and veteran mentor with Big Brother, Big Sister organization. A former Dale Long KDFW-TV Fox 4 Hometown Hero “I’ve been watching the news all day. I like her (Kamala Harris) and
Reeves joins Vianovo
page 3
What you smokin’?
page 4
liked her when she was running against Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination. She stands out as the only incumbent African-American female U. S. Senator. She comes across as very smart. She knows the business, knows the country, and has an impressive background as the former District Attorney in San Francisco. Looking ahead, she might be the right person to follow after Biden and become President. I suspect President Trump will find a way to beat up on her because he is working hard to find ways to get re-elected. He has already said that Biden made a mistake by boxing himself in, saying he would pick a woman VP. Trump said that statement could be an insult to men.”
see KAMALA, page 2
WRONG CHURCH Supporters say “Don’t Come for Us!” By ASHLEY MOSS Texas Metro News More than 500 drivers – some estimates put the number higher - snaked through Dallas’ Oak Cliff neighborhood Sunday in a massive and lengthy showing of solidarity with the Friendship-West Baptist Church, one week after congregation leaders said a white motorist group had tried to intimidate worshippers on their own campus – and on the date they had planned a Black Lives Matter rally at the church. Drivers lined up at the Barack Obama Male Leadership Academy as early as 7:30 a.m. Sunday, some with signs reading “Defund the Police” and “Black Lives Matter” posted on the side of their vehicles, for the “Ride-In For A New Dallas” drive through Oak Cliff. By the time the caravan pulled out from the Academy around 9:30 a.m., vehicles decorated with streamers and balloons lined Stag Road and wrapped around Bonnie View Road. “We wanted to come out here to support our love for our community and to show that we can be collaborative and we won’t be intimidated,” said Matt Houston, former president of the board for the Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce. “We want to ensure that all of our voices are heard,” he said. Sunday’s caravan pulled out from Stag Road and made a 20-minute drive through Oak Cliff, ending at Friendship-West.
The event culminated with a message from The Rev. Frederick Douglass Haynes III, senior pastor of Friendship-West, and a voter registration and census rally. “It’s not enough just to ride,” Haynes said. “Now, we’ve got to work.” Organizers said Sunday’s “Ride-In” was part of a call to action issued to Oak Cliff residents, churches and allies of the Black Lives Matter movement to unify with Friendship-West and stand against racial intimidation tactics. Dr. Haynes issued the call along with Dallas Black Clergy for Safety, Equity and Justice, a group comprised of African American pastors, after a “Blue Lives Matter” group of motorists gathered on the church property a week ago without proper permission and disrupted plans for a Black Lives Matter rally. Claudia Hill Thompson of Oak Cliff heard the call and showed up Sunday. “I back my pastor and I back my church,” she said Sunday. “This is
Dr. and Mrs. Frederick D. Haynes III following Sunday service and rally
our community and we’re going to support them however we can. All lives cannot matter until Black lives matter.” On Aug. 2, an estimated 1,000 white motorists driving pickups, cars and motorcycles, including at least one driver who flew a Confederate flag atop his vehicle and another who displayed a Trump flag, filled the parking spaces at Friendship West Baptist Church, a congregation of mostly African Americans in historic Oak Cliff. The motorists blocked drive
see CHURCH, page 3
Voter Suppression. The Birth of Apathy. By ALLEN R. GRAY Dallas Area African American Newspaper Publishers
Inside
Sen. Kamala Harris
Betty Culbreath, political operative, Republican Party member, former chair of Dallas City Plan Commission and member of various city boards, including former chair of the DFW Airport Board “Frankly, I hope that she will help the (Democratic) ticket, although Biden presumably would take the Black vote anyway. I had thought maybe he would pick someone from a southern state to help draw that vote. I hope people won’t get hung up on (Harris’) race as a factor and (Biden) lose out by some people not voting because of that. If I had been Biden, I probably would have gone with Susan Rice (former national Security Advisor) because of her service and experience. President Trump likely will continue to attack Harris as being Betty Culbreath too aggressive, painting that as a weakness and unwomanly, while many others see her as strong and smart. I don’t think Trump’s strategy will work. But people who are for Trump are going to be for him regardless. But the undecided voters will make a difference.”
It is difficult to determine where the line between voter suppression ends and voter apathy begins. What is certain, though, is that the line of demarcation between the two has been blurred by decades upon decades of interference from damning schemes that strip Black Americans of their legal right to have a say when it comes to elections. Know that voter apathy for Black voter apathy is not innate.
It is instead a psychological implant that has been nurtured over time and has evolved over generations due to the many mutations of the poll tax. The poll tax wasn’t born during post-Civil War Reconstruction, though. The concept of the poll tax dates to the time of Cleopatra’s Egypt, and essentially all conquering nations since that time have used a “head tax” or capitation to sustain its government and fund wars; but Americans during the 19th century took the poll tax to a whole new lev-el. During the period of Reconstruction, when newly freed
slaves gained the right to vote, various forms of the poll tax became a lot more creative than guess-ing the number of jelly beans in a mason jar. The Grandfather clause, for in-stance, said that you could only vote if your father voted. Which meant that all former slaves were left out. Then there was the literacy test, which asked that you be able to read (literature supplied by election officials) before you could vote. Blacks were asked to read complex legal documents, while whites were asked to read literature with simple sight words.
see VOTER, page 8
Visit us at GarlandJournal.com Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/ GarlandJournal Follow us on Twitter@GarlandJournal AUGUST 19, 2020
I was just
Thinking Norma Adams-Wade
Griots in virtual reality Back in Africa, the Motherland, they called storytellers Griots. Griots kept the oral history of the tribes, and villages in their heads and memories. Griots were walking data banks. Their memories were archives of detailed ancient happenings. Nothing was written down. It was memorized – and recalled on demand when needed. That’s why the griots were important. They would recite the lineage of families, the movement of tribes from one location to the next, significant battles that were won or lost, births, deaths, marriages. Their minds were vaults, storehouses, and time capsules. I was just thinking... I’m proud to identify as a modern-day griot. I bring this up because of a group called the National Association of Black Journalists. I also am proud to be one of the 44 founders of that griots group that organized in Washington D. C. on December 12, 1975. During the nearly 45 years since then, NABJ has grown from 44 to more than 3,000 members and is the nation’s largest organization of journalists of color. Storytelling and recording history – our history as descendants of the African diaspora – is what NABJ does. During August 5-8 last week, NABJ held its national convention and career fair in conjunction with the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ). The two groups have similar missions and every four years meet jointly to strategize for the future and celebration common advancements. The missions include: provide balanced news coverage; tell our own stories and help the world better understand our cultures and heritage; increase our numbers as managers and decision-makers; provide training and development; and help educate and direct students who might be interested in our profession. The new twist to the NABJNAHJ story is that this year is the first time the two organizations are having a combined virtual convention, thanks to the CO-VID 19 pandemic. This joint body was one of the first to venture into the virtual world for a national convention. Workshops, forums, plenaries, and entertainment all were held on line through digital technology. Luncheons also were included with online speakers, panels and dignitaries and even meals delivered from local eateries to members front doors at home. Kudos to the leaders of both groups who plowed ahead when they could have called off the historic gathering. In fact, some membership opined that waiting till next year would be best. But vision and determination prevailed. I’m glad it did. This griot got to be a part of another chapter of my village life that I can record for generations that follow – this time in both memory and the written word. Here’s a portion of a letter I wrote for the NABJ
see THINKING, page 5