Urban Voice Newsmagazine

DR. UMAR JOHNSON & REV. JEREMIAH WRIGHT MAY 2015 BESSIE SMITH MOVIE TO PREMIERE MAY 16THCOMING ON HBOTO CHATTANOOGA

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CHATTANOOGA | KNOXVILLE

CULTURE NEWS POLITICS

Tenesha

Irvin

You Go Girl! Women of Color Taking Care of Business

PRICED OUT: CHATTANOOGA’S AFFORDABLE HOUSING CRISIS “The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”

JAILED BLACK SENIORS RELEASED : NO SOCIAL Celebrating 50 Years SECURITY with the Bar-Kays !

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SIGNS YOUR HOOD IS BEING GENTRIFIED

KNOXVILLE: Q&A RICK STAPLES CANDIDATE FOR DIST 1 COUNTY COMMISSIONER

5 Places to Take Mom on Mother’s Day?

AUSTIN-EAST GRADUATE TO GIVE UTK COMMENCEMENT SPEECH

Tortured, Jailed Black Seniors Released--But Denied Social Security Written By • Frederick H. Lowe ll CHICAGO--In an unprecedented move last week, Chicago officials agreed to pay $5.5 million in reparations to black men who spent decades in prison after police tortured them into confessing to crimes they didn’t commit.

Although each man could receive as much as $100,000 before taxes, the settlement points to another major financial roadblock that a corrupt and racist police, prosecutorial and judicial system drops in the path of black men who have been wrongfully convicted.

Last year, 125 people were exonerated for crimes they didn’t commit, according to the National Registry of Exonerations at the University of Michigan Law School.

Historically, 60 percent of exonerees are African American men.

Loss of Youth--and Social Security As a result of their arrests, convictions and decades behind bars beginning at young ages, wrongfully convicted men spent their most-productive years in prison. They were prevented from working at jobs that provided pensions and that paid into the Social Security benefits system for their retirement beginning as early as age 62.

Their loss of youth and income in this instance was caused by now disgraced former Chicago Police Commander Jon Burge and his subordinates.

Burge and his so-called midnight crew tortured 120 African-American men between 1972 and 1991, using electric shock, mock executions, suffocation and beatings.

The police department finally fired Burge in 1993. He was convicted of perjury in 2010 for lying about having tortured

accused men, but not for torture itself because the statute of limitations had expired.

A judge sentenced Burge, former commander of Area 2 and Area 3 on the mostly African American South and West Sides , to 4½ years in prison. He was released last October.

During a Finance Committee hearing on April 14 at Chicago City Hall, Stephen R. Patton,Chicago’s Corporation Counsel, said many of them [Burges’s victims] are now seniors.

Patton, who oversees civil claims against the city, was a key participant in the deal to pay the men reparations.

The Corporation Counsel’s spokesman said the government department did not have exact demographic data, such as ages, on all the men who would be eligible to receive reparations.

Although the reparations checks will provide a one-time income bump for men who literally have had nothing for decades, that money could quickly run out so they will need a monthly source of regular funds to pay rent, buy food, gas, ride the bus or just to see a movie.

To achieve that goal these elders, who lack work skills and education, face a steep climb.

According to the Social Security Administration (SSA), a person needs 40 credits (quarters), or 10 years of work to qualify for Social Security retirement benefits. „Social Security does not have a program that compensates wrongfully convicted individuals with no work history,” the spokesperson wrote in an e-mail.

In a 2014 study by the Center for American Progress, the authors, Rebecca Vallas and Sharon Dietrich, wrote that

people with convictions face barriers to employment, housing, public assistance and education and this significantly affects black men.

“These barriers adversely impact not only individuals, but also their families, communities, and the entire economy: The U.S. loses an estimated $65 billion per year in gross domestic product due to the unemployment of people with criminal records,” wrote Vallas and Dietrich in their report, titled „One Strike and You’re Out: How We Can Eliminate Barriers to Economic Security and Mobility for People with Criminal Records.”

Bryan L. Sykes, assistant professor in the Department of Criminology, Law and Society at the University of California, Irvine, said African American men with felonies face barriers to employment and wage growth, thereby lessening their qualifications for Social Security.

Lack of Social Security by the Numbers „There are approximately 311,000 total males over age 60, who do not qualify for Social Security retirement due to not having worked enough quarters. Of the 311,000 total males, approximately 45,000 are African American men,” Ben Stump, an SSA spokesperson, wrote in an e-mail.

This information is based on a small study.

Wrongfully convicted men released from prison after decades behind bars receive the most attention because many read about them and believe when they are freed that justice has finally been achieved. But what about those men that have not been exonerated and have spent decades behind bars for crimes they insist they did not commit? What about men like Anthony Holmes?

Holmes’ Story

national news Anthony Holmes has a different story to tell.

Holmes confessed to a murder he didn’t commit after being tortured by Burge and his crew. He spent 30 years in prison before being released in 2004 on probation, said his lawyer G. Flint Taylor. Holmes’ conviction has not been overturned.

Holmes, who is now 69, testified at last week’s Chicago City Council Finance Committee hearing, sometimes stopping talking to wipe away tears. Holmes said he couldn’t get job when he got out of prison. „This has been very hard on me and my family,” he told the standing-room only hearing of mostly white women, many of them wearing „Reparations Now” T-shirts.

The audience gave him a standing ovation before and after his testimony.

Holmes finally found work as a day laborer, loading trucks newspapers on trucks. Meanwhile, Burge, Holmes’ torturer, collects a $4,000 a month from his police pension and lives in Florida.

The city of Chicago also has spent $21.8 million defending Burge in court.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Amnesty International USA, and the Chicago Torture Justice Memorials (an umbrella organization that includes Black People Against Police Torture) reached the agreement concerning reparations. The entire 50-member Chicago City Council will vote on the reparations ordinance next month.

Frederick H. Lowe wrote this article with support from a journalism fellowship provided by New America Media and the Gerontological Society of America, sponsored by the Silver Century

10 Signs Your Hood Is Being Gentrified ll Washington, D.C., As in many cities undergoing extreme urban makeovers, if you miss a week of moving about in certain neighborhoods, you’ll miss a whole heck of a lot. Sad times for you if you’re a landmark driver like I am, when even a short trip on familiar streets can induce a fog of confusion. Buildings go down and buildings go up on blocks so quickly, you can be a whole mile out of your way before you realize you’ve been waiting to hook a left at a corner store that is no more.

Besides creating in me a deep regret for not going to college to enjoy what seems like an inevitably profitable career in real estate development, gentrification has impressed me with its swiftness. I don’t pretend or profess to understand the complete politics of it—I’m

certain that money is the bottom line and power is the impetus—but I know the bastions of urbanconquer waste no time claiming an area as “up and coming” and then following that up with epic levels of condo-andcoffeehouse building.

What that essentially means: The people already living there are fittin’ to be economically priced out and residentially pushed out. That I’ve learned. In the meantime, there’s a shift to accommodate the newcomers, rarely an effort by the newcomers to adjust to the existing dynamic of a community.

The boundless, ceaseless imagination of privilege does it again and again.

But you know how it goes: Powers discover that an area is gold,

see its potential, put it in their construction crosshairs and start plucking off anything, one by one, that doesn’t fit into the blueprint for their new, improved iteration.

Anyone resilient or fortunate enough to remain needs to adjust in order to survive. Sound familiar?

Here are ten signs your hood is being gentrified.

1. Neighborhood boundary lines will be strategically reconfigured, and your new redistricted area will be outfitted with catchy, cutesy names.

2. Lighting will crop up. Y’all lived for years in near apocalyptic darkness as existing street lights went long malfunctioning. Now the block is lit up like a night

game at FedEx Field. Magical.

3. “Liquor stores” will be euphemistically renamed “wine and spirits shops.”

4. Cops will dutifully patrol your neighborhood in nonemergency situations. On foot, bike and vehicle patrols, sometimes even horses. No one has to call them. They’re already there.

5. You find out that the way you’ve been living is no longer “current.”

6. You get a store that stays open 24 hours. Up until now, you had to scream your pump number and request for soda and sunflower seeds through three layers of Plexiglas at the neighborhood gas station.

Now doors are allowed to stay open 24-7.

7. Stations to rent bicycles show up, along with allocated lanes to ride them in the streets. It’s always a sign when people trust the

Written By • Janelle Harris

community to borrow stuff and bring it back. (See also: Zipcar.)

8. Your block is equipped with speed bumps. Amazingly, they are much more effective than your disapproving scowl in slowing drivers down.

9. Parking starts getting real exclusive, and you’ll be needing an advanced degree in urban planning to understand when and where you can do it. Also, violations will become more expensive and more frequent.

10. White people will show up.

At first a pioneering few will forage the land, and once the signal goes up, that trickle will become a full-on influx. I have seen folks who would have taken terror steps through my neighborhood just a few months ago now frolicking in it. At night.

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letter from the

Social Entrepreneurship: Creating Wealth in the Black Community

E

ntrepreneurship has always been a core value within the African-American community “Social Entrepreneurship” is a new word. The term used to describe the process of applying business principles to solve social problems has recently made an appearance in common vernacular, but it is a concept steeped in creating social value in the communities we live, and it’s something that African Americans have been doing since we got of the boat.

In the 21st Century when it seems that social problems are becoming more complex and more disproportionately impacting our communities, how do we continue this legacy of creating value for others?

How do we continue the task of applying business principles against the grind of social ills?

African-American Entrepreneurs must lead the effort. African American entrepreneurs must educate future generations about the development and implementation of Social Enterprises. In other words, African American entrepreneurs must show future generations that we can help our community and make money at the same time.

Let me ask you a question. As you look around your community,

are there problems that need to be solved? Is there poverty? Are there food deserts? Is there a lack of education opportunities for youth? Are there available employment opportunities that pay a living wage?

social problems will ultimately spell success or failure – not just for you, but for everyone around you. The time is now to utilize your innovative, communicative, and artistic skills that you have been blessed with.

dilapidated housing, a lack of affordable housing, boarded up commercial buildings, food deserts, underperforming businesses, lack of access to capital, and a broken criminal justice system.

Everything I just mentioned is a problem, but each is also an opportunity to practice social entrepreneurship. Let’s take poverty and look at it from a business standpoint, for example. What would be the return-on-investment (ROI) in solving the problem of poverty?

In this example, the ROI is not measured by dollars, but by the social impact it creates.

Social impact is the effect of an activity on the social fabric a community and the well-being of the individuals and families that make up that community.

Get ready to become a “Social Game Changer”.

And when you take into account the fact that the average length of life in the United States is 78.4 (81 women and 76 men), most of us reading this column are beyond the halfway point. So, the real question is, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING ON AND WHAT ARE YOU PREPAPRED TO DO? ”

In Paul Polak and Mal Warwick’s book the “The Business Solution to Poverty” the authors project that over the next decade there will be three-billion new customers coming into the fold (Globally) which will create a huge opportunity for innovatively affordable products and services that can be introduced into the global marketplace. A social entrepreneur would be trying to figure out RIGHT NOW what product or service they can offer these new global customers, AND how their product or service can help combat poverty within their community.

The time is out for us to just sit back and let things happen that destroy our communities. Your decision as to whether or not to seek solutions to solve these

4 | URBAN VOICE NEWSMAGAZINE 2015

But remember, in this game, you only get to keep what you give away. If we want to improve our standing in life then we have to become givers and not takers.

We have to change the game by changing our conversations.

Stop complaining about what other neighborhoods look like.

We have to change the game by changing the way we look at things. Stop seeing yourself and your community as a victim in need of saving, but instead get together and figure out how we can help each other. Again are you ready to become a “Social Game Changer”?

In the 1987 movie, “The Untouchables”, Sean Connery (playing Jim Malone) and Kevin Costner (playing Elliot Ness) are talking about how to take down legendary gangster Al Capone.

Sean says to Kevin, ‘What are you prepared to do? Kevin responds, “Everything within the law.” Sean responds “And then what?” Kevin says “Never stop fighting till the fight is done.” This was a piviol moment in the movie.

It was the moment where the brown stuff got real Ladies and gentlemen, that is where we are now. In our communities we have underperforming schools,

Understand that you don’t have to be have a college degree, a stellar business background, or even own a business to become a “Social Entrepreneur”. Take the advice of Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group who said “You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to be able to run a spaceship company”.

Pick a problem and find a solution. If you haven’t thought about your life’s purpose, take the time to figure it out. Get a clear sense of who you are and whose you are?

As for me, if my lifespan equals the average lifespan for a black man, I’ve got fewer years in front of me than I have behind me. I’m glad the light bulb has come on.

I now know what I’m prepared to do. What about you?

- J.D. Harper

CHAIRMAN/PUBLISHER Jermaine D. Harper, MBA

UrbanV ice News + Politics + Business + Entertainment + Culture

PUBLISHER Jermaine D. Harper, MBA Email: jd.urbanvoice@gmail.com CONTRIBUTORS Lynn Cole Sharetta T. Smith, JD/MBA Brian Archie Janelle Harris Frederick Lowe Lorean Mays Perrin Lance ADVERTISING Email: ads.urbanvoice@gmail.com PHOTOGRAPHY BA Photography, Brian Archie Rebecca Love, RLove Photography WEBSITE: www.urbanvoiceonline. com COPYRIGHT All material appearing in Urban Voice NewsMagazine is copyright unless otherwise stated or it may rest with the provider of the supplied material. Urban Voice NewsMagazine takes all care to ensure information is correct at time of printing, but the publisher accepts no responsibility or liability for the accuracy of any information contained in the text or advertisements. Views expressed are not necessarily endorsed by the publisher or editor.

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2015 Jazzanooga Photos

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stuff you might want to know!

must read in this issue

You Go Girl!

Women of Color Taking Care of Business

knoxville: Austin-East Graduate to Give UTK Commencement Speech

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chattanooga: Priced Out: A Lack+ of Affordable Housing Affecting Blacks? knoxville: Q&A with Dist. 1 County Commisson Candidate Rick Staples

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hbcu news

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BY: REBECCA LOVE

+ SPELMAN COLLEGE GETS NEW PRESIDENT + SAVANNAH STATE OFFERS IN-STATE TUITION TO BORDER STATES + SIMMONS COLLEGE OF KENTUCKY IS OFFICIALLY THE 107TH HBCU + THE OLDEST FLORIDA HBCU CELEBRATES ITS 149TH ANNIVERSARY + KNOXVILLE COLLEGE ANNOUNCES FALL CLOSING

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KnoxvilleNews SPECIAL THANKS TO WWW.THEVILLAGEOFKNOXVILLE.COM

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May 3rd: 2nd Annual Citywide Bacculaureate Service at Overcoming Believers Church 200 Harriet Tubman St. Starts at 4PM. Register at www.thevillageofknoxville.com WHAT POLICY CHANGES OR INVESTMENTS ARE NECESSARY TO INCREASE JOBS IN YOUR DISTRICT? One major change that I will fight for is more diversity in leadership positions within county government. Also making sure minority, veteran,and woman owned businesses are involved andreceive fair consideration when bidding withKnox County Government.

DO YOU PLAN TO SUPPORT ANY TAX INCREASES? Currently, I can’t foresee the need for any tax increases. I would put more of my concentration into recruiting higher paying jobs to the 1st District.

Rick Staples: Candidate for County Commission District 1

ll WHY DO YOU WISH TO RUN FOR THIS POSITION? It’s time for a representative in local Government that wants to build the community back up. East Knoxville is closing in on itself. Someone will have to stand up and fight for the needs of the community. I’m the right person to serve my community in that capacity. My first point of order will be to bring service back to politics.

IF ELECTED, HOW SHOULD VOTERS MEASURE YOUR PERFORMANCE? I believe my service could be easily measured by my availability. A continuous presence [of elected officials] has been needed. Those individuals, whom the people have chosen, should not be distant, from those they serve.

HOW HAVE YOU PARTICIPATED IN YOUR COMMUNITY? The most important way I’ve participated in my Community, has been by being raised in it.

I was born in the 1st District and formed by its cultural beauty. I belong to several community and faith based organizations. Nothing is more important than being a product of the 1st District.

WHY SHOULD PEOPLE VOTE FOR RICK STAPLES? A vote for me is a vote for one of 1st District’s own. I understand how county government is ran. I’m tireless, committed and available to those who will choose me to represent them.

HOW WOULD OTHERS DESCRIBE YOUR LEADERSHIP STYLE? I understand that true leadership is service. If you lead you must listen, be aware and focused on the needs of those you serve.

WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT AS A LEADER? I never look back and admire accomplishments. There is too much work to be done. There are too many tasks ahead to restore the historic glory to District 1.

WHAT EXPERIENCE DO YOU HAVE IN PREPARING OR AUTHORING BUDGETS? Being a working class citizen, LIFE has prepared me for maintaining and authoring budgets! Government is to be responsible for the taxpayer’s money. Times are hard.

Legislatures must be fiscally responsible.

Under my leadership, I will keep a sound eye on all budget approvals.

6 | URBAN VOICE NEWSMAGAZINE 2015

The Love Kitchen co-founder, Ellen Turner, who has been serving meals to Knoxville’s needy for almost three decades, died Wednesday April 22 at the University of Tennessee Medical Center. She was 87.

Ellen Turner, who cofounded Knoxville’s Love Kitchen dies at age 87

Turner first opened the Love Kitchen on Valentine’s Day in 1986 with her twin sister, Helen Ashe, serving 22 meals out of a small church in East Knoxville. Twenty-nine years later, The Love Kitchen operates out of its own facility and serves over 3,000 meals each week.

Knoxville: Market Square Free Concert Series: Enjoy free concerts on Market Square from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Tuesdays and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursdays during the Market Square Concert Series. Parking is free after 6 p.m. at the City-owned Market Square, State Street and Locust Street garages.

Austin-East Graduate to Give UTK Commencement Address on May 7

By Sharetta Smith

ll When Corey Hodge shared his plans to attend the University of Tennessee with one of his high school teachers, he was told to set his sights a little lower.

“She asked me if I was sure about my decision and suggested starting at Pellissippi State and then transferring to UTK”, said Hodge.

“She meant well, said Hodge, but her advice was based on her expectation of myself and students like me. She didn’t push me because she thought that I wasn’t capable which is a typical misconception that is attributed to young black males and also contributes to what I call ‘learned helplessness’”.

Hodge enrolled at UTK anyway.

This month, not only will he graduate with a 3.5 GPA and receive a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Africana Studies with an English minor,

the East Knoxville native who was once encouraged not to attend UTK at all, will deliver the commencement speech for the College of Arts and Sciences Class of 2015 and address tens of thousands of people at the largest university in the state and one of the largest in the country.

Hodge said although the University of Tennessee’s campus was just a fifteen minute drive from where he grew up, for him, the university was an entirely different world.

“For the first time, I was a minority”, said Hodge. “You have to understand that the area where I grew up is predominately African American, and for the first time I was in classes with other students from West, Bearden, and Powell, but I was hungry and I strived, and I was trying to prove that I was at least 10 times as capable.”

Hodge ended his first semester at UTK with a 3.6 GPA. “During that first semester, I learned that demographics and the community you come from does not determine how well you

can do in life”, said Hodge.

His speech entitled, “What it Means to be a Tennessee Volunteer”, is really about what it means to be a graduate, said Hodge.

“Yes, the college years are about great times, great friends, and sports, but they are also about maturing,” said Hodge.

“I’ve cried at this university.

There were expectations. There were responsibilities. I’ve been through some hard times, and I am still a graduate.”

“College had a lot going on,” said Hodge. “I had great friends, and my grades were good, but there were times when I was confused about life and didn’t know where I belonged or what was going to be next for me”.

How did he make it past those difficult times?

“I kept thinking about my mom and what she sacrificed to get me here”, said Hodge.

Arvene Hodge Howes raised a young Corey Hodge in a single parent household and never let that be a reason for her to have low expectations of him or allow

him to have low expectations of himself.

“I had and still do have a relationship with my dad, but my mom had to be mother and father just because that’s the nature of single parent households,” said Hodge.

Hodge’s mother passed away in 2007, but he recalls coming home with a B on his report card and his mother letting him know that she was proud of him, but remindinghim that he could do better.

“She made sure that I knew that I was capable of anything”, said Hodge.

In his early years at UTK, Hodge thought about studying medicine and becoming a pediatric neurosurgeon, primarily because he had read the book, Gifted Hands, the story of how Dr. Ben Carson became the first surgeon to separate conjoined twins.

After doing his research and speaking with some surgeons and physicians, Hodge quickly learned that medicine was not a field that he wanted to go into.

thought that I wanted to go into his same field, but I learned that I could still be inspired and follow my own passions.

Hodge’s passion has lead him to pursue a career in education.

He hopes to later one day return to his alma mater, Austin East, and become a teacher and later a principal. For now, he will spend the next two years at a school in a Missouri urban community as part of the Teach for America program. At the end of his twoyear commitment, Hodge will have earned his master’s degree and teaching certification.

When asked about his future plans, Hodge said that he plans to be a Superhero.

“I literally have intentions on being a superhero, said Hodge.

“I want to be the individual that kids can look up to and aspire to be or greater.”

Hodge will deliver his commencement speech on May 7th at 1:00 p.m. at the Thompson-Boling Assembly Center and Arena.

“I was inspired by his story, so I

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URBAN VOICE NEWSMAGAZINE 2015 | 7

JAZZANOOGA YOUTH MUSIC ACADEMY

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The Jazzanooga Youth Music Academy is a year-round music education program for students ages 12-18. The goal of the youth music academy is to strengthen music education with out-ofschool time opportunities for music instruction and performance.

The Youth Music Academy meets on Saturdays at the Memorial Auditorium and instructors come from a variety of backgrounds: private music teachers, Hamilton County Schools’ music educators and even the Chattanooga Symphony. In 2014 music academy students have performed at the Hunter Museum of American Art, the Tennessee Aquarium Plaza with the Transatlantic Chilean Folk Ensemble and opened for headline artists during the Jazzanooga Festival. Sponsored by the Lyndhurst Foundation.

Special Thanks: Rebecca Love Photographer

ABOUT JAZZ Jazz is one of the few truly American art forms and one of our greatest cultural achievements. Born in the early 1900s in the South, Jazz transcends race, religion and national boundaries. Jazz unites all audiences.

It speaks to the heart, mind and spirit. It is universal.

As the birthplace of such noted jazz figures as Bessie Smith, Yusef Lateef and Lovie Austin, Chattanooga’s role in the history of jazz cannot be understated.

mission

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April is Jazz Appreciation Month which is celebrated in Chattanooga by the annual Jazzanooga Music Festival. In 2014 more than 4500 people participated in Jazzanooga’s month long series of events celebrating Chattanooga’s jazz heritage. Events include large shows, intimate performances, food events, educational activities and others. The Jazzanooga festival is a showcase of local and regional jazz musicians in venues large and small throughout Chattanooga. design

ABOUT JAZZANOOGA Jazzanooga, created in 2011 as a citywide celebration of jazz, is a community initiative that not only draws from the cultural relevance and history of our city and its residents, but also provides a festive platform where diverse communities can gather and celebrate Chattanooga’s extraordinary Mission: The mission of Jazzanooga is to promote jazz throughout the greater Chattanooga region through performance and music education. Jazzanooga started in 2011 as a one-day community celebration of Jazz and has grown to offer events throughout the month of April (Jazz Appreciation Month) and the rest of the year. jazz heritage.

Cool Places to Socialize in East Tennessee UPGRADE YOUR SOCIAL CALENDAR Tis the season for…laughs, music and everything in between. Keeping you

in-the-know about the essentials for the good life.

CHATTANOOGA Christy’s Sports Bar 3469 Brainerd Road (423) 702-8137 Mary's Lounge 2125 McCallie Ave (423) 493-0246 Glass Street Lounge 2208 Glass Street (423) 622-3579 T Roy’s 2300 Glass Street (423) 629-8908 Chocolate City Lounge 27 W 19th Street (423) 534-4411 Jay's Bar 1914 Wilder Street (423) 710-2045 The Elks Lodge 1211 Doods Ave (423) 629-5831 KNOXVILLE Whispers Banquet Hall & Social Lounge 2658 E. Magnolia Ave (865) 964-9294 The Elks Lodge #160 3919 Holston Drive (865) 522-6611 Jarmans BBQ & Lounge 3229 E. Maganolia Ave (865) 973-2000 URBAN VOICE. | Tennessee Newsmagazine | May 2015. | Everything Urban

URBAN VOICE NEWSMAGAZINE 2015 | 9

YOU GO GIRL!

Women of Color Taking Care of Business BY: U R B A N V O I C E STA F F

W EB Dubois said, “The future woman must have a life work and economic independence. She must have knowledge.

She must have the right of motherhood at her own discretion.”

Women in America have not only embraced this philosophy, they have also learned to play their hands in the game of business right up to the boardroom and corner office. From Madame CJ Walker, the first African American woman millionaire, to Ursula Burns, the first African American female CEO of a Fortune 500 company and current chairman and CEO of the Xerox Corporation, women have evolved from the role of workers and participants in the workforce to that of owners and decision makers in business.

Instead of being regulated to the domestic sphere of cleaning, holding down temporary industrial jobs, and teaching in classrooms like generations before them, women are investing in janitorial franchises, owning staffing companies, and rising among the ranks in education administration. In sum, women have learned to take care of their own business and in turn become masters of their own fate. Especially, women of color.

According to a 2013 study by the Center for American Progress, women of color are the majority owners of nearly one-third of all businesses in the United States. In fact the number of businesses started by women of color experienced tremendous growth from 1997 to 2013. Specifically, companies started by African American, Latina American, Asian American, and Native American women grew by 258%, 180%, 156%, and 108%, respectively.

Among these statistics African American

The Tenesha Irvin Show airs Sundays @ 4:30 pm on WMPZ Groove 93.5 FM women are both the fastest growing segment of the women owned business population and the largest share of female business owners.

The study showed that African American women are starting businesses at 6 times the national average and own an estimated 1.1 million businesses, comprising 42 percent of businesses owned by women of color and 49 percent of all African American-owned businesses bringing in $230 billion in annual revenue and employing over 1.5 million people.

But despite these promising trends women of color still face significant obstacles within the workforce and in starting their own businesses. For example, within the workforce the average woman of color that works full time, year round still earns less than white men. African American women earn 64 cents of every dollar earned by a white male while Latina women earn 54 cents, Native American women earn 59 cents, and Asian women earn 90 cents, according to a study by the American Association of University Women. These are disturbing numbers especially because one of the major challenges of starting a business is the lack of personal wealth followed by limited access to mentors and exclusion from elite networks.

So why are so many sisters pursuing entrepreneurship? Some feel pigeonholed in dead end jobs. Others feel marginalized or excluded in their workplace and perceive a lack of opportunity for advancement.

The Urban Voice talked to Chattanooga native Tenesha Irvin who is the Director of Sales & Marketing for Homewood Suites

by Hilton Chattanooga, and is also the creator and host of a community talk radio show called the Tenesha Irvin Show. Read how she was bitten by the entrepreneurial bug and how she manages being a wife, mother, and woman in business.

some soul searching. I’ve always enjoyed bringing people together so I thought what if I created a radio talk show that appealed to like- minded people who possess an indepth appreciation of life, business ideas and cultures.

UV: In your career have you experienced any “glass ceilings”? Give our readers some advice on how to deal with this?

TI: I’ve experienced stagnation in previous careers. It is important for you to know your worth and know when it’s time to seek advancement like higher education that may make you more attractive to your current employer. It is also important to know when it is time to move on to another career path where you are appreciated and afforded the ability to shine.

UV: Any specific challenges that you face on the job as a working woman?

TI: Sometimes people can take your kindness for weakness while being a woman in the workplace. So it has benefited me to make sure that I am the expert so that whenever my intellect is challenged I can rise to the occasion and perform exceptionally well.

UV: Tell us a little bit about your family.

TI: My family is my backbone. My mother Mary “Shane” Philpot as well as my aunts, Mattie Moran, Clara Scruggs and my uncle Arthur Moran are all natives of Chattanooga and helped to shape my world view and passion for community.

UV: What was the inspiration behind doing the show?

My husband, Jacques Irvin, and I met by way of Hurricane Katrina. His family temporarily relocated to the area after leaving New Orleans a day before the storm hit. All the hotels north of New Orleans were sold out and they could only find rooms in Chattanooga. We were introduced at a church dinner to benefit his family and the rest is history.

TI: After a business deal went left I was sort of down and embarrassed so I began to do

UV: How do you and your children spend time together?

TI: I am a kid a heart. I love playing and running around with my kids, exposing them to arts & culture and making education fun and exciting for them.

Jacques and I enjoy traveling with our children and finding family friendly activities and creating lifetime memories.

UV: How do you and your spouse find time to spend together?

TI: Date night…it’s a must. It’s important for us to reconnect and keep the relationship exciting and progressive.

UV: Between your job, radio show and family, how do you find your personal balance?

TI: I have to make sure that I’m taking care of things at home first before I can truly be effective outside of the home. Knowing that my husband and children feel loved and appreciated and everything is in order at home frees me to do other things I am passionate about.

UV: Is there a nugget you’d like to offer other busy moms who struggle to manage it all?

TI: You have to know that you can’t be everything to everybody. You have to be prepared for long nights and early mornings. You have to implement a structured schedule so that you can see what you do and don’t have time for. You have to create “to do” lists and know that you can’t do the fun stuff until you’ve done the hard stuff.

UV: How do you balance any guilty feelings you might have in the tension between your workplace and your home space?

TI: Self-reflection and the ability to realize when I’m doing too much. My prayer life is extremely helpful in pointing me in the right direction as well. When I’m at home, I’m at home. I have to disconnect from the outside world and tune in to my family.

Top 5 Places to visit for “Mother’s Day 2015”

By Lorean Mays

ll The word “Mother” according to Merriam-Webster means a: a female parent (1): a woman in authority; specifically: the superior of a religious community of women (2): an old or elderly woman The power to bring life into this world is often looked upon as a super power. Some women have given birth and raised some of the world’s most notable leaders, scientist, doctors, and inventors. The word “Mother” is not only designated for those who have given birth to a child but those who have stood in the gap for those who they did not birth. These are the women who have stepped in to adopt, raise, or be their for children who are not their own. They deserve just as much of our respect and love. One day out of the

2015 WolfCreek Summer Concert Lineup, Atlanta, GA A Night of Classic R&B featuring The Whispers, Stephanie Mills, Angela Winbush Saturday, May 2, 2015 - 7:00 PM An Evening Under the Stars Musical Festival 9th Annual Mothers Day Weekend Celebration. Saturday, May 9, 2015 - 7:00 PM

year is reserved to celebrate all the joy, sacrifice, and love that only a mother can bring to our lives. I decided to put a twist on gift giving this month with the intention for us to look outside of the box. This also will provide a wonderful cultural learning experience. I decided to do a list of my Top 5 Places to take your mother or the mom in your life for “Mother’s Day 2015”. You can’t go wrong with Art, History, and Traveling.

1. Hunter Museum of American Art (Chattanooga, TN) The Hunter Museum of American Art is one of the oldest art museums in the area. It features everything from colonial era to contemporary art. The exhibition “Eudora Welty and the Segregated South” is available until July 12, 2015. It features images from Eudora Welty while she worked for the Works Progress Administration in the 1930s. This led Welty to travel through the depths of Mississippi, recording the devastating effects of the Great Depression on whites and African Americans. Also on display are works by renowned African American photographer Gordon Parks, an exhibit featuring work by Radcliffe

2015 ATL Soul Life Music Fest featuring Lyfe Jennings, The Foreign Exchange, Eric Roberson, & more Sunday, May 24, 2015 - 7:00 PM

2015 Affordable Old School Concert Series featuring Avant, Tank, Chante Moore, and more Saturday, June 6, 2015 - 7:00 PM

2015 Affordable Old School Concert Series featuring Joe, Ruben Studdard, Mystikal, and more Saturday, August 1, 2015 7:00 PM

Jazz Under the Stars featuring Will Downing, Gerald Albright, and More Saturday, June 13, 2015 - 7:00 PM

An Evening Under the Stars featuring Johnny Gill, Guy, Ginuwine, & more Saturday, August 15, 2015 - 7:00 PM

Funk Fest 2015 featuring Erykah Badu, Doug E. Fresh, Floetry, and more Saturday, May 16, 2015 5:00 PM

3rd Annual One Love Reggae Concert featuring Marcia Griffiths, Tony Rebel, Everton Blender, and more Sunday, June 21, 2015 5:00 PM 2015 Affordable Old School Concert Series featuring Mint Condition, Bobby Brown, and more Saturday, July 4, 2015 7:00 PM An Evening Under the Stars featuring Fantasia, Musiq Soulchild, Dru Hill, and more

For more information on the Bessie Smith CC visit http:// www.bessiesmithcc.org 3. Beck Cultural Exchange Center (Knoxville, TN) The Beck Cultural Exchange Center is a hub for Black History.

It has often been said that the Beck Center has been the model for most African American museums across the country. It features the history of African Americans in Knoxville and East Tennessee from the late 1800’s to the present through photographs, newspapers, biographies, audio and video recordings, books and artwork.

Founded in 1975, it is named after James and Ethel Beck.

For more information on the Beck Cultural Exchange Center: http://www.beckcenter.net 4. Paul Laurence Dunbar House (Dayton, OH) The home of Paul Laurence Dunbar is an adventure in to the past. Paul Laurence Dunbar was the first African American poet to earn international acclaim.

Though he died at the young age of 33, he achieved great things.

Dunbar published over 400 poems, six full-length novels, plays, short stories and lyrics for musical productions. The

house and interpretive center includes his original Remington typewriter (which where is said to have typed the drafts of some of his novels), his bicycle (given to him by the Wright Brothers), and many more pieces from the writer’s life.

His body of published work reveals the daunting challenges facing African Americans in the post-Civil War era and protests the widespread atrocities committed against them.

For more information on the P.L. Dunbar House: http://www. daytonhistory.org/destinations/ paul-laurence-dunbar-househistoric-site/ 5. Oberlin Heritage Center (Oberlin, Ohio) The Oberlin Heritage Center is one with a unique take on African American history. The center offers tours of three historic buildings. Each building has a different focus but is pivotal to a period in the African American experience in Ohio.

Each includes an array of history regarding abolition and Ohio’s link to the Underground Railroad.

For more information on the Oberlin Heritage Center: http:// www.oberlinheritagecenter.org

Saturday, July 11, 2015 - 7:00 PM

Affordable Old School Concert Series - 4 Show Ticket Saturday, June 6, 2015 - Saturday, September 5, 2015

2nd Annual Pre-Father’s Day BBQ & Blues Fest Saturday, June 20, 2015 - 7:00 PM

2015 ATL Soul Life Music Fest featuring Chrisette Michelle, Dwele, Kindred The Family Soul, and more Saturday, May 23, 2015 - 7:00 PM

2. Bessie Smith Cultural Center (Chattanooga, TN) The Chattanooga African American Museum (now BSCC) was founded in 1983 by ten empowering visionary leaders from Chattanooga: Roy Noel, Jacola Goodwin, Sallie Crenshaw, Agnes Locke, Leonard Wellington, Elizabeth Champion, Levi Moore, Rayburn Traughber, Catherine Kimble, and Rev. Williams Banks. In 1996, a newly renovated facility became the new home of the Chattanooga African American Museum and the Bessie Smith Hall. The Hall was established to pay homage to the late “Empress of the Blues”, Bessie Smith. The Bessie Smith Performance Hall has become well known in the Chattanooga community as an educational institution and spectacular venue to host performances, banquets, meetings and various community events. The museum features an ongoing exhibit of art, photos, and other item pertaining to the history of African Americans in Chattanooga.

Wolf Creek Funk Party featuring Cameo, Midnight Star, Atlantic Starr, Brick, and more Saturday, July 18, 2015 - 7:00 PM An Evening Under the Stars Musical Festival featuring Kem and Friends Friday, July 24, 2015 - 8:00 PM

Funk Fest 2015 featuring R. Kelly, 2 Live Crew, Total, and more Friday, May 15, 2015 - 8:00 PM

ATL Soul Life Music Fest - 2 Day Saturday, May 23, 2015 - Sunday, May 24, 2015

Bailey, and Haitian artist Lewis Mailou Jones.

For more information on the Hunter Museum of American Art: http://www.huntermuseum.org

2015 Affordable Old School Concert Series: featuring 112, Jagged Edge, Silk, and More Saturday, September 5, 2015 7:00 PM Wolf Creek Funk Party featuring Morris Day, Confunkshun, Zapp, Lakeside, and more Sunday, September 6, 2015 - 7:00 PM! Wolf Creek Jazz Festival w/ Boney James, Maysa Leak, Marion Meadows, and Paul Taylor and more Saturday, September 26, 2015 - 7:00 PM

URBAN VOICE NEWSMAGAZINE 2014 | 11

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ChattanoogaNews SPECIAL THANKS TO WWW.HUNTSVILLEURBANNETWORK.COM

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Latin Festival from 11 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday, May 2 in Highland Park.

Contact Gladys Pineda-Loher at gladys.pineda-loher@chattanoogastate.edu or call 423-697-3204.

Urban Voice mourns the loss of Rev. Dr. Virgil J. Caldwell, pastor emeritus of New Monumental Baptist Church

ll Rev. Dr. Virgil J. Caldwell passed away Wednesday, April 22, 2015.

For 40 years, Rev. Caldwell pastored New Monumental Baptist Church in Chattanooga, TN.

After graduating from Merry High School in Jackson, Tn., he enrolled at Lane College, where he earned his bachelor of arts degree. After two years of military service, which carried him to Korea, he returned to the United States and accepted a teaching position at Miles High School in Union City, Tn. Dr. Caldwell was a widely traveled minister, having been to some of the world’s leading cities in Europe, Asia and Africa. He recalled that one of his most gratifying

experiences was an oversees trip in 1975, provided by New Monumental Baptist Church, which gave him the opportunity to visit the Holy Land and to preach in Liberia, Africa.

Dr. Caldwell has served as moderator of the Chattanooga District Association and President of the Tennessee B.M. & E. Convention.

Arrangements will be announced by John P. Franklin Funeral Home, 1101 Dodds Ave., 622-9995.

12 | URBAN VOICE NEWSMAGAZINE 2015

ArtsBuild Hosts Arts Build Communities Grant Workshop May 12 ll ArtsBuild and the Southeast Tennessee Development District will host an Arts Build Communities (ABC) grant workshop on Tuesday, May 12, at 5 p.m. (Eastern Time Zone).

The orientation will be held at ArtsBuild, 406 Frazier Avenue in Chattanooga and will review guidelines and tips for applying for funds through this Tennessee Arts Commission grant program.

The ABC grant program is designed to provide support for arts projects that broaden access to arts experiences, address community quality of life issues through the arts, and enhance the sustainability of asset-based cultural experiences. Non-profit organizations in are eligible to apply for matching grant awards

that range from $500 to $2,000.

“ABC grants provide innovative arts experiences that are new or unfamiliar to community residents, and allow for the development of arts programming that strengthens social networks through community engagement,” says Shannon Ford, director of community arts development for the Tennessee Arts Commission.

“ABC grants also offer training for emerging artists and arts administrators to develop entrepreneurial skills or innovative strategies for building sustainability.”

Applications must be submitted online through the Tennessee Arts Commission’s eGrant system by 4:30 p.m. (CT) on July 1. The ABC online application

can be accessed at www.tn.gov/ arts. Once there, scroll over “Grants” on the left side of the home page, and click on the eGrant button to access the ABC application. Faxed, mailed, or hand delivered applications will not be accepted. Funded programs should be scheduled to take place between August 16 and June 15.

Prior to submitting an application, qualifying organizations should discuss the program or project proposal with their designated agency. Rodney Van Valkenburg at ArtsBuild will administer Hamilton County agencies. He can be reached at (423) 756-2787, ext. 13, or email: Rodney@artsbuild.com.

YOUR VOICE. YOUR PERSPECTIVE Lack of Affordable Housing Growing, Housing Burden Felt Disproportionately by Chattanooga’s African-American Community meaning they are paying more than 30% of their income to the rent or mortgage. Out of that number, one out of every four renters are considered “severely burdened”, meaning they are paying more than 50% of their income to the rent.

ll CHATTANOOGA, TN Chattanooga Organized for Action released to the public last month an updated study presented to the City Council on the status of the growing affordable housing crisis. The study, which looked at area figures for the city’s urban core, found that one out of every two households are considered “housing burdened” by Federal Government (HUD) standards,

“The lack of affordable housing is at crisis levels,” said Perrin Lance, co-founder of COA. “When families are forced to choose between paying the rent or saving for our children’s college, that weighs down both our personal future and thwarts the potential of our city”.

Among the findings were: Chattanooga lacks 5,774 affordable rental units for those households with incomes below $20,000. This does not include the anticipated loss of 1,000 units of affordable housing for extremely low-income people that would result from the planned closure of College Hill

and East Lake Courts, the city’s largest two remaining public housing communities; nor does this include the estimated 29% population increase expected to hit Hamilton County by 2055.

The housing burden is felt unevenly across the city. While the median gross rent as a percentage of household income for the entire urban core is slightly moderate at 35.1%, this burden is not equally shared across the urban core. Some areas such as Census Tract 31 representing the downtown area have the median percentage at 28.5%, or mostly affordable on average. However, many areas of our city experience dramatically high rental costs.

The housing burden is shifted to Chattanooga’s African-American community. Out of a total of 11 Black-majority Census tract districts, only two tracts had a median gross percentage at

affordability standards (rent less than 30% income). The Census Tract representing the Westside (CT-16) also qualifies at 32%, but it is approximately 100% public/subsidized housing. Two tracts (CT 12 Churchville, CT 14 Oak Grove), have a median percentage at 50%. CT 26-East Lake Courts area is at 47.7%.

Three others , CT 11-Orchard Knob, CT 13-Ridgedale, CT 19-Alton Park, have figures in the high thirties (38.0%+).

Chattanooga’s white majority census tracts are experiencing housing affordability issues, but to a far lesser degree than their black counterparts. Only one white-majority community, CT 24-Cedar Hill, had a median gross rent percentage higher than 40% (at 43.55%), while two tracts (#7 and # 31 representing Lupton City and Downtown) have percentage figures lower than 30% (22.0% and 28.5% respectively). Four others remain

close to affordability by ranging between 30% to 35%.

The study combines the efforts of the 2012 Regional Planning Agency’s “Chattanooga Housing Study” and the 2012 Westside Community Association’s “Affordable Housing Report” with updated data from the 2013 5-Year Estimates of the American Community Survey.

“As Federal aid for local affordable housing efforts dwindles, cities must be prepared to take bold action to address the housing crisis at their doorsteps,” said Lance.

“Greater coordination and an openness to all available strategies must be pursued.”

Questions and request for presentations can be emailed to info@chattaction.org to realize

Shop Talk

5 THINGS WE ARE TALKING ABOUT ACROSS THE

01

Michael Eric Dyson Deems His Public Critique Of Cornel West ‘Vital And Necessary’. Although the academics have been friends for years -- West even wrote a letter of recommendation for Dyson’s Princeton University graduate school application back in 1984 -the two have parted ways over West’s harsh critique of Obama and other black intellectuals.

Dyson defended his choice of venue to air his grievances, telling host Marc Lamont Hill he hopes others can learn from the debate.

02

‘Justice For Freddie’: Hundreds Protest Death Of Man After Arrest By Baltimore Police. Hundreds of demonstrators gathered in Baltimore on Tuesday to protest the death of a 27-year-old black man who died after being arrested by local police. The U.S. Justice Department is looking into the case of Freddie Gray, who was arrested on

03

Knoxville Society Group Accused Of Racism. Debutantes participating in the Dogwood Ball in Knoxville, Tennessee, must be sophomores in college, unmarried -- and white? The East Tennessee Presentation Society presented 44 debutantes at its 53rd annual Dogwood Ball on March 28 at the Knoxville Marriott Hotel.

04

Queen Latifah’s Bessie Smith Film to Premiere May 16 on HBO. HBO’s film on blues singer Bessie Smith starring Queen Latifah will premiere on May 16. Latifah stars in Bessie as the Empress of the Blues, one of the most successful recording artists of the 1920s. Latifah recorded many of Smith’s better-known songs for the film, and a soundtrack release is expected.

Mo’Nique stars as blues legend Ma Rainey and Bryan Greenberg portrays John Hammond, the Columbia Records executive who signed Smith. The film also stars Michael Kenneth Williams, Khandi Alexander, Tory Kittles, Mike Epps, Oliver Platt and Charles S. Dutton. Evyen Klean is the music supervisor.

05 Mo’Nique blasts Lee Daniels, reveals emails proving she was offered to play ‘Cookie’ on ‘Empire’

#RECEIPTS: MO’NIQUE BRINGS E-MAILS PROVING LEE DANIELS OFFERED HER COOKIE ROLE. Daniels allegedly claimed Mo’Nique was never considered for the role of Cookie, and the show’s co-creator Danny Strong insisted that she’s never been offered the part. During her interview on Sway in the Morning, Mo’Nique brought along proof that she

URBAN VOICE NEWSMAGAZINE 2015 | 13

Mind your health UPCOMING HEALTH EVENTS

BlueCross Wellness Incentive Programs Help Employers Boost Workplace Engagement ll CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--How you improve employees’ health at an auto plant may be different than how you drive health changes for the staff at a bank. That’s why regardless of the company, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee can customize wellness incentive programs to motivate long-term behavior change across a workforce’s range of health statuses and clinical conditions.

“With BlueHealth Rewards, we assess data and provide behavioral health insight to project employee engagement, behavior change and impact on medical spending that makes the most sense for the employer’s population. We never use a cookie cutter approach.”

With nearly 70 percent of U.S. companies offering workplace wellness programs, employers are looking for ways to improve and sustain employee engagement in health initiatives. BlueHealth RewardsSM assists employers in implementing or structuring customized programs to encourage and reward healthy choices and behaviors.

BlueCross’ team of experts, ranging

from health management consultants to behavioral health scientists, work with each employer to target specific behaviors and health conditions for improvement. Data on claims and use of health care services are integrated to create custom incentives and communications that encourage behavior change and help employers achieve the best value from their health plan. Employers can choose the incentive structure that fits their workforce and resources, from premium reductions to merchandise catalogues or other company incentives.

“The value in customizing is that employers can have programs that target and incentivize for both large picture health improvements and population specific chronic conditions,” said Kasie Plekkenpol, BlueCross’ director of

The Simple Step That Can Lead To Fewer Strokes Stroke is the 5th leading cause of death. A stroke happens when blood flow to an area of the brain is cut off. ll

Each year in the U.S., about 795,000 people suffer a stroke, according to the American Heart Association. Put another way, one American has a stroke every 40 seconds and dies from one every four minutes. In addition to this, 88% more blacks die from strokes than whites.

Women who walk at least three hours every week are less likely to suffer a stroke than women who walk less or not at all, according to new research.

Past studies have also linked physical activity to fewer strokes, which can be caused by built-up plaque in arteries or ruptured blood vessels in the brain.

While the current study cannot prove that regular walking caused fewer strokes to occur in the women who participated, it contributes to a small body of evidence for potential relationships between specific kinds of exercise and risk for specific diseases.

who were regular walkers translated to a 43 percent reduction in stroke risk compared to the inactive group, Huerta said.

Women who walked briskly for 210 minutes or more per week had a lower stroke risk than inactive women but also lower than those who cycled and did other higher-intensity workouts for a shorter amount of time.

Despite a recent dip in strokes attributed to better blood pressure control and antismoking campaigns, the World Health Organization (WHO) predicts that stroke cases will increase as the global population continues to grow older.

In all, nearly 33,000 men and women answered a physical activity questionnaire given once in the mid-1990s as part of a larger European cancer project. For their study, Huerta and his team divided participants by gender, exercise type and total time spent exercising each week.

The authors, who published their findings in the journal Stroke, checked in with participants periodically to record any strokes. During the 12-year follow-up period, a total of 442 strokes occurred among the men and women.

The results for women

14 | URBAN VOICE NEWSMAGAZINE 2015

There was no reduction seen for men based on exercise type or frequency, however.

Guidelines set by the WHO and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend at least 150 minutes – or two-and-a-half hours – of moderate exercise such as brisk walking each week.

1-800-STROKES (787-6537) www.stroke.org

health management product strategy. “With BlueHealth Rewards, we assess data and provide behavioral health insight to project employee engagement, behavior change and impact on medical spending that makes the most sense for the employer’s population. We never use a cookie cutter approach.”

BlueHealth Rewards programs can be utilized by companies at any stage of wellness programming, from those starting wellness efforts to employers with long-standing initiatives. All programs include a range of communications to remind employees of their health improvement options and rewards earned. BlueHealth Rewards is available for fully insured groups and self-funded groups with more than 151 employees.

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At the City of Chattanooga, diversity is

FRONT & CENTER Through the Office of Multicultural Affairs, we are constantly increasing our commitment to minority and women-owned businesses.

To find out what opportunities are available for your business, visit: chattanooga.gov/multicultural-affairs.

Or give us a call at 423-643-6701.