8 6 2014

VOL. 63, No. 30

www.tsdmemphis.com

July 31 - August 6, 2014

75 Cents

Sugarmon v Michael:

The r ace for Juvenile Cour t Judge

by Tony Jones Special to The New Tri-State Defender

President Freeman…

Terri Lee Freeman will be introduced as the next president of the National Civil Rights Museum during a briefing at 1:30 p.m. Thursday (July 31st) at the museum’s Hooks Hyde Hall.

Freeman, who succeeds Beverly Robertson, will begin her new duties in early November.

She recently resigned as president of The Community Foundation for the National Capital Region (Washington, D.C.), a position she has held since 1996.

City Court Judge Tarik Sugarmon says a speech given last year by Shelby County Juvenile Court Chief Magistrate Dan Michael clearly illustrates that Michael does not merit election as Juvenile Court Judge.

Sugarmon believes he’s the person for the job. The speech that Sugarmon references was reflected, in part, on the Midtown Republican Club’s website.

“I’m a strong critic of the federal program of the deinstitutionalizing of minority confinement,” Michael is quoted as saying. “They said we

were violating equal protection, but what about the 98% of Americans who don’t engage in criminal activity?”

Sugarmon says he was shocked by Michael’s reCity Court ported comJudge Tarik ments.

Sugarmon “It shows not only a lack of understanding of the issues that the kids that come through juvenile court face, it shows a lack of sensitivity to

African Americans, but most importantly, it shows a predisposition to put African-American kids into detention,” said Sugarmon.

According to the Judicial Canon of Ethics, Juvenile Court judges must Chief Magis- show that they trate Dan are fair, that they Michael are independent and that they don’t have any predispositions, Sugarmon said. “If I were a minority per-

by Wiley Henry Special to The New Tri-State Defender

‘Emergency Rule Requiring the Printing of Only Two Voting Machine Tapes’

SEE VOTING ON PAGE 2

MEMPHIS WEEKEND FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

H-83o - L-65o H-87o - L-65o H-88o - L-65o Partly Cloudy Mostly Cloudy Mostly Sunny REGIONAL TEMPS LITTLE ROCK NASHVILLE JACKSON, MS

Friday H-82 L-63 H-85 L-64 H-80 L-66

Saturday H-86 L-64 H-88 L-63 H-86 L-68

Sunday H-88 L-64 H-89 L-64 H-86 L-67

SEE JUVENILE ON PAGE 3

Sheriff’s race pits two law enforcement veterans

THOUGHT YOU SHOULD KNOW

(This July 30th memorandum from Mark Goins, Tennessee Coordinator of Elections, was sent to “All County Election Commission Offices” under the subject line shown here as the headline.)

On July 28, 2014, based on feedback I heard from election officials, I sought an emergency rule to amend Promulgated Rule 136002-13-.22, which required the printing of three (3) voting machine tally tapes on election night.

I had heard from many of you that due to the length of the ballot, the printing of the third tape would create additional burdens for your Election Day officials. Some of you commented that your election officials would have to add paper to the voting machine printer to print the third tape, others of you commented that it would extend the day another two (2) hours after the polls closed to print the third tape, and still others informed me that there were election officials declining to work because of the extended day and duties. Some of you feared that poll workers would not serve in the future because of the extra time required to print the additional tally tape with the longer ballot this year. With these facts, I requested an emergency rule to amend Promulgated Rule 1360-0213-.22.

On July 29, 2014, Attorney General Bob Cooper approved the emergency rule. The emergency rule now requires that the election officials print two (2) tally tapes at the closing of the polling location

son or any person of color I would file a motion to recuse because he has shown that he has a bias toward minorities. You can’t explain those statements away, they speak for themselves.”

Sugarmon said he’s not calling Michael a racist.

“The Department of Justice report from June of this year reflects that the conditions for unfair treatment (at Juvenile Court) still exist. I don’t think he understands the damage of what he has said does to undermine his independence and objectivity when it comes to handling minority cases. I think it shows a predisposi-

Curtis Weathers, who is set to begin his first full year as principal of Hamilton High School, speaks with students Robert Farmer and Briana Stewart during registration on Wednesday. (Photo: Shirley Jackson)

Curtis Weathers: Team Hamilton’s man in charge

by Dorothy Bracy Alston Special to The New Tri-State Defender

A former NFL player-turned-principal, Curtis Weathers knows about the hope and promise that often accompanies a new season or year. In a few days, he will get to experience that sensation anew as the head of the of Hamilton High School.

After eleven successful years as the first principal to lead the charge at Memphis’ – and the state’s – first charter school, Memphis Academy of Health Sciences (MAHS), Weathers made the move to Hamilton in February. Seven to eight hundred students are expected to show up on opening day (Aug. 4th) for the beginning of his first full year at the helm of the historic high school that

is now designated a Shelby County I-Zone (Innovation Zone) school.

Weathers, who has worked the entire summer in preparation for the first day of classes, smiles and his face lights up as he peeps ahead during a recent interview with The New Tri-State Defender. It seems that he is a man in love. The school’s mantra is “Love Hamilton, Absolutely!”

“What I love about the kids here is their spirit is very high with their love for Hamilton,” said Weathers.

“They want their school to be great and they want their school to be safe. …They’re proud of their history and of their school.”

Hamilton once served 1600 to 1800 students, with as many as 3,600 at one point, said Weathers. “This community used to be the hub of Memphis’ black middle class. It was

once thought of as a prime spot for living and raising a family.”

The school’s history can be traced back to the early forties, and for many years it was the only high school for blacks in the city of Memphis. Over the years, Hamilton has had many notable principals, beginning with Green Polonius Hamilton, which bears the school’s name.

Now it’s Weathers’ turn.

SEE SCHOOLS ON PAGE 2

SEE SHERIFF ON PAGE 2

Not an educator, but a political science major, Weathers’ career began as a professional athlete with the Cleveland Browns.

“I ventured into education through a non-traditional career in athletics SEE WEATHERS ON PAGE 12

Chalkbeat Tennessee

“We are very pleased to know we’re trending in the right direction,” said Superintendent Dorsey Hopson in a press release. “However, we cannot rest with slight gains; we must press forward with a more aggressive agenda that increases student achievement at a more rapid rate.”

BEST IN BLACK AWARDS Voting runs July 21-Aug. 5 www.bestinblackawards.com

12 Points of Action to rein in crime

has not specified which goals it met.

“We are very pleased to know we’re trending in the right direction,” said Superintendent Dorsey Hopson in a press release. “However, we cannot rest with slight gains; we must press forward with a more ag-

‘A non-traditional career’

by Oliver Morrison

based off growth.

Only district results were released Monday. Statewide results were released earlier this month.

Shelby County Schools met 10 out of 11 of the performance goals set by the state, according to a press release. The goals take into account whether the district is improving, not just its absolute scores. The district

Bennie L. Cobb:

“I’ve spent 30 years serving Memphis and Shelby County,” said Cobb, a native Memphian.

“My background and experiences make me uniquely qualified more than most candidates.”

Bennie L. Cobb rose Cobb: through the ranks first as a Memphis Police Department detention specialist. After transferring to the SCSO, he became a Shelby County correctional deputy and went on to manage key command positions throughout his tenure.

Those positions include managing the Sheriff’s Jail Unit, SWAT Operations, Internal Affairs Bureau, Community Policing Unit, Detective Division, Metro Gang Unit, Entertainment District Unit, Special Response Team, Uniform Patrol Division, Courts & Civil Division, Sex Crimes, Domestic Violence and Child Abuse Unit.

“I have an understanding of the inner working of the jails, how the officers work, and how to relate to the inmates when something is going on inside the jail,” said Cobb. “And I have a working knowledge of every division in the sheriff’s office.”

Oldham, said Cobb, is disconnected from the mainstream of Memphis and Shelby County, specifically Memphis.

“They (African Americans) don’t know who he is and they don’t feel he’s providing services for the taxpayers for the tax money that they’re

Shelby County Schools meets 10 out of 11 state TCAP targets

Shelby County Schools showed enough growth on its test scores last year to satisfy the state’s goals, according to TCAP test results released by the Tennessee Department of Education Wednesday.

It is difficult to compare this year’s test results to past performance because the district’s prior scores include both legacy Shelby County schools and legacy Memphis City Schools before the two districts merged last year. The state determines if districts meet their goals

William “Bill” Oldham currently has the job of Shelby County Sheriff and Bennie L. Cobb, a retired captain from the sheriff’s office, would like to wrest it away from him.

Cobb is the William “Bill” Democratic nomOldham inee and Oldham, a Republican, has been the sheriff since the 2010 trouncing of the countywide Democratic slate.

Veterans of law enforcement, both men are confident about their skillsets as crime-fighters. Each believes he has the tools to handle the reins of the Shelby County Sheriff’s Department and help keep Shelby County safe.

Voters will decide on Aug. 7.

TSD endorsements Choices made in several key races

G ☺ ☺ D BLUE AND Y☺U

See Opinion, page 4

See Community, page 13

Deputy Dana ‘Bootstrap’ Armstrong

Page 2

Tri-State Defender

July 31 - August 6, 2014

NEWS SHERIFF CONTINUED FROM FRONT paying.”

Cobb said he’s been assessable and will continue to be assessable if he’s elected sheriff.

He said he’d implement his “12 Points of Action,” a platform that he believes would help rein in crime, meet the challenges of 21st century law enforcement and corrections, and keep the citizens of Shelby County safe.

Some of those points of action include proposing state legislation to amend ineffective laws; ensuring accountable management of administrative, law enforcement and jail operations; investing in state-ofthe-art data collection and crime analysis tools to identify, assess or predict crime trends and hot spots; utilizing community policing; developing a 3-R (Reading-RemediationReform) program for jail inmates; and developing a Prevention-Intervention-Edu-

Bennie Cobb said he has a 12 Points of Action” platform that would help rein in crime, meet the challenges of 21st century law enforcement and corrections. cation (P.I.E.) philosophy to reduce recidivism and prevent youth crimes.

Cobb is particularly focused on issues affecting young people, saying he has worked to get an understanding of them.

He said there are faith-based initiatives and mentorship programs throughout Shelby County to keep young people from being idle and getting into trouble, adding, “We don’t want to just lock up or warehouse children.”

He said idleness could lead to serious gang activity and unruly behavior in youth if they’re not addressed.

“It’s never going to be alle-

VOTING CONTINUED FROM FRONT on election night. Under this emergency rule, there is no longer a requirement to print a third tally tape on election night.

Just as before, the first tape must be brought to the central election commission office with all election supplies from that polling place.

However, under the amended rule, the second tape, which includes the same information as the first tape, from each machine, must be posted on the wall of the polling place.

Note that the emergency rule continues to provide that any person present must be given ample opportunity to obtain the results from the paper tapes posted on the

SCHOOLS CONTINUED FROM FRONT gressive agenda that increases student achievement at a more rapid rate.”

The district is touting large gains in Algebra, smaller gains in other grade levels and subject areas, and a slight dip in math scores in grades 3-8.

The state-run Achievement School District, focused on improving the worst-performing schools in the state, had modest growth with its results in both reading and math for grades 3 through 8, according to results posted Monday.

viated because it starts in the home,” he said. However, he added, interacting with youth could build a mutual foundation of respect that could help deter youth crime.

Cyber crime is another of his concerns. “We have to adapt to the changing trends,” said Cobb, noting that pimps and prostitutes are now trafficking human beings in cyber space and continue to change their game to avoid capture.

“When you see something happening, you want to be proactive,” he said. “One child lost to sexual predators, one child loss to human trafficking, is one too many.”

William “Bill” Oldham:

Making a difference in fighting crime The sheriff’s race in 2010 was a turning point for Oldham.

“There was no fundraising and just a few volunteers,” he said. “I didn’t realize that (then-Sheriff Mark) Luttrell was running for (Shelby County) mayor, so we got a late start in the 2010 election.”

Oldham eventually defeated three contenders in the Republican primary and went on to defeat the Democratic nominee in the general election, Randy Wade, who had defeated three contenders, including Cobb.

Oldham said he is more than prepared to keep his job as sheriff of Shelby County.

“We’ve gained a lot of support,” he said. “We have over 400 volunteers. It’s a diverse group of individuals.”

Oldham is touting his record and leadership as the county’s top law enforcement officer.

His goal then and now, he said, has been to “make a difference in our community in fighting crime.”

Here’s why he thinks he should be reelected: • He’s been a good steward of the taxpayers’ money, saving the county over $8 million in three years.

• Major violent crime has been reduced by 19.8 percent and major property crime by 29 percent, according to Operation Safe Community Crime wall of the polling place.

The emergency rule only applies until January 25, 2015. Thus, unless the rule is made permanent the third tally tape will be printed during the 2016 election cycle. Nothing prevents a county from printing three tally tapes this election, and some machines are able to print tally tapes faster than others. However, in practice, this emergency rule only streamlines the process leaving in tact protections of having a tally tape the public is able to view, as well as, a copy for the election commission office to maintain.

A copy of the emergency rule is attached to this Memorandum. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thank you for your diligent work this election cycle.

Because the district adds on several schools each year, it’s difficult to determine what sort of district-wide gains were made this year.

ASD schools last year improved their math scores but saw declines in reading. For the six schools in their second year with the ASD, the percent of students deemed proficient in reading increased from 13.4 percent to 17 percent, and the percent of students proficient in math increased from 19.6 to 21.8 percent. Schools in their first year with the ASD overall saw 21.5 percent of students scoring proficient in math and 22.3 percent of students proficient in reading.

Trend Report from 200620013.

• The SCSO was cited as one of the most decorated/award winning law enforcement agencies in the country.

• The Optimist Clubs of Memphis and Shelby County recognized Oldham as “The Citizen of the Year 2012” After nearly four years in office, Oldham’s detractors and opponent in this race have hurled criticism at him. He refutes all of it, particularly the claim that he hasn’t been assessable as sheriff in the African-American community.

The department, he pointed out, has availed itself in the community and supported leaders such as the Rev. Lester Baskin of Middle Baptist Church, the Rev. Keith Norman of First Baptist ChurchBroad, Dr. Craig Strickland of Hope Presbyterian Church, Charlie Caswell of Rangeline Neighborhood CDC, Frayser Exchange Club, and Man of

Bill Oldham is touting his record and leadership as the county’s top law enforcement officer. His goal then and now, he said, has been to “make a difference in our community in fighting crime.” the House Mentoring.

“I’m not going to worry about what anyone else says,” said Oldham, referring to his opponent. “I know what I’ve done. I know where I’ve been.”

Oldham says he has been inclusive as sheriff and will continue to do so.

“I’ve got a platform and record that I’m running on. I’m not going to lower myself to

those situations, to respond to individuals.”

Oldham is mindful of the ills of society that often lead to crime.

“I would never arrest our way out of this situation,” he said. “My desire is to make sure that every kid in this community regardless of their ethnicity, their socio-economic standards have the opportunity to be what they want to be in their life.”

Using non-traditional law enforcement is the key to making a difference in a city prone to violence, no matter where it happens, he said. “Crime that occurs in Westwood impacts people who live in Eads. Crime that occurs in Collierville impacts people who live in Midtown.”

Beginning his career with the Memphis Police Department in 1972, Oldham worked his way through the ranks and eventually retired in 2000 as interim director.

With MPD, he has been a patrol officer, anti-crime detective, lieutenant with the North Precinct, commander of the Beale Street Sub-Station, executive captain of the North Precinct, inspector in charge of the Training Academy, deputy chief of Police Administration, deputy chief of District One Uniform Patrol, and deputy director of Police Operations.

In 2002, Oldham was appointed chief deputy for the SCSO and served until 2010.

And in 2011 Gov. Bill Haslam appointed him to the Tennessee Corrections Institute Board of Control as a Sheriff Representative.

“I truly believe your organization is only good as its people and only as good as its support for the community,” Oldham said. “We’re going to continue to invest in our people. You don’t judge a community by its bricks, mortar and steel, you judge it by the quality of its people.”

Vote August 7th

Tri-State Defender

July 31 - August 6, 2014

NEWS “I am very proud of the contributions of my father, but I’ve always tried to create my own.”

– Tarik Sugarmon

JUVENILE CONTINUED FROM FRONT tion towards minorities. That does not mean he is racist, but what it does mean is that his decisions are not race neutral.”

In a telephone interview with The New Tri-State Defender, Michael said he did not recall the speech, adding that he tries to be very careful in his language when referring to the children under the court’s care.

On the Midtown Republican’s website site Michael states, “We can’t lock our way out of the problem (of juveniles committing crimes). I can’t fix everything. We’re a court, not a social service. I just try to take it one child at a time.”

Sugarmon also pointed to this comment on the Midtown Republican’s website: “Newly minted lawyers just don’t have the experience to be on the bench and make these decisions.” The site quotes Michael as saying, “It’s just too important.”

That directly reflects upon Michael’s own experience, said Sugarmon.

“If you examine Mr. Michael’s own literature you will see that he has never tried any case of any kind in any court and I think that is very significant. … He has been performing a legal office appointed by a judge and he is making decisions that are affecting these kids and families lives as a judge without learning the trade. The only on-thejob training he has had is in a system that has been determined by the Department of Justice to be broken.”

A set of billboards depicting Sugarmon with his father, Judge Russell Sugarmon, remind voters of the son’s direct link to the city’s civil rights history. Sugarmon said that as a youth he was inspired to a legal career by learning from his father, and at the fabled law firm of Benjamin L. Hooks and A.W. Willis Sr., which he says became the first integrated law

firm in the southeast.

“I am very proud of the contributions of my father, but I’ve always tried to create my own.

I’ve handled more than 180 felony jury trials. My success rate was well over 80 percent.

As a matter of fact there was an 8-year period when I did not lose a jury trial. I think that proves not only my knowledge of the law but as a litigator. I represented the African-American city council persons in the lawsuit that led to the setting aside of the runoff law. We were successful in negotiating a settlement.”

On his campaign website, Michael touts being appointed to the bench in 1997 by Juvenile Court Judge Kenneth Turner and 17 years experience as a referee under Turner and current Juvenile Court Judge Curtis Person.

Michael feels his experience in the system directly qualifies him to earn voter support.

“When I came out of law school I clerked for a small law firm. I did not stand before the judge and argue the cases but I did help to research and prepare the cases. My first six months or eight months in my role at Juvenile Court was spent running the CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) and I served as a guardian and a volunteer coordinating attorney for cases we had in Chancery Court. When I later became the executive director of CASA I was also chief counsel and I tried over 1,000 parental rights cases. So anyone that says my I don’t have the experience is wrong.”

Amplifying, he continued: “Those were bench trials, not jury trials. So I’ve tried very serious parental rights cases in front of the bench. … From there I was appointed chief counsel of the court, which was more of a corporate counsel to the judge. There is all types of legal experience and I have that experience.”

Michael said there are some internal things about Juvenile Court that need to change.

“Right now our probation officers help manage the docket. I want to move that docket back to the clerk’s office to achieve efficiency with docketing, cut down on the number of files that are misplaced or lost when they’re not checked out properly, and to create a system for local attorneys so they can file their lawsuits in the clerk’s office.”

Michael said “one of the reasons there is such a problem in Shelby County is that we have relied on the state to fund us.

Now if a child needs intensive services where a foster home is not appropriate, they’re going to wind up 150 miles away from here. In my opinion that is absolutely wrong. If you are going to rehabilitate a child that has committed a violent act, it needs to be done in the community, not on the other side of Somerville when mom is stuck here without transportation.”

He feels his record of service proves that the AfricanAmerican community should have no fear of his tenure if he becomes judge. Sugarmon, however, asked why Michael did not attend the NAACP candidate forum.

“My campaign staff had arranged a private event that I could not miss,” Michael said.

If elected, Sugarmon said his improvements would include more community involvement.

“You cannot return a child to the same environment and expect a different outcome. I will make sure that a family resource center will be created so we can understand how the family is positioned in terms of economics, parenting skills, and more, to not only make parents more accountable, but empower them. There are a lot of resources available to them that parents are not aware of.”

Another important change would be community-based mentors and community-based probation officers,” said Sugarmon. “I want them to become an active resource in the community.”

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Tri-State Defender

July 31 - August 6, 2014

OPINION John H. Sengstacke Publisher (1951 - 1997)

The Mid-South’s Best Alternative Newspaper

COMMENTARY FLASHBACK: 2009

• Bernal E. Smith II President / Publisher • Dr. Karanja A. Ajanaku Executive Editor

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TSD endorsements It is a priority of The New TriState Defender to provide insight and leadership to its readers and the community-at-large in assessing key issues that impact the future of our city, county and region, including elections and the selection of candidates vying for elected office.

This election year is a critically important one. Voters are faced with the opportunity to vote for change or to continue to support current leadership and results. Depending on your plight and experiences over the past 4 to 6 years, your choice might be radically different from that of another.

The Aug. 7th ballot is the longest in the history of Shelby County elections and requires a bit of diligence, understanding and resilience to navigate and complete. Several weeks ago, the TSD published a Voter Education Guide, including the entire ballot, to allow voters an opportunity to do homework with a preview prior to going to the polls.

Understanding the length of the ballot, the many contested races and the importance of this election we are weighing in on several select races and endorsing some candidates in critical roles.

We established a questionnaire/interview process in which we invited candidates in select races to participate as a way of gathering both objective and subjective information.

In those instances where we did not solicit a questionnaire nor receive one, we used public information, candidate literature and research to evaluate candidates. The information was synthesized and used in the selection of the candidates we chose to endorse.

As a multi-media outlet with a primary focus on the perspective and issues of the African-American community, we established criterion by which we selected the candidates for endorsement. The process of setting the criterion began with a critical analysis of the current state of African Americans in Memphis and Shelby County. At a U.S. Census-

counted 64.1 percent of the population of Memphis and nearly 55 percent in Shelby County, any policies, strategies or approaches that don’t address long existing disparities will ultimately fail this community.

Significant disparities exist in imprisonment rates, health care, crime and violence, education and economic prosperity and, more importantly, in the availability of resources and opportunities that would open the door for these circumstances to begin to dynamically – or even moderately – shift towards more positive trends. Unfortunately, many of these things have gotten worse since the Great Recession of 2007 and require bold, visionary leadership to improve.

From our point of view candidates must intrinsically understand these dynamics and how they impact the welfare of our entire city and county.

We will endorse candidates – regardless of race or party affiliation – that represent the best vision, that can present solution-oriented plans of action, and exhibit the best ability to execute and deliver on those plans.

The New Tri-State Defender makes the following endorsements: U.S. Congress 9th District: Ricky E. Wilkins District Attorney: Judge Joe Brown Shelby County Mayor: Deidre Malone Juvenile Court Judge: Judge Tarik B. Sugarmon Criminal Court Clerk: Wanda Halbert Juvenile Court Clerk: Henri Brooks Shelby County Sheriff: Bill Oldham Shelby County Trustee: David Lenoir Tenn. Supreme Court: Retain Judges Cornelia Clark, Sharon Lee and Gary Wade We will provide more analysis on each race and the endorsement decision over the next several days via our daily digital editions.

IN THE MAIL About AFSCME Local 1733 and the union’s endorsement in the 9th Congressional District I Janice Chalmers, President of AFSCME Local 1733, am writing to clear up confusion and misinformation regarding Local 1733’s endorsement in the 9th Congressional District race.

For the record, I, along with other authorized Local 1733 union leaders, recently met and agreed to endorse Ricky Wilkins in the Congress race. Following this meeting, it was determined that I contact Mr. Wilkins and advise him of the endorsement. I talked with Mr. Wilkins by phone and agreed to hold a press conference to announce the endorsement.

I was prepared to join Mr. Wilkins in yesterday’s scheduled press conference as announced in the July 28 press release. Early yesterday morning, however, I found it odd to have

received a call from our national office which caused me to cancel Local 1733’s participation in the press conference and to question Cohen’s endorsement which had been claimed without AFSCME Local 1733 knowledge.

I refuse to deny that Local 1733 endorsed Mr. Wilkins and further refuse to deny that I confirmed the endorsement with him. However, it was my responsibility to bring this matter before the membership and this did not happen, which caused another delay in the matter. I refuse and am issuing this statement of the facts so that there is no more misinformation about how this developed.

Any statement to the contrary by anyone connected to Local 1733 is false and does not reflect the facts as they occurred and developed.

The truth is always in order.

Janice Hooker Chalmers, President of AFSCME Local 1733

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Tri-State Defender Platform 1. Racial prejudice worldwide must be destroyed.

2. Racially unrestricted membership in all jobs, public and private.

3. Equal employment opportunities on all jobs, public and private.

4. True representation in all U.S. police forces.

5. Complete cessation of all school segregation.

6. Federal intervention to protect civil rights in all instances where civil rights compliance at the state level breaks down

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TSD endorses Ricky E. Wilkins in 9th Congressional District The New Tri-State Defender received completed questionnaires from incumbent Steve Cohen and attorney Ricky E. Wilkins in the Democratic Primary for the 9th Congressional District. We will publish the questionnaires with the candidates’ responses on our website, TSDMemphis.com.

In 2010, the TSD endorsed Congressman Cohen over former Mayor Dr. Willie W. Herenton. At the time, Cohen was the right choice for the right reasons, which our endorsement detailed this way: “Congressman Cohen clearly has been an effective legislator over the course of his two terms and certainly during his tenure in the Tennessee General Assembly. He has been a champion for causes and policy intended to positively impact the African-American community. He has built relationships and worked across racial and political aisles as a masterful diplomatic statesman. Ultimately he has done everything he could do to best represent the broad interest of the constituents he represents.

“Congressman Cohen’s positions, relationships and proposed legislation are all on point towards bringing to bear a climate that will allow for positive changes in the 30 percent poverty rate, double-digit unemployment, negligible business revenues, high rate of illness and health challenges and 40 percent dropout rate.

Ultimately to truly improve the plight of Memphis, we must have leadership derived from within the African American community that identifies with and intrinsically understands the ‘family’. No matter how empathetic, Congressman Cohen will never be the direct catalyst to initiate and foster the change necessary for the African-American community in the 9th District and beyond to make significant strides in improving the challenges that we face. In fact it can and will only come from within.”

Those words rang true then and were in some sense prophetic.

Wilkins presents himself not based upon his race but truly upon his experiences, qualifications, understanding of the issues and certainly vision, passion and capabilities to be an effective legislator and leader for the 9th District and the Greater Memphis community.

Birthed from the heart of South Memphis, Wilkins trained at some of the nation’s best universities and professionally prepared as a dynamic legal mind to be an effective maker of laws. He is articulate, passionate and a servant leader that has practiced law for 23 years. He has built a business, obtained financial success, is not beholding to anyone and can speak and act freely on the issues that most impact constituents. He would bring to public office fresh energy and ideas meshed with seasoned statesmanship and diplomacy nurtured through his experiences practicing law. He also represents a shining example of what we should be asking of every young African-American male in this community: work hard, learn, get all the education you can get, build positive relationships, build business, give back and ultimately serve.

Congressman Cohen has been an elected official in Memphis and Shelby County since 1978. He has served with dignity, integrity and conviction and that is to be respected. Yet, despite some positive contributions, progress for the 9th Congressional District – and particularly African Americans – has been stagnant to retarded over the past 6 years. The recovery from the Great Recession has been slow. Losses in homeownership and net worth have been great. Job losses, unemployment and under-employment continue to be significantly higher among African Americans in the district. Despite the establishment of a Minority Business Center, growth in revenues and scale for African-American business continues to be woeful at less than 1 percent of all revenues generated in

Shelby County.

These factors continue to drag Memphis and Shelby County down and lower the quality of life for all citizens.

Yes, State Sen. Cohen helped establish The Med (now Regional Ricky E. One Health) and Wilkins fought to establish the Tennessee Lottery and Hope Scholarship program. Those things are to be commended. Still, health disparities persist and outcomes for African Americans in the district continue to lag.

Too few African Americans are able to get or retain Hope Scholarships, with too many “paying into the system” playing the lottery on the hopes of a come up.

Over the last eight years, Cohen has failed to lend leadership where leadership was desperately needed.

Although the most well coffered candidate in the Shelby County Democratic Party, the senior and most influential standard-bearer has failed to lend resources and influence to help the party achieve success in the last several election cycles.

Asked to lend leadership to various local crises, Cohen was quoted as saying he doesn’t get involved with local issues. Wrong answer! This community deserves and needs a Congressman that understands legislation is the job but leadership is the calling.

Cohen has failed to deliver to the voters for the past three election cycles what they fundamentally deserve and that is a debate on the issues. Considering political posturing and strategy, it’s understandable why he may have been advised and subsequently decided against debates.

However, it in no way diminishes their necessity in a community with so many unresolved issues and unanswered questions. The leadership the district deserves and needs would stand up to public scrutiny and live debate against any and every serious opponent.

Cohen’s lowbrow pandering in campaign commercials reflects his failure to realize and appreciate that African-American constituents are as discerning as others. In the end, track records, issues, plans and platforms are the things that matter most to voters regardless of race.

No one owes his or her vote to a candidate; office seekers must consistently earn it.

Lastly, Cohen’s treatment and handling of longtime aide, ‘brother from another mother” and former friend, Randy Wade, demonstrated a startling lack of allegiance and loyalty.

Had he endorsed Wade during the 2010 election it is likely that Wade would be the Shelby County Sheriff right now.

Then consider the public fiasco involving Wade’s use of his personal influence to support a candidate that Cohen did not, and the ensuing ugly breakup. A lot was revealed about the Congressman’s loyalties. To toss aside like recycled newspaper the person that was a proclaimed personal friend, his primary liaison with the African-American community and the one that walked him into churches and provided relationships and credibility that would have taken years to build, reveals maybe someone who has forgotten from whence he’s come and more importantly the work that remains ahead.

This endorsement and ultimately this race are not about race, religion or the culture of the candidate but rather the temperament, vision, energy and boldness necessary to deal with stark realities among a suffering constituent base. In the course of a relay race, there is an optimal time for the baton to be passed and 2014 is that time. This community cannot afford another dropped baton.

Wilkins is the candidate to take the 9th Congressional District into a bright new future.

We've all made mistakes at some time or another.

For most of us, whether we've lost touch with someone or didn't take a chance on something, those mistakes help us grow, and we move on. SomeState Sen. times, unfortu- Reginald Tate nately, those mistakes are big enough to ruin lives.

For those who have been convicted of a felony crime and served time in prison, picking up the pieces and putting their lives back together is an uphill challenge.

We know that some may fail and offend again, but for those ex-offenders who want to start over, Tennessee has made some changes in state law and offers programs that make it easier to get back on your feet.

Many employers are reluctant to hire ex-offenders, even those who have paid their debt to society and need a fresh start.

It is an important challenge, not just for ex-offenders, but for all of us, to see more ex-offenders find jobs. Of all those serving time in Tennessee prisons, 97 percent will reenter society. Unfortunately, within three years, 46 percent will be rearrested and return to prison or jail.

The key to rebuilding their lives and keeping them from re-offending is simple: help them find a job to make an honest living.

Their struggles affect all of us. There are nearly 10,000 people in Shelby County on probation or parole, and 3,184 people from Shelby County currently serving time in state prison. With 7.1 percent unemployment in our county, it's critical that we find ways for our ex-offenders to get back to work!

Several recent changes point to progress on that front.

In 2012, we passed a law that makes sure that if you serve your time and try to get a fresh start, Tennessee will give you a clean slate.

Under the new law, if you have one non-violent felony on your record, and you've paid all restitution and penalties, you can have your record wiped clean after five years of good behavior.

We strengthened that law this year with one key change. If you were convicted of multiple felonies – but they were all part of the same crime during one single arrest – they can be combined for the purpose of expungement under the law.

This is not an opportunity for career criminals. By doing it this way, we're giving a second chance to onetime ex-offenders who have proven, after five years of good behavior without committing a crime, that they're ready to contribute to society.

They deserve a clean slate.

The Department of Corrections is also doing its part. Its Community Impact Program started last fall and provides reentry assistance to ex-offenders and serves as a resource to the community. They have also updated standards so that those who need more help with reentry will get it, and parole officers are now trained not to assume ex-offenders will re-offend.

The department also runs the Take One initiative, aimed at partnering individual organizations that can agree to mentor just one returning offender and his or her family for one year. This gives faith-based and non-profit groups that can provide encouragement and support a way to help ex-offenders reenter society.

Another program to help our exoffenders is the Tennessee Higher Education Initiative. The program provides a way to take college courses for credit while serving in prison.

On top of business courses, these offenders are learning computer skills and how to use Microsoft Office while they are still serving their time. A biology course will be added this fall with the use of a virtual lab.

The offenders are grouped into classes of 25 students who take 1-3 courses together each semester.

They move through the program together and support one another.

To qualify, offenders must take the ACT test and score at college level, write an essay explaining why they should be in the program, and maintain a 3.0 GPA. They also need to keep a clean record in prison and intend to continue their studies upon release.

Since 2012, 88 students have earned college credit in the program, and the average student has a 3.47 GPA. We all make mistakes, and some mistakes carry a price. If you pay your debt to society, there should be an opportunity to get back on your feet.

Making parole should mean possibility, and Tennessee is making strides in giving ex-offenders the tools they need to succeed.

(State Sen. Reginald Tate represents part of Shelby County in the General Assembly.)

Tri-State Defender

July 31 - August 6, 2014

NEWS

Meet William Chism Candidate for Probate Court Clerk TSD Staff

The New Tri-State Defender: So then essentially what motivated you?

William Chism: What initially motivated me was a discussion with a colleague that led to me getting a copy of a 2011 internal audit of the Probate Court Clerk’s office. I was so disturbed by everything that was messed up in that office and the lack of accountability that I felt I had to get involved.

I’ve been taught don’t complain about a problem if you’re not willing do get involved yourself – do something about it. At that particular time I went and talked to my family, I prayed about it and made the decision to get involved by running for Probate Court Clerk.

I want to treat people like I prefer to be treated. I know that the times that people have to interact with probate court are crucial times when they are going through wills and testaments and dealing with death/loss, so having those records kept accurately and making it convenient for petitioners to get them is very important. One of the problems I saw in that clerk’s office is that they said they didn’t have the time or the manpower to contact all the people that were beneficiaries of assets/money held in trust by the clerk’s office. It is critically important that surviving family members, next of kin are contacted to receive money that is rightfully theirs. I think that’s a problem on many levels, in some instances even violating the wishes of the deceased.

TSD: Considering those points and the findings in the audits and subsequent recommendations, under your administration would you seek to hire and put more staff in place to be able to handle that?

WC: Under my administration I will seek to surround myself with a team that has the same frame of mind I have relative to serving the public of

Shelby County. It is important to have a team with a focus on improvement and getting the office in o r d e r.

William That’s our Chism primary objective.

It’s to get this office in order based upon the recommendations in the audits. We want to be great keepers of the records.

We want to secure the private records that need to be secured.

We want to make sure all the money is accounted for and that everything balances the checks out.

We would be more than grateful to accept all the recommendations of the internal auditors to kind of help us straighten this office out. So anybody that’s coming in with a great idea… matter of fact we will be talking to the attorneys and some of the people that deal with the office to determine what we can do to make the office more convenient and more effective for them. The objective is to make it more convenient and more effective and make everything run smoothly. I am not a politician.

I’m a businessman that decided to get into politics because I saw a need. I’m from Memphis. I saw a deficit that the people of Memphis and Shelby County people needed filled. Being a true Memphian, a home guy, I have all the desire in the world and want to see Memphis and Shelby County do well.

TSD: Tell us about who William Chism is. You talked about you’re a businessman and a family man. Tell the community.

WC: First of all, I am a family man. My wife, Allison, and I have been married 18 years.

We have four children. My oldest daughter, Jasmine

Chism, is a graduate of the University of Memphis and works for Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital. My only son, William Chism III, 19, is a student at Southwest Tennessee Community College. Then my two youngest are girls, Melinda and Alissa Chism, one a senior, the other a junior at my alma mater, Whitehaven High School. They are both scholars and leaders in their own right and continue to make their mom and I proud.

As for myself, William Chism Jr. is a 48-year-old young man, born June 23rd, that grew up in Memphis, Tennessee, raised in a family of Chisms that were the founders of Chism Trail Supermarkets where I had some of my best learning experiences. In a family of entrepreneurs I had the opportunity to learn about customer service, the administration of putting people to work and making sure that the job gets done. I had an opportunity to learn about integrity, the importance of doing what you say you’re going to do and that your yes be yes and your no’s be no.

Since then I’ve had the opportunity to build my own business for about the past 15 years. Currently I am the CEO of Chism Process Service, which has been very successful working with attorneys, real estate agents/investors and the courts. I believe you’ve got to be the best at what you do or you starve. So I think that’s one of the advantages that I bring to the table as a candidate and that is I’m determined to be the best at whatever I do.

I’ve had a spirit put instilled in me that whatever you do be the best at it. Because if you’re not the best at it, then somebody’s going to do the job better and they are going to be the ones to get that job.

And so now I am offering my experience and talents for public service as the Probate Court Clerk. I am asking the voters of Shelby County to vote for William Chism Jr. on August 7th.

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Tri-State Defender

July 31 - August 6, 2014

BUSINESS ON OUR WAY TO WEALTHY

Fall and winter businesses T h e time for summer vacations, parties and lounging by the pool is coming to a close.

As the kids begin Carlee s c h o o l , McCullough seasonal summer businesses of lawns and pool cleaning will soon come to an end. But have no fear, fall and winter bring additional opportunities for entrepreneurs to earn income.

There are a number of seasonal fall and winter businesses that have a low cost of entry. These businesses do not necessarily require major startup capital or years of training to pursue.

Senior transportation Grocery shopping and medical appointments are some of the necessities that senior citi-

zens require. As seniors begin to forego driving independently the need still exists to be mobile. Thus an opportunity in senior transportation arises for those enterprising enough to enter the field. Although some form of startup capital is required, the amount is generally lower than many of the capital-intensive businesses.

The number of seniors is on the rise, which is good for business. If you are not interested in starting a business from scratch, franchising is available.

Lunch delivery In big cities hot food delivery is a staple. Sure pizza is widely available locally. The availability of menu items such as pasta, wings, sandwiches and down home cooking screams opportunity.

During bad weather, the last thing employees want to do is leave the building for lunch.

With a built-in clientele, delivery hot lunches in cool and cold weather is a win for all involved in the transaction.

The business owner reaps potential profits and employees are shielded from the elements.

Moving service – for students School starts for more than just the kids. College kicks off with movement into the dorms or other living accommodations. While the business model is short term, it is focused and can pay off handsomely over a short period of time. Even if you start small and seasonal, the business can be expanded later beyond moving for students.

Back-to-school shopper The one thing that all kids have in common is the need for back-to-school supplies and clothes. With thousands on top of thousands of children returning to school, a business that focuses on delivering supplies and school clothes could be lucrative.

While some parents enjoy the

“thrill” of shopping, long lines and scanning the ads for deals, others prefer to avoid shopping like it’s the plague. Any alternative to battling long lines and crowded stores can serve as a potential profitable enterprise.

the occasion babysitting at a high level for profit in winter months.

Home winterization

As the seasons change and the leaves fall, the dreaded leaves will require gathering and disposal. Where leaves are down, gutters are full. So the leaf removal business provides an opportunity on the ground as well as on roof, a virtual two for one. Although some equipment is required, this business is labor intensive and seasonal.

Preparing a home for winter includes wrapping pipes, strategically placing lights, purchasing rock salt for icy paths and steps, etc. While most homes need to be winterized few actually follow through on it because of time constraints or it is the last thing on the “to do” list. However as a business concept that performed the services at a reasonable cost, the arrangement could be rewarding considering the number of homes available as business opportunities.

Winter camp

Holiday home decorating

Kids welcome Christmas vacation. While parents are still working, some kids become restless and bored. This extra time can be remedied with organized activities such as a winter camp. Consider

Labor Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas are holidays that are festive.

Holiday decor for a home can consist of outside and inside.

Some residents are more celebratory than others and partic-

Leaf removal/ gutter clean up

ipate fully in decorating their homes. But with very little capital and the ability to recycle decorations, a business can be birthed out of a simple concept of holiday home decorating.

Vending warm beverages Just as hot dog carts exist and food trucks are on the rise, hot chocolate and coffee to go can be quite profitable. Although the cost of entry is somewhat higher than some of the other opportunities discussed, the business can make money. Seasonal as warm beverages may be, the flip side of selling cold beverages in the summer can balance the investment.

As we move away from summer, fall and winter present more than just cold weather and snow. Opportunities abound.

(Contact Carlee McCullough, Esq., at 5308 Cottonwood Road, Suite 1A, Memphis, TN 38118, or email her at jstce4all@aol.com.)

MONEY MATTERS

What investment risks should I know about?

Taken by itself, the word "risk" sounds negative. But broken down into what it really stands for in terms of investing, it begins to be a little more manageable. By understanding the different types of risk and keeping an eye on your investments, you may be able to manage your money more effectively. Remember, strategic investing doesn’t mean "taking chances" so much as "making decisions."

Long-term investing and diversification may be some of the most effective strategies you can use to help manage investment risk; however, neither guarantees against investment loss.

Inflation risk

Longevity has its place…

Richard Flowers, who operates R.S. Lewis & Sons Funeral Home, along with Eddie Hayes and Andre Jones, unveils a street sign reflecting that a portion of Vance Ave. now honors the 100-year-old business’ late owner and director, R.S. Lewis Jr. A weekend of celebration for the century-old funeral home founded by Robert Stevenson Lewis Sr. also included the unveiling of a Tennessee Historical Society marker recognizing the funeral home and its owners’ contributions to the community. R.S. Lewis & Sons now is owned by Tyrone Burroughs, CEO of First Choice Sales and Marketing. (Photo: Tyrone P. Easley)

The main risk from inflation is the danger that it will reduce your purchasing power and the returns from your investments. If your savings and investments are failing to outpace inflation, you might consider investing in growth-oriented alternatives such as stocks, stock mutual funds, variable annuities, or other vehicles.

Interest rate risk Bonds and other fixed-income investments tend to be sensitive to changes Charles Sims in interest r a t e s .

Jr., CFP When interest rates rise, the value of these investments falls. After all, why would someone pay full price for your bond at 2 percent when new bonds are being issued at 4 percent? Of course, the opposite is also true. When interest rates fall, existing bonds increase in value.

Economic risk When the economy experiences a downturn, the earnings capabilities of most firms are threatened. While some industries and companies adjust to downturns in the economy very well, others – particularly large industrial firms – take longer to react.

Market risk When a market experiences a downturn, it tends to pull down most of its securities with it. Afterward, the affected securities will recover at rates more closely related to their fundamental strength.

Market risk affects almost all types of investments, including stocks, bonds, real estate, and others. Historically, longterm investing has been a way to minimize the effects of market risk.

Specific risk Events may occur that only affect a specific company or industry. For example, the death of a young company’s president may cause the value of the company’s stock to drop. It’s almost impossible to pinpoint all these influences, but diversifying your investments could help manage the effects of specific risks.

(Charles Sims Jr., CFP, is President/ CEO of The Sims Financial Group. Contact him at 901-682-2410 or visit www.SimsFinancialGroup.co m.)

Tri-State Defender

Page 7

July 31 - August 6, 2014

RELIGION RELIGION BRIEFS Commemorating the life, legacy of Presiding Bishop G. E. Patterson President Louise Patterson and the Board of Directors of Bountiful Blessings will commemorate the life and legacy of the late COGIC Presiding Bishop Gilbert Earl Patterson (1939-2007) on Sept. 22nd.

The observances kick off at 11 a.m. with a graveside memorial service at Memorial Park Cemetery at 5668 Poplar Ave. At 6 p.m., there will be a tour of Bishop Patterson’s artifacts in the Hall of Fame Room at the Memphis Hilton Hotel at 939 Ridge Lake Blvd.

A black-tie dinner is set for the hotel at 7 p.m. Bishop Joseph Walker III of Nashville will be the keynote speaker.

General seating: $150; dais, $200; Tables: $1,500. Call (800)-544-3571 to secure a reservation or mail request to Bountiful Blessings, Inc., P.O. Box 1, 38101.

For more information, visit www.bbless.org.

Agape’s Heartlight to feature Dr. Canada

Chinese police remove church cross amid crackdown BEIJING (AP) – Hundreds of police took down a church's cross Monday in a city known as "China's Jerusalem" for its many houses of worship amid a crackdown on church buildings in a coastal region where thousands of people are embracing Christianity.

Evangelist Qu Linuo said he and about 200 others had rushed to the Longgang Huai En Church in the eastern city of Wenzhou to protect the building but peacefully made way for the police, who used a crane to remove the 3-meter-tall (10-foot-tall) red cross from its steeple.

Authorities told the church the cross violated building height limits, and returned it to the parishioners, who wept and prayed around it, said Qu, who is a member of another church. A man at the county's public security office said he didn't know anything about the incident, and the Longgang township police didn't answer phone calls.

Across Zhejiang province, where

Agape’s 16th Annual HeartLight event will be held on August 15th at 7 p.m. at Hope Church (8500 Walnut Grove Road). This year’s featured speaker will be renowned education reformer Dr. Geoffrey Canada, president/CEO and founder of Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ).

Canada recently was named one of “The World’s 50 Greatest Leaders” by Fortune Magazine in connection with the success of HCZ’s educational reform program in Harlem, New York’s schools and community. He was also honored by the National Civil Rights Museum with the National Freedom Award.

Agape will also bring ten-time Grammy Award winner CeCe Winans to Memphis for a concert during HeartLight 2014!

Tickets are on sale at AgapeMeansLove.org/heartlight-2014. Prices range from $15 to $40. The annual event is the faith-based organization’s single largest fundraiser of the year.

“The goal of this event is to engage our community and raise awareness of and support for homelessness, adoption and foster care and under-resourced communities in Memphis,” notes David Jordan, Executive Director for Agape.

“While we need to raise dollars to continue to provide services to children and families in crisis, we also need to raise awareness of and support for those we serve so that our citizens get personally involved in the restoration of our city and those who live in it,” said Jordan.

The presenting sponsor is IMC Companies.

BRIEFLY: The New Olivet Baptist Church, at 3084 Southern Ave., will hold a Back-to-School Oil Anointing on Saturday (Aug. 2). Children in grades K through 12 may attend to receive prayer and oil anointing for peace, power, protection and prosperity for the 2014-15 school year. Anointing will begin at 1 p.m. in the Sanctuary.

BRIEFLY: New Growth In Christ Christian Church (NGIC) will celebrate 24 years in ministry with a service that begins at 10 a.m. Sunday at the church located at 7550 East Shelby Dr. On Aug. 31 from noon to 2 p.m., NGIC Community Celebration Day will feature free food, back to school supplies, health screening and more. For more information: contact Vicki Johnson at 901-292-5233 or call Dr. Sidney P. Malone at 901-482-6111.

Wenzhou is located, authorities have toppled or threatened to topple crosses at more than 130 Protestant churches. In a few cases, the government has even razed sanctuaries.

Officials say they're enforcing building codes, although often they won't specify which ones. They also deny they are specifically targeting churches, and point to the demolition of tens of thousands of other buildings, religious and nonreligious, that have apparently broken regulations.

But experts and church leaders in this province south of Shanghai — the only one where the incidents are happening — say the government appears to be trying to suppress the fast-growing religion.

Official 2010 figures put the number of Christians in state-sanctioned churches at 23 million believers, but the country also has vast numbers of believers who meet in secret. The Pew Research Center estimated 58 million Protestants in the country practiced the religion in 2011, along with 9 million

Catholics the year before. Some experts say the total could be more than 100 million.

The church's dramatic growth — and Christians' allegiance to God above all else — has alarmed authorities, said Yang Fenggang, a Purdue University sociologist and leading expert on religious matters in China. It was difficult to imagine what sort of building codes the crosses would violate.

"The only reason I can think of is that the Zhejiang authorities intend to humiliate Christians by taking down the symbol sacred to them," he said.

The province may have come under scrutiny because it is home to Wenzhou, where more than a tenth of residents are Protestant Christians, the highest proportion of any major Chinese city, according to Cao Nanlai, an anthropologist who has studied and written a book about Christianity in Wenzhou.

Half the province's 4,000 churches are located here, he said, partly a legacy of early missionary efforts

here.

Known for its entrepreneurial vigor, Wenzhou has tens of thousands of small family-run workshops making shoes, toys and other products. Believers here appear to have applied that same eagerness to starting new churches, Cao said.

The cross removals and demolitions reflect the occasional flexing of political muscle by authorities to show who's in control, he said.

Last week, parishioners at another church in the city successfully protected their cross from hundreds of police, said Zheng Changye, a 36-year-old member of another church. He said three people suffered serious injuries in the clash with police, and photos posted online showed several people bleeding from head injuries.

On Monday, other photos posted on the China social media site Weibo showed parishioners at the Longgang Huai En Church praying on its steps and holding banners reading, "Anti-graft, anti-corruption, protect religion."

Celebrating 55 years…

Monumental Baptist Church at 704 South Parkway East held its annual Pastor and Wife’s Appreciation service last Sunday, celebrating the service of the Rev. Samuel ‘Billy’ Kyles and first lady Aurelia Kyles. The guest speaker was Dr. Edward Parker of Berean Baptist Church. (Photo: Tyrone P. Easley)

Millions displaced by religious violence in 2013 WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. says millions of people were forced from their homes because of their religious beliefs last year.

The State Department on Monday released its 2013 report on religious freedom around the world.

It said in conflict zones, mass displacement has become the, quote, "pernicious norm."

The report said that in much of the Middle East, the Christian presence is becoming "a shadow of its former self." Hundreds of

thousands of minority Christians have fled Syria after three years of civil war.

The report highlighted more than one million people being displaced in the Central African Republic during 2013, amid an

upsurge in Christian-Muslim violence.

In Southeast Asia, anti-Muslim violence spread from Myanmar's volatile west to central Meikhtila, with up to 100 deaths and 12,000 displaced.

PRAISE CONNECT -A WEEKLY DIRECTORY OF MINISTERS & CHURCHESMETROPOLITAN BAPTIST CHURCH Dr. Reginald L. Porter Sr., Pastor 767 Walker Avenue Memphis, TN 38126

901-946-4095 fax 948-8311

ASSOCIATE MINISTERS Rev. Davena Young Porter Rev. Linda A Paige Rev. Luecretia Matthews

SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES SUNDAY Sunday School .....................8:30 am Morning Worship Service ....10:00am WEDNESDAY Bible Study .........................10:30 am Mid-Day Prayer Meeting .....12 noon Evening Prayer Meeting........7:00pm FRIDAY Cable Channel 17 ............... 8:00pm

Dr. & Rev. Mrs. Reginald Porter

“Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.”

– Psalm 55:22

Attend the Church of your choice

I can do all things through Christ which strength ? eneth me.

Phillipi ? ans 4:13

ENTERTAINMENT Tri-State Defender, Thursday, July 31 - August 6, 2014, Page 8

Aryen Moore-Alston:

Much more than a ‘Food Network Star’ finalist

by Brittney Gathen Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Aryen Moore-Alston was one of twelve finalists who competed on season 10 of “Food Network Star.” Alston was the first finalist from Memphis, the first finalist from Tennessee in the 10 years that the show has been on the air, and the only female African-American on this season.

Though she was eliminated, the Spelman College graduate and owner of baked goods and catering company Sweet Potato Baby still has big plans for her culinary future.

– International (Cuisine) Lover

ed.

“I should have believed in myself a little bit more. I know I have the talent; I know I have the skill, but sometimes you can feel debilitated with the smallest critique, and I think I took too much to heart and didn’t know how to shake it,” MooreAlston said.

Upon reflection, she’s learned to trust her gut, live with a no-holds barred attitude, and to keep going. She advises aspiring chefs to go for their dreams despite hardships.

“If you want to be the next “Food Network

At Sweet Potato Baby, Aryen Moore-Alston’s baked goods and catering company, the mission is to provide baked goods with quality ingredients, with a fruit or vegetable in every bite.

Imagine having to go to places such as the Coliseum or Herculano while in Rome. Aryen Moore-Alston doesn’t have to rely upon her imagination. She simply has to access her memory.

Born in Naples, Italy, her father was a musician for the Navy and her mother was an actress and recording artist.

“My life in Italy was almost magical, because I was two years old when we moved to Italy, and I was 14 when we moved back to the U.S., and I just remember it being the best of times,” Moore-Alston said. “In Italy, our field trips were Pompeii or the Isle of Capri.”

Moore-Alston said.

What became a passion for food started when her father taught her to cook at a young age. Three years after he died, Moore-Alston’s family moved to Memphis, where her mother had roots. Knowing how to cook came in handy.

“When my father passed away, my mother couldn’t cook, and my sister didn’t cook. I stepped up to the plate and said that’s going to be my responsibility,” Moore-Alston recalled.

At times, she has also lived in Japan, Atlanta and Los Angeles, with her culinary tastes reflecting the variety of stops.

She has an interest in international cuisine and particularly likes Italian and Japanese food.

Although she majored in Computer Science, minored in Japan Studies and Mathematics, and has dabbled in many careers, the passion for food never died.

“I’ve always kind of been in a kitchen, and it was just something that was alAryen Moore-Alston was one of twelve finalists who competed on season 10 of “Food Network Star.” (Courtesy phomost like a no-brainer,” she said. “It was to) just kind of like fulfilling my fate.”

Star” or you feel like you’re the next best chef in the world, then go after it,” Moore Alston said. “ Don’t give up, because it is hard; you’re going to put in a lot of hours, you’re going to burn yourself, you’re going to cut yourself, you’re going to cry, you’re going to stay up late…Just go for it. No one can tell you no but yourself.”

Sweet Potato Baby and Home Cooking In 2008, Moore-Alston returned to Memphis to host “This House is Cooking!” – a show in which houses served as inspirations for meals. The show aired on ABC 24 and CW 30, and is currently on hiatus. However, episodes are available online at http://www.thishouseiscooking.com .

The plan was for Moore-Alston to be in and out and move back to Los Angeles, but she missed her family, fell in love, had a baby, and in 2011, started a baked goods and catering company called Sweet Potato Baby. Its mission is to provide baked goods with quality ingredients, with a fruit or vegetable in every bite.

The name was inspired by the nickname her grandmother gave to her and her sister after noticing their suntan color.

Moore-Alston has high hopes for the future of her business.

“I’m hoping to expand the bakery’s line and get into some retail stores here like Kroger, Miss Cordelia’s Grocery, Fresh Market and Whole Foods. I just want to provide great food and a great service…I’m hoping to one day own a restaurant…so that I can provide all these delicacies to anyone who wants them.”

Impact and legacy “I’d like to leave a mark as being a world-class chef with a sincere attention to taste and detail. I want people to understand that flavor is not really complicated; it’s how you use the ingredients to create this party in your mouth. Feed your spirit and your soul, not just your palette…” Moore-Alston said.

Giving back via her culinary skills has become a focal point.

“I would love to create a curriculum for young students and young people to teach them how to cook for themselves and their families,” Moore-Alston said. “ There are some kids out there who may feel like they’re the only reason why their siblings eat or that their parents eat, and I’d love to create a program that would teach kids that, yeah, it’s a responsibility, but now you can teach others how to feed and nourish their bodies.”

Food Network Star finalist On Season 10 of “Food Network Star,” Moore-Alston competed against 11 other contestants for the chance to have a show on the Food Network. After struggling to present the judges with impressive plates and a failed delivery of a product tagline in Episode 4, she was eliminat-

Born in Naples, Italy, Aryen Moore-Alston has also lived in Japan, Atlanta and Los Angeles, with her culinary tastes reflecting the variety of stops.

(Courtesy photo)

(The season finale of Food Network Star airs Sunday August 10th at 9/ 8 CDT.) (For more information on Sweet Potato Baby visit http://www.sweetpotatobaby.co/index.html.)

‘One America: Moving Beyond The Question of Race’

by Tony Jones Special to The New Tri-State Defender

If nothing else, Gilliam Communications CEO Art Gilliam’s recently published memoir “One America: Moving Beyond the Issue of Race” presents an endearing essay taking the reader Art Gilliam on his personal journey through America.

Available now at the Tennessee Regular Baptist Book Store, Booksellers in Laurelwood and Burke’s

Art Gilliam’s memoir poses the question of our times Book Store, “One America: Moving Beyond the Issue of Race” certainly has been released with impeccable timing. The nation’s first African American to serve as president has had to issue contemplative messages following seemingly race-based murders of young African-American men, economic data points to a different kind of segregation that many say is more dangerous to the AfricanAmerican community than legal segregation and his hometown is at a crossroads trying to figure out if an African-American population base can create a fairer and better metrop-

olis.

Readers may be surprised that Gilliam does not delve more into or center any of the book on his purchasing and building WLOK radio station. But as a conversation with him for The New Tri State Defender readers revealed, the lifelong communicator’s goal is to engage the nation through the experiences of his own footsteps.

“I really started to think seriously about it after Barack Obama was elected president. The book is formally classified as memoir, but it’s really a book about this country told

through the experiences I’ve had,” said Gilliam. “It struck me that 50 years after I had to sit on the back of the bus we have an African-American president.”

The book begins with a remembrance of Gilliam begging for the johnnycake from his grandmother’s regular baking sessions to the pivotal decision his family made to send him to prep school in New England. A retelling of the Emmett Till murder foretells the decision.

Reading at a fourth-grade level when he was six, Gilliam was 16 when he was admitted to Yale University. Later, he joined the Air Force, had pioneering career positions in media with The Commercial SEE RACE ON PAGE 9

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ENTERTAINMENT OPENING THIS WEEK

Kam’s Kapsules: Weekly Previews That Make Choosing a Film Fun

“Get on Up,” based on the life story of James Brown, the Godfather of Soul, stars Chad Boseman as Brown in a look at the music, moves and moods of one of the most influential figures of the 20th century.

(Courtesy photo)

by Kam Williams For movies opening August 1, 2014

BIG BUDGET FILMS “Calvary” (R for profanity, sexual references, drug use and brief violence) Psychological drama, set in a tiny seaside town in Ireland, about a Catholic cleric (Brendan Gleeson) who finds his life threatened during confession by an anonymous parishioner who was raped as a child by a pedophile priest. With M. Emmet Walsh, Chris O’Dowd, Kelly Reilly and Domnhall Gleeson (Brendan’s son).

“Get on Up” (PG-13 for sexuality, drug use, profanity and violence) Chad Boseman portrays James Brown in the biopic chronicling the Godfather of Soul’s rise from abject poverty to the heights of superstardom. Supporting cast includes Keith Robinson, Jill Scott, Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer.

“Guardians of the Galaxy” (PG-13 for profanity, action and intense violence) 10th installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe series about an American pilot (Chriss Pratt) who grudgingly teams with a ragtag outfit of extraterrestrial misfits in order to defend the universe against a diabolical villain (Lee Pace) with a twisted religious agenda. Ensemble cast includes Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Zoe Saldana, Djimon Hounsou, Glenn Close, John C. Reilly and Benicio Del Toro.

“What If” (PG-13 for profanity, sexuality and partial nudity) Romantic dramedy revolving around a med school dropout (Daniel Radcliffe) who develops feelings for his BFF (Zoe Kazan) despite the fact that she lives with her longtime boyfriend (Rafe Spall). With Megan

Park, Adam Driver and Mackenzie Davis.

INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS “4 Minute Mile” (PG-13 for mature themes, violence, drinking, drugs, smoking and profanity) Overcoming-the-odds drama about the unlikely friendship forged between an at-risk teen (Kelly Blatz) and the reclusive, retired track coach (Richard Jenkins) who agrees to train him. With Analeigh Tipton, Kim Basinger, Cam Gigandet and Rhys Coiro.

“The Almost Man” (Unrated) Changed circumstances satire about a sophomoric, 35 year-old slacker (Henrik Rafaelsen) suddenly forced to mature when he gets his girlfriend (Janne Heltberg Haarseth) pregnant. Supporting cast includes Egil Birkeland, Kim Eidhagen and Erik Haugstad. (In Norwegian with subtitles) “Around the Block” (Unrated) Aussie drama, set in Sydney, about an aborigine kid (Hunter Page-Lochard) from a broken home who develops a love of acting with the help of his American drama teacher (Christina Ricci).

Featuring Matt Nable, Jack Thompson and Daniel Henshall.

“Behaving Badly” (R for crude sexuality, graphic nudity, drug use and pervasive profanity) Romantic comedy about an awkward teen (Nat Wolff) with a crush on the cutest girl (Selena Gomez) at school. With Elisabeth Shue, Mary-Louise Parker, Dylan McDermott, Gary Busey, Justin Bieber and Heather Graham.

“Cabin Fever: Patient Zero” (Unrated) Third installment in the horror franchise revolves around a bachelor party aboard a Caribbean cruise which is ruined when revel-

ers start becoming infected with a flesh-eating virus right after docking their boat at a remote island. Ensemble includes Sean Astin, Currie Graham, Ryan Donowho, Brando Eaton and Jillian Murray.

“Child of God” (R for nudity, profanity, violence and disturbing sexual behavior) James Franco adapted, directed and stars in this crime thriller based on the Cormac McCarthy best seller of the same name about a cavedwelling serial killer (Scott Haze) terrorizing a Tennessee mountain community. Narrated

by Wade Williams and featuring Tim Blake Nelson, Jim Parrack and Fallon Goodson.

“Finding Fela!” (Unrated) Oscar-winner Alex Gibney (for Taxi to the Dark Side) directed this reverential retrospective recounting the career of Fela Kuti (1938-1997), the Nigerian pop music icon who passed away prematurely after contracting the AIDS virus.

“Louder than Words” (PG-13 for mature themes, smoking and brief profanity) Factbased drama about a grieving couple (David Duchovny and Hope Davis) who decide to build a state-of-the-art children’s hospital after the untimely death of their young daughter (Olivia Steele-Falconer). Cast includes Timothy Hutton, Adelaide Kane and Xander Berkeley.

“War Story” (Unrated) PTSD drama about a former Libyan hostage (Catherine Keener) decompressing in Sicily where she divides her time between an ex-lover/mentor (Ben Kingsley) and a young Tunisian (Hafsia Herzi) trying to migrate to France. With Donatella Finocchiaro, Vincenzo Amato and Guido Caprino. (In English and Italian with subtitles)

RACE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8 Appeal and WMC TV 5, and worked for Congressman Harold Ford Sr. A pivotal moment comes in the moving brief about Peter Norman, the Australian silver medalist who willingly stood on the stand during the 1968 Summer Olympics in solidarity with gold medalist Tommie Smith and bronze medalist John Carlos as they raised their fists to signal what Smith later would call “a human rights salute.”

“Memphis has moved beyond the issue of race, but in a different way,” Gilliam feels.

“When I say moving beyond race I see it as meaning understanding each other and recognizing each other for doing the right things.

You can do that now because you have the power to influence certain things. We’ve achieved political power here so that creates a different kind of situation.”

Naturally, the conversation moves to the current election.

“Memphis is still a city that is still involved in racial thinking and conflict in some ways.

We’re voting basically out of a reference to the past. You go from slavery to discrimination to the various things that have happened to Memphis in the past and many times voting reflects that history. I think we have to move beyond that on the national level, but we’re not there yet in Memphis.”

For me, the book’s core thesis crystallized on page 143, where Gilliam writes this: “When the horrific injustices of slavery are really understood, we as a nation can begin to comprehend the underpinnings of our racial issues. To directly observe the result of evolution for many of the slaves, it is only necessary to walk around blighted inner city neighborhoods and look at the level of squalor. It is these poor that I refer to as the black eyed peas of our society, relegated to the bottom of the American stew. For many Americans, they are faceless, but when I drive through the ghetto, I see their individual stories.”

In his own individual story, Gilliam explains that the black-eyed peas are part of a stew that becomes great because of their inclusion. Not just as something dropped in, but a ready, accepted and honored part of the whole. And he has written a reflection of the modern American ethic that can be recommended, cherished and shared.

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NEWS WEATHERS CONTINUED FROM FRONT and football. While living in Clevland for a number of years, I worked at a public utility company that was involved in education. I was hooked and I went back to school and got my Masters in Curriculum and Instruction,” said Weathers.

“Memphis is home. I love the weather here. I enjoyed my time in Cleveland, but I thought I’d never get home.”

The opportunity to “get home” came via the Urban Systemic Initiative through former Memphis City Schools Supt. Dr. Gerry House. Cleveland had a similar program and connections led to an interview with House.

“I was so happy,” said Weathers. “If I’m to help young people change their lives, I’d rather do it in my hometown.”

His first leadership opportunity came when the first charter school – MAHS – opened.

“We were the first charter school to open its doors in 2003. It was a great experience. Charter schools were fresh and in unchartered waters,” said Weathers. “The experience was challenging and very rewarding. …“We opened the middle school and four years later we opened the high school. I had a chance to lead that effort.”

Now Weathers has an opportunity to demonstrate over the next five years that he can take Hamilton – a newly designated I-Zone school that falls in the bottom five percent of schools in Tennessee – and turn it around.

“It will take a lot to turn it around,” he said. “There are a lot of pieces needed to make it work.”

On July 13, 2013, prior to Weathers appointment to Hamilton, Shelby County Schools (SCS) reported encouraging results on the 2013 Statewide Accountability System data regarding Shelby County’s 69 low performing schools. In the SCS statement was a nugget about I-Zone schools that should lift Weathers and his Hamilton team.

“Achievement scores are up in most subject categories and grade levels for both districts, and the legacy MCS Innovation Zone (I-Zone) schools showed dramatic improvement in student proficiency scores,” SCS reported.

Weather’s is hard at work demonstrating his commitment to make it happen. As one who’s always admired the work done at Hamilton, he says, “I’m honored to be leading the charge.

“I love my job. I love coming to work every day. Education is a mindset. It’s a service attitude. It’s about you giving and not about you taking. It’s about being authentic and you giving your heart and soul to it.”

‘It’s not about widgets’ During the summer, Weathers often has been on the job by 8 a.m., leaving between 6 p.m. and 7 pm most days. The hours go with the territory when you really “don’t know of any greater contribution than what we do here. We prepare our kids for the future.”

It seemed quite natural for Weathers to add, “I think I have the most important job on the planet. … Education is a people business. It’s not about widgets. It’s about shaping the lives of people. … “We’re here with kids 7-10 hours per day.

We shape a part of society that will contribute in one way or the other and we want them to contribute in a positive way.”

Several new programs and initiatives are in place for the Hamilton student body. They are geared at attracting students, not only from the neighborhood, but from across the city, if Weathers has his way.

“One of the programs I’m proud of is ‘Leadership Hamilton,’ a collaboration with Chick-fil-A Leadership Academy and Hamilton.”

It’s a program where all class officers from ninth to twelfth grade will be trained as student leaders.

“Twenty to thirty executives will come to Hamilton monthly. Team captains will be recruited and (they) will be trained to be great,” said Weathers.

To jumpstart the process, Weathers said, work has been done throughout the summer with six senior officers elected at the close of the previous school year.

“We took them on a college tour and we visited five colleges. I can’t wait to see the excitement when the school year begins.”

Weathers is nurturing the idea that Hamilton is “a real college prep school,” where the focus is to make students

Principal Curtis Weathers mingles with parents and students during registration for the 2014-15 school year. (Photos: Shirley Jackson)

Southwest will allow our students to earn college credits here or at Southwest,” said Weathers. “The college has hired at least one adjunct professor to be assigned from Southwest to Hamilton.”

With the number one goal of being able to produce students who earn college degrees, strategies to make that happen include recruiting and identifying kids who can start college early as ninth grade, said Weathers.

“We want to get them interested in taking college courses.

The goal is to graduate on time and accumulate college credits while in high school,” said Weathers.

Students will take dual enrollment classes at Hamilton and Southwest.

“The more dual-credit courses they take the better; plus summer classes added, causing them to finish with a college degree by twelfth grade,” said Weathers.

“If they start as early as freshmen taking one course, as a dual-credit course, they can accumulate as many as 36 to 44 credit hours and graduate with both a high school diploma and an associate’s degree.”

Rebuilding trust While Weathers and his Hamilton team want people to be proud of Hamilton, he said the first priority is “order, safety and we want people to bring students here from across the city and not just in the neighborhood.”

What about parental involvement?

“We need to rebuild trust with parents. They’ve had three principals over the last few years,” said Weathers.

“I tell parents, ‘You’ve got to trust me with your child. My agenda is to make them the best they can be while they’re here.’

“All I ask my parents is to respond when we call.”

Teachers and staff at Hamilton High School tune in to principal Curtis Weathers on registration day. college- and career-ready.

“We’re developing various programs. We will install our own instructional programs with a very thoughtful and comprehensive approach to

teaching and learning. We’re working on a process and strategies to put (them in place and to make it a reality.”

A new Early College Initiative and collaboration with

Southwest Tennessee Community College may provide parents from across the district with additional incentive to enroll their children at Hamilton.

“Our collaboration with

(Dorothy Bracy Alston is a consultant, journalist, author, freelance writer and, adjunct English professor.

Visit Dorothy’s blog at www.CisbaAssociates.blogspot.com; follow her on Twitter @dbalston, Facebook at www.facebook.com/dorothybracyalston, email her at DBAlston@hotmail.com or call 901-5703923.)

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COMMUNITY BRIEFS & THINGS

‘A teaching moment’…

Dr. Miriam Decosta-Willis, the first African-American instructor at the University of Memphis, shares her insights during a panel discussion (July 23) that New Sardis Baptist Church hosted to examine the impact of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The panel guests included Dr. Erma Clanton (left), retired educator and “matriarch of African American theatre.”

(Photo: Tyrone P. Easley)

Importance of high school pitched at 4-week boot camp The Memphis Challenge 9/10 Movement four-week boot camp for rising 9th and 10th grade students culminated Wednesday with its closing ceremony and small business presentations at Christian Brothers University.

Forty-nine students were exposed to a variety of skills and knowledge that led to creating one-year vision boards, learning to accept personal responsibility, building self-esteem and improving their public speaking. Christian Brothers University hosted the camp and led the ENACTUS entrepreneurship component (enactus.org) with a team of interns.

Students visited local franchise Lenny’s Sub Shop owner James Kelly and Start Co. and heard from accelerator company PICKLE, where they were included them in a beta test.

Guest speakers included Al Pickett, author and entrepreneur; Stormy Taylor, radio personality, Clear Channel Media; and Brit Fitzpatrick, founder/ CEO of MentorMe.com, who spoke about the importance of education, business and public speaking.

The students created eight small businesses, with three of the business ideas presented at Wednesday’s ceremony.

Memphis Challenge will continue to work and support the students during the academic year on a bi-monthly basis reinforcing academic excellence and entrepreneurship.

“We have planted seeds of academic excellence and personal responsibility in their creative young minds and we want to support their aspirations and provide them with the tools, resources and mentors to be successful,” said Cassandra H. Webster, executive sirector.

The MC 9/10 program is made possible by a grant from the Pyramid Peak Foundation.

BRIEFLY: The next meeting of the Methodist North Hospital stroke support group for stroke survivors and caregivers is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Aug. 12th in Day Room One, HealthSouth Rehabilitation, 4100 Austin Peay Highway. This month’s topic is “Preparing stroke patients & families for natural disasters” led by Andrea Merriweather, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare safety officer/educator. Light refreshments will be served. For more information, contact Connie Holland at 901-516-5947 or visit www.methodisthealth.org.

BRIEFLY: MLGW will host its Neighborhood Leaders Conference on August 1st from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the training center at 4949 Raleigh-LaGrange at Covington Pike. The annual event, which is designed to provide training and networking opportunities for grassroots community leaders, will feature a session by City of Memphis CAO George Little entitled Memphis Government 101. Registration is $10 and includes a continental breakfast, buffet lunch and choice of workshops. Register available on-line at www.mlgw.com/neighborhoodleader. For more information: 901-528-4820.

BRIEFLY: The “I Am A Survivor” LINCS 1st Annual Community Fest will be held Saturday, Aug.2 at Innovation Church, 3925 Overton Crossing, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Special guest speakers include Minister Wanda Taylor, founder of LINCS; Apostle Kevin Whitaker of Raising the Standard International Ministries; Minister Iyuana Childs of To God Be the Glory Ministry, Elder Charlie Caswell, executive director of Rangeline CDC; Minister Dwana Whitaker of Raising the Standard Interntional Ministries; and the Rev. DeAndre Brown of Life Line to a Dying World Ministries. Jones of Memphis is the Minister of Music. Donations will be accepted to support the work of Ladies in Need Can Survive, Inc. The mission is to impact the community by breaking the cycle of substance abuse, poverty, incarceration from women through a structured, intensive training program, which focues on transitioning, strengthening and empowering. For more information, contact Wanda Taylor at (901) 351-9864 or Sonja Nesbitt at (901) 331-8910.

G ☺ ☺ D BLUE AND Y☺U

Deputy Dana ‘Bootstrap’ Armstrong

by Kelvin Cowans Special to The New Tri-State Defender

(Kelvin Cowans takes readers inside the lives of Memphis and Shelby County law enforcement officers. Just as a neighborhood should not be judged by the actions of a few bad apples, neither should law enforcement agencies. This week’s focus is on Shelby County Sheriff’s Deputy Dana “Bootstrap” Armstrong.)

Deputy Dana “Bootstraps” Armstrong is a 1982 graduate of Fairly High School and a graduate of The University of Memphis, where she took up nursing. Her law enforcement career started in 2009 with Homeland Security, where she worked for 4 years. For the last two years she has been assigned to Crime Prevention in Shelby County Schools. This mother of one enjoys the support of a loving family, loves mentoring kids and still finds time to take two Zumba classes.

those classes I learned a lot about how to help people. So that training has also paid off for what I do on campus with the kids. I’m over at Whitehaven High School and I love it there. I like to believe that I’ve been making a difference with those kids because they surely have made a difference in my life.

Kelvin Cowans: What is the one most important thing you do everyday, at work or even at home?

Deputy Armstrong: I love my family. I have a 19-yearold son, who attends Tennessee State University, and me and my mom are now living in the same home. So I spend a lot of time just loving on them.

Kelvin Cowans: What are some of your hobbies?

Deputy Armstrong: I’m single, so I do a few things, but I’m actually into Zumba right now. It’s exciting! It is a fun dance exercise and we do it at my church. I have been a member of Cummings Street Church since 1986 and I also go over to Brown Baptist Church and take the class they offer over there as well. Also, I love to swim and I have a swimming pool, so I’m often back there enjoying myself.

Kelvin Cowans: Answer these questions for me…Memphis and Shelby County 2016?

Deputy Armstrong: Getting it together.

Kelvin Cowans: What got you into law enforcement?

Deputy Dana Armstrong: A lot of my family members are in law enforcement and that’s really what got me interested in taking this career path. My mother was a lieutenant in the correctional center, she’s retired now, and my brother is currently a lieuKelvin Cowans: Memphis tenant in the Fugitive Departand Shelby County law enment. I was living in Atlanta forcement 2018? before I moved back to MemDeputy Armstrong: One phis where I had been a flight whole unit. attendant for over 10 years Shelby County Sheriff’s Deputy Dana ‘Bootstrap’ and it was good but I’m more Armstrong. (Photo: Kelvin Cowans) Kelvin Cowans: Memphis passionate about the kind of and Shelby County race relawork I do now with S.R.O. tions 2020?

Deputy Armstrong: Hopefully better but probably the Kelvin Cowans: What does S.R.O. stand for? same. I’m hoping and pulling for better.

Deputy Armstrong: It stands for School Resource Officer. Our job is twofold. We’re there for law enforcement but Kelvin Cowans: Memphis and Shelby County crime also to make a difference in these kids lives. We’re very 2022? hands on with them. These kids in our schools often need Deputy Armstrong: That’s going to be down. We’re someone to ask some serious questions about things and working way too hard for it not to be. sometimes they just want to know that someone cares.

That’s what I do, I want them to know that I care. I make (Go to Facebook and LIKE the “Good Blue and You” sure the parents know that I’m there for them as well and we Facebook Page!) all work together as a team to resolve issues.

(Kelvin Cowans can be reached at (Kelvincowans@hotI’m also on the Shelby County Crisis team and during mail.com)

Locked-out Kellogg’s workers move to file EEOC complaints Members of the Bakery, Confectionary, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM), Local 252G, on Wednesday (July 30th) began filling out paperwork with the expectation of initiating complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

Kevin Bradshaw, Local 252G president, said 126 people filled out paperwork that formally would be filed with the EEOC on Thursday (July 31st). He expected more filings in addition to those who made preparation on Tuesday.

The union members have been locked out of the Kellogg Cereal facility at 2168 Frisco since Oct. 21, 2013. The move this week is to file EEOC claims against Kellogg for race-based discrimination in connection to the lockout.

According to Bradshaw, here’s the foundation for the union members’ EEOC claims: The bargaining unit at the Kellogg Cereal facility at 2168 Frisco is predominantly African American. The plant employs more minority workers than any plant in Kellogg’s four-plant U.S. cereal division.

Kellogg locked out the workforce for its failure to except “illegal proposals” at the local level that are covered under the terms of a Master Contract among all four facilities until October 2015.

The workers were locked out at the expiration of their supplemental agreement for their refusal to accept the company’s “illegal proposals,” yet a sister plant, whose contract expired on May 18th, 2014, continues to work past its expiration while negotiations proceed.

Kellogg chose a different path with its Memphis employees based on their racial makeup because of Kellogg’s belief that they could more effectively inflict severe economic pain and suffering on a majority African American workforce.

At press conference set for Thursday before the planned filing with the EEOC, Bradshaw and the union also were primed to make the case that, “This racially motivated choice of location for the implementation of this tactic has not only negatively impacted these targeted minority workers, but also all other workers within this bargaining unit who also work here and are part of this bargaining unit and who have also been negatively impacted since last October.”

On June 23rd, two federal district rulings against the Kellogg’s Company seemed to signal that an end to the lockout was near. On Wednesday, Bradshaw stressed that the potential impact of those rulings had not yet fully come into play. The EEOC complaints, he said, were a different matter.

At Kamp KSI, unlocking global competencies is a chest move away

by Alisha Tillery Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Kevin Monroe, 9, and Evan Bean, 10, stare intently at the pieces on a chess table. Kevin moves a pawn and looks at Evan. “You can do whatever you want to do now…” he says.

“I know what I won’t do,” says Evan, as he slides a piece to a green space.

The two cousins are just two of many children attending Kairos Services’ Kamp KSI summer camp. A nonprofit that works to help people become selfsufficient through employment, Kairos is committed to unlocking children’s global competencies by teaching children ages 6 to12 various disciplines to foster critical thinking, creativity and collaboration.

“It’s important that we prepare our children for the future, and that includes engaging them in activities and disciplines that not only challenge them, but are interesting to them,” said Herbert Lester, Kairos executive director.

Kamp KSI focuses on golf, yoga, Spanish and possibly the most critical, chess.

Commonly known as a “thinking man’s game,” chess is working its way into classroom curriculum, instead of only serving as an extracurricular activity.

A recent study found the game “improves cognitive abilities, coping and problem-solving capacity, and even socioaffective development of children and adolescents who practice it.”

Leroy Johnson, a Knights of the Squaretable chess coach, has been working with children at Kamp KSI for two years.

“It has been documented through research that chess enhances children’s creativity, their analytical skills, their planning skills,” said Johnson. “It’s not a game like checkers, where you just push pieces. It’s strategic and tactical.”

It’s not uncommon for a game to last over an hour, but the 6-to-12 year-olds don’t seem to mind, picking up games even after the camp day is complete.

“Once they learn how the pieces all operate and play a part in the game, that’s the excitement that they grasp,” said Johnson.

“The thing that I like about chess is it’s a thinking game,” said Evan. “You really have to concentrate.”

After Kevin won a chess set at camp last year, he introduced his cousin to the game. Now they play in their spare time, learning new moves and strategies. “I really like practicing to beat him,” he says.

Noting that chess teaches integrity and decision-making skills, Johnson said, “It’s a life-training game.”

Kevin Monroe (left) and Evan Bean (right) strategize their next moves in a game of chess, one of the disciplines being taught at Kamp KSI to boost children's critical thinking skills. (Courtesy photo) (For more information on Kairos Services, visit www.kairosmemphis.org.)

SPORTS Claude Humphrey

Tri-State Defender, Thursday, July 31 - August 6, 2014, Page 14

First native Memphian in the NFL Hall of Fame

by Kelley Evans Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Ever wonder what the face of a native Memphian would look like in the NFL Hall of Fame? Well it resembles the face of Lester High School graduate and Tennessee State University alumnus Claude Humphrey.

Humphrey spent 11 years of his NFL career with the Atlanta Falcons and the last four with the Philadelphia Eagles.

And you can bet he will mention all of this in his acceptance speech on Saturday (Aug. 2) during the induction ceremony in Canton, Ohio.

“I met people who helped me along the way and that’s what my speech is about,” Humphrey said with a smile on his face.

On Tuesday (July 30), while preparing for his departure, Humphrey started his day by stopping in to see his barber, 82-year-old Terry Bryant, who was excited to have the NFL legend grace his shop.

“I’ve been getting my hair cut here for years,” Humphrey said.

After his big chop and a few news interviews, he went to lunch at Outback Steakhouse on Union. His order: Clam Chowder as a starter, a burger and fries, and iced tea.

The 6’5” retired NFL player says he is ready and excited, but it’s just not the same without his Kelley wife Sandra, who will not be in Canton to witEvans ness the induction ceremony.

“My wife of 50 years passed away last year. She was my biggest supporter and she’s not here,” Humphrey said. “That’s hard. She loved to socialize and this would’ve been right up her alley.”

But he still has his three children, Claudia, Cheyenne and Cherokee, and his 12-year-old grandson, Archie Robinson Jr., who will all meet him in Canton.

“I’ve been eligible for the Hall of Fame four times,” he said. “In four times, I was a finalist but I was unable to get the 80 percent vote that I needed to be nominated. Each time that we didn’t make it we’d get together and cry. It seems strange that the year she passed is the year I get elected to the Hall of Fame. So it’s going to be a bittersweet experience.”

Humphrey lived in Oakland, Tenn. with his grandparents until he was six years old. But Memphis raised him. He grew up during the civil rights era when segregation was the status quo. It was not easy for the Humphreys, but it taught him some life-long lessons.

“It taught me that I was a second class citizen,” Humphey said.

“That’s what it taught me. It taught me that I had to go to the zoo only on Thursdays. It taught me that the only way to get ahead was to do menial work.”

He said there were no professional jobs available for black people during that time. “There were a lot of lessons that I learned living in Memphis. But the most important thing is that I had the love of a family. I think that got me through more than anything else.”

The 70-year-old football legend didn’t have big dreams of playing in the NFL until he saw first-hand the excitement surrounding it.

“I was in college,” he recalled. “Before that time I never really knew anything about the NFL or even thought about the NFL. I was at Tennessee State University. I had a good season…and every practice we had teams of pro scouts wanting to look at us. That’s when I decided I wanted to play football. Plus, the year before, we had 13 guys to go into the NFL. After that I was looking forward to it.”

Humphrey was known as one of the greatest pass rushers in football. He was drafted third in 1968.

“Back then they didn’t do that,” he said referring to draft-night hype. “I was in the dormitory when I got drafted. My roommate and I were talking about what we were going to do if we got drafted. I thought that the Dallas Cowboys were going to draft me.”

The Dallas Cowboys and the Kansas City Chiefs were at every practice, he said. “I thought I would get drafted by one of those teams. I don’t know where the Atlanta Falcons came from. They just popped up out the blue.”

Humphrey has left a lasting impression on so many that feel his accolades are long over due. He lived and played the game of football during an era when it was not as glamorous as it is today.

“When I first went there, there wasn’t a lot going on in Atlanta. It was hard. I didn’t know where to go. We trained in Johnson, Tenn., and once training was over, we went straight to Atlanta and they just dropped us off.”

No one would tell him where to go to find housing, he said. “It wasn’t like it is now. Back then it was hard. I met people who helped me along the way and that’s what my speech is about.”

Humphrey said he met a family called the Harpers. “Hershel Harper was a second baseman for the old Negro Baseball League in Atlanta. He took me under his wing and showed me where to go, what to do, places not to go, and where to seek housing and all that stuff. If it hadn’t been for him, I would’ve been lost.”

Atlanta was a great place to play and transitioning to the Philadelphia Eagles he describes as “great.”

“The fans took me under their wing and accepted me. They were awesome. They were great fans,” said Humphrey, expressing mutual feelings for them as well. “I’d never heard them boo me. They are true sports fanatics. They know the game in and out. They know when you’re messing up.”

Humphrey is among other NFL greats being honored this year and feels just as honored to be in the midst of other phenomenal players.

“I’m excited about all seven of my classmates,” Humphrey explained. “There is not anyone who takes preference over the other.

All of us came in the same way. The only thing about Michael (Strahan) and (Derrick) Brooks is this is their first year; they didn’t get a chance to feel the raft of rejection. I’ve got to discard all of those old emotions and come up with a whole new set.”

It’s been said that Humphrey will participate in this year’s Southern Heritage Classic festivities, but nothing is concrete.

“The induction of Claude Humphrey into the NFL Hall of Fame is a great achievement for him,” said Nate Jones, production manager of the Southern Heritage Classic and Tennessee State alumnus.

“It's a proud moment for his family, Memphis, Memphis City Schools and Tennessee State University.”

The Class of 2014 Enshrinement Ceremony will be held on Saturday, Aug. 2 at the Pro Football Hall of Fame Field located at Fawcett Stadium. For more information, please visit, http://www.profootballhof.com/enshrinement/festivalschedule.aspx#sthash.QvsNQkoW.dpuf.

E

Claude Humphrey started his day Tuesday by stopping in to see his barber, 82year-old Terry Bryant, before taking a flight to Canton, Ohio, Wednesday for the Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (Photo: Kelley Evans)

Humphrey led his team in sacks nine of the 13 seasons he played for the Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles.

A fierce competitor, Humphrey battled his way back in 1976 after a knee injury and delivered an impressive season of play.

Humphrey was named first-or secondteam AllNFC seven times.

(Photo courtesy of the Pro Football Hall of Fame)

Tri-State Defender

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