Dec. 6, 2015

Blackonomics

The NAACP is Broken; Members Must Fix It
By James Clingman

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - Having served the NAACP for 10 years in several capacities, including branch president, and having donated money to its causes, I take no pleasure in writing this exposé.  But it is our responsibility to clean up our own organizations.  For example, President Cornell Brooks sends missives on a regular basis, asking for money of course but also complaining about “voter suppression” by various states.  Yet Brooks and Chairman of the Board, Roslyn Brock, accept voter suppression in their own ranks in various branches across the country. My grandmother would call that hypocrisy.

Accepting dysfunction within our organizations only diminishes our capacity to achieve meaningful economic progress. If all they do are 1000-mile marches, pledge allegiance to the Democrat Party, and beg for money, the perception of our organizations will continue to be that of dependence, irrelevance, and impotence.  We will be relegated to an afterthought—a nonthreatening group of Black folks who can be bought-off for a pittance.

The National NAACP has become a sham and a national disgrace to Black people.  President Brooks’ latest request states, “…we need to raise at least $300,000 in December to continue our fight for voting rights, justice, and educational and economic opportunity for all.”  In addition to that request, there are the ongoing solicitations for $30.00 memberships.

Of those $30.00 local membership fees, $18.00 goes to the national office, as well as 25 percent of funds raised by local branches from their annual Freedom Fund Banquets.  Here’s the rub: The Columbus Dispatch (September 2013) pointed out, “The NAACP’s most recent filings with the IRS showed the organization ended 2013 with a $5.7 million operating deficit with $36.7 million in expenditures and $30 million in revenue.”

Yet, according to outgoing President, Ben Jealous, the NAACP doubled its funds from $23 million in 2007 to $46 million in 2012. "In the last five years, we've had double-digit revenue growth, we've spent five years in the black," Jealous told USA Today in September 2013.  What happened to all that money?

Former President of the Columbus, Ohio branch, Noel Williams, who was also a victim of national NAACP corruption, says, “Today’s NAACP represents only the ‘entitled’ few, comprising representatives of the National Board, special contributors, and connected State Conference Presidents.  Local members suffer victimization by the National NAACP personnel who rake in millions of dollars from corporate America but very little, if any, goes to the local units.  Our branches are left to scrimp, beg, borrow or use any means necessary to accomplish our work, many operating on $2,000 or less per month.”

Williams continued, “The National NAACP is abusive toward its units. The Circuit Court Judge in the West Memphis, Arkansas said it best, ‘The intervenor (National NAACP) seems to regard itself as a feudal liege, the member branches, in general its fiefdom’.  The National NAACP considers itself master and the local members their servants.  The animus displayed by the National NAACP towards its units, and even a court of law, is evident in the Arkansas case in which the Judge wrote, before issuing a judgement against the National NAACP of a $120,000, ‘If the court had the least doubt about the utter disdain that its orders are held by the intervenor (National NAACP), the testimony of its principals (National NAACP Staff) has put that doubt to rest.’”

“The National NAACP has an internal cancer that was benign, but now the malignancy has spread to once healthy parts of the organization.  Units in Ohio, Connecticut, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Florida, to name a few, have all been metastasized and now find themselves in the stream of suspended memberships, manipulated elections, character defamation, and a host of other non-judicious offenses,” Williams stated.

Money and perks are at the root of this cancerous corruption.  Roslyn Brock has a milquetoast malleable President in Cornell Brooks, who is just what the doctor ordered for an egotistical self-centered Chairman only interested in individual acclaim.

In September 2005, Black Enterprise Magazine interviewed new NAACP President, Bruce Gordon.  Speaking about New Orleans, Gordon said, “Most recently there are a lot of concerns about the way African-Americans are treated in the French Quarter. I would say in addition to [marching], we should take our dollars elsewhere…That, to me, is a more significant message than a protest because it has an economic impact on the offenders.”

In March of 2007 The Washington Post, in response to Gordon quitting the NAACP, wrote “In choosing Gordon, the NAACP veered from its tradition of selecting ministers, politicians, and civil rights figures.  Gordon's strong management skills as a former Verizon executive factored into why he was selected to run the 500,000-member NAACP.”

Gordon would not be micromanaged.  Maybe that’s why he is no longer President of the NAACP.  Members, the NAACP is broken; hold on to your money, and fix it.

Dec. 6, 2015

Wiping It Away
By Dr. E. Faye Williams, Esq.

(TriceEdneyWire.com) — Despite racist vitriol characterizing Blacks as "dirty," most of us were reared in an environment where "Cleanliness was next to Godliness."  Many, if not most, of us know the virtues of keeping our minds, bodies and belongings clean.  With the hectic pace of our world, these lessons still guide our behaviors.

While we can wipe away the dirt that will work its way into our lives, the same cannot be said for the "dirt" that crept its way into our national history and traditions.

In this tradition of 'historical dirt' is the story of US President Woodrow Wilson and the current initiative to remove his name from Princeton University, where he also served as president.  Woodrow Wilson is the president credited with the task of leading America through WWI and as the architect of the League of Nations, the precursor to the United Nations.

Now, through the efforts of student activists, a TRUE picture of Wilson emerges. History accurately recounts Wilson as an ardent racist and segregationist.  These student activists have launched an active campaign to remove his name from the record of Princeton University.  I understand, but have mixed feelings about this effort.

Wilson's record as POTUS was dramatic in efforts to eliminate Blacks from the Federal workforce.  As a native Virginian, he was an ardent segregationist, who made segregating Blacks a priority when he could not fire them.  As president of Princeton, he discouraged a prospective Black student from applying with the warning that it was "altogether inadvisable for a colored man to enter Princeton."

By any standard, then or now, Wilson was a racist.  The current issue is whether his name should remain on Princeton's School of Public and International Affairs.

Reared in the south, I know the pain and insult one feels in response to the obvious and insidious symbols of racism.  I can imagine the disgust felt by Princeton students as they move past the edifice named for a blatant racist, former President or not.  Using the current vernacular, "I feel them!"

With the breadth and depth of racism in this country, my personal conflict comes from a desire to eliminate the insult of racism versus acknowledging the problem and working toward reconciliation and/or recompense as a goal.

Most who know OUR history think it’s fool's errand to attempt to pull down every statue or rename every road, street or building that bears the name of a traitor to the nation or an avowed racist.  The number of names is simply too great to accomplish that purpose--and they continue to grow.

Instead, I believe we should identify known racists, highlight the injury they have caused, and find a vehicle of recompense.  Using the Princeton example, establishing a perpetual scholarship for Black students majoring in government or public policy may right more wrongs than removing a name.  Establishing a mandatory course for ALL students of the Wilson School focusing on the political and social damage caused by the 'Wilson Effect' would give students reason to question the racist decisions of the past and amplify their understanding of the ignorance upon which it’s based and the negativity it brings to our lives.

In a past organized effort to rename the Russell Senate Building in Washington, DC, we were unable to convince a sufficient number in the United States Senate to support that effort.  All acknowledged Russell's racist dictums, but few were willing to open the door of conflict a renaming of the building would open.  We were, instead, able to leverage Russell's racist image into concessions that brought us a Senate Apology for Slavery.

We cannot eliminate the dirt of our nation's past by trying to forget.  We must use the injustice as a starting point to clean house.

(Dr. E. Faye Williams is President/CEO of the National Congress of Black Women, Inc.  www.nationalcongressbw.org.  202/678-6788)

Dec. 6, 2015

Dec. 6, 2015

To Be Equal 

Sounding the Alarm: HIV’s Hold in Communities of Color
By Marc H. Morial

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - “Three decades into this crisis, let us set our sights on achieving the “three zeros” - zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. On this World AIDS Day, let us pledge to work together to realize this vision for all of the world’s people.” – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, United Nations, World AIDS Day 2010

Over thirty years ago, America, and nations around the world, came face to face with HIV/AIDS—a devastating global, public health concern that decimated cities, communities and countries alike. In the three decades since its discovery, much has changed—and thankfully— much has improved. Today, advancements in prevention and treatment have led to a significant reduction in HIV transmission; the expansion of HIV screening and testing has resulted in far more people knowing there HIV status and getting help early; and new and better drugs are allowing those infected with HIV/AIDS to lead longer and better quality lives. That’s the good news.

But the news that should give us pause is that while we stand undisputedly victorious on a variety of battlefronts against this devastating epidemic, we are losing a costly war—one that primarily claims young, male and female African-Americans and Latinos as its victims.

HIV/AIDS does not discriminate. Sexual orientation, race or gender cannot protect you from HIV infection, but unfortunately, in far too many cases, those factors could increase your risk of infection. An estimated 1.2 million people are living with HIV infection in the United States today. Compared to other races and ethnic groups, Blacks and Hispanics are the groups most affected by HIV—accounting for a higher proportion of new HIV infections, of those living with HIV and of those ever diagnosed with AIDS. In 2010, African Americans accounted for 44 percent of all new HIV infections. While African Americans are 12 percent of the U.S. population, in 2011, they accounted for 41 percent of people living with HIV. Hispanics represent 16 percent of the population, but accounted for 20 percent of those living with HIV. In 2010, Hispanics accounted for 21 percent of new HIV infections. The numbers are graver still for African-American women. CDC statistics point to AIDS as the fourth leading cause of death among African-American women ages 35-44. According to the latest statistics, African-American women accounted for 64 percent of new HIV infections. Hispanic women accounted for 15 percent of all new infections and white women accounted for 18 percent.

To win the war on HIV/AIDS; to achieve the three zeroes; we cannot approach the epidemic as a standalone public health crisis. Our nation must develop a multi-pronged approach to HIV/AIDS that also addresses equal access to health care and civil rights.

The lack of access to healthcare must be addressed in communities of color if we are going to effectively address the prevalence of this disease. While the Affordable Care Act has expanded the coverage of HIV prevention services and medical care, it can only work where it exists. It comes as no surprise that in states that rejected ACA, which also tend to be poorer states, HIV/AIDS remains at crisis levels. One in every eight people diagnosed with HIV is unaware of their status.

That lack of awareness, the lack of access to prevention and education are needlessly decimating communities of color. According to the CDC, African Americans also have the worse outcomes for continued care after diagnosis. While there can be no true statistical measure of the effect of stigma, fear and discrimination around HIV, the oftentimes real fear of rejection and stigmatization plays are large role in people choosing to not get tested or to keep their status to themselves.

We must all do our part to stop the spread of this disease. The National Urban League has joined the Act Against AIDS Leadership Alliance. The organization is one of only 20 agencies taking part in the federal government’s first HIV prevention media campaign in 20 years. As a part of AAALI, more than 500 HIV related events and trainings have taken place. The leadership of community based organizations, corporations, and local and the federal government is important, but there is work out there for every one of us. Know your status; get tested; and encourage the people you love to do the same. And when you meet someone with HIV/AIDS don’t perpetuate the problem of stigma and discrimination, be a part of the solution and help us get to zero.