It’s not done because you are Black

This article is about how the press treats stories that are totally unrelated to the issues. They do this because most people like controversial articles. The more you are known, if anything happens, you get more press coverage by being known than you would if you were not.
Several years ago, a young lady was accused of shoplifting from Tillman-Levenson. According to the police report, they asked her where she worked and she said Jesse J. Lewis’ Advertising Agency. When several reporters called me from the media, they asked me all kinds of  dumb questions. For example: Was I aware of the fact the young lady was a shoplifter before I hired her? How many times had she been arrested for shoplifting? When they ran the story, they didn’t use the young lady’s name, but Jesse Lewis’ ex-employee is arrested for shoplifting.
Two things happened to this story: The person in question was a part-time employee who had worked on a couple of events that was sponsored over a period to time, and she was found not guilty and sued Tillman-Levenson and settled out of court. No one printed or alluded to the last part of the story and my name was mentioned six times and her name was mentioned only once.

Controversy shrouds Garcia’s strong play in 2013

On the heels of Garcia’s victory at the Thailand Championship, let’s take this time to review what will forever be remembered as a controversial, tumultuous year for the man considered Public Enemy No.1 in some golf circles.
According to Jason Gobel of GolfTalk Central, it started with some strong play in a runner-up finish at the Qatar Masters, continued with results of 17th or better in his next eight starts, saw him contend at the Players Championship before losing that tournament in dramatic fashion, then spending the remainder of the year toiling in relative obscurity before claiming his first worldwide win in 364 days.
Garcia’s turbulent year though, will be remembered for more than just the results. It will be remembered as the year he picked a fight with long-time adversary, Tiger Woods, complaining about his playing partner’s perceived ill-timed club selection (even though video evidence showed otherwise), followed a few days later by a now-infamous racially insensitive comment during a European Tour banquet. When asked if he would have Woods over fore dinner during the U. S. Open, Garcis said, ” We will have him round every night. We will serve fried chicken.” Garcia apologized and took his medicine, but his year was hardly a presentation on how to win friends and influence people.
No one ever said what a great round Garcia shot in Thailand or his great ball striking.

Tiger’s half-brother accused of false bomb threat

The  half-brother of Tiger Woods was arrested in Phoenix for allegedly making a false bomb threat at the government building where he works. Phoenix police said 58-year-old Earl Donaldson Woods, Jr. is accused of calling in the threat at the Department of Economic Security building about 8:30 a.m. Thursday.
Police say they were called after DES employees alerted building security. More than 100 people were evacuated from the building before Woods came forward and told police the phone call was meant as a joke and he didn’t expect his co-workers to take it seriously.
Police said Woods has been booked on suspicion of attempting to terrify, intimidate, threaten, or harass others. They say Woods is apologetic and cooperating with the investigation. It’s unclear if he has a lawyer.
Would you believe that Tiger’s half-brother’s name was mentioned only once and Tiger’s was mentioned all through the article.

When Tiger Woods first won the Masters

Traditionally, when a golfer wins the Masters the following year there is a dinner in his honor where the winner chooses the menu. Fuzzy Zoeller, stated he may not go to Tiger’s dinner in 1997 because he does not like collard greens and fried chicken.
My guess would be, percentage wise, that white people eat as much or more fried chicken than Black people. Every time Fuzzy Zoeller’s name is mentioned, they always refer to his the Master’s comment.

Aide to Mayor Bell accused of selling drugs

I wrote this article the same way the media reported an incident about one of the Mayor’s aides being arrested for selling drugs out of the Crossplex. I’m just like the media, I can’t remember the aide’s name because this is how the media does. The whole story was about Mayor Bell.
Can you imagine how many aides the Mayor has – I’m guessing 25. Some of the aides were not even interviewed by him, but by his Chief of Staff wherein he took their recommendations of those people before hiring an individual. The media wanted to accuse the Mayor of not doing a good job of screening individuals.
Some people in the media implied that the Mayor knew he was a crook before he hired him. In plain and simple terms, the media thrives on controversial issues, and if there is no or little controversy, they invent or manufacture something. To keep from being sued, they insert the words ‘alleged,’ ‘assumed’ or ‘as reported.”

In other words, the media writes stories and by the time they finish they have made the innocent guilty. They made me a part of the shoplifting, Tiger responsible for his bother’s and Garcia’s behavior and made William Bell a part of his employee’s legal problems.

e-mail:jjlewis@birminghamtimes.com

“My aim is to put down on paper what I see and what I feel in the best and simplest way.”
Ernest Hemingway wrote those words years ago, and as a writer, I can’t think of a better way to
defend myself than with Hemingway’s words.
I’ll try to explain. I understand that some folks around the country have called my latest book
’29 Dimes’ inciteful because I have a hot-mouth character named ‘Pepe’ speaking his mind about Florida’s
schizophrenic ‘stand  your ground’ law in certain parts of the novel. From my understanding,
what’s getting some folks especially riled up is when Pepe performs his provocative, ‘in your
face’ spoke-word anthem “Hear My Echo” towards the end of the story. The specific line from
that anthem that has got some people bent out of shape goes like this:… don’t like standing in
Florida-facing a courthouse gun….”  Depending on where you stand on the different sides of the
‘stand your ground’ debate, you may possibly see those lyrics as ” inciteful”, but I specifically
wrote those words for the voice and the mentality of a specific fictional character. It would be an
injustice to myself as a writer, and certainly a literary injustice to the fire-tongued character I’d
created if I had him voice his opinion and thoughts on other safe and soft topics currently
headlining America’s newspapers and not a hot topic such as Florida’s ‘stand your ground’ law. I
wouldn’t be true to myself as a writer, nor to my story if I did that.
The ‘stand your ground’ law in Florida and several other states is very schizophrenic because
lawmakers  and law enforcement officials are picking and choosing when and when not to use
and invoke the law, seemingly using it when it’s convenient for them at that particular time and
place. For example the case of the Florida woman, Marissa Alexander, who initially was
sentenced to 20 years for firing a warning shot at her intruding husband, and when she tried to
use Florida’s ‘stand your ground’ law as her defense the judge simply threw it out, saying that
she could’ve run out of the house. But, on the other hand, look at what happened in the other
high-profile Florida trial where a vigilante got away with murder, thanks to the convenience of
the wishy-washy ‘stand your ground’ defense.
The reason I wrote and used the words “…courthouse gun…” in the ‘Hear My Echo’ lyrics was to
express mostly my character’s belief, and to be quite honest, some of my own as well, that Florida’s
‘stand your ground’ law is seemly sanctioned by the state, giving everyday Jane and Joe
permission to kill without consequences. When the ‘not guilty’ verdict went viral in the George
Zimmerman trial it instantly triggered my memory back to a time in America when cranky old men
draped in white sheets with cone-shaped heads would hang a man of a darker shade up in a tree
for all of the local town people to see, knowing that there would be no repercussions whatsoever,
and everyone nonchalantly walks away as if this was accepted as normal everyday life.
I never intended my novel to be “inciteful”, but I do want it to open discussions in classrooms, at
the kitchen table and around the water cooler. I truly  believe that if America is ever going to
have better race relations among our very diverse and ever-growing population, then we simply
must start with a peaceful conversation first.

Randolph Rand Camp
Buffalo, NY

As I sit here and reflect on the life and legacy of Nelson Mandela, my prayer is that we do not do to him, what we’ve done to Martin King. By that I mean, making him an icon and in the process, losing the nuanced nature of his personhood and his leadership model. I do not want to lose the power of Mandela’s convictions, the depth of his innate love for humanity, the strength of his character and the brilliance of his political leadership. These traits compelled him to act on behalf of all of us – both detractors and supporters, it compelled him to risk life itself, but also to risk loss of economic, emotional and familial well-being.
Many of us will say that we will give our lives for our children, for our parents or for something else that is near and dear to our hearts. But, in our daily, mundane existence, where death is not an imminent threat, being willing to lose our jobs, to give up financial stability and social position, to sacrifice our family life, to give up the opportunity to be present to guide, love and support our children in tangible, sustained ways is a painful price to pay that leaves an indelible mark on the soul. These reflect the cost of discipleship, of living out your convictions, of committing yourself to a belief, an idea, a radically different vision of the way our lives can be organized and lived, to creating the beloved community.
I say all of this in light of the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Movement that we here in Alabama, but especially in Birmingham, have been commemorating all year. As someone who is trying to follow the example of Christ, I am drawn to the responses of church leaders during this time period. Therefore, it is particularly striking to me in light of the many speakers and books that have been released about that time period that give voice to the white community and explain why they supported the status quo instead of desegregation. In particular I am drawn to the responses of the white church leaders who wrote to Dr. King and then responded to his Letter From A Birmingham Jail. These books suggest to us that these church leaders could only have responded in the way that they did because to have responded differently would have meant losing their jobs (their churches), their homes, their friends and their position in the community among other losses.
What made Mandela stand out during the 1960s and what makes him stand out today is that his deep and abiding love for all humanity surpassed his need for comfort and acceptance. It is said that Mandela was Methodist. As such, I believe that he acted within the prophetic tradition of the biblical text. He knew what Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Micah and others knew – that to walk with God, to be called a disciple of Christ, to be part of the family of God requires a grace that is not cheap and a love that calls us to treat our neighbor as ourselves. In southern Africa this is called Ubuntu. It is the belief that “a person is a person through other people.” Dr. King describes this type of connectedness to the other as being “caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. What affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” This is King’s beloved community.
To be a part of the beloved community requires a paradigm for leadership that acknowledges the price that must be paid, the risks that must be taken to lead. Mandela’s life reflected the deep, soul wrenching, life changing sacrifice and suffering that is a mark of true leadership. He understood the power of suffering for doing the right thing. This type of suffering can be transformative for both the sufferer and for the community in which they live. Mandela’s life stands as a witness to this truth.
What concerns me the most about the response of the church leaders to Dr. King’s Letter and to the movement to which he was committed is by not being willing to stand for what was right, for taking the risk and paying the price, for not being willing to participate in transformative suffering, they denied their community the opportunity to be changed by their example. As trained clergy and as leaders in their communities, I wish they had loved their neighbors enough to be witnesses to the transformative power of universal, agape love by suffering and sacrificing for what is right.
As Mandela transformed both his own people and the whites of South Africa by his example, so too, could those church leaders have transformed their church members and the larger community, both Black and white. We have tangible examples of the power of agape love and transformative suffering through Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King, Jr. What we don’t know is what could have been had those church leaders followed the examples of those in the very Bible they were called to share.
As we mourn Mandela’s death, my fear is that what will be remembered and recounted was his ability to forgive his captors and include and incorporate white South Africans into the New South Africa. While this is remarkable, what is more remarkable is the stony, bitter, painful, road he trod, that transformed him, his people and his nation through the power of agape love and sacrificial, transformative suffering.
I was fortunate enough to have met Mr. Mandela twice. In 2001, I attended a conference on race relations in Johannesburg, South Africa and he was one of the speakers. I encountered him as we were both walking from a session at which he spoke to another session. I walked up to him because I was not going to miss out on the opportunity to potentially speak to him, and he pushed aside his security and greeted me warmly, asking me if I was related to the Sports minister at the time because we shared the same last name.
My second encounter was in Bangkok, Thailand in 2004 at the World’s AIDS Conference. Both he and former president Clinton were walking down the hall at the conference center and again, I walked up to them both and introduced myself among the throngs of people who also wanted to speak to both of them.
What struck me about both encounters was the deep, genuine warmth, approachability and humility that was part of his charm and his personality. It was an honor, a blessing and a joy to have personally encountered a man who had stood for what was right, suffered for his stance and always showed his love of the common person even when one of them randomly stopped him in the middle of a conference simply to shake his hand and thank him for his sacrifice.

Angela Balfour Franklin
Birmingham, AL

Former NIE manager, Birmingham News
Lived in Johannesburg, South Africa for four years, from 1999 – 2003.

Kelly Burd, Minister for Leadership Development

People seem to approach this time of year with an unparalleled spirit of generosity. The media often fills the days between Thanksgiving and Christmas with human interest stories showcasing acts of benevolence across the country. It is a season of giving: soup kitchens swell with volunteers; bell-ringers collect cash donations from busy shoppers; and holiday gifts are purchased to be shared with low income families. As a Christian, I find hope in both the ancient Christmas story and these modern parables of human compassion and kindness. Still, I can’t help but lament that for most of the year, blaming poor people for their poverty continues to be an unofficial but obvious American pastime.
Alain de Botton, author of the book Status Anxiety, writes that poor people in the United Kingdom have historically been known as “unfortunate,” meaning those whose situations were due to misfortune and not necessarily through any fault of their own. By contrast, the United States (long known as the “land of opportunity”) has held up the belief that anyone can achieve their dream of success in this nation if they work hard enough. While the idea of universal access to the “American Dream” may be great, it is unrealistic and sets up people who don’t achieve their dreams to be seen as failures and losers. “In America,” de Botton says, “A loser is somebody who has failed according to the rules of the game that they have signed up to. In other
words, we have made, in the United States, a meritocratic society where success is deserved, but failure is also deserved.”
The most recent U.S. Census data shows that in 2012, almost 16 percent of Americans were living below the poverty line. Behind the statistics is the disturbing reality that millions of people who live in poverty are working part to full time at wages that prevent them from attaining financial stability, let alone prosperity. Meanwhile, Congress is still wrestling over details of the federal budget, including proposed spending cuts that would further chip away at the safety net programs many people count on in difficult times. Condemning people who are already struggling to survive adds insult to injury. It also contributes to our society’s toleration of political leaders who want to put the financial interests of corporations and moguls before the common good.
It is heartening that this season moves people to reach out with greater generosity toward our less fortunate neighbors, but I pray that it will motivate us to become more faithful advocates and allies as well. We each have the ability to dismantle negative stereotypes about poverty and help people to better understand the realities that keep people in financial need. We have the power to advocate for federal and local policies and programs that sustain the poor and support their efforts to provide for themselves and their families. May this season of generosity move us to do justice; it is one of very few gifts that truly keep on giving.

For more information and insights on how to be a faithful advocate for economic justice, see http://www.ucc.org/justice/economic-justice/.

By Steve Flowers

When I went to the legislature in 1982 as a 30-year-old freshman, there were two powerful organizations.  The Alabama Farmers Federation (ALFA) and the Alabama Education Association (AEA) were omnipotent.  The Farmers Federation had prevailed as the King of Goat Hill for decades and probably going back to when Alabama became a state in 1901.

You chose early which side you were on, either ALFA or AEA.  It was almost like football in our state where you have to side either with Auburn or Alabama. My choice was easy.  Being from a rural county and being a business person, I cast my allegiance with ALFA.

Most of us who were pro business chose ALFA.  We became known as the conservatives.  It may surprise some of you young folks to know that there were essentially no Republicans.  We all ran under a Democratic banner even though we were really Republicans.  Therefore, we were labeled as conservatives or liberals rather than Republicans or Democrats. The ALFA team and I quickly bonded because even though I was young, I was extremely conservative.

In addition to being conservative, I had an insurance background. This they liked because there were very few legislators who were in the insurance business and understood that industry’s intricacies and nomenclature. Therefore, they leaned on the Speaker and orchestrated my fast track to the chairmanship of the Insurance Committee.

There is an old political saying that when a legislator or congressman is close to a group they are asked to carry a lot of water for them. Well, folks, I carried a lot of water for ALFA for close to two decades.  We indeed had a special bond and I was their titular floor leader throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s.

Around the time I left the legislature in 1998, AEA dethroned ALFA as the big kid on the block. The AEA’s Dr. Paul Hubbert was the new King of Goat Hill for the next two decades.

Even though Alabama is a conservative state, the AEA and liberal Democrats ruled the roost.  The AEA was the big loser when the Republicans took control of the legislature in 2010. Their demise was to be expected with the GOP takeover.  However, nobody knew to what extent the new herd of elephants would stampede and stomp on the once vaunted teachers’ union.  In three short years, they have dismantled almost everything Dr. Hubbert garnered over his 24-year reign.

It appears that ALFA has regained their throne as the leading conservative voice in Alabama politics. Five generation Chilton County Farmer, Jimmy Parnell, has risen to head the Alabama Farmers Federation. Jimmy became a leader in the Federation as a young man.  He was the state leader of the young farmers at a very early age.  All of the older farm leaders in the state respected him and thought of him as their peer even though he was half their age.  They expected him to eventually lead the organization one day.  He is and has always been wise beyond his years.  He comes from the old school and has paid his dues.  He is adroit, tactful and understands politics.  He will be a political force in the state for years to come.

Parnell showed his astuteness by choosing Beth Chapman to be his political general and confidant.  Beth’s addition is a brilliant coup.  She brings a wealth of knowledge as well as integrity to the table.  She understands politics as well as anybody in the state.  She also has rural roots.  She grew up in Greenville and is a country girl at heart.  She is a proven conservative and very popular.  She has authored several books with a patriotic theme.

Beth Chapman would have been a formidable candidate for the open sixth district congressional seat being vacated by Spencer Bachus next year.  She was also projected as one of the leading candidates for governor in 2018. Instead, due to the tragic and untimely death of her husband, she needed to enter the private sector to provide for her family as a single mother.

It should be noted that there have been four special elections in the state since Parnell and Chapman came to power.  ALFA has been responsible for all four of their endorsed candidates winning.  There is a new sheriff in town riding a white conservative horse.  That horse is called ALFA.

See you next week.

Steve Flowers is Alabama’s leading political columnist. His column appears weekly in more than 70 Alabama newspapers. Steve served 16 years in the state legislature. He may be reached at www.steveflowers.us.

Dear Supporters,
First, let me thank you for the support and interest you’ve shown in the Birmingham Metro Diversity Coalition (BMDC) by considering sponsorship of our annual Unity Walk. In 2010 the BMDC established the “MLK Unity Walk.” The purpose of the walk has been to honor our past and redirect our focus to community health through advocacy, education and collaboration.  The “Walk” symbolizes the struggle and the tool used to overcome: marches. It also symbolizes a pivot from the past to the future.
In 2013, we honored the accomplishments of history by celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the 1963 Civil Rights Act. The BMDC MLK Unity Walk was one of, if not, the first in a line of celebrations. Our theme for 2013 was: MLK Unity Walk…focusing on community wellness by “Walking in the Footsteps of Heroes.”
The 2014 theme is: FOOD365.  On Saturday, January 11, 2014 we plan to walk to solidify this generation’s commitment to healthy living for all through physical, mental, social and emotional health initiatives. The BMDC is partnering with The Birmingham Peace Project and the Greater Birmingham Ministries to provide food for families in need during the months of January and February. As you know food resources have been impacted. Families have less to buy food, and the local food banks are low on inventory. After people are served meals on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day….then what?  So, please come and walk for your personal health, bring a non-perishable food item for someone’s health and pledge to help improve the health of Greater Birmingham spiritually, mentally and physically.
Events of this magnitude and scale will require many resources to be successful. We ask that you consider becoming a partner with BMDC by making a minimum financial contribution in the amount of $25 to support the 2014 MLK Unity Walk. Of course, you may reserve a vendor’s table for a $50 reservation fee.
We certainly look forward to hearing from you soon to confirm your support and contribution to the 2014 MLK Unity Walk.
Please encourage your youth groups, faith groups, and Greek organizations, civic and social groups to meet us at Railroad Park, a 2014 sponsor, on Saturday morning, January 11th.  Registration begins at 10 a.m. and the program will be at 11:30 a.m. and the Walk begins at noon.  We plan to have activities for all age groups.
Thank you so much and Godspeed!
Velma Williams
BMDC MLK Unity Walk Chair