4A
EDITORIALS/ The Charlotte Post
Thursday, May 22, 1997
cije cijariotte When counterculture is acceptable
The Voice of the Black Community
A subsidiary of the Consolidated Media Group
1531 Camden Road Charlotte, N.C. 28203
Gerald O. Johnson
CEO/PUBLISHER
Robert Johnson
CO-PUBLISHER/
GENERAL NL1NAGER
Herbert L. White
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Cops
under
fire
Black officers under attack across the U.S.
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
NATIONAL NEWSPAPER PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION
Sherman
Miller
As I watched Ellen DeGeneres
attempt to legitimate lesbianism
as a mainstream American
lifestyle, I wondered about the
long term damage this
Hollywood feat was bringing.
Seeing Oprah Winfrey exploit
her credibility by offering tadt
approval to Ellen’s actions - as
an actor in the controversial
show that aired EUen’s homosex
ual admission — made me feel
that mainstream America
learned nothing from the plight
of black America following
Hollywood creating pseudo black
values that ran counterpoised to
reason.
First off, let me say I will not
patronize anyone by saying I
have gay firiends. On the other
hand, I have no problem with
what consenting adults want to
do in the privacy of their own
homes. I do not condone discrim
ination against gay persons and I
hate gay bashing. However, I do
have problems when folks glorify
a lifestyle that is solely their own
choice without fvilly appredating
the long term impact of their
actions on the United States of
America.
It is common knowledge that
two movies (“The Birth of a
Nation” and “Superfly”) had very
deleterious impacts on the
upward mobility of the black
community. What little I have
seen of “The Birth of a Nation,”
there is no doubt in my mind that
it is a propaganda film for Ku
Klux Klan sympathizers because
it highlights aU of the fears that
white folks have of blacks. 'This
venomous movie generated an
atmosphere where white
Americans felt good about hating
blacks because it depicted
Afiican Americans as a sinister
people out to do harm to or
exploit white Americans at every
opportunity.
It took the Civil Rights and
Voting Rights acts and the U.S.
Supreme Court knocking down
the miscenegation laws to start
undoing the horrific impact of
“The Birth of a Nation.” But
these acts also echoed in another
deadly era in Hollywood known
as the black exploitation movie
epoch. These Hollywood movies
were hellbent on exploiting the
worst imdertones in the black
community and they legitimated
the current black male scoundrel
caricature etched into main
stream America’s psyche.
Of the black exploitation
movies, “Superfly” had the most
impact on black America and it
was a catalyst for the present
moral decay that is eroding the
underpinnings of the nation.
'This movie legitimated the black
American gangster (“Pusher
Man,” etc) as the new symbol in
the black community since any
one could become a drug kingpin.
It also ballyhoed the use of drugs
as an escape from problems and
a source of pure pleasure.
Young soul brothers dreamed of
emulating the “Pusher Man”
with his fine cars, many women,
and you name it. The Pusher
Man’s actions grew unabated
because the gangsters knew that
black Americans hated the pobce
and some areas of the black com
munity had corrupted pobce cov
erage. America’s media saw the
drug scourge as an irmer-city
poor neighborhood problem,
thereby refusing to accept that
they poisoned whoever uses
them. Tbday, we hear estimates
that America consumes 70 per
cent of the world’s drugs which
tells you that inner-city neigh
borhoods could not use aU of it
without a major portion of the
population walking Euoimd high
aU of the time.
The drug scourge is now touch
ing people of aU walks of bfe in
America. Death and mayhem,
once only the province of the
inner-city are plaguing small
towns aU over the nation. This
plague has spawned a new breed
of multinational pirates we shall
label the “Multinational bonds
man” who gamer their riches
through guaranteeing pleasur
able bighs on the one hand and
exploiting slavery through addic
tion on the other.
What I am suggesting is that
Hollywood should not elevate
countercultures to mainstream
legitimacy without taking
responsibibty for their actions. I
chatted with a professional
mother, with two young daugh
ters, to get her opinion on “Ellen”
coming out of the closet. She wor
ried aloud about overhearing
young girls asking their fiiends,
“Are you gay?”
I bebeve discretion is the opera
tive word for folks who want to
foUow alternative lifestyles and
that media has a responsibibty to
use some common sense in what
we glorify.
SHERMAN MILLER is a
columnist in Wilmington, Del.
My late maternal grandmother.
" What started out as a verbal confrontation between two motorists at
a traffic light on a Los Angeles street in March, ended in the shooting
death of one of the motorists, Kevin Gaines. Since violent street
encounters are not uncommon in Los Angeles, the shooting might
"have gotten only passing mention in the news. But there was a twist.
Gaines was a 10-year veteran of the Los Angeles Pobce Department,
and an African American. Frank Lyga, the motorist who shot Gaines,
was also a 10-year veteran of the LAPD, and white. At the time of the
. shooting, Lyga was in plainclothes, and on an undercover assignment.
Gaines was off duty. Lyga claimed that he shot Gaines in self-defense
when the latter pulled a gun. Apparently neither knew that the other
was a pobce officer.
An LAPD spokesperson called the shooting “bizarre” and down
played any possibibty that it was racially motivated. But many black
officers weren’t so sure. Gaines’ co-workers praised him as a “good offi
cer” and a dedicated professional. Leonard Ross, a 22-year LAPD vet
eran, and president of the Oscar Joel Bryant Foundation, an associa-
, .tion that represents the black LAPD officers, was skeptical of the offi-
' rial version, “At face value it doesn’t add up. I think a lot of questions
still need to be answered.” An investigation is pending.
Tbe Gaines shooting came at a time when the LAPD still reels from
the Rodney King beating, the racist revelations of Mark Fuhrman,
the Christopher Commission’s documented report of racism and
“abuse within the LAPD, and the ouster of the LAPD’s first African
American chief, Wilbe Wbbams (strongly opposed by the mostly white
pobce union). ’The disclosure that there were two complaints against
Lyga for excessive force in 1991 increased the suspicions of some black
' officers that Gaines out of uniform may have been seen as just anoth
er black “gangsta.”
A month after the Gaines shooting, Aaron Campbell was maced and
body slammed to the ground by white officers during a traffic stop
near Orlando, Fid. A district commander of the Metro-Dade Pobce
department, CampbeU was stopped for having a tag that “obscured”
his vehicle tag. ’The tag in question was a sticker that identified him
as a member of the Fraternal Order of Pobce. CampbeU was charged
with resisting arrest and battery. An investigation is pending.
Whether the Gaines shooting or the Campbell arrest was the result of
racial harassment or pobce vigilance, the incidents point to the trou-
bbng reabty that black officers aU too often are victims of unfriendly
fire or physical assaults fiom white officers.
^ Since 1941, 12 black officers have been wounded and five kbled by
. white officers in New York. In NashviUe, and Oakland, hlack officers
working undercover have been beaten by white officers. In most other
cases, no legal or disciplinary action is taken against white officers
who beat, shoot, or harass black officers.
’The fear of death fiom imfiiendly fire is so great that some black
, officers in New York and other dries have refused to accept under-
. cover assignments, particularly in high crime areas. Ross notes that
fear of violence also grips many black officers out of uniform when
. they have encounters with white officers, “Many black officers feel
that they are not accorded the same level of professionabsm as their
counterparts,” he said. The tendency of many pobce offidals to protect
white officers accused of brutabty is the “foimdarion” of the “Them
versus Us” pobce culture, says Ron Hampton executive director of the
J'larional Black Pobce Officers Assodarion.
More sensitivity and cultural diversity training, the hiring and pro
motion of more black pobce officers, and more diverse assignments for
black officers have helped reduced the violence against black officers.
But pobce offidals delude themselves if they think this is enough.
Many white officers harbor deep radal biases that are compounded by
the stress of pobce work.
Hampton contends that many pobce offidals instinctively cover-up
and make excuses for officer abuse, “What we label the “pobce culture’
or “pobce mentabty reflects the radsm in sodety. Officers must be
taught in the academy and [have] reinforced repeatedly while on-duty
that law enforcement is race neutral and a shoot-first-and-ask-ques-
rions-later policy wiU not be condoned when dealing with minorities.”
The Association supported the recent National Emergency
Conference on Pobce Brutabty and distributes a “Tbn Step Strategy
to stop pobce misconduct and brutabty” to community organizations
and pobce agendes.
Hampton also blames many black officers for being compbdt in per
petuating or ignoring abuse even when they’re the targets, “black offi
cers don’t speak out and even conunit brutal acts out of fear of not
being seen as a team player or that protesting abuse will damage
their career.” But many black officers that have been shot, beaten or
harassed by white officers consider themselves team players and are
praised as “good cops,” yet are stib treated as criminals. And that
wont change until pobce offidals make it clear that black officers are
not “gangstas” but officers too.
EARL OFARI HUTCHINSON is a columnist and author.
Children and prioritizing
Marian
Wright
Edelman
Americans can join Stand
For Children drive to give
kids a chance at success
Vivian Young of Wilmington,
Del., has made it her mission to
see that pobridans, preachers,
and parents don’t forget the chil
dren.
On one occasion, she
approached a pastor she had
heard was one of the most dedi
cated preachers around. “That
being the case,”’ she told the min
ister, ““I need a miracle or two; I
need your church outreach pro
gram to take in some children
who aren’t in your immediate
church family. I don’t always get
a good response from ministers,
but I have to let them know that
there’s a lot more to pastoring
than preaching and passing the
plate,” she says.
On another occasion, she
walked into a gathering of state
policy makers and said, “Tbu
may know that I conduct Chbd
Watch visits [where she gives
pobridans and community lead
ers a firsthand look at children’s
pbght by taking them on tours of
neonatal wards, orphanages,
juvenile courts, and other chil
dren’s services], but just remem
ber, ni be watching you.’”
Ever since Vivian helped orga
nize more than 2,700 people to
Stand For Children at the
Lincoln Memorial last June 1,
she has been working hard to
keep children a top priority in
Delaware. She’s been boimdng
fiom hearings at the State House
in Dover to conummity meetings
in Wilmington — arming herself
with aU the information she can
gather about the needs of
Delaware’s children and focusing
attention on specific things peo
ple can do to improve young peo
ple’s fives.
At last count she had more
than 30 organizations working
together to plan the local Stand
For Healthy Children raUy on
June 1, 1997 in Wilmington.
’They include sodal service agen
des, churches, and community
groups, which will highbght the
health needs of America’s chil
dren. Many child health experts
have been invited to speak at the
gathering, more than 60 health
booths wiU be set up, and there
wdl be fun activities and food for
the children who attend. “We wbl
even have healthy food,” Vivian
says with a snule. “The children
wUl be eating veggie burgers, but
maybe we’d better keep that
secret since it’s good for them.”
'The Delaware raUy wiU coin-
dde with hundreds of rabies in
communities ab across America.
So far there are more than 300
local Stand For Chbdren rabies
planned in 50 states. Under
the umbreba of Stand For
Children, people are networking
and coming together with ideas
for how to solve many of the prob
lems chbdren are fadng, Vivian
says. “There are a lot of services
out there, but people don’t know
how to access them,” she says.
“When somebody needs to know
something about mental health
services for young people, I know
I can turn to someone in our net
work to find out about it. It feels
good when I can teb people how
they can get help and not have to
pay a lot of money for it.”
As in every state, Vivian says,
Delaware’s chbdren are suffering
fiom poverty, poor nutrition, pre
ventable chbdhood blnesses, and
lack of health and dental cover
age. “If everyone would get
involved, chbdren would not be
suffering bere or anywhere else,”
she says.
With Vivian’s help, Delaware
Stand For Chbdren has orga
nized committees to address chb-
dren’s issues. “We have set up
committees on education, health,
housing, abuse and crime, and
each committee is researching its
area so that we can be informed
when we appear before members
of the Legislature,” Vivian says.
“There are so many problems
that it’s astonishing.”
\fivian has also gotten her fam-
by involved. Her husband,
Leonard Sr., who spent many
years with the United Nations
International Labor
Organization before retiring,
handles clerical duties for
Delaware Stand For Chbdren.
And her only son, Leonard Jr.,
who retired from Dupont after 25
years, helps out with business
affairs.
“My bfe is frenetic, but it’s
interesting,” says Vivian, who
often stays up untb 2 or o’clock in
the morning preparing for her
visits to policy makers.
“Sometimes I think about sitting
on the porch and knitting, and
then is say, “Nah! Tm supposed to
be bving at this pace.’ I think it’s
what keeps me young.”
When state Rep. Jane
Mulrooney handed Vivian the
Delaware ’Ibmorrow Award
recently, for her work with chb
dren, Mulrooney said, Tt seems
as if everybody wib recognize the
Delaware Stand For Chbdren as
a dominant force for chbdren for
a long time.” “She was right,”
Vivian sa}fs. “We wbl be a force
that the Legislature, the gover
nor, and the local government
wib have to deal vrith. And the
good thing about Stand For
Chbdren is that it’s not a onetime
thing. We wbl remain a force for
chbdren.”
For information on how you can
Stand For Healthy Chbdren in
your community on June 1,1997,
cab (800) 663-4032.
Bennettsville, S.C., native
MARIAN WRIGHT EDELMAN
is president of the Children’s
Defense Fund, which coordinates
the Black Community Crusade
for Children. For more informa
tion about the BCCC, call (202)
628-8787.