2A 0#0
NEWS^itje CtatbIK #ii«2
Thursday, January 4, 2007
Agenda for racial disparity
Continued from page 1A
The disparities are not just a
local issue, by 2004 the week
ly wage for African-
Americans nationally was
$523 compared to $677 for ^
whites. In Charlotte the gap
is even greater, where in 2005
the median weekly earnings
for a white family were $1580
a week, but only $702 for a
black family
Forty-nine percent of the
nation’s homeless population
is African-American, yet,
African
Americ ans
make up 67
percent of
Mecklenburg
Counties home
less.
Its numbers
like these that
interested
nationahy rec
ognized figures
like author and
NPR coiTespon-
dent Juan
Williams and
economist
Julianne
Malveaux in
participating in
theCMSATbwn
Graham
Williams
hall meeting.
‘We wanted to select indi
viduals with prospective on
Afiican Americans, where we
are and how to get to the next
phase,” Graham said.
Williams wOl kick off the
event on Friday evening at
6pm with a discussion on
Afiican American leadei’ship.
Following WUliams’ opening
comments will be ffiree con
current forums for discussion
and learning beginning at
7:30 p.m.;
• Afiican American film
series “Civic Engagement,”
facilitated by Dennis Darrell
• “Be Heard,” an Oprah-
stjde town hall meeting for
individuals to speak their
minds, hosted by Power 98
morning show personality
Janine Davis, or
• “Crime and Gai^ in
Charlotte,” featuring Police
Chief Darrel Stephens and
WPEG Radio personality
ToneX
Of lie more than 197,000
Afiican Americans hvir^ in
Mecklenburg County, 550
have re^stered fcr the meet-
iags.
Danielle Coleman is a social
worker; she has registered to
attend the event on Saturday,
because she thinks it should
be a priority “One I’m
Afiican American, Fm a par
ent and I have youi^ chil-
di-en,” said Coleman. “I think
we all need to be aware of
what’s happening in the com
munity but especially when
we’re raising children.”
Yet the events are not just
for community leaders, par
ents, or adults in general.
Saturday’s events kickoff at 9
a.m. with Kwain Bryant dis
cussing Afiican American
youth culture. Bryant, a
health educator who works
with adults and youth was
chosen to speak based on his
youthful prospective. He
planned to attend, even if he
hadn’t been asked to speak.
“I think it’s a necessary
event when you look at the
data and statistics in the
Afiican American communi
ty” said Bryant. “We’re at a
critical point. This is a time to
identify problems, and find
solutions.”
The problems will not be
hard to identify national sta
tistics show that blacks make
Program puts black
men into classrooms
Continued from page 1A
it was unlawful for black men to be called by th^ surname,”
stated program director Roy I. Jones, referring to the pre-and-
post Civil War era when Black men were abjectly demeaned and
often brutalized in the South, as well as in other parts of the
coimtry
According to Clemson news director Ross Norton: “Students in
the modem elementary classroom are rife with personal and
developmental problems^ Many children are dealing with bro
ken or dysfunctional homes. In their- personal lives they are
exposed to drugs, violence, a lack of supervision and, perhaps
most significant, the lack of positive male i*ole models. For
minority and non-minority childi-en, the MISTER leading his
class represents something they don’t have in sports stars and
entertainei-s — a black man of authority whom they can reach
out and touch. If every MISTER in the program graduates and
starts teaching, that will double the number of black men teach
ing elanentaiy school in South Carolina,” he noted.
Over the years, the Call Me MISTER piogram has been fea
tured on The Oprah Winfrey Show as the 35th beneficiary of
Oprah’s Angel’s Network in addition to being covered by Jet
magazine, Time magazine, USA Tbday and National Public
Radio’s “AH Things Considei-ed.” The innovative teacher train
ing and r-ecruitment pi-ogi-am has also di-awn the past and pre
sent support of a number of major foundations, coiporate and
government entities including: BMW Manufactiu-ing, Wachovia
Foundation, DuPont Corporation, the U.S. Department of
Education and General Electiic Company just to name a few.
Call Me MISTER has been expanded to 10 campuses in Soutii
Carolina and includes neai-ly 150 MISTERS in training with 20
program aliuimi (the first graduating class was in 2004) now
teacliuig in public schools fru-oughout the state. Emollees in the
three-year Call Me MISTER teaching progi-ani ai-e chosen in
part fi-om an appheant pool derived fiom educaticsnally under
served Black American communities, particularly hi^ schools,
in affiliation witli pai-tnei-ing sdiools,
Ovei-all support for the program has been exti-emely encour
aging, and coupled with the fact that other states ai-e now look
ing at replicating the Call Me MISTER teaching pi-ogram, Dr.
Jones and othei- administi-atoi-s are thinking about expanding
beyond Soutli Carolina’s state boundaiies.
“If you want to be a pei-son of influence or make a difference,
thei-e is no better job than teaching. Thei-e's no way you trade a
doUai- for a cliild who says, 'If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have
made it,”’ he said.
For more infonuation on the Call Me MISTER progi-am send
an e-mail to; mistei«clemson.edu or call toll-fi«e: 1-800-640-
2657
www.thecharlottepost.com
up 43.9 percent of the state
and federal prison popula
tions but only 12 percent of
the U.S. population. As of
December 2005, the North
Carolina prison population
was 35 percent white and 58
percent black. During the
same year, 504 offenders
between the ages of 16 and 17
were booked in Mecklenburg
County While Stephens will
talk about violence, Bryant
plans to discuss the genera
tional divide.
“The gap between the post
civil rights mind set and the
hip hop generation culture
and the importance of bridg
ing generational gaps and
class divides,” he said.
Bryant also plans to discuss
what the youth he deals with
see as problems today At
noon there will be a break for
limch followed by comments
fiom Julianne Malveaux, and
tlien a presentation of the
Afiican American agenda pri
orities that were collected
fiom the breakout sessions.
The agenda is the core pur
pose of the town meeting, the
subjects that to be addressed,
and what is ejqsected to hap
pen afterward.
“It’s not about what we do
on the fifth and the sixth,”
said- Graham,” but it’s the
position the community takes
on January 7 after all is said
and done.”
Coleman hopes other
Charlotte residents walk
away with more than just a
community agenda.
“I hope people walk away
with identified goals with
what they can do personal
ly..that they will do to help,”
said Coleman. “It’s nice to
talk about things, but it does
n’t mean ahiUofbeans if peo
ple don’t walk away with
tasks that they ai-e personal
ly willing to do to better their
lives. It’s about makir^ an
effort to do your part individ
ually”
And while Coleman’s sees
the individual effort as most
significant, CM3A plans to
create an agenda “that all
Mecklenburg Cotmty can
embrace and one that -will be
the end of differences in
health care, education, earn
ing capacity and other areas
that plague., .our community”
“After the event is over, the
Urban League will be the
organization with the respon
sibility of keeping (housing)
info generated...and to facili
tate bridging the gaps (identi
fied). The conference is not a
stoppir^ point, it’s the begin
ning of a year long process,”
said Graham.
Activities begin at 6 p.m. on
Friday and open up again
•with registration at Sam on
Saturday Tb register log onto
www.cm3a.org. Information
on the agenda generated wfil
be available on the website
following the two day event.
Participants are asked to
turn cell phones off or on
vibrate once they enter the
event.
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