Radio Golf Needs Your Attendance
When I went to the Tony Awards in June, I witnessed that only one African-American won a Tony Award for the evening and that was Bill T. Jones. He won the Tony Award for Choreography for a new Broadway show Spring Awakening. Jones was very up front about hoping that his winning the award would lead to more opportunities for African-Americans to get to choreograph Broadway shows. Jones, of course, has known success for years in another way, having his own dance company, which bares his name. Jones shared that he was surprised to find out that African-Americans have such a difficult time in the theater world.
Although August Wilson’s final play in his ten-play series Radio Golf was nominated for five Tony Awards including Best Play, it did not get to walk away with even one. But one thing that came from that evening, which I feel is very important, is that I had the opportunity to talk to Tonya Pinkins, one of the five cast members of this Broadway play and Pinkins confided that the show needs our people to come out and support it. She candidly shared her concern about the show’s future.
Radio Golf is a very serious play that examines one man’s journey to put his political aspirations and monetary ambitions aside and reconnect with the people of his neighborhood. It’s a journey that the audience goes along with every step of the way. It also shows the many sides of African-Americans through the varied characters. There is one man who has the features of a Black man and to all looking at him, looks like a Black man, but inwardly despises his own people. He doesn’t trust Blacks and he has no loyalty to them. He is very willing to sell out his own people, even a man whom he is a business partner with. Then there’s a character who is a poor Black man that is facing eviction. He is a man who quotes scriptures and has a lot of common sense. Another Black man is someone who does things his way, even if it gets him into trouble. And one thing he feels strongly about is looking out for other Blacks. The only female character in the play is played by Pinkins and is the lead character’s wife. She is interested in her husband keeping his focus with his political aspirations and when he decides to look out for the people of the neighborhood, she wonders what is wrong with him. This play is very serious in terms of its messages. One message is this Black man realizing that he is connected to his old neighborhood and taking up their struggle. Another message is that when it comes to corporate America, the faint of a poor Black man and the people of a dying neighborhood don’t mean anything.
This is definitely a production worth supporting and as with other Black productions, this one may be having problems filling the seats. Our community needs to come out in support of August Wilson’s last play, which he completed not too long before his untimely death. And support this all-Black cast on Broadway.
National Black Theatre Festival Nears
The National Black Theatre Festival is getting closer and closer. It will be held as always in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and it will definitely be the opportunity for all those who love and support Black theater to get an abundance of it. The festival will run from July 30-August 5 and will include theatre ranging from solo performance to cast productions and collegiate theatre, along with hip-hop-themed shows and poetry. There will be areas where new plays will be read, through the Midnight Reading Series always done by the New York-based Frank Silvera Writers Workshop, and led by Garland Thompson, Sr.
There will also be many Black theater companies represented at the festival-New Federal Theatre in Manhattan, the Billie Holiday Theatre in Brooklyn, Black Spectrum Theatre in Queens, Crossroad Theatre in New Brunswick, and the Faison Firehouse Theatre.
This year’s festival will definitely have a sad note as the festival’s founder, Larry Leon Hamlin, recently passed away at the age of 58. Hamlin envisioned the festival as a place where Black theatre, actors, technicians, playwrights, directors and the like could have a place to showcase their work. This festival is not just a place to experience marvelous Black theater, but it’s a place to rejuvenate one’s soul. There is such a feeling of family that is vividly part of the atmosphere of the National Black Theatre Festival.
“Prospect Heights was not being served with a home-going facility” is the reason attorney Renaye Cuyler gives for teaming up with Maria Sealy to create a state-of-the-art funeral home in central Brooklyn.
Sealy Cuyler Funeral Home is the first black woman-owned and operated facility built from the ground up.
Located on Pacific St. between Franklin and Classon, Sealy Cuyler Funeral Home is making history. Financed at a cost of $1.5 million, the home occupies 5 lots in the middle of the block.
Turning onto Pacific from Franklin, you can see the home’s bright green beckoning to you. Two flags proudly blow in the wind, subtly hinting at the nature of personalized services offered inside.
Ms. Cuyler and Ms. Sealy pride themselves on the high quality custom services they provide, starting with the flags. The two flags flying outside always include the American flag. The other flag changes to that of the home country of the deceased or the family.
The ambience of the home creates a peaceful atmosphere with a skylight at the entrance, welcoming guests inside. There is an additional skylight inside, centrally located to stream natural light from the roof down to the lower level. According to Ms. Cuyler, the natural light provides an environmental comfort to families and friends.
The funeral home’s entrance features another sensitive touch- a ramp leads to both the first and lower levels. Both women are proud of the off- street parking the home provides. Ms. Cuyler: “We are one of two black-owned funeral homes in central Brooklyn that have adequate parking.”
The Sealy Cuyler Funeral Home has three chapels of varying sizes, a minister’s office and two private offices for consulting with families. There is a room featuring a choice of 13 caskets. “We taylor services to be within almost any budget,” says Ms. Cuyler.
Building the funeral home was not easy. Even with close to $400,000 of personal financing and a business plan well- researched and written by experienced attorney Renaye Cuyler, the ladies had a hard time obtaining financing. Although they worked with the Empire State Development Corp. and the Small Business Administration (which offers matching financing), no NYS bank in NYC that they approached (and they approached many) would assist with financing. Finally, Zion Bank, a bank in Utah with former ties to the Mormon Church, came through. Between the two ladies, they provided 29% of the $1.5 million cost. New York Bank came in as a resource after the facility was opened.
Ms. Cuyler and Ms. Sealy attribute the funeral home’s beautiful yet functional design to African-American architect James Robinson, who was recommended by a friend. Ms. Cuyler: “We believe in utilizing the services of competent black entrepreneurs.”
The process of building Sealy Cuyler Funeral Home was another odyssey. The previous owner had 5 contiguous lots that consisted of 4 brownstones that crumbled and were demolished 6 years ago. Unbelievably, it was only after closing that the ladies found two levels of debris had been buried underground. Originally, plans called for a two-level building with a first and second floor. Once the lots were cleared out, they decided to build a lower underground level, instead of filling in the space.
Cuyler and Sealy bought the lots in Dec. 2004; it was 18 months from excavation to completion.
Sealy Cuyler Funeral Home officially opened for business on Nov. 18, 2006.
Owners Renaye Cuyler and Maria Sealy in front of their state-of-the-art funeral home.
Walking down the block, a visitor can see potential. There is a sports bar near Franklin Ave., and several auto repair shops on the opposite side of the street. There are three residential brownstone structures on the block: 1 is owned and occupied, 1 is being renovated and 1 is abandoned.
Sealy Cuyler Funeral Home enjoys a cordial relationship with its neighbors, Community Board #8, and Councilwoman Letitia James. James attended the opening ceremony. The community board helped with sealing up the abandoned brownstone. Over a year ago, the ladies put in a request to have trees planted on the block.
The future looks bright. A block or so away on Pacific between Washington and Grand, there are 5 construction sites building co-ops and condos. It is only a matter of time until development moves toward Franklin Ave.
In the meantime, Ms. Cuyler and Ms. Sealy have put down roots. They continue to do what they do: provide high quality sensitive service in a time of need. They are pioneers on a block in central Brooklyn that sorely needed it. Even though Sealy Cuyler Funeral Home is a state-of-the-art facility, Cuyler says “Black folk remain traditional. What they want is a good song and a good word to send their loved ones home. We provide both.”
“White tree” where nooses were hung to warn off Black students.
JENA, La. (FinalCall.com) – Marcus Jones, the father of 16-year-old Jena High School football star Mychal Bell, pulls out a box full of letters from countless major colleges and universities in America who are trying to recruit his son. Mr. Jones, with hurt in his voice, says “He had so much going for him. My son is innocent and they have done him wrong.”
An all-white jury convicted Mr. Bell of two felonies-aggravated battery and conspiracy to commit aggravated battery-and faces up to 22 years in prison when he is sentenced on July 31st. Five other young Black males are also awaiting their day in court for alleged attempted second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit second-degree murder charges evolving from a school fight: Robert Bailey, 17; Theo Shaw, 17; Carwin Jones, 18; Bryant Purvis, 17; and Jesse Beard, 15.
Together, this group has come to be known as the “Jena 6.”
“This town has always had a history of racism towards the Black man,” said Mr. Jones to The Final Call. “I am going to continue to fight for justice for my son.”
Jena, a small town still considered segregated in rural Louisiana, is the largest in LaSalle Parish with a population of nearly 3,000. Of that number, 85 percent are White, while there are only 350 Blacks in the entire area.
The trouble surrounding this case began in September 2006. At Jena High School, Black and Whites sit separately from one another outside during their school breaks-Whites under the shaded “White tree,” and Blacks on worn-out benches. One day, Black students asked permission from a school official to sit under the “White tree,” and the official told them to sit wherever they wanted, so the Black students did. The following day, three nooses were seen hanging from the “White tree,” which upset the Black students who make up only 20 percent of the school’s population.
The school principal found the three White students responsible and advised that they were to be expelled from school permanently. The White superintendent of LaSalle Parish Schools, Roy Breithaupt, overturned the principal’s decision and instead gave the White students a three-day suspension. In statements made to the media, Superintendent Breithaupt said “Adolescents play pranks. I don’t think it was a threat against anybody.” Black parents, students and residents disagreed and became upset.
“That’s a federal hate crime when those White students hung up those nooses. I don’t care what anybody says,” Mr. Jones told The Final Call. “A three-day suspension was a slap in the face of us as Blacks in this town.”
(top) The “White tree” at Jena High School where only White students convened before a student sat under it in September 2006. (bottom) The section where Black students convened during school breaks.
Students began to voice their disgust and protest against the “slap on the wrist” the three White students received for what many are calling a hate crime. According to the parents of the Jena 6 and testimony given in Mr. Bell’s trial, White District Attorney Reed Walters then visited Jena High School to address a school assembly, making remarks directed at the Black students that if they didn’t stop making a fuss about this “innocent prank,” he could take their lives away with the stroke of his pen. As a result of a fire that burned down the main building where classes are held. Jena High School on November 30, 2006, Whites in the community started to blame the Blacks students of the school for the cause of the fire.
But the racial tensions at the school would spill over into the community and erupt into a series of incidents that led to the charges against the Jena 6:
On the night of December 1, 2006, Robert Bailey and his friends went to a party at Jena Fair Barn. Once inside the party, Robert was approached by a White male named Justin Sloan who asked him, “Is your name Robert Bailey?” When Robert said yes, Mr. Sloan, along with his sister Jessie, began to hit Robert, and from there, he was also attacked by several other White men before his own friends came to assist him in the brawl.
According to Robert’s mother, Caseptla Bailey, the police who came on the scene told the Black youth that they need to get back to their side of town. The next day, on December 2nd, Robert and two of his friends were at the local Gotta-Go convenience store. They spotted Matt Windham, one of the White males who attacked Robert the previous night. An altercation started and Mr. Windham ran to his truck and pulled out a sawed-off shotgun, which Robert was able to wrestle away from him. The fight ensued and eventually all involved left the scene running.
Two days later, on December 4th at Jena High School, a White male student by the name of Justin Barker had been allegedly making racial taunts at the Blacks, which included calling them “n–s” and expressing support for the noose hanging, as well as the attack made on Robert Bailey at Fair Barn. Right outside the school auditorium, Mr. Barker was suddenly knocked down, punched, beaten and kicked by Black students. According to interviews with The Final Call, parents of the Jena 6 stated that school officials randomly pointed out White students to write statements describing what they saw, as well as identify what Black students were involved in the fight or were just standing around during the fight. Moments later, after several statements were collected, six Black males were taken out of their classes, arrested and charged.
Many of the Jena 6 remained in jail for several months due to the high bails set between $70,000-$140,000 on them. All are talented athletes with what their families called “bright futures.”
“We had to put up property to bail out my son,” stated Ms. Bailey. “My son is innocent. This is a disgrace and it only manifested the racism that has always existed in this town and this country. They are attacking our young Black males so we have to fight.”
Tina Jones, the mother of Bryant Purvis, agreed. “My son was not involved in this fight. This is pure racism.”
Bell’s family was unable to bail him out and his father believed that is the reason his son’s case went to trial so quickly. A Black court-appointed attorney, Blaine Williams, represented Mr. Bell, pressuring him to plead guilty, but Mr. Bell refused. His attorney then gathered a list of proposed witnesses which included his father and mother, Michelle Bell. The judge put a gag order on all witnesses in the case and refused to allow his parents to be present in the courtroom during the trial because they were potential witnesses although the victim, who was a witness, was allowed to stay inside the entire time.
When Mr. Bell’s father asked the defense lawyer to appeal the gag order so they can be inside the courtroom with their son, the lawyer replied, “The best thing for you to do is to get the hell out of my face.”
“At that point, I smelled a rat and I knew my son was being set up,” stated Mr. Jones to The Final Call. He also shared that the jury was all White, and that members of the jury were friends with the district attorney as well as family members with the victim. The prosecution brought forth 17 witnesses of whom many stated that they did not see Mr. Bell hit Mr. Barker. The victim himself even testified that he did not know if Mr. Bell hit him or not. The defense lawyer did not call any witnesses and rested his case. After three hours of deliberation, Mr. Bell was convicted and is currently awaiting sentencing.
Members of the Houston Millions More Movement Ministry of Justice (MOJ) and the Muhammad’s Mosque No. 45 Fruit of Islam visited the families of the Jena 6 on July 14th to conduct a fact-finding mission, along with The Final Call.
“Our mission to Jena made clear to me that the “Old South” is not so old that it is not without a pulse and heartbeat,” stated Deric Muhammad, Houston MOJ spokesman. “The U.S. Congress and Black America doesn’t have to strain its eyes toward Darfur or South Africa to see apartheid and/or genocide. We need look no further than Jena, Louisiana.”
The Black residents have been mobilizing the last few months with protests, organizing meetings, developed a NAACP branch headed by Secretary Catrina Wallace and created the Jena 6 Defense Fund Committee. They are planning a major protest on the steps of the Jena courthouse on the day of Mr. Bell’s sentencing and are calling on everyone to support.
(For more information on the Mychal Bell’s case call Marcus Jones at (318) 316-1486. People interested in supporting the Jena 6 Defense Fund: Jena 6 Defense Committee can write to P.O. Box 2798, Jena, LA 71342, or e-mail jena6defense@gmail.com. MMM LOCs interested in supporting the July 31st protest please e-mail ministryofjustice@mmmhouston.net.)
c Copyright 2007 FCN Publishing, FinalCall.com (Permission granted to reprint)
But on a bright sunny day on City Hall steps, they came together as one because a chord had been touched. A common front had presented itself. The community was being prevented from honoring Sonny Abubadika Carson, and because of that, doctors, homeowners, community activists, artists, retirees, educators, scholars, workers all came together and said, “Oh No! This will not stand. You’re going to deny a man because he fought for us and loved us? Speaker Quinn, you have seriously miscalculated this situation.”
Now the Speaker must run those numbers again and reassess the downside risk, if she, or anyone who votes with her, has any aspiration to citywide office, or to any office that has an African-American vote.
Deny Sonny Abubadika Carson because he didn’t fawn over you? Sonny did not hate white people. He hated white supremacy, but what’s not to hate about it? The United States is suffering the worst presidency ever, with people losing their lives moment-to-moment and the nation’s treasure being burned before our eyes, because the votes of African-Americans were not counted and the country had no real problem with that. That was white supremacy in action and look where it has taken us.
Deny Sonny Carson? New York City should issue a proclamation in his honor for putting his life on the line, closing crack houses and for saving the African Burial Ground for posterity. When the African ancestor’s bones were first discovered, and at a time when work would have proceeded as usual, a warrior was needed to stop the project.
It was Sonny Carson and his band who stepped in front of the bulldozers, awakened the people and so redirected the thinking of the city, state and federal governments that the site is now a National Monument.
We were genuinely stunned when Councilman Charles Barron said that it was Speaker Quinn who had initiated a street be re-named after Al Jolson, an entertainer best known for his work in blackface. To do that and deny Carson, a member of the 82nd Airborne who jumped out of airplanes and fought in Korea for this country, leads the way for the Speaker to become the poster girl for divisiveness in New York and a disaster for any council person who votes with her.
The Speaker wields the purse strings but what was seen on the steps of City Hall was only the very tip of the iceberg. Beneath that small crowd, there is a community with deep, personal interests in the Council vote May 30th.
Term-limited council members who wish to continue in politics should understand that the litmus test question for all will be, “Did you vote for or against the Sonny Abubadika Carson street renaming or did you aid and abet anyone who voted against it?” David Mark Greaves
For Sonny Carson Street-naming
By Mary Alice Miller
On Wednesday, May 9, the City Council was scheduled to vote on a street-naming bill that conspicuously eliminated the name of Sonny Abubadika Carson from consideration.
Community pressure (and perhaps fear of setting an uncomfortable precedent) led the council to lay over the vote until May 30. This, Councilman Al Vann declared at a City Hall press conference, is a “victory.”
The battle is not over. Vann announced he will offer a floor amendment to add Sonny Carson’s name to the street-naming bill prior to that vote scheduled for May 30.
Background
The Parks and Recreation Committee of the NYC Council had decided in a 3 to 1 vote, with Councilwoman Letitia James abstaining, to keep Carson’s name off the bill.
The next rebuff took place in the courtroom of NYS Supreme Court Judge Leland DeGrasse. Attorney Roger Wareham, representing the petitioners, argued that the council’s variance from traditional protocol with regard to Sonny Carson is inherently racist. Wareham reminded the court of the 19th century Supreme Court decision that stated “a black man has no rights that a white is bound to respect.”
Judge DeGrasse’s decision issued the next day essentially said the court had no jurisdiction over the council. Councilman Barron’s response was that the judiciary is required to protect the public from abuses of the legislative branch of government.
All this activity led to the press conference on the steps of City Hall.
A variety of politicians and representatives of many community groups attended. Speaker after speaker recounted personal knowledge of Carson. We were reminded that Carson helped form Medgar Evers College. After Carson’s mother was killed by a crack addict, he formed the Black Men’s Movement Against Crack. Carson raised a politically aware son, Lumumba, who was Professor X of X-Clan. The ultimate irony is that Carson helped form the Committee to Honor Black Heroes, a group instrumental in the renaming of several streets in Bed-Stuy, including Malcolm X Blvd., Marcus Garvey Blvd., and Harriett Ross Tubman Ave.
No one said Carson was perfect, but all acknowledged his political development and commitment to his community. Rev. Herbert Daughtry said it best: “If people are going to be excluded because of controversy, who could stand?”
The issue underlying the council’s attempt to usurp community wishes goes beyond naming a street after Carson. When asked what this process says about other Community Board recommendations in other council districts, Barron said, “They come for Vann tonight; they will come for you in the morning.” Vann added, “Other council members are wary. They need to be careful how they vote. They see that if they want something controversial for their districts, they may not get it.”
Barron added, “We need to make sure that a black man that stands for his community is not punished. We need to watch and make sure that Bed-Stuy and East New York/ Brownsville continue to get their fair share of NYC’s $53 billion budget.”
Comments in the crowd:
Akinkanju
His legacy? He never vacillated in the face of adversity of on difficult issues. He encouraged Black men to be responsible.
Everyone here today is over 40 years old. All have met Sonny Carson in one way or another.
It is easy for him to pull you into what is right for black people. He is not an aloof leader; he spoke directly to his people.
I talk in the present because I am a spiritual man. I never think of people in the past tense; their work and energy are always present, as Sonny’s is today.
Black people will continue to remember him (into the future) before they remember the mayors of this city.
The spirit of Sonny is here today.
Gloria Boyce
We voted for it. We want to retain the right to make decisions for the community at the community level. The genie is out of the box.
Miriam Frances
In 1991, he was the one who stopped the digging to remove the bones from what is now the African Burial Ground.
He had a group of young people to sit down in front of the bulldozing equipment so they would not continue.
He didn’t care who didn’t like him, he didn’t care what people said about him.
He was a community person, determined, when he made up his mind to do something, he did it.
