"DAISY BATES: FIRST LADY OF LITTLE ROCK" PREMIERES IN HARLEM

Saturday, January 14th

Time: 4 - 6 PM
Schomburg Center for

Research in Black Culture

515 Malcolm X Boulevard
New York, NY 10037-1801

Daisy Bates: First Lady of Little Rock tells the story of a seven-year journey by filmmaker Sharon La Cruise to try to unravel the life of a forgotten civil rights activist named Daisy Bates. In 1957, Bates became a household name when she fought for the right of nine black students to attend the all-white Central High School in Little Rock,Arkansas. Bates’ public support culminated in a constitutional crisis — pitting a president against a governor and a community against itself.

As head of the Arkansas NAACP, and protector of the nine students, Daisy Bates would achieve instant fame as the drama played out on national television and in newspapers around the world. But that fame would prove fleeting and for her attempts to remain relevant, she would pay a hefty price.

This documentary travels with Daisy Bates on her long and lonely walk from orphaned child to newspaper woman to national Civil Rights figure to her last days in Little Rock.

Bates’ journey, both her triumphs and defeats parallels the ongoing struggle of generations of African Americans who for more than 200 years have challenged America to live up to what it claims to be.

COMING TO PBS on Thursday, February 2, 2012

Person of the Week: A Black Valedictorian Is Recognized 75 Years after Graduation

Pittsburgh School Denied her the Honor in 1936 Because of Race, Family Says

Fannetta Nelson Gordon was finally recognized yesterday as the valedictorian of Westinghouse High School in Pittsburgh—an honor denied her in 1936 because of her race

Gordon died three years ago at age 88, but her sister, Sophia Phillips Nelson, 93, attended the ceremony sponsored by the Westinghouse Alumni Association.

"It was just so emotionally heartfelt to see the 93-year-old woman take the award for her sister," says lawyer Reggie Bridges, head of the alumni group. "The room was in tears."

"I wish Fannetta could have been there," said Phillips Nelson. "She was a brilliant girl and determined."

So determined, her family says, that Gordon overcame the wrong that was done to her when the school principal pressured music teacher Carl McVicker to change Gordon's grade from an A to a B so she wouldn't be first in her class—an honor that her older sister, Sophia, had achieved two years earlier. The principal didn't want two black valedictorians within two years, the family says.

Gordon—whose official transcript ranked her fourth in the 155-student class—went on to become the accompanist for the National Negro Opera Company and played at Pittsburgh's Carnegie Hall. After graduating from the University of Pittsburgh, she became a high school German and English teacher and later was named by the governor as a senior adviser for English and foreign languages in the state Education Department.

But she never got over being deprived of her rightful status as valedictorian, her family says. "It was one of the most painful episodes of her life," says her niece, Gloria Wofford. "He erased her A and gave her a B because she was black."

Phillips Nelson said she and other students were aware of what had happened at the time. "We knew. Unfortunately, they were principal and music teacher—we were just youngsters."

The reality at the time for African-Americans, she said, was to tolerate injustices: "Just take it."

The recognition ceremony Thursday came about when Bridges reviewed the transcript and other records. "As clear as day you can see where the grades were changed in music," he said. "You can see erasure marks. " Her earlier music grades were all As, he said.

The Pittsburgh School District has not officially recognized Gordon as valedictorian. "It does appear there were erasure marks on the transcript—we can't confirm the back story" because the principal and music teacher are dead, said spokeswoman Ebony Pugh. "What the district does recognize is that Fannetta Nelson Gordon was a high-achieving student."

In the 1930s when the sisters attended the school, Westinghouse High School was about 5 to 10 percent African-American, whereas today the school is 97 percent black. The school—whose famous alumni include supermodel Naomi Sims and jazz composer Billy Strayhorn, the soloist at Sophia's graduation—will become two single-sex academies next year.

"Our school is in trouble," says Bridges. "This is just the kind of thing to remind [today's students]—quit making excuses. If these sisters could do it in the 1930s, you can do it."

"We hope that they will take a lesson from this and not let anything stop them," says Gloria Wofford.

Harvard University Announcement - No tuition and No student loans

Harvard University announced over the weekend that from now on undergraduate students from low-income families will pay no tuition. In making the announcement, Harvard's president Lawrence H. Summers said, "When only ten percent of the students in elite higher education come from families in the lower half of the income distribution, we are not doing enough. We are not doing enough in bringing elite higher education to the lower half of the income distribution."

If you know of a family earning less than $60,000 a year with an honor student graduating from high school soon, Harvard University wants to pay the tuition. The prestigious university recently announced that from now on undergraduate students from low-income families can go to Harvard for free... no tuition and no student loans!

To find out more about Harvard offering free tuition for families making less than $60,000 a year, visit Harvard's financial aid website at: www.fao.fas.harvard.edu or call the school's financial aid office at (617) 495-1581.

Former Morehouse Student Succumbs to Suicide

By Dr. O

www.askdro.com

I am overwhelmed and shocked! It has happened once again. The headline is that another Black male, with promise, has taken his own life today. Where does this stop? How do we stop this infectious process that is attempting to overtake our communities? Some experts believe that depression is likely a key factor in a 233% increase in suicide in black males ages 10-14 from 1980 to 1995. Suicide in the African-American community was hardly mentioned and much less recognized in the 80s. Now it seems as if this malady has become almost common place. Brothers speak-up and speak-out about your emotional pain. Is this a secret on the HBCU campuses here in America? I think probably so.

I believe that the culprit here is depression. We have got to aggressively get young men in for medical care. Is there a problem with access? I am sure there is, but how do we address this issue? Has the economy increased our young men’s brush with death? This phenomenon is puzzling to me. You are not a sissy if you come forward and reach out for help. This may be the key to your survival.

Maybe we are not availing ourselves to this group of men. Are there enough culturally competent practitioners to address this dilemma? This answer is a definite no! There has to be a call to action. Morehouse, Howard, Tuskegee, FAMU, Bethune-Cookman, Clark Atlanta University and all other HBCUs what is your call to action? How many more mothers’ boys have to go down this road? Is the nail in the coffin of HOPE? I am distressed. This has to stop someway and somehow. The perils of racism, unemployment, lost hope and depression are front and center. Now, what are we going to do?

Call to Action

1. More specific “mental health” services available for African-American men on all HBCU and other college campuses.

2. More forums that allow open and frank discussion about depression and suicide among males.

3. Suicide hotlines available in high risk communities and colleges.

4. APA and AMA call to action specific to this issue.

5. More available community resources for practitioners that serve this vulnerable population.

6. More articles and research on the phenomenology of this problem in high risk communities.

*Depression in Black men Information http://itsmentalhealth.com/permalink.php?article=Depressionin Black Men Information

Enough Said,

Dr.O

What’s Your Current Mental Status?… Click on the link below and take Dr.O’s Mental Evaluation Screening to assess your current mental status:
http://www.drowensmd.com/index.php?option=com_php&Itemid=7

Morehouse Whiz Kid is Causing a Stir

13-Year-Old Dominates College

By Boyce Watkins, PhD

At thirteen years of age, Stephen Stafford is causing quite a stir at Morehouse College. Stafford has a triple major in pre-med, math and computer science. Though he loves playing video games and playing his drum set, he is no typical teenager.

"I've never taught a student as young as Stephen, and it's been amazing," said computer science professor Sonya Dennis. "He's motivating other students to do better and makes them want to step up their game."

Stafford began his college career at the age of 11, after being home-schooled by his mother. Stafford's mother said that when Stafford began to teach her instead of being taught by her, she knew he needed to be in a college environment.

Now THAT'S what I'm talking about. Stephen Stafford, in my opinion, represents exactly what black men are about: Intelligence, ambition and high academic achievement. This is not to disrespect men in other walks of life, but the truth is that you will never see Stephen Stafford's accomplishments promoted like a rap music video.

We must, as a community, applaud and uphold this young man. We must cheer for him as if he averages 40 points a game. We should converse about his achievements as if he had released a platinum hip-hop album. He should get the same respect as every linebacker, point guard or hip-hop artist in America.

Corporate America will not blow Stephen's trumpet, but I will. I also want all the other Stephen Staffords to make themselves seen. There are hundreds of thousands of Stephen Staffords out there who've been convinced by a culture of thuggery that they should do their best to hide their greatness. Rather than acing math class, they've been taught to measure grams and kilos or to memorize football playbooks that are 100 pages thick. Our young men can analyze the triangle offense in basketball and break down a nickel defense, but then become mentally deficient when it comes to doing algebra, science and social studies. The time for mediocrity is over, since education is the key to making your dreams come true. Sports only creates more nightmares.

Stephen will make more money than all of his athletic friends, because education produces economic empowerment. He will also have more personal freedom and professional fulfillment. He will live the black American dream, and I encourage all of you to make your own sons into the next Stephen Stafford.

The recipe for our kids is simple:
1) Spend as much time studying as you spend playing sports or working at fast food restaurant jobs. 2) Don't let anyone convince you that you can't achieve whatever you put your mind to.

Just by studying 4 to 5 hours per day (less than the number of hours they would put in to working a minimum wage job), almost any child in America can get a college degree and become a doctor, lawyer or whatever they want. It's actually just a matter of doing it. I've taught college for 16 years, and I can tell you that the term "college material" needs to be abolished. Every child is college material if they want to be. That's the truth.

Ex-Foster Child Now $1 Million Scholar

AOL News

Derrius Quarles cuts a sleek figure on the Morehouse College campus in Atlanta, GA. The 19-year-old freshman favors tailored suits, reported the Chicago Tribune, and hands out business cards emblazoned with the words "Student/Entrepreneur/Leader." But his route to higher education has been a rocky one, said the paper. His father was stabbed to death when Quarles was four, while his mother struggled with drug addiction.

He spent the rest of his childhood with relatives or in foster homes, the Tribune reported. At times he and his older brother would steal bread and snacks from nearby convenience stores. And by the time he turned 17, Quarles was living on his own. Yet he was determined to pull himself up by his own bootstraps, the Tribune said. "I've had people tell me that I ain't never gonna be s---," he told the paper. "That's not a scratch, that cuts deep. After so many people put me down, I said, 'I'm gonna show you.'" To that end, Quarles pushed himself to the limit when he enrolled in Chicago's Kenwood Academy High School. Not only was he earning straight A's by his junior year -- he also scoured the Web for information about scholarships.

His efforts paid major dividends, said the Tribune. Quarles won more than $1 million in scholarship offers, a rare feat accomplished by only about a dozen students nationwide each year. Along with his full ride at Morehouse, Quarles won a Gates Millennium Scholarship worth $160,000 and two others worth $20,000 each. As for his ambitions, Quarles is just getting started, reported the paper. He hopes to attend medical school, set up a tutoring program for low-income students in Chicago, get involved in public-health policy, and eventually become U.S. surgeon general. "I have no time to play around," he told the Tribune. He added: "I want to make a difference. I want to show people that I can be all those things people said I could never be."
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