San Antonio Register (San Antonio, Tex.), Vol. 67, No. 44, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 29, 1999 Page: 7 of 12
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Pige 7-San Antonio Register Newspaper-April 29, 1999
Rameses School honors students of the Month
*1
()r^;iiii/alion f or Black
I nil \ sponsors I is it
Dinner I undraiser
OBU will have its fish dinner
fundraiser, Saturday May 1 at a Few
Choices Restaurant, 2242 E. Com-
merce from 11 ajn. to 3 pan. Do-
nation $5. For more information call
222-0567.
Michael Armstrong
Keshana Allen
Lajeric Broome
This Way for Black Empowerment
By Dr. Lenora Fulani
We Can Transform the Politics of
Victimhood
When Emma Jihad Jones called
and asked me to speak at the
anniversary memorial tribute to
her son Malik who was fatally shot
by a East Haven police officer two
years. ago. I was torn about
whether to go. Not because I
didn’t feel that the
commemoration was a critical
event—I very much wanted to
honor Malik Jones. Every time
Emma and I have spoken, the pain,
the triumph and tragedy of being
the Black mother of a Black male
child in America, is right on the
surface. I wanted to he there for
her and for all the Black mothers
in Xmerica. I also wanted to
express my support for the legal
action and the legislative action
being taken by supporters of the
family and the communit\ to stop
racial profiling by police.
I was con flicted because I knew
that if I went. I would be
introduced and acknowledged and
interviewed by the media as a
Black leader who has been in the
streets and on the frontlines of
many battles against police
brutality and other forms of racial
violence. This is true. I have. But
here is the problem. For me, it is
not an honor to be thus identified.
It is, rather, a source of shame.
Because it means that we. Black
leadership on whom our
community relies, have thus far
failed to stop the brutality, to stop
the injustice and to lead us—as a
community and as a country—to a
new place. We have to take a hard
look at that failure. We can’t cover
it over.
—One of the issues in the city of
New Haven’s ongoing
investigation into Malik Jones’
murder and subsequently in the
wrongful death suit brought by his
mother, is the question of whether
Officer Robert Flodquist used
excessive force on April 14, 199?
and whether the use of excessive
force was racially motivated. In
other words, was racism a factor in
the shooting?
Of course, we all recognize that
it was. The city’s investigation
said, in effect, it wasn’t and
Officer Flodquist was found to
have committed no criminal
wronging. The wrongful death suit
recently filed m District Court will
be a new forum in which to re-
examine that issue. But whatever
the particulars of the legal process
might be. and however the process
plays out. according to whatever
legal threshold must be
established, you know and I know
that racism was invdlved.
Is there racism on the East
Haven police force? Of course
there is. But the issue is not
whether there is racism in the
police department, in city
government or state government or
any government. The issue is not
whether there is racism at all.
There is. The serious issue is what
are we going to do about racism?
Certainly, the legislative effort
underway to outlaw, racial
profiling by police is critical, and I
support it wholehearted- But
outlawing racial profiling is
simply’ a way of protecting us
against the effects - the practical
implications of racism. We must
go further. And going further,
means going to the issue of
power—of where and how and
under what circumstances we, as a
community, operate and relate
politically.
As Black people, as people of
color, as poor people—we deal
with terrible tragedy on a routine
basis. Malik Jones lost his life for
no good reason. There are millions
upon millions of stories of this
kind. We are the victims of a bitter
violence and race hatred. There is
no question of that. But, we are
also, too often, victims of
something else. We are the victims
of victimhood. Our lives, our
vision, our social capacities and
our power are overdetermined by
the politics of victimhood.
- So much of what has become
Black politics in America today is
this kind ,of politic. This politic
says, “We are oppressed, so give
us something. We are angry, so
give us something. We are Black,
so give us something.” In the
Democratic Party, where 90% of
us vote—those of us who do
vote—that is how we are seen.
That is how we are mobilized.
That is what we do. And, most
importantly, that is how we are
marginalized.
We must do something to change
that marginalization. Our message,
our statement, our politic mustn’t
be, “We are damaged, so help us
ease the pain.” No. We may be
damaged. We have been
brutalized, after all. But we are
also human beings, people—like
other people—with the capacity to
build and create and lead and
develop. And it is my belief that it
is high time for us to build and
create and lead and develop a new
politic. An independent,
empowering politic that takes us
kinds of political action and
institutions for Black people and
all people, because I believe in my
heart that the status quo political
arrangement is profoundly limiting
to Black America. The equation, in
some ways, is this simple. If we
had more political options to
choose from, we’d be more sought
after. If we were more sought after,
and less taken for granted as a
community, we’d be in a far better
position to leverage the power
structure for what we need and
want and to transform that power
structure into something
completely different, something
bottom-up, grassroots, democratic
and inclusive. If we use the
creation of new political options to
create a new politic for ourselves
and for all people—then we will
have made a difference for our
children and we will have honored
the many victims of police
brutality who are too numerous to
mention, in a proper and
meaningful way.
Lenora B. Fulani twice ran for
President of the US. as an
independent, making history in
1988 when she became the first
woman and African American to
Mattie and Guy Mathis
to celebrate 57 years
The former Mattie I. Kay married
Guy Mathis, Jr. on May 4,1942 in
Cuero, Texas at the Macedonia
Baptist Church. They will celebrate
57 yean next month.
They have four sons and two
daughters, Joel S. Mathis, Cornelius
P. Mathis, Sr. and wife, Carolyn,
James A. Mathis and wife, Jeanette,
all of San Antonio, Texas, Guy
Lawrence Mathis and wife, Jennifer
of Pflugerville, Texas. Carolyn Kay
and Paul Wilson, San Antonio and
Vanessa Martin of Houston, Texas.
They have ten grandchildren and nine
great grandchildren. They will cel-
ebrate at a later date.
Mr. and Mrs. Guy Mathis
SPIRITUAL FLEAS
REV. SCOTTIE DINGLE
As a dog lives and travels
outdoors, he is bound to attract
fleas. To prevent this, we put flea
collars on them, wash them
weekly, spray them, and even give
them “Flea Dips ” We take every
measure possible to repel, prevent,
and rid them of these miserable
insects. When we fail to take these
precautionary measures, they
become “Flea infested.” The fleas
harass, bite, and annoy ouf pets
relentlessly.
As Christians, living in this
world, we too will be harassed,
bitten, and annoyed by “Spiritual
get on the ballot in all fifty slates.
Dr. Fulani is current/v a leading
activist in the Reform Party and
chairs the Committee for a Un
ified Independent Party. She can
be reached at 800- 288-3201 or at
http:/ www.Fulani.org.
Fleas.” They will plague us, attack
us, and try to make us miserable. If
we do not take to the proper
precautionary measures, we too
will become flea infested. We
must wash ourselves daily in the
Love of Christ, take a spiritual
“dip” in the blood of Jesus, and
spray ourselves with the power of
His love. But we also hav^to be on
guard to prevent their return.
Jesus said, “when the unclean
spirit is gone out of a man, he
walketh through the dry places,
seeking rest, and findeth none.
Then he returns from whence he
came out with seven more spirits”
(Mat 12:43-45). We must repel
spiritual fleas from: the church,
schools, families, marriages, work,
friendships, and lives. Their
annoying bite is quickly destroying
the fabric of our society.
We must repel spiritual fleas
from our society! The only way is
to repel them and prevent their
return is through the power of
Jesus Christ. So as you go through
this week, remember to put on
your Christian Collar (the mind of
Christ), take your Spiritual Flea
Dip (prayer), and spray yourself
with the love of Christ and your
Spiritual Fleas will not harass,
bite, and plague you anymore!
y POEMS SOUGHT IN
CONTEST
A $ 1,000.00 grand prize is being
offered in a free poetry contest
sponsored by Celestial Arts, open
to everyone. A whopping $25,000.
00 in prizes will be awarded
during the coming year!
"Even if you have never entered
a Competition before," says Poetry
Editor Michael Thomas, "this is an
opportunity to win big. Even if you
have written only one poem it
deserves to be read and
appreciated. Beginners arc
welcome
To enter send one original poem
on any subject, using any style, to:
FREE POETRY CONTEST, 1257
Siskiyou Blvd., Suite 4, Ashland,
OR 97520. Or enter online at
www. freecon test. com
Be sure your poem is 21 lines or
less and your name and address
appear on the page with your
poem. The deadline for entering is
June 7, 1999. All entrants will be
professionally affirmed.
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beyond the status quo, because the
status quo is what's killing our
kids and no amount of anger and
pain that fails to address that will
make a difference.
In New York, there are huge
protests going on in response to
the brutal murder of Amadou
Diallo on February 4th by four
white police officers and I have
joined thousands of other New
Yorkers
in marching. But in the Diallo
situation, the political question is
what all of that mobilization
translates into? Does it translate
into more political influence for
particular Black leaders? Fine. But
more importantly, does that
translate into more political power
for the Black community? Not, in
my opinion, if that movement is all
channeled into institutions like the
Democratic Party, which
powerfully manipulates the
. politics of identity, the politics of
victimhood. The status quo
political game is one in which
Black leaders protest about how
oppressed we are—get all of us to
’ protest about how oppressed we
are—and then use that protest to
build their positions in a political
party that is oppressing us. It
doesn’t make sense.
As a political independent, I
have been working to create new
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San Antonio Register (San Antonio, Tex.), Vol. 67, No. 44, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 29, 1999, newspaper, April 29, 1999; San Antonio, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth842047/m1/7/: accessed June 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UT San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.