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I looked at the man, thought for a second, and then asked, “What is the state of White leadership in America?  Who speaks for your people?”

The man was puzzled by my response, and looked like he wanted to slap me.  But I certainly hope he got the point.  The point is that there is no single individual or group of individuals who represent “the Black perspective” or anyone who has primary control over “the Black agenda.”   We are as diverse as anyone, and nearly every Black American citizen is fully capable of thinking for themselves and leading their own families.

A recent survey confirms that others African-Americans feel the same way.  In a recent Your Black World/Kulture Kritic survey, the majority of African-American respondents (72.3%) feel that most Americans falsely believe that Black leadership is defined primarily by Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton.  Also, nearly two-thirds of African-American respondents (63.8%) believe that Black leaders are typically chosen by White media.

Also, most of the Black respondents (85%) said they were either unhappy or extremely unhappy with the state of Black leadership in America.   The fact is that the problems in our community are too numerous to mention. Mass incarceration has taken away millions of Black fathers, our schools are not educating our kids, our economic opportunities are getting worse, and violence has put many cities in a state of emergency.  All the while, Washington politicians care nothing about the holocaust occurring in urban centers across the country and many Black figureheads are more concerned with maintaining their status as Washington insiders than they are about finding real solutions.

Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton should not be blamed for the sad state of Black leadership in America.  When I hear others complain about what Al and Jesse are not doing, I simply ask if they feel they can effectively compare their own contributions to those of Sharpton and Jackson.   For all of their imperfections, it’s sad that we somehow feel the need to throw the baby out with the bath water.

What remains clear, however, is that the concept of Black leadership absolutely must change right now.  It must be decentralized, so that all of us are carrying the weight, instead of waiting for a small group of people to get everything done.  We must also consider what experts in multiple fields have to offer, instead of sending our favorite preacher to the White House to discuss economic and educational policy. All of us are Black leaders, whether it be in our families, in our social circles or in our communities.  Power must be restored to the people.

When a tornado devastates a small town, the mess can be overwhelming.   It is not going to clean itself up, and it’s certainly not going to be cleaned up if the majority of the town’s residents watch while two or three people do the work.  The only way the mess is cleaned up is if everyone does their part to help manage the devastation.  The same is true for the destruction that has occurred in Black America over the last 50 years.  All of us must do our part on some small level and proclaim ourselves to be Black leadersDr. .  By working together and making our own contributions, we can find a way out of this mess.  But if we continue using the same methodology, we are going to get the same old tired results.

It’s time to try something different.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is a Professor at Syracuse University and founder of the Your Black World Coalition. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.

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I just returned from the Measuring the Movement forum hosted by Rev. Al Sharpton in New York City. The forum was insightful and empowering as it pertains to getting members of African American leadership to see the value of accountability.  NAACP President Ben Jealous gave time to the forum, and even President Barack Obama came through to give a speech.

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In many ways, the convention was arguably the most successful gathering of its kind. I find Sharpton’s approach to action-oriented solutions to be refreshing, and as a person who sat on a panel with both Jealous and Sharpton, it’s a relief to be involved with a forum where the goal is not to simply provide the best sound bite. “Sound bite leadership” in the black community needs to die and be replaced with strong, direct action that recognizes the urgency of our deadly situation.

The day after the forum, I got off an airplane to hear that Rev. Sharpton got into a heated debate over the black agenda with Cornel West. I knew the conversation would be volatile, and I was concerned about the imagery of two black men going to war on MSNBC. Ed Schultz was the host of “A Stronger America: The Black Agenda,” a show that allowed a few voices to air their perspective on what a black agenda should look like in the age of Obama.  Personally, I wonder why such a show was not positioned on a black network, or at least with an African American host.

As I expected, the argument came to a predictable boiling point.  Consistent with the views of his close colleague, Tavis Smiley, Cornel West fought hard to short-circuit the partnership between President Obama and Rev. Al Sharpton. Sharpton,  a man not known to back down from anyone, defended his positions well and also challenged those who “sit in the ivory tower” and talk without much action (I do not consider Cornel West to be one of those people; he believes what he says and acts on it).

I watched the entire exchange shaking my head, primarily because I knew that such a fight was simply inevitable.  As I wrote on the Huffington Post a couple of weeks ago, the Obama Presidency has created a divide among black public figures that I pray does not cripple our community.  I love both Rev. Sharpton and Cornel West, and it was sad to watch them get into such a personal and nasty fight on national television.

My perception is that Cornel is coming from a genuine place.  I cannot say the same about Tavis Smiley, who seemed to have a problem with Barack Obama’s disrespect toward him during the 2008 presidential election.  West’s statements about the elitism of the Obama Administration (he mentions that Obama would be glad to speak out if a wealthy banker were stopped by police, but not if it were a poor black man) are on point.  He is also correct to note that the administration has been slow to readily acknowledge African American suffering.

In Sharpton’s defense, the truth is that having an African American figure on the inside of the Obama Administration gives our community a better chance to grab the ear of the president.  What’s yet to be determined, however, is whether or not the president is listening to Sharpton’s concerns or giving priority to the issues being faced by other constituencies.  Women’s groups, the gay community and the Latino community have gotten high priority from the Obama Administration, but African Americans remain at the back of the bus when it comes to our primary concerns, including mass incarceration and growing unemployment rates of over 15 percent.  My belief is that Cornel West and Al Sharpton are both witnessing the community’s struggle up close, and Sharpton hopefully serves as a true and passionate surrogate for those who are frozen out of Obama’s big white house.

President Obama has reason to be concerned about losing much of his steadfast African American support.  According to a recent survey conducted at YourBlackWorld.com, 34.4% of black respondents said that President Obama failed to meet their expectations after being elected.  This disappointment may not translate to votes for the Republicans, but it can manifest itself in reduced voter turnout in the African American community.

Another survey at YourBlackWorld.com reveals that nearly two-thirds (62.3%) of black respondents do not see President Obama as a civil rights leader.  Given that Obama is not a civil rights leader, we must be careful not to feel that his presence reduces the significance of true civil rights leaders like Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson and others.  This means that we need genuine and empowered advocates within black America who can mobilize the people to put pressure on any administration that is in power so that our rights as Americans can be secured.

In other words, sitting around and hoping that President Obama will look out for our interests is not nearly as effective as pursuing our interests ourselves.  Work must be done on the ground to lay out a black agenda, putting pressure on both Congress and the Obama Administration to see to it that our community is not left behind.  Both West and Sharpton would likely agree with this assertion, and this can begin the quest for common ground.

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Roland Martin talks with Smokey Fontaine about President Obama’s appearance at Rev. Sharpton’s National Action Network anniversary celebration. Plus highlights of Rev. Sharpton and Sean Hannity’s debate.

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Palin’s politics of grievance and group identity, according to these critics, is a betrayal of conservative principles. For decades, it was a standard line of the right that liberals cynically promoted victimhood to achieve their goals and that they practiced the politics of identity — race, sex and class—over ideas

Matt Labash, a longtime writer for the Weekly Standard, said that because of Palin’s frequent appeals to victimhood and group grievance, “She’s becoming Al Sharpton, Alaska edition.”

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I am in Akron, Ohio sitting at my laptop thinking about tomorrow’s events. Rev. Al Sharpton and I are in the state to rally for Kelley Williams-Bolar, the single mother who was jailed for sending her kids to a school outside their home district. In addition to going to jail for nine days, Ms. Williams-Bolar faces the possibility of never being able to teach in the state of Ohio for the rest of her life.

When we first started to talk about Kelley’s case, not many people knew what was happening.  But to my surprise, the news spread like wildfire, with Kelley getting international support from citizens around the world who were outraged at what was happening to this single mother of two.  ColorofChange.org and Change.org were able to gather hundreds of thousands of signatures in a matter of days, and the issue was immediately brought to the desk of Ohio Governor John Kasich. Kasich has agreed to have the parole board investigate and we continue to fight to protect Kelley and her family.

But the case is far bigger than Kelley Williams-Bolar, at least that’s not my primary reason for coming all this way. Every single day, my email inbox is filled with messages from citizens around the country who need help in very serious situations, and the truth is that I simply cannot help everyone.  So, I decided long ago that I would try to avoid engaging in individual crusades.   As someone who strongly believes in our nation’s quest for civil rights, it is my argument that our efforts are best utilized when pursuing matters that have the broadest socio-political implications.

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Kelley Williams-Bolar’s case affects millions of people because there are countless mothers who’ve risked the same persecution as Kelley to get their children access to a high-quality education.  Too many of our schools don’t have enough books, quality teachers or other resources necessary to prepare our children for a productive future.  Others came together to support Kelley because they could feel her pain.  Millions also seem to agree that we should not live in a nation where mothers must break the law in order to obtain something that should be a fundamental American right.

If Kelley’s children had been athletic like another Akron native by the name of LeBron James, they likely would have been allowed into the school without incident.  It is unfortunate that black children are worth something to others when they are presented as athletic, rather than intellectual commodities.  In fact, the idea that the labor of our youth has become such a powerful economic asset for the prison industrial complex has served to make our public school systems into feeders for America’s penitentiaries.

It’s time for this to change.  The denial of an adequate education for black and brown children across America is nothing less than a blatant violation of our human rights.  The Obama Administration should take the lead on this issue and have the necessary political courage to deal with this persistent and destructive problem.   Citizens who care about educational equality should do everything in their power to give our political leaders all the support they need to get the job done.  We shouldn’t settle for anything less, and that’s why we’re rallying in Ohio.

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We’re not telling Rush don’t say what he wants to say. Say it at home,” Sharpton said in December. “Don’t get on publicly regulated radio and television that are selectively given licenses and do that to offend someone because of their race or their gender.

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(HARLEM-WNYC)

Al Sharpton teamed up with the NYPD for a gun buy back on Harlem, New York City. WNYC reports:

A gun buyback held in Harlem by the New York Police Department and the Reverend Al Sharpton’s National Action Network brought in more than 350 weapons. Saturday’s event at Saint Mark the Evangelist and Memorial Baptist Churches took place as Sharpton and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly held an anti-violence summit blocks away.

Officials say 185 revolvers, 122 semi-automatics, eight shotguns, eight rifles and 31 other firearms were exchanged for $200 bank cards, no questions asked.

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They held a press conference together Friday.

Sharpton has been a longtime critic of the New York Police Department. But he says he’ll do all he can to help the NYPD stem gun violence. He says it’s important to stop gun violence in the black community.

Kelly says 73 percent of the city’s shooting victims are black.

Sharpton says he plans to promote the NYPD’s Gun Stop program. The program offers a reward to anyone who turns in a weapon — no questions asked.

Shootings in the nation’s largest city are up this year. There have been 1,590 victims of gun violence reported, about 60 more than through the same time last year.

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Broadcaster Glenn Beck and tea party activists have a right to rally in the nation’s capital but not to distort Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision, the Rev. Al Sharpton said Friday.

Sharpton described the demonstration planned for Saturday by Beck and his supporters as an anti-government rally advocating states’ rights. And he said that goes against the message in King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech, in which the civil rights leader appealed to the federal government to ensure equality.

Beck’s “Restoring Honor” rally will be held at the Lincoln Memorial, where King delivered his speech exactly 47 years earlier. Beck and other organizers say the aim is to pay tribute to America’s military personnel and others “who embody our nation’s founding principles of integrity, truth and honor.” The broadcaster toured the site Friday as supporters cheered.

Sharpton wasn’t the only one upset with circumstance surrounding the event.

Leaders in the nation’s capital said they were offended by a tea party blogger’s warning to those attending to avoid two of Washington’s subway lines because they go through certain neighborhoods. Many parts of the city are safe, he wrote, “but why chance it if you don’t know where you are?”

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D.C. Council Chairman Vincent Gray, who is running for mayor, invited visitors into the city’s neighborhoods and said Friday he would urge any tea partiers he meets to ride the subway.

“Frankly, we need to put an end to that venom,” he said at a news conference. “This is a city of 600,000 people —

people who enjoy living here, people who pay their taxes.”

“Let’s not let them get away with portraying the District of Columbia as some kind of frontier city,” Gray said. “We live in peace.”

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The original post early Monday morning by blogger Bruce Majors was offered as a visitor’s guide for those coming to the district for the rally. It offered hints on cheap eats, free wireless Internet spots —

and the home addresses of Democratic political leaders, with the note, “Feel free to protest!”

Majors also wrote that the population includes “refugees from every country, as the families of embassy staffs of third world countries tend to stay in D.C. whenever a revolution in their homeland means that anyone in their family would be in danger if they went back.”

He also wrote that taxi drivers and waiters and waitresses frequently are from foreign countries.

Majors, who said he has lived in D.C. since 1980, did not respond to telephone messages requesting comment Friday.

On Saturday, Sharpton and others plan their own rally at a high school and a march to the site of a planned King memorial not far from the Lincoln Memorial to mark the anniversary of his speech.

During a news conference Friday, Sharpton questioned whether Beck and others understand King’s words.

“They have the right to rally. But what they don’t have the right to do is distort what Dr. King’s dream was about,” he said.

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He said King’s legacy is not owned by black people alone, and others can have different views of him. But he said they can’t have different views of King’s speech.

“His speech says clearly that he wanted to see a nation where the federal government protects us from those and states that would not uphold our civil rights,” Sharpton said.

“You can’t have a march telling government to leave us alone and say you’re reclaiming a march where they came to appeal to government to protect us,” he said. “They’re having an anti-government march on a day that King came to appeal to government. You can’t have it both ways.”

The Rev. Walter Fauntroy, who formerly represented the District of Columbia in the U.S. House, said Beck’s rally organizers “seized the hallowed ground of the 47th anniversary … to promote their universal vision of exclusion.”

“Their purpose is to turn the clock back in a time in America” when blacks and other minorities lacked rights, he said.

“It would be wrong for us to allow those who espouse the universal value of exclusion to hijack the site and the message of that marvelous day and to use it against the very vision that Martin Luther King Jr. articulated so magnificently,” he said.

Civil rights activist the Rev. Al Sharpton vowed this week to file a federal inquiry into the death of Mitrice Richardson, a missing 25-year-old woman thought to be mentally ill whose remains were found last week. She had been allowed to leave a sheriff’s station nearly a year ago against the wishes of her parents.

“The National Action Network will send a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to ask for an official inquiry,” Sharpton told The Root exclusively. “The incident must be raised to a review of what the process was compared to others in the area. It could be a test case of what’s going on around the country, where missing African Americans are not considered a priority for law enforcement or the media.”

Read more at TheRoot

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Pics Of The Week: 08.02.10

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Al Sharpton stood by the comments he made at a birthday party for Congressman Charles Rangel on MSNBC’s Mornig Joe show Friday. At the party he said that the media “started and executed the political crucifixion” and on MSNBC said that Rangel would be resurrected by voters in Harlem.

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Jackson deflected questions about the resolution at a news conference during the annual convention of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in Kansas City.

Check out our gallery of Civil Rights leaders:

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“We will not be diverted or otherwise distracted by any other message except putting America back to work,” Jackson said a day after convention delegates approved the resolution. “We want jobs and justice and peace.”

Sharpton was a little more direct, saying issues surrounding the tea party go beyond claims of racism. He said the civil rights movement sought to pressure the federal government to step in when states were enforcing segregation laws, and the tea party’s focus on states’ rights puts people at risk.

“They talk about restoring dignity. They are really talking about restoring a time before the federal government intervened and protected the rights of people,” Sharpton said.

He noted Arizona’s new law that directs local and state law enforcement to take on federal duties by questioning people about their immigration status, after they’ve been stopped for another crime, if there’s reason to suspect they’re in the U.S. illegally.

“There clearly are some racial leaves in their tea bag,” Sharpton said. “But this is not just about race. It is about how you see government.”

The resolution, approved Tuesday by delegates attending the conference, calls on tea party activists and others to “repudiate the racist element and activities” within the political movement. Tea party organizers quickly disputed its claims of racism and asked the NAACP to withdraw the resolution.

Mark Williams, a spokesman for the Tea Party Express, said Wednesday it was unfortunate that the NAACP has chosen to “profiteer off race-baiting and fear mongering” when it could be doing so much to help the black community.

He also questioned the motives of Sharpton, Jackson and NAACP officials, suggesting they were taking advantage of the publicity the resolution generated.

“I’m not surprised they are jumping into the fray here because the NAACP just tapped a Gulf oil well full of cash contributions that will arrive from this resolution,” Williams said. “And I know Al and Jesse want their piece of it. The slave traders of the 16th century should have been as good at exploiting Africans as these people are, because it’s just disgusting.”

When asked about the tea party, Jackson talked about jobs. He said the country has a plan for fixing other problems, but not for helping the millions who are without jobs — a disproportionate number of them minorities.

Sharpton stressed the Oct. 2 march in Washington, saying it would remind Congress and President Barack Obama about the challenges facing minority neighborhoods. NAACP President Ben Jealous said more than 150 organizations were involved, including civil rights, religious and labor groups.

Civil rights leaders also are planning a smaller event on Aug. 28 at the site where the Martin Luther King Jr. monument will be unveiled next year. Conservative pundit Glenn Beck also is planning a rally in Washington on the anniversary of King’s 1963 march on the nation’s capital, which was capped with his famous “I Have a Dream” speech.

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DETROIT — Civil rights activist the Rev. Al Sharpton gave a rousing eulogy Saturday for a 7-year-old girl killed in a police raid, challenging the hundreds of mourners to take responsibility and help stop a spiral of violence that has swept the city.

Sharpton lobbed some criticism at Detroit police, whose explanation of how Aiyana Stanley-Jones died from a gunshot has been contradicted by the girl’s family. But he mostly offered a broad cultural message to a city where at least three children and an officer have been killed in recent weeks.

“I’d rather tell you to start looking at the man in the mirror. We’ve all done something that contributed to this,” he said referring to Aiyana’s death.

“This is it,” Sharpton said at Second Ebenezer Church. “This child is the breaking point.”

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The congregation stood and applauded Sharpton, the final speaker at a nearly two-hour service that included stirring gospel music and remarks from clergy.

Aiyana was shot in the neck while sleeping on a couch May 16. Police hunting for a murder suspect say an officer’s gun accidentally fired inside the house after he was jostled by, or collided with, her grandmother. A stun grenade was also thrown through a window.

A lawyer for Aiyana’s family, Geoffrey Fieger, is suing and claims the shot was fired from outside the house immediately after the grenade was used. A camera crew working on the A&E reality series “The First 48″ accompanied police on the raid.

“Do they throw these flash grenades in everybody’s neighborhood? Would you have gone in Bloomfield Hills and did what you did?” Sharpton said, referring to a wealthy Detroit suburb. “Have you ever heard of putting on a light and calling people to come out?”

Before the service, Aiyana’s coffin was open for people to pay their respects. An arrangement of pink and white roses shaped like a princess crown and bearing her name was on a stand.

A few days earlier, Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox, a Republican running for governor, criticized Sharpton’s visit, saying he was disgusted and accusing the New Yorker of a “drive-by at the scene of a tragedy.”

“I’m disgusted when I look at a 7-year-old baby in a casket,” Sharpton said during his eulogy. “And rather turn to each other, we name-call and ego-tripping and trying to jump in front of a camera rather than stand up and say, ‘Enough is enough.’”

Sharpton said children need guidance and respect and maybe Aiyana’s death will be the catalyst.

Young men carried Aiyana’s white casket on their shoulders out of the church to a horse-led cortege for burial at Trinity Cemetery.

The mourners included Erica Milioni of Adrian, her husband and their seven children. They are trying to move to Detroit to get involved in urban farming and had heard about the tragedy.

“The Bible says weep with those who weep. I thought it was a blessing. I was blessed by the mix of truth and the pursuit of peace,” Milioni said of the service.

Aiyana’s cousin, Rachel Conley, 34, of Eastpointe said she was inspired by Sharpton and plans to start a program called “Aiyana’s Angels” to give young girls a safe place to be, perhaps a few times a month.

Roshell Johnson, 9, was wearing a shirt with a picture of Aiyana, her best friend. The funeral program said she liked Disney’s “Hannah Montana” show and all the Disney princesses.

“Why did the police do it to her?” Roshell said after the service. “I loved her so much. I want her to come back alive.”

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Today, and every Friday, NewsOne editor Ashton Lattimore joins the Rev. Al Sharpton on his radio show, “Keeping It Real,” for the NewsOne news hour. We’ll be discussing all of this week’s hot topics in news, from Obama’s Gulf Coast visit to the racial gap in swimming ability that’s endangering Black children. Click here to listen to the live broadcast.

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I just returned from the “Measuring the Movement” forum, hosted by The Rev. Al Sharpton and the National Action Network.  The event was off the chain, with an amazing crowd and an outstanding panel of guests.  We were joined by Rev. Al Sharpton, Ben Jealous, Marc Morial, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rep. Charles Rangel, Democratic Whip James Clyburn, Charles Ogletree, Michael Eric Dyson, Roland Martin, Tom Joyner, Jeff Johnson, Judge Greg Mathis, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, and a list of other intriguing panelists.  The event was truly amazing.

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One name that wasn’t mentioned, at least not in my presence, was that of Tavis Smiley.  Smiley’s name seemed to be that which cannot be mentioned, like the evil character, Lord Voldemort, in the Harry Potter films.  In case you don’t recall, simply saying Voldemort’s name was forbidden on Harry Potter’s Hogwarts campus, since his name would conjure up evil spirits.

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I don’t think that Tavis Smiley is evil, but I will confess that I wasn’t interested in saying his name much either.   There didn’t seem to be a point, since Tavis presents an abnormally contentious perspective on how to best work with President Obama.   Some of the attendees may even consider Tavis to be an enemy of progress, given that he seems to want Obama removed from office (he has a direct incentive to see Hillary Clinton become successful).  But what must also be understood is that in spite of the fact that Tavis presents an alternative point of view from Rev. Al Sharpton, the truth is that they are actually helping one another when it comes to getting things done.

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The logic is simple:  ”Good cop, bad cop” is a highly effective negotiating tactic.   Most of us are familiar with the concept, but I can quickly remind you of how it works.  When police interrogate a suspect, there is the “bad cop”:  the one who gets in the defendant’s face, talks about his mother, pulls out his gun and threatens to shoot him on the spot if he doesn’t confess.  He’s the out-of-control maniac who doesn’t seem to care about staying within the confines of decent behavior.

Then, there is the “good cop”:  The one who offers the defendant a cigarette and something to eat when the bad cop is out of the room.  He gains the trust of the defendant and tells him, “Look, that guy’s nutts.  But if you tell me where the body is, I think I can help you out of this mess.”  Of course the defendant gives the information to the good cop without realizing that both cops are working together.  Effectively, by presenting a worse alternative, the good cop looks that much more enticing. Without the bad cop raising hell and annoying the defendant, he would probably disrespect the good cop and not even speak to him.

Although I don’t think they are working together, the truth is that when it comes to dealing with the president, Al Sharpton has become the good cop and Tavis Smiley has become the bad cop.  Smiley is marginalized by The White House since he was part of the Hillary Clinton crew, which lost the election.  Had Clinton become president, Smiley would have likely gotten the cabinet position he feels that he deserves.  Resulting from what appear to be sour grapes, Tavis likes Obama about as much as Sean Hannity.  He screams at the top of his lungs about what Obama is not doing, and doesn’t make much room for encouragement of the president or acknowledgement that perhaps Obama has done at least one thing right.  He is the bad cop, throwing temper tantrums and making everyone incredibly uncomfortable with his highly irrational behavior.  Forgive me for putting it that way, but I have to tell it like it is.

Sharpton, as the good cop, helps President Obama deal with the valid criticism coming from the Tavis Smiley crew.   While I do not believe that Tavis would be happy with President Obama under any circumstances, the truth is that some of his colleagues (Michael Eric Dyson, Cornel West, Julianne Malveaux, Jesse Jackson) have critiques that are quite valid: Black unemployment has increased while white unemployment has stabilized, and President Obama has hardly said the words “black man” in public since he was elected.  Obama has shown himself to be sensitive to this criticism, primarily because some in the black community are becoming skeptical of just how much Obama’s success has translated into their own success.  Obama needs a way to counter these consistent attacks.

As Harvard Professor Charles Ogletree rightfully mentions, Sharpton is a critical piece of President Obama’s strategy to connect to the African American community.  By working with Rev. Sharpton in an honest and forthright way, Obama can directly engage African Americans and mute the critics coming from the Smiley camp.  Obama knows that he has to deal with black America and our “leadership” on some level, and Sharpton has extended the most effective olive branch available.  But with that olive branch, there does not come an invitation for Sharpton to be used as a tool for the administration.  Instead, there is an expectation that President Obama will give the “good cop” what he and his constituents are demanding.  Sharpton and Smiley are effectively asking for the same thing:  a black agenda from the president that reflects the interests of people of color.  The only difference in their viewpoints is the relatively meaningless semantical technicality of whether or not it should actually be called a “black agenda.”  While the words used to describe the agenda can be important, President Obama is not in a place where he can ballyhoo an agenda that is exclusively designed for African Americans.  All the while, it must be made clear that if black unemployment continues to rise, the community has valid reason to keep criticizing the president.

Sharpton and Smiley don’t agree when it comes to President Obama.  Their public fights have been real, and I am not sure how or when they are going to be resolved.  But what is most ironic is that Smiley’s presence opens additional doors for Sharpton, since President Obama realizes that both of these men have valid reasons to be skeptical of all politicians.   The world is better with both Smiley and Sharpton than it would be without them – that’s the bottom line.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and the author of the book, “Black American Money.” To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.

NEW YORK — The Rev. Al Sharpton is a “lightning rod” for President Barack Obama on inner city streets, Obama’s former Harvard mentor and friend said Saturday at a forum in Harlem.

But Sharpton, who led the event, told The Associated Press that America’s first black president “has to work both for us and for others,” and that if Obama were to push a race-based agenda, “that would only organize the right against him.”

Sharpton spoke on the last day of an annual conference organized by his National Action Network. Speakers included three members of Obama’s Cabinet and Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, as well as Charles Ogletree, the president’s Harvard Law School professor, now a friend.

“Al Sharpton has become the lightning rod in moving Obama’s agenda forward,” Ogletree told the AP, describing Sharpton as a conduit between the disadvantaged and powerful leaders. “And he has access to both the streets and the suites, to make sure that the people who are voiceless, faceless and powerless finally have some say.”

Standing at the back of a balcony overlooking Harlem’s ornate First Corinthian Baptist Church, the 57-year-old lawyer said that some black Americans may be disappointed the president they helped elect isn’t doing more for them.

“And President Obama expected to do a lot more,” said Ogletree, referring to the challenges Obama faces in two wars and the struggling economy. Still, he predicted, the new health care law would affect uninsured black Americans more than any other segment of the population.

But clearly, Sharpton was at the center of this forum. Saturday, the front page of The Washington Post featured a photo of him with a headline that read: “Activist Al Sharpton takes on new role as administration ally.”

Sharpton chuckled at the notion.

“I’ve been as much in this White House as I was in George (W.) Bush’s – it’s only when Bush invited me to the White House, it was him reaching out; when Obama invites me, all of a sudden, we’re allies,” Sharpton joked during a break, sitting in a pew on the altar that served as a high-tech stage.
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Amid a heated national debate over whether black leaders should align themselves with the president, Sharpton has defended Obama against criticism from television host Tavis Smiley that “black folk are catching hell” and Obama should do more to help them.

Black Americans, Sharpton said, “need to solve our own problems.”

Sharpton told the AP that he is working to expand his Harlem-based organization to 100 cities from the current 42, with about 200,000 members, “and to really deliver against unemployment that is disproportionate in the black community, and for health care and education reform.”

The four-day conference, focusing on a 12-month plan of action for black leadership, brought together prominent figures from dozens of fields, tackling topics as diverse as finding jobs for men leaving prison and federal subsidies for black farmers.

Sharpton’s “12-month action plan” to better life for black Americans measures its success by individual goal-setting – “every day, every week, every month,” said Mayor Michael Nutter of Philadelphia.

Nutter has a big goal: to reach and teach a half million adults in his city who are considered “low-literate,” which means they can read, technically, but have difficulty understanding a newspaper article or even a utility bill.

“It is impossible for parents to help their children if they can’t read,” said Nutter, who leads the largest American city with a black mayor. “It is almost impossible to lift yourself out of poverty if you can’t function at a high enough level.”

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Here is President Barack Obama’s letter to Al Sharpton for his National Action Conference

Dear Reverend Sharpton:

Congratulations to you and the National Action Network for another year of fighting for the rights of those who have no voice, and lifting up causes that would otherwise go unnoticed. I regret that I am unable to join you at what is sure to be a wonderful 2010 National Action Network convention.

This has been one of the most challenging times in our nation, but because of the work and investments we made through the Recovery Act and other policies during our first year, the economy is beginning to show signs of strength.

However, we are acutely aware of the unacceptably high unemployment rate – particularly for African Americans – and we understand the critical need to create jobs and develop pathways to opportunity. That is why we have provided $1 billion in capital for small and minority businesses in underserved communities and authorized innovative programs to develop more than 100,000 jobs for TANF recipients in 21 states. We are also investing in a skills agenda by increasing the amount of Pell Grant awards and improving support for community colleges so that workers have the tools needed to take advantage of future opportunities.

Our success enacting health insurance reform, coupled with the First Lady’s initiative on childhood obesity, will serve to reduce the alarming health disparities among African Americans. New benefits include free preventive care and increased access to medical attention through community health centers. In addition, no patient can be denied coverage based on a pre-existing condition, or lose their health care when they are sick and need it most. More than 32 million uninsured Americans will have access to health care, and millions of them are African American.

Another important agenda for this Administration is building a world-class education system that supports the aspirations of all Americans from cradle to career. Your leadership and work with those on both sides of the aisle have drawn much needed attention to this critical issue. In schools across the nation, dropout rates are too high, expectations are too low, and too few African Americans have the opportunities needed to prepare for college and careers. We are calling for more rigorous and relevant standards and accountability in our schools, and investing billions to advance reform, turnaround our most troubled schools, and reduce dropout rates. We will do more to raise the bar and improve outcomes for our youngest children before they reach kindergarten, while also investing $1 billion in black colleges and universities over the next 10 years to chart a course for a better life and brighter future.

Since its founding, the National Action Network has stood up for those without help and without hope. While many are talking about the need for transformational action, this organization is working to see it carried out. Today’s forum “Measuring the Movement” offers an opportunity to advance more solutions to the challenges we face as a nation.

We know that too many communities of color were living on the margins even before the recession hit. My Administration is dedicated to turning these great challenges into greater opportunities that significantly improve the lives of many throughout the country.

Again congratulations on today’s event, and best wishes in your pursuit of economic security, social justice, and peace for all Americans.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama

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Rev. Al Sharpton has been holding his annual National Action Network Conference this week in New York City and NewsOne.com, in collaboration with TV One & Roland Martin, has your inside scoop!

Can’t attend the lively discussion this morning? No problem! Watch it streamed live right here!

Roland Martin will be moderating a discussion titled “Measuring the Movement,” which will cover the Black agenda and a 12-month for emerging leaders. The panel will include such big names as Warren Ballentine, Dr. Charles Ogltree of Harvard Law, Judge Greg Mathis, and NewsOne’s own Dr. Boyce Watkins.

WATCH IT LIVE HERE @ 11 A.M. Saturday, April 17:

Click here to get more information about TV One’s EXCLUSIVE coverage of this historic event!

Click here to view photos!
Freedom Fighters

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Rev. Al Sharpton has been holding his annual National Action Network Conference this week in New York City and NewsOne.com, in collaboration with TV One & Roland Martin, has your inside scoop!

Can’t attend the lively discussion this morning? No problem! Watch it streamed live right here!

Roland Martin will be moderating a discussion titled “Measuring the Movement,” which will cover the Black agenda and a 12-month for emerging leaders. The panel will include such big names as Warren Ballentine, Dr. Charles Ogltree of Harvard Law, Judge Greg Mathis, and NewsOne’s own Dr. Boyce Watkins.

WATCH IT LIVE HERE @ 11 A.M. Saturday, April 17:

Click here to get more information about TV One’s EXCLUSIVE coverage of this historic event!

Click here to view photos!
Freedom Fighters

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The walls have been closing in on Paterson for weeks (with plenty of help from the NY Times, which is enthusiastically reporting every detail and angle of his downfall). But if tonight’s Harlem meeting goes south and Black leaders opt to make a unified call for his resignation, it’s hard to imagine him hanging on much longer. After all, once Paterson reaches the point where the media and other politicians can point and say, “Look, even Black people don’t support you!”, it’s a pretty short trip out the front door of the governor’s mansion. – NewsOne Staff

From NY Daily News:

ALBANY – A group of prominent black leaders will meet Thursday night in Harlem to discuss whether scandal-plagued Gov. Paterson should resign, a source told the Daily News.

“There are a lot of things that people now see as indefensible,” the source said. “A lot of people think it’s time to move on – not just for the state, but for David as well.”

The meeting comes just five days after the same group met and agreed that Paterson should be given an opportunity to serve out the remainder of his term.

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Paterson announced on Friday that he would not seek election to a full four-year term.

Since that Saturday meeting in Harlem, another round of damaging stories has emerged, leaving even his closest supporters to consider whether it’s time for Paterson to step down.

It was revealed this week that Paterson asked two people to reach out to a woman who accused one of the governor’s top aides of assaulting her to change her story. And on Wednesday, the state Public Integrity Commission said Paterson violated state law by accepting free World Series tickets last October and then lied under oath about the matter.

“The purpose of this meeting is to discuss whether he should resign,” the source said.

The idea is for the leaders who attend the meeting, which was called for 8:30 p.m. at Sylvia’s Restaurant by the Rev. Al Sharpton, is to “come together to as a cohesive voice.”

Click here to read more.

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As I sat and listened to the argument between Tavis Smiley and Rev. Al Sharpton, I was sad.  Both Tavis and Rev. Al have made tremendous contributions to the black community, and it seems that the “Great Obama Divide” has plagued our ability to move forward with a concerted agenda.  No one knows what the future holds or which ideas are going to work, so everyone believes that their approach to leveraging the opportunity that comes with a black president is the one that will work the best.  Our Black Leadership Boat is in uncharted waters, and every leader has an oar pointed in their own direction.

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Smiley and company seem to feel that President Obama isn’t engaging in enough blatant effort to prove to the world that he is committed to supporting black folks.  He argues that Obama’s efforts to reach across the isle often lead to him stretching his political legs across a pool of disgusting racism in order to establish connection with those who hate his people.   Smiley is correct in that our needs are usually put on the back burner, and that black people are suffering more than nearly anyone else during this economic crisis.

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Sharpton feels that Obama has the capacity to show compassion toward the black community and that he is attempting to do that.  His meetings with Obama have at least bore rhetorical fruit, with the president agreeing to follow-ups in the future to discuss the needs of African Americans.  This communicates, at the very least, that our president is open to genuine black advocacy.  The problem, however, is that there are some who are reluctant to challenge Obama the way they would if he were a white man.   Whether we hold our politicians accountable should be more readily reflected by the institutions they represent, rather than the color of their skin.  What is also true, however, is that both Smiley and Sharpton are holding Obama accountable.  The difference is that Smiley is forced to attack from the outside in, and Sharpton is fighting from the inside out, leading to serious conflicts of interest.

Honestly, I am not sure if there is anything that President Obama could do that would not make Tavis Smiley dislike him.   But either way, the rift between Sharpton and Smiley is an introduction to the post-Obama America, where being black no longer means being on the same page.  It means that the man (Smiley) who once referred to Bill Clinton as the first black president cannot look a real black president in the eye and give him the benefit of the doubt.   It means that Al Sharpton and other civil rights leaders are forced to do the dirty work on racial equality because our black president has been terrorized into political silence on issues of race.

RELATED: Tavis Smiley Calls Obama’s Health Care Victory “Small Change”

The post-Obama America is one where the heterogeneity of the black community becomes more prominent and undeniable.  Being a black Democrat now has a number of possible meanings, not just one.

While I hope that Smiley and Sharpton overcome their problems, I don’t think they ever will.  Sure, the public may get a chance to see them reconcile, but there are some divides that simply can’t be bridged.  Sharpton’s greatest incentive is to protect his relationship with the White House to enhance his ability to be effective.  Smiley, who has been exiled by Obama (but not Hillary Clinton), has every incentive to undermine the president’s vast support within the African American community (which is not going to work).  The Great Obama Divide is with us and won’t go away anytime soon.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.

NEW YORK – The boyfriend of one of the Rev. Al Sharpton’s daughters was charged Thursday with punching her in the face and shoving her out of a car, but a defense lawyer said the boyfriend hurled nothing more than words at her.

Latrell Peeks, 23, was released without bail after his arraignment on assault and harassment charges. He didn’t enter a plea.

Prosecutors said the 6-foot-7 Peeks punched 23-year-old Dominique Sharpton, daughter of the civil rights activist, repeatedly in the face Tuesday while the two were in a car in Manhattan’s Harlem neighborhood. She was treated at a hospital for a cut on her lip and a swollen jaw, Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Daniel Brody said.

Peeks, also 23, didn’t enter a plea. But defense lawyer Jennifer Wu said that the couple had only a verbal dispute, and that Sharpton left the car voluntarily.

A lawyer for the Sharptons, Michael Hardy, declined to comment. So did Peeks when he left the courthouse.

His grandmother, Leova Jenkins, called the charges “ridiculous.”

“He’s a good kid,” she said. He is a full-time college student also looking for work, his lawyer said.

He’s due back in court March 24, the day after Sharpton and her mother, Kathy, are set to go on trial on resisting arrest and other charges stemming from an Oct. 30 traffic stop in Harlem. Police say the two cursed at the officers, ignored orders to return to their cars and resisted being handcuffed.

Hardy says they committed no crime. They have pleaded not guilty.

Kathy Sharpton is Al Sharpton’s ex-wife; Dominique Sharpton is their eldest child.

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I talk to Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton on a regular basis.  In fact, I spoke to both of them on Sunday and Monday.  I have to start off by telling you this so you’ll know that my perspective on these two individuals might be a bit different from others.  I am never on board with everything that another person says, but I’ll admit that getting to know these men behind the scenes gives a point of view that others are not so quick to understand.

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Let me explain:  You see, mainstream media has an issue with African American men, particularly unapologetic African American “leadership,” (whatever that means).  You probably can’t think of one strong African American advocate who has not been made into a clown or had his dirty laundry aired in public.  This is not because black “leaders” have more dirty laundry than others.  I argue that it’s because the media doesn’t protect the images of black public figures the way it does for their white counter parts.  If you dig into the past of almost any respected white “leader,” you would probably find a whole lot more dirt than the media has presented to the American public.  But when it comes to Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and Louis Farrakhan, all bets are off.

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With that said, I think it should be made clear that neither of these men are perfect, and neither was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  In fact, Dr. King died a very unpopular man and his heroic legacy was only restored after his death.  America has never loved black people who’ve pushed the envelope and forced America to look at itself in the mirror.  It is for their struggles and commitment to fighting for something greater than themselves that I will always respect Rev. Jackson and Rev. Sharpton.   In general, I believe in respecting my elders, for their contributions pave the way for the rest of us.

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There are also deeper issues to consider in America’s fight for fairness.  One of the things I find most interesting is that people who complain about men like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton aren’t doing a damn thing themselves.  They will stare at the TV as armchair quarterbacks and complain about this and that, all the while, they aren’t doing anything to advance the causes that they expect their “leaders” to promote.  I get the emails every single day:

“We had a lady get shot in our neighborhood, and where was Jesse Jackson when that went down?  Naw, he was on TV making his money.”

“Al Sharpton wasn’t in California when the black man had his rent money stolen.  He only cares about himself.”

When I get these emails in my inbox (I get tons of them), my reactions to people are the following:

a) Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton nor anyone else can be in all places at once. Even when you travel constantly to do as much as you can (exhausting yourself in the process), there are still going to be incidents that you simply don’t have time to address.  The “Super Negro” Theory for Civil Rights must be abolished.

b) The person who is doing all the complaining in their email is usually doing absolutely nothing himself. So, my first response to the person who asks me why I’m not doing this or doing that is to say, “As soon as you send me a list of all the things you’re doing to help black people, I’ll send you a list of my own.”

My response is not meant to belittle the person’s comment or to attack them.  It is to remind them that this fight belongs to all of us, not just a few figure heads that we see on TV.  The Chicago Bulls were never a great team when the players stood around watching Michael Jordan take all the shots.  They were a great team when everyone got the ball and everyone played a role.  Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream doesn’t just live in a fantasy, it lives inside of you.  So, as you get tempted to complain about what others are and are not doing, or find yourself upset that their strategy doesn’t match the one you’d endorse, find the time to get involved in the fight yourself.  You might find that it’s far more difficult than you think.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.

From The New York Daily News

The Rev. Al Sharpton will celebrate the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday with a mercy mission to Haiti.

“There will be no better way to say happy birthday to Martin Luther King,” Sharpton told people gathered at a vigil at the Haitian Consulate in Manhattan on Wednesday. “We all have some Haitian in us, and we stand in solidarity with the Haitian people until Haiti is restored.”

Sharpton said he plans to leave Friday, the actual date of King’s birth, for Atlanta with a delegation of lawmakers and clergy.

After a sermon at the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King preached, the group will fly to Haiti – where rapper Wyclef Jean is sizing up the situation.

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Gilbert Arenas has responded to Al Sharpton’s criticism and request that NBA commissioner, David Stern, punish Arenas.

Here’s what Arenas has been writing on Twitter

Al Sharpton comments ill try to be as nice as he was too me on my next tweet

For a kid who does a lot of work for the black community I didn’t get the memo u were still one of our black leaders becuz if u was

U wouldn’t have made a comment like that befor gettn all the faxs str8..I hav my black leaders tattooed on my leg I call it black rush more

That’s Martin,Obama,Mr X,and Mandela..so next time before u wash ur hands of something pls hear the real story..God bless..the black C

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NEW YORK – Thousands of mourners filled Riverside Church on Wednesday for the funeral of Percy Sutton, a former Tuskegee Airman, a media mogul, power broker and pioneering civil rights attorney who represented Malcolm X.

Among the dignitaries gathered at the church were Attorney General Eric Holder, Gov. David Paterson, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Sen. Charles Schumer. Two of Malcolm X’s daughters also attended.

Speaking to the people gathered in the church’s pews, Holder called Sutton “one of the nation’s true heroes.”

“I admired, respected and worked for him,” he continued. “The opportunities given to my generation were paid for by his.”

The Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton were among a group that escorted Sutton’s relatives into the church. In a chapel near the main sanctuary, Sutton lay in a coffin, dressed in a Navy blue suit, white shirt and a tie.

“The tallest tree in our forest has fallen,” Jackson said of Sutton, who died on Dec. 26. He was 89. “You’ve paved the way, Mr. Chairman. Be at rest,” Jackson concluded.

Bloomberg said that city buildings lowered flags in honor of Sutton, and that a building that houses three Manhattan public schools would be renamed the Percy Ellis Sutton Educational Complex.

Attalah Shabazz, one of Malcolm X’s daughters, said Sutton was not merely her father’s attorney. She said the two were “brethren.”
“Even when things weren’t on his side, he was always on yours. Am I right?” she said to applause from the sanctuary, which was filled to capacity.

U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel and former New York Mayor David Dinkins also attended. And Stevie Wonder sang his hit, “I’ll Be Loving You Always.”
Sutton, who was born in Texas, served with the famed Tuskegee Airmen, an all-black unit, in World War II before coming to Harlem, where he launched a trailblazing career in civil rights, politics and broadcasting. He served in the New York State Assembly and was Manhattan borough president.

Through his Harlem law firm, which he founded in 1953, he represented civil rights activists including Malcolm X and the slain activist’s relatives — even in their darkest times.

Sutton, along with Dinkins, served as attorneys for Malcolm Shabazz, the grandchild of the activist who was 12 when he set the 1997 fire that killed his grandmother, Betty Shabazz, Malcolm X’s widow, in her Yonkers apartment.

Sutton turned his attention to broadcasting by 1971, becoming, along with his brother, Oliver, pioneer black owners of a radio station in New York City.

His Inner City Broadcasting Corp. eventually picked up WBLS-FM, which reigned for years as New York’s top-rated radio station, before buying stations in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Detroit and San Antonio.

Through the company, Sutton bought the Apollo Theater in 1981, rescuing the Harlem landmark from impending demise.

Jackie Robinson’s widow, Rachel, arrived early at the packed church and appeared shaken. She said her family loved and admired Sutton, who was her son’s godfather.

Marc Morial, the president of the National Urban League, called Sutton a “great man.”

“He was part of a generation that transformed the nation. He was a renaissance man.” Morial said, referring to Sutton’s involvement in law, politics, business and civil rights.

Referring to the throngs of people who lined up outside the church before services waiting to get inside, Morial said, “It is a testament to his incredible contribution, not only to Harlem and New York, but to the nation.”

Morial said young people would do well to study Sutton’s life, particularly his “stick-to-it-ness” and the barriers he overcame.

Dinkins said history would speak of Sutton as one of the most “dynamic, determined and dedicated men who ever walked these streets.”

“Percy Ellis Sutton departed us paid in full,” Dinkins said. “Let him not look down and find any of us in arrears.”

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From The New York Daily News

WASHINGTON – Calling out black leadership groups, the NBA, and even White House security, the Rev. Al Sharpton jumped into the Gilbert Arenas circus Monday, injecting the topic of race into the conversation on the same day the Wizards guard spoke with federal prosecutors.

The civil rights activist urged NBA commissioner David Stern to come down hard on Arenas, who admitted to stockpiling unloaded weapons in his locker last month. Arenas said Monday that removing the weapons from his locker was a “misguided effort to play a joke on a teammate.” Sharpton, who spoke with Stern by phone Monday and hopes to meet with him later this week, was not in a laughing mood.

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“The NBA needs to stand up and send a strong message by dealing with this situation,” Sharpton told the Daily News. He also chided black leadership groups for not speaking out about the “culture of violence being perpetuated in professional sports.” Sharpton cited former Giant Plaxico Burress as an example of professional athletes run amok.

“This all happened in the Verizon Center?” Sharpton said. “This is the same place where the Obamas watched a Wizards game (on Feb. 27, 2009). You telling me that he had guns in the locker room when Obama went to the game?”

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