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MSJEANNIE LEDFORD G 4 Npw SPAPE AUGUST;
’ FROJ CHIPS DEPT, MAIN 11 GA PERMIT NO 302
ATHENS, GA 30602-164
Metro Augusta,
eDL T — : South sc..mm and The CSRA
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November 30 - December 6, 2006
An ‘lmperfect’ Death
Wake Forest University
recently put a spotlight on
the existence of the death
penalty in an imperfect jus
tice system
Page 2A
s
Page 3A
Vick logi for
obscene md% to
fans
Page 8A
-
Article of Discrimi
nation
Page 5A
The Responsible
Thing
P
On the Real with
Miss Monique...
Page 1B
TV Column: Fox
off easy on O.]. wm
Michael Richards
Baya the price
age 1B
The biblical response
" to_a person with
gly?sf Sulli
ullivan
Page 2‘3
R T ISP PRI .
Check out the Christ
mas wish list on
Page 6A
Julius Scott Named
Interim President of
Savannah State
Page GA
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Vol. 25, No. 1268
The Black Church
[t has been just a couple of
months removed from our
Conference with Black Minis
ters and others at the Good
Shepherd Baptist Church. It is
m(}zm that we are stll in a state
of distress; not only over our
relatonship with other races,
but with fi?llnw blacks — specif
ically those who occupy local
pulpits. However, when we at
the Augusta Focus voiced con
crms lt]fiat black ministers were
assodating with conservatves
(especially when considering
their appallinfi treatment mt
lcaivc?' towards us as a people),
basically, it fell on deaf ears.
The conference was initated
to organize our churches. Ide
ally, the intent was that we
could come together and stop a
lot of this li(tt- bickering tfiat
we have allowed to fester
among ourselves. “This church
s nm} at another because their
sanctuary is bigger than theirs
or ‘this churdffi( esnt want to
rarticipatc with this church
ecause they reccived funding
that another church didnt.’ fi
Several ex-guards charged with
manslaughter in boot camp death
By MELISSA NELSON
Associated Press Writer
PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP)
_ Seven former juvenile boot
camp guards were charged with
avated manslawfi\tcr Tues
}g{ Nov. 28 for their video
taped manhandling of a 14-
year-old boy who Eu'r died, a
casc that lcci to the dismantling
of the state's military-style
detention system for young
offenders.
Also charged was a nurse can
be seen watching on the 3})& as
the men repeatedly kneed and
hit Martin Lee Anderson. He
had collapsed while doing
roup exercises at the Bay
b)unty sheriff's camp in Pana
ma City on Jan. 5. Guards said
he was uncooperative and had
refused to particdpate. He died
the next day.
Special prosecutor Mark
Ober's announcement of
charges came after Anderson's
parents had long demanded the
arrest of the guards they
accused of murder. :
Benjamin Crump, the lawyer
for the parents, salg there is no
doubt th suards are guilty after
watching s\(‘ videotape.
“You wouldn't do this to
our dog. Stuffing ammonia
zabk'ts u)s his nfg;t,’ pulling his
neck back, covering his
mouth,” he said at a news con-
New Bethlehem Center Hosts Holiday Feast
By DEBORAH W. MOODY
Augusta Focus Staff Writer
The best way to get to
know your neighbors is to
invite them over for dinner.
Pumpkin pie, cranberr
sauce and turkey with a}l’
the trimmings were avail
able to the hch Bethlehem
Community area residents,
thanks to (t{mc many volun
teers on hand for the
Thanksgiving Fellowshi
Dinner Ecld %Vcdncsday. “fi
was a great turnout,’
beamed volunteer Louis
Gilmore. He shared, “More
than more than 260 people
attended the dinner tfiis
r:ar- that is 100 more than
ast ycar’s Thanksgiving
meal.” Mr. Gilmorcs&ad to
schedule special transporta
tion to og his services to
the event. “Although he is
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truthf-l.xlly comes down to
churches just being jealous of
vther churches and we all know
where the root of that jealousy
stems from —the pulpit. \;a.
have heard on many occasions,
people not wanting to schedule
il community event at
&‘lfi(}n we, knowing Beulah
Grove was actually one of the
few structures that could house
everyone involved- ‘because
they think they are all that’
However, after further review
and some intense investigation,
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Photo by REUTERS/Mark Wallheiser/Tallahassee Democrat
(UNITED STATES)
Tallahassee Florida college students raise thelr fists in the air as
they block the front doors to the Florida State Capitol after post
ing fllers of Martin Lee Anderson all over the front doors, after
they marched on the Capitol buliding to protest the delay In fil
ing charges in the case In this October 19, 2006 file photo. Eight
former staff members of a Florida juvenile boot camp have been
charged with mansiaughter In the death of the 14-year-old boy
whose beating by guards was captured on videotape, prosecu
tors sald on November 28, 2006.
ference where the parents also
planned to speak.
The death sparked protests at
the state Capitol and Tcd to the
climinatior;) of the state's mili
-style boot cam tem
:3 d?;k resignation ()F Flfida's
top law cnfg::'mcnt officer.
l;'hc cight former employees
of the now-closed camp
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4 Photos by Renee Norris
2006 Thanksgiving Fellowship Volunteers: Jessica White, Miidred Carter, Lula Waters, Brenda King,
Ashley Lynch, Casey Lynch, Mary Gregory, Linda Brown, Annette Etienne, and Elaine Mathews,
Executive Director.
wheelchair-bound, he
labored as hard as the other
volunteers,” said Elaine
Mathews, Executive Direc
tor of the center.
The zeal surrounding the
Subscribe to the Augusta Focus, Call (706) 722-4222
RIR T R T RRR R R RRRR RR RN RO,
we have come to this conclu
sion. In most cascs, it is the peo
ple who make these comments
and think a particular church,
for whatever reason ‘is all of
that.
Consider a historical glancc
at the black church in this area
and its preachers. We strc )n*fly
believe it has and should be the
ministers that help mold our
()utl(x)k on l()czll p()llUQ and
social philosophy. For many
blacks, not nnll; in Augusta but
also in the naton, raiginn Is
were being arrested Tuesday
aftcrn()(m, with some
reporting to Bay County
court to make initial
appearances. They face up
to 30 years in prison if con
victed of the first-degree
felony.
Sce Camp, page 10A
United Methodist Church
sponsored New Bethlehem
Community Center is
infectious. Annette Etienne
braved walking through the
rain to aid in the prepara
www.augustafocus.com
not just a passing attitude, but
also a way of life. For us now
and traditonally, ‘the church’
has long stood at the center of
Black communities. To capture
a sense ()f' [hc shan:d hist()ric:l]
experiences of African-Ameri
cans, in particular those that are
Christian, the phrase “the Black
Church™ evolved. Although
the term ‘the Black Church'is a
bit misleading, it presents a tan
gible quality to the intricacies of
racial and religious institutions
unique to African-American
Teacher-coach denies
improper conduct
with students
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) _
A high school football coach
and teacher dentes a third alle
gation against him in six
months of improper conduct
involving a student, and pre
sented administrators with stu
dent statements refuting the
carlier episodes.
Karns High coach and
teacher John Fulkerson, 52,
learned Monday in a meeting
with school officials why he was
suspended last week. He
allegedly touched a female stu
dent inappropriately and made
sexual remarks on more than
one occasion.
“I deny these allegations and
will provide a written
response,” Ferguson wrote in
the official letter in his person
nel file outlining the charge. “I
expect this response be strongly
considered prior to any (if any)
disciplinary action.”
The girl cdlaimed Fulkerson
recently changed one of her test
scores by adding 20 points and
that since then the “sexual
remarks and physical touching
have increased in frequency and
intensity.”
Fulkerson's attorney, David
tion and serving of the feast.
“I love volunteering. There
is such an excitement and
personal satisfaction in
helping others,” she said.
Ms. Etienne, along with
FIFTY CENTS
History. In laymans terms, the
black church may not be all it
was in times past. However, it
used to be the real deal on how
blacks operated and made dea
slons. El:ack History and the
Black Church history intersect
at many points as to be almost
identical.
| We have scen on many occa
sions in history and even
recendy, in which sodal and
poliical experiences of blacks
cither affected or were affected
by Black Churches. Therefore,
if) you think about it, the term
“Black Church” is a misnomer.
In most cases, you would think
the term implies that all black
churches share or have shared
the same aspirations and strate
gles for creating cohesive
African-American communi
tes. This is so far from the
truth. Apply this logic to the
recent election, where, in most
cases, the black ministers would
have desired a black mayor.
See Church, page 9A
Burkhalter, said the female stu
dent “had previously expressed
anger at my client for unrelated
issues and he had previously
given her a failing grade. The
situation involving the
was a few days mrc mmea?g
ual) allegations were made.”
Knox County schools
spokesman Russ Oaks said, “At
tms point, nobody has been
determined to be guilty of any
thing. We will wait unal facts
are ascertained through the
investigation process.”
Fulkerson and his attorney
filed papers with the school sys
tem Monday containing stu
dent statements debunking or
mitigating carlier allegations.
Flfik&?&%m was Cl}fillocd on
administrative leave in May
while school offidals investigat
ed claims he belitded a stu
dent's religious beliefs by u:l;fi
her to sit down and “jusg,
your Bible.” Another allegation
surfaced from the same dass
that he asked “an African-
American student if she got her
name ‘from your three dad
dies.”
See Teacher, page 10A
s
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Volunteer Louis Gilmore and
executive director Elaine Math
ews exchange heartfell hugs
over the success of the event.
several of the other volun
teers, assists with several
other programs operating
within this organization.
See Bethlehem, page 9A