Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

4A ®Ijt l)pra(b <©a?tttf Tuesday, February 9,2021 Opinions Reflecting on MLK Jr., where we stand now JACK BERNARD Red and Black guest column “A nation that con tinues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death. The problems of racial injustice and eco nomic injustice cannot be solved without a radical redistribution of political and economic power. ” Martin Luther King Jr., 1967 We are now into Black History Month — and this is the right time to think back at who Martin Luther King Jr. really was and what he truly represented, not just the Ghandi-like myth. 1 never met the man, but 1 ad mire him tremendously as an American change agent. In reality, MLK Jr. raised the moral bar for all public figures. He was a good man who preached non-violence but wanted to strongly confront injustice. He was the spiritual prede cessor of Warnock ... and Jon Ossoff, a progressive Jew, for that matter. He believed in peace and true equality of the races. When 1 think back to Georgia in the 1960s, 1 recall that he was not popular among the vast majority of my fellow whites. In fact, it was common to hear them call him a “radical”, a “socialist” and a “com munist” (and, of course, racial epithets). 1 have heard the same over the last few months about another prominent Black Georgia preacher, includ ing receiving literally dozens of postcards from the GOP containing these lies. 1 was a student at the University of Georgia during the mid-sixties, some of the worst years after desegregation. 1 remember walking into a French class and notic ing no one sitting around the one Black student in the class. Without much thought about it, 1 sat down next to her, and all of the other seats quickly filled in. Small acts can have larger, lasting im pacts. 1 also remember at tending a full staff meet ing at The Red & Black where the elderly, very Southern faculty advisor told the editorial staff not to cover civil rights at UGA in depth because it was too controversial. The editorial staff threat ened to resign. Around that time at UGA, MLK Jr. was criti cized as anti-American and a “trouble-maker” for saying we were too mili taristic. It was charged that he was trying to to tally defund our military and was disrespecting our troops. Critics said his domestic proposals would raise taxes and violate American values. They said he wanted to let lawlessness run loose in the streets (1 was told this by a white UGA Law Professor). Just like what they said about Rev. Raphael Warnock, the pastor who until recently preached full time at Ebenezer Baptist, MLK Jr’s, church, until he was elected U.S. Senator from Georgia. MLK knew that jus tice was not going to be achieved by simply sit ting back and waiting. As he told white moderates in his Letter from a Bir mingham jail, we cannot accept a “negative peace which is the absence of tension” rather than “a positive peace which is the presence of justice.” I was thinking of this quote when 1 heard white supremacists in our Congress saying that we must now quickly “rec oncile” after the murder ous white power riot at the Capitol, while never admitting their own elec tion transgressions, in cluding encouraging the violent mob (Fox News, 1-21, “Ted Cruz”). When I was with the Atlanta poverty program in the early 1970s, 1 heard MLK Sr. speak to the other board members. 1 don’t remember the ex act details of his presen tation, but I do recall that he advocated for equality and for actively lifting up the poor. And the fact that he frequently cited Jesus and his dead son. It was personal to him, as well it should be. But for the rest of us, regard less of color, who believe in the legacy of MLK Jr., the fight must be person al as well. Only then can we achieve a “positive peace” with justice for all Americans. Things have changed for the better since the 60s when I attended UGA, but the struggle for real equality is far from over. This Black History Month, we should reflect on what is yet to be ac complished and work harder for a true pres ence of justice. Black History theme: The Black family: representation, identity and diversity LETTERS TO THE EDITOR stand, divided we fall The Association for the Study of African American Life And Histo ry has provided the 2021 Black History Theme en titled The Black Family: Representation, Identity and Diversity. “The black family has been a topic of study in many disciplines - his tory, literature, the visual arts and film studies, sociology, anthropol ogy and social policy. Its representation, identity and diversity have been reverenced, stereotyped and vilified from the days of slavery to our own time. The black family knows no single location, since family reunions and genetic-ancestry searches testify to the spread of family mem bers across states, na tions and continents. Not only are individual black families diasporic, but Africa and the diaspora itself have been long portrayed as the black family at large. While the After a virtual presen tation and ranking by its members, Lamar Gives 365 announced its grant recipients for 2021 fund ing. Boys & Girls Club, $5000 for cubbies, com puters and operating funds. Lamar County recre ation department, $3707 for special needs inclu sive play equipment. Donavan’s Dream, $3500 for food bank op erations and equipment. Lamar County Fire & Rescue, $3200 for medi cal training equipment. Lamar County Middle School, $3000 for the REACH Scholarship program. Hope Tree Ministries, The Great Day of Service, once an integral part of life in Barnesville- Lamar County, is making a comeback March 20. Gor don State Col lege is working to bring back this tradition. The workday, in which volunteers simultane ously performed multiple projects, began in 2010. It was an annual event for six years and over that role of the black fam ily has been described by some as a micro cosm of the entire race, its complexity as the “foundation” of African American life and history can be seen in numerous debates over how to rep resent its meaning and typicality from a histori cal perspective - as slave or free, as patriarchal or matriarchal/matrifo- cal, as single-headed or dual-headed household, as extended or nuclear, as Active kin or blood lineage, as legal or com mon law and as black or interracial, etc. Variation appears, as well, in dis cussions on the nature and impact of parenting, childhood, marriage, gender norms, sexuality and incarceration. The family offers a rich tapes try of images for explor ing the African American past and present.” $3000 for food bank op erations. Lamar Arts, $1900 for kids’ art and drama camps. Lamar County Health Department, $1200 for ultraviolet germ killing lights. Lamar County 4-H, $976 for virtual learning equipment. Lamar County Senior Center, $629.25 for com puter room renewal. Gordon State College Foundation, $629.25 for the revival of the Great Day of Service. Barnesville Library, $629.25 for security cameras. Rock Springs Clinic, $629.25 for operating costs. time span hundreds of projects were completed. Now GSC is hoping to unite churches, schools, businesses, civic clubs and indi viduals to bring the tradition back to life. If you are inter ested in getting involved or would like more infor mation, contact Jeremy Monroe at 678-359-5887 or e-mail jeremym@gor- donstate.edu. United we Recently I had the pleasure of reading your paper for the first time and may I say I feel you and your staff are doing a remarkable job with it! I happened to read the letters to the edi tor section and was so impressed with one I felt led to respond with one of my own. Ms. Altman ‘hit the nail on the head’ with her summation of what our President Donald J. Boy Scout Over the last year, the pandemic has cre ated challenges for many organizations in our com munity. The Flint River Council has certainly not been immune to work ing with a different set of obstacles to share Scouting with the youth in our community due to COVID-19. Over this time, we have seen the work of many volunteers con tinue as the Boy Scouts of America continues its mission to mold the minds of America’s Youth. Our future is bright. The resolve of the American people is strong, and we will defeat this pandemic. While the pandemic has been at the fore front of our minds, our Nation has seen other challenges from racial injustice, protests, and The Herald Gazette welcomes letters to the editor. For a letter to be considered for publica tion, please include the writer’s actual name, Trump accomplished! I read and reread and passed to others. There are millions who would agree as well! While the politicians fight like children, many other countries are lick ing their lips, laughing at our great America as we head down a road of destruction from within. They would be ecstatic to be able to obtain our land, agricultural prod ucts, technology and division. In Scouting, we strive to bring people together and create a unified America. Scouting focuses on ways we can work together. America and our youth deserve nothing less. Our Council has of fered Scouting in a safe environment over the past several months. We have had events follow ing local and CDC guide lines. As of the writing of this letter, we have not had a reported instance of COVID-19 originating from one of our activities. Scouting is fun, safe, and we want to invite you to join us in helping to bring character development to the young people in our community. If you are an adult looking to mentor young people, what better way address and telephone number. Limit letters to 250 words or less. Shorter letters are ap preciated. All letters are subject to editing. even harvest our DNA. They are already using many forms of artificial intelligence against us. We are in the ‘quiet be fore the storm’ I feel and there is no ‘used to be’ many long for. I pray that God give our country a ‘wake up call’ and remind our population, “united we stand, divided we fall!’ to do that than Scouting? If you have a child look ing to get involved in an outdoors program, point them to us. We would welcome the opportunity to get a young person you know engaged with the Boy Scouts of America. Our member ship is open to boys and girls aged 5-18. We have age appropriate pro gramming facilitated by committed adult mentors in our community. To get signed up or to get more information, look us up online at beascout.org or give us a call at 770-227- 4556.1 hope to see you around a campfire in the near future. SINCERELY, ROBERTYJOHNSON Scout Executive/CEO Flint River Council, Boy Scouts of America Send letters to RO. Box 220, Barnesville, 30204, email it to news@ barnesville.com or drop it by 509 Greenwood Street, Barnesville. FLASHBACK In honor of Elizabeth Sellers Feb. 7-13 10 years ago Jennifer Clark was found guilty of multiple charges in connection with the death of her husband Donald Clark and sentenced to life plus 60 years in prison. Donald Clark disap peared Nov. 18, 2011. His body was found dumped in a Redbone cornfield on Christmas Eve. Clark had been beaten in the head with a metal base ball bat while he slept. 25 years ago The parapet on the old bank building at the corner of Main and Atlanta streets collapsed, raining debris down onto the roadway. A van was struck but the driver escaped with only minor injuries. The often cussed train had down town blocked, likely saving more damage and possibly lives. The build ing was owned by Paul Schmidt at the time. 50 years ago The Gordon Military High School Bulldogs defeated Mt. DeSales 77- 74 in an overtime thriller here. Sheroid Barrett had 30 points to lead Gordon. Other scorers for the Bulldogs were Gerald Sloan (25), John McEach- ern (11), Alan Sykes (6), Jimmy Poore (3) and Butch Armistead (2). 100 years ago Collier Mills started up again this week after a shut-down of two or three months, putting on a force of about 75 operatives. There was considerable rejoicing among the people of the community over the starting up of the big plant. It is also an indica tion that business and financial conditions are improving. SUBMITTED BY DOROTHY CARTER Lamar Gives 365 grant recipients listed Great Day of Service to return March 20 Letter printing guidelines NITA MCFARUN membership is open Wfyt Heraltr #a^tte barnesville.com 770.358.NEWS P.0. Box 220 Publishers Staff SUBSCRIBE DEADLINES 509 Greenwood Street Walter Geiger Nolan George $30 per year in Lamar and sur- The deadline for public notices Barnesville, Ga. 30204 Laura Geiger Rachel McDaniel rounding counties; $40 outside is noon Thursdays; news and 770-358-NEWS Tasha Webster the local area. advertising before noon Fridays. barnesville.com General Manager Includes 24/7 access to Early submission is appreciated. E-mail: news@barnesville.com Missy Ware barnesville.com