For the first time in their career, The Roots have nothing to prove.

No longer the scrappy underdog trying to add much needed depth to hip-hop, the Philadelphia collective have earned respect and have loaned their signature sound to artists of all varieties. But the great — and risky — thing about The Roots is that although they can now sit with the heavy-hitters, they still keep their seats at the outsiders’ table warm.

The artists on The Roots Picnic bill, including Santogold (a disappointing no-show), Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings and noise-rock band Deerhoof, were all little-known indie acts with segmented fan bases. Without any other big name acts — except Gnarls Barkley who are still scratching their heads at their meteoric rise — The Roots packed the Festival Pier at Penn’s Landing Saturday proving their stance as music tastemakers.

DJ Jazzy Jeff gave a true Philadelphia welcome, spinning every hip-hop classic imaginable from coast to coast — giving extended play to the city’s own — and mixing in his trademark scratch techniques. The early birds who rotated between an air-conditioned, carnival-sized tent and the sun’s chokehold were dumbfounded when the Roots set up and performed less than two hours after the doors opened.

Frontman Black Thought opened with songs from the groups’ early albums, yet all eyes were on amiable drummer ?uestlove — the only drummer whose fame eclipses that of the leading man.

Jazz prodigy Esperanza Spalding, 23, turned what could have been a dull interlude into a finger snapping lounge session. The charming jazz vocalist plucked the strings of her acoustic bass with such deft the audience forgot the instrument was the size of a giraffe and two times her slim frame.

Guest drummer ?uestlove gave the electro-funk-soul group J*Davey, a much needed credibility boost. It took a few songs to adjust to the California duo’s Prince/new wave hybrid sound and lead female singer Jack Davey’s spastic movements, but they walked away with some converts.

Chicago rap duo The Cool Kids made the mistake of popping on stage without an introduction. One minute the crowd was shooting in and out of water hoses, then they looked up to see two guys dressed in Crayon colors trading rhymes. After the group zipped through tracks from their struggling sophomore album, they won over the crowd with their rendition of the Jazzy Jeff/Fresh Prince classic, “Summertime.”

Picking up the energy, Black Thought showed up in rare form going into a James Brown impression, channeling the soul man in song and dance. Yes, the rapper known for his heavy swagger found his good foot and singing voice in a wildly entertaining set, leaving his band members bent over in laughter.

Keeping the old school vibe, the basement funk band the Dap-Kings hyped the crowd for lead singer Sharon Jones, only to find the mic cut off when the vigorous singer yanked it from the stand. The well-oiled Dap-Kings went midway through their first song with Jones’ voice barely heard past the front rows. Not missing a beat, Jones gave a commanding performance and belted roaring codas that brought chills.

The Roots took the stage for their last appearance starting off with songs from their latest release, going down the list of fan favorites and squeezing in a game of “Name That Tune” hip-hop edition.

Even though the set was a non-stop adrenaline rush, every now and then fans would bend their necks toward backstage to see who might join the band on stage. Where was Chrisette Michele for “Rising Up,” Erykah Badu for “You Got Me,” Common, Mos Def? Some even asked about original Roots members Dice Raw and Rahzel, the human beatbox. Still, the Roots were more than filling without the Dave Chapelle Block Party guest appearances.

By the time co-headliner Gnarls Barkley appeared, many fans had left, most were hung over and the rest were dizzy from heat exhaustion. Some loyalists remained and were treated to an average Gnarls showing with small talk from a surprisingly mild Cee-Lo.

Unfortunately, after the Roots and a one-hour lull in between, Gnarls found themselves performing for a crowd who would have been content with an extended version of “Crazy” as the last call selection.

Heather Faison

Soul/Jazz songstress Ledisi

Tribune Contributor

When Ledisi headlined at World Café Live last spring, her show scarcely filled the two-story venue. Wednesday night, the New Orleans born jazz and soul singer returned to a full house that quickly turned standing room only 10 minutes into her set.

Fans were leaning against the walls and standing in stairwells, some balancing plates of grilled salmon while singing along, not missing a beat.

This was not the same spring crowd.

Ledisi came back to Philly with a palpable industry buzz, compliments of her two recent Grammy nominations.

She sauntered on the stage in mustang red, Aldo heels (4 and 1/2 inches to be exact) and commanded attention before belting a single note. Supported by a well-oiled band and equally impressive backup singers, Ledisi sang a mix of neo-soul cuts from her first major label release, “Lost and Found,” and jazz infused songs that established her in the San Francisco club scene.

Swinging her fluid hips, wrapped in a black and white cocktail dress, she wasted no time coaxing, and opened with a foot-stomping rendition of “I Tried.” Running through vocal octaves with ease and flinging her hazelnut locs with the fervor of a rock star, her effervescence caught some off-guard.

“I’m thinking about my week ya’ll! It was amazing!” she shouted, referencing her Grammy weekend experience. Though she didn’t go home with the award for best new artist or R&B album of the year, getting her album to the masses was her trophy. “I’m acknowledged now,” she said. The crowd’s eruption to the opening keys of her latest single “Alright” supported her declaration.

Fans lifted up the tea candles decorating the tables and swayed to the feel-good anthem — all to Ledisi’s amusement. Where she took a breath, her audience filled in the words.

Scatting entire verses with the dexterity of Ella Fitzgerald, Ledisi is an anomaly in today’s soul music landscape. She is an R&B artist, signed to jazz label Verve Forecast (once home to Will Downing), who can blend other genres (hip-hop and soul, especially) into easy to swallow portions. Her melting pot of melodies is at its best with a live band.

The audience, made up mostly of middle-aged couples and first-night daters, roared with delight during Ledisi’s set of slow songs. This audience could appreciate the singer’s desire for love, with all the trimmings.

She asked her elusive lover, “Will you be here in the morning, to love me?” as she lured her audience through “In The Morning.” Playing the role of a sultry temptress, Ledisi displayed her seamless voice control and uncanny ability to shift the mood. Her stage presence reflects that of a seasoned artist, not a label project finding her way.

She recalled her journey in a sermonic interlude, gently reprimanding her audience about deferring their dreams. “Find your calling today, stop sitting on it,” she warned. “I learned that the hard way.” Though her sound may be new to some, Ledisi is a 13-year music veteran who has struggled to catch her big break and gain industry validation.

Before Verve gave her the financial backing to take her sound beyond the Bay, she released two critically acclaimed albums independently, studied on Broadway and gave a standout performance on the all-star
Luther Vandross tribute album, “Forever, For Always, For Luther.”

As she repeated throughout the show, “I’ve been here, all the time.” We’re just crashing the party.

Heather Faison, Staff Writer

Posted: 9/1/05

Kenny Tracy stood in the lobby of the Howard University Middle School of Mathematics and Science smiling from ear-to-ear as he snapped pictures of his daughter, Kenya, in her brand new school uniform. At the urging of school administrators, Kenny reluctantly released Kenya into the care of her homeroom teacher, but as he watched her walk to class, his confidence was restored because he realized that the opportunity that was being afforded to his daughter was special.
“Kenya truly needs this academy in her life,” said Tracy.
Kenya, 11, is just one of 120 sixth graders who were accepted into Howard’s brand new middle school, which just opened its doors this past Monday. The school will enforce a rigorous academic curriculum, expose students to technological advances by providing each with a laptop and is planning to implement new teaching methods focusing on math and science subjects in an effort to increase minorities’ interest in those fields.
“The (school) is necessary to respond to the relatively low performance of the majority of urban youth in the areas of mathematics and science,” said Stella Pla, the school’s chief operating officer.
Kenya was selected from an unbiased lottery and has been excited about attending the school since the open house. The night before school started, Kenya eagerly ironed her white button down shirt and navy blue skirt and lined her dark colored socks on her dresser in preparation for her first day.
“She was very excited that night before and the next morning she was up, ready to go, and stuffed her book bag with 50,000 folders and binders,” laughed Tracy.
Tracy believes that the middle school was a “Godsend” for their family, when compared to the headaches and disappointments he faced while Kenya attended a D.C. public elementary school.
“The D.C. public school system is failing our youth, and their shortcomings and negligence affected my children,” Tracy said.
Tracy, a former educator in math and science, takes pride and a degree of personal responsibility for his daughter’s education. When his daughters were puzzled by a simple division problem he was infuriated, not with them, but with their schools.
“Teachers always say, ‘Oh, your child is doing so well’ and ‘there’s no need to worry,’ when in reality they are not being honest because they are not doing their jobs,” Tracy said. “I am not satisfied with that.”
Although Tracy wants his children to have the possible best education, as a single parent working a late shift security job, sending his daughters to a private or charter school simply isn’t an option.
“The cost of private school is ridiculous,” said Tracy.
After fighting a losing battle with his daughter’s teachers at Mildred E. Gibbs public school, which is within walking distance of their home, Tracy received an e-mail about Howard middle school’s lottery and jumped at the chance to get Kenya in their first class, which was open only to prospective sixth graders.
After she was selected, Kenya was relieved to leave the school that left her few fond memories. When asked if she would miss her old school Kenya, who is very soft-spoken and a bit shy, responded with a resounding “no.” While there, Kenya said she learned more than reading, writing, and arithmetic.
“I’m glad to leave my old school, there was too much bad stuff like cursing,” Kenya said.
Although Kenya has only been at Howard’s new middle school one week, Tracy is pleased with the school and impressed with many of its amenities – including the proximity cards that students must scan to monitor their attendance, the classes that parents must attend to learn and improve their computer skills, and the low student to teacher ratio, with a maximum of 20 students per class. This, in particular, has been lost on Kenya.
“I used to sit at a table with a lot of people, and they would talk a lot, especially during a test,” Kenya said. “But at my new school, it wasn’t crowded.”
Tracy feels his daughter will excel in her new environment, but not without sacrifice.
“These are well-educated people at the helm who have pretty futuristic ideas for education, and I am very confident in them,” Tracy said. “She will have hard work and hard days ahead, but she’s excited about learning and this opportunity will open her mind to endless possibilities.”

“I’ve been telling people since it came out three years ago, ‘Oh, a new wireless system to cover the city. That’s great.’ But it’s not going to close the digital divide alone,” says Pokras, a native of Philadelphia.

The city of Philadelphia recently announced the successful testing of their wireless internet project, which will span 135 square miles, making it the biggest citywide system in the country. Cities across the nation have been testing municipal wireless systems and marketing the service as a blanket solution to solving the country’s widening digital divide between the economically disadvantaged and the economically privileged. According to Microsoft.com, Austin, Texas; Baton Rouge, La.; Orlando, Fla.; and San Francisco are cities with the most extensive public wireless high-speed Internet coverage.

The hope is that if low-income citizens have internet access for free or at low-cost it will decrease the number of people who are slighted by the lack of access to Internet resources. Yet, some argue that access to the internet without computer training and the hardware to operate the service is counterproductive, therefore does little or nothing to close the gap between those who use the internet and those who do not.

“Having internet access solely and having no computer … to connect to the internet is kind of pointless”, says Greg Goldman, Chief Executive Officer for Wireless Philadelphia, Wireless Philadelphia, a non-profit set up by the city to operate the Internet plan. “We’re offering, in conjunction with Earthlink, a bundle of services that, combined, are necessary for an individual to become connected with the internet and actually be able to use it.”

According to The Pew Internet and American Life Project, 57 percent of African-Americans use the Internet compared to 70 percent of Whites. Only 37 percent of Hispanics were reported to have Internet access while one in five American adults say they have never used the Internet.

Municipal wireless Internet projects nationwide aim to make the Internet more accessible beyond the “hotpots” signals found in coffee shops and libraries. But the operators of the citywide wireless plan in Philadelphia are including initiatives to help get resources to under-served citizens and to alleviate the obstacles that are keeping many African-Americans and Hispanics behind the technology curve.

Wireless Philadelphia is working on a package called T.E.A.C.H. (Training, Education, Access, Content, and Hardware) that will provide low-income residents with Internet training and access to computer hardware. The organization is partnering with community-based groups to help qualifying residents receive these resources and is collaborating with corporations to help fund the plan.
Goldman says they hope to include T.E.A.C.H. as a part of the internet service but noted that they are far from completion.

“Philadelphia’s a big city. We have 600,000 households and 1.5 million people. And so, half of the households in the city of Philadelphia don’t have internet access so it’s going to take us a long time to raise the money and address the needs of 600,000 households,” he says.

Philadelphia residents, whose incomes are up to 150 percent of the federal poverty line and who qualify for government assistance services, will be eligible for the high-speed Internet service for $9.95 per month by next year. The city is promoting the discounted cost for qualifying residents. Others will pay $21.95. Pokras and Crawford both say that many people who have the most critical need for broadband internet access will still be overlooked.

Poor residents need to get the services for free, says Crawford, who directs the Digital Career Academies which, through an AT&T grant, funds computer training for youth nationwide. “Internet access has been available for years for a fee. For those with less or no money for this critical service, they are left out again.”

When it is made available, the benefits are innumerable, he adds.
“Access to technology helps us improve our education, search for jobs, apply for and secure employment, learn about new things, teach our children about the world and the vastness of what it has to offer,” he says.

America is limited in how many people can experience the vast capabilities of the Internet with high speed broadband. According to The Pew Internet study, it is creating a further divide among Internet users. The study reported that people with dial-up connections and low cable speed Internet are at a disadvantage to those with high speed broadband to which only 53 percent of Americans have access.
Mark Lloyd, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, said that high-speed connections provide more options and is the difference between rapidly exchanging information and barely being able to check email.

“Most of the country has basic access-but not advanced telecommunication,” says Lloyd, who has conducted extensive research on communications policy and equality. “If you’re not able to make sure that every one has access to advanced telecommunications services, you’re creating a structure of inequality.”
It’s not just access, but education on how to use it,” says Barbara Crawford, director of the National Urban League-AT&T Digital Career Academies.

“Citywide wireless Internet access, if available, [in parks and other public spaces] as described, should bridge the digital gap, provided [that] the underserved also receive computer training and instruction on how to use the Internet,” says Crawford.
Goldman also pointed to the Pew Internet study citing the disparity of broadband Internet users and mentioned that Earthlink will include an “extreme speed service that compares very, very favorably to other forms of internet access” in an effort to close that gap in Philadelphia.

Before the formation of Wireless Philadelphia and the popularity of Wi-Fi, Pokras said Nonprofit Technology Resources and similar groups have long prioritized affordable computer training and distribution as a critical link to solving the disparity. NTR also sells used computers for as little as $80 and have a service where people can bring their computers in and get free hands-on advice.

Pokras supports the work of Wireless Philadelphia and is working with the group to educate more families and help inform future generations that could transform the city.

He says, “I want to see more people capable of taking care of themselves and having more interesting lives and computer technology is the way to accomplish that goal.”
 
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Heather Faison, Staff Writer

Posted: 3/2/06

In the 18 years Kenneth Haines has taught in the Prince George ‘s County public school system, he has asked students to wear coats in class in the winter, struggled to keep them focused at 100 degrees in the summer and has used buckets to catch rain water in the spring.

“Most teachers are working in conditions that are unbearable,” said Haines, a French teacher at Forestville High School in Forestville, Md.

But dilapidated classrooms are not the only problem. Last year, county students finished second to last in the state on the Maryland State Assessment and High School Assessment tests. Student enrollment and teacher retention rates continued to decline, and schools Superintendent Andre J. Hornsby resigned under a cloud of a FBI investigation.

John Deasy, tapped earlier this month to replace Hornsby, has the task of finding solutions. And more. The county has 76 schools on the national “needs-improvement” list. Only 42% of Prince George’s County students passed the English high school assessment test last spring, and 21 schools in the county were placed on the No Child Left
Behind watch list for inadequate performance.

Deasy has yet to present his strategy, but residents are optimistic, mainly on the basis of Deasy’s successful track record at other school districts. As superintendent of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District since 2001, Deasy is recognized for increasing funds and balancing pay cuts. He also is credited for closing the achievement gap and taking two “high-poverty” schools off the state watch list.

“I haven’t seen the teachers union this excited about someone in a long time,” Haines said.

Jennifer Hooker, a parent and teacher at Buck Lodge Middle School in Adelphi, Md., appreciates the fact that Deasy is a teacher first.
“Dr. Deasy believes that all schools should be preparing students for college and in college partnerships,” Hooker said.

Teachers and principals across the county are drilling students in preparation for the Maryland School Assessment Tests administered in March. The fate of some schools in the county depends on student performance on the exam.

“We have to get these kids to pass these assessment tests,” said Nathaniel Thomas, a former teacher at Suitland High School. “If your school doesn’t do well on a test, in every category of students, African American, special education, Hispanic, everyone, you can get your funding cut off by the federal government.”

School board member Dean Sirjue from Bowie, Md., feels that the lagging test scores have more to do with race and argues that the “test scores reflect the composition of our population.”

“We are the only county in the state of Maryland that has a majority African American and Latino population,” said Sirjue, who added that Whites perform better in these tests.

However, Sirjue wants to know why Americans and Latinos perform so much lower on these tests than their White and Asian counterparts, even with the county’s affluence.

“We do have kids who live in middle income families and wealthy families where parents are doctors and such, but are not performing well,” Sirjue points out. “But I think that primarily within the African American community, the focus has not been academics.”

Donna Young, a mother of two elementary school children, one in private school and the other at Skyline Elementary in Suitland, Md., understands the importance improving scores. But she also wants to focus on making sure they are learning more than test material.

“I don’t think the standardized testing can really measure the performance of the child,” she said.

Tonya Wingfield, an education advocate and former professor at Tess Community College, said she has encountered several students from the Prince George’s County public school system who were ill-prepared for the academic load.

“There were too many of them who could not read or write on grade level,” she said. “I felt sorry for the kids and the parents who were paying all their money in taxes to a school system that gave them little return.”

Another headache awaiting Deasy is teacher retention. According to the Prince George’s County Educators Association, 56 percent of teachers with less than six years of teaching experience left last school year. The county’s teacher turnover rate is the second highest in Maryland, with Baltimore County at the bottom.

Omar Boulware, vice president of public policy and operations of the Greater Marlboro Democratic Club, has a 16-year-old son at Suitland High School and is disturbed by the high teacher turnover.

“My son has had three different instructors in this year alone,” Boulware said. “I don’t see how we can expect our kids to succeed when they’re constantly going through different teachers.”

Deasy is taking over a school system whose problems are well-known to county officials. The County Council, for example, in October approved a $126 million proposal to repair roofs and replace heating and air systems in more than 100 schools.

“According to our CEO,” said John White, the school board communications director, “no other county in the state is putting this level of investment at one time into fixing and repairing.”

The school board hopes phase one of the plan will begin this spring and last three years. The county just released its $1.5 billion operating budget that allocates $48.9 million to teacher and staff salary improvements.

Also $5.6 million is designated for tutoring during, before and after school and weekend programs to help students improve their knowledge of material on the standardized tests. These sessions will be especially helpful for freshmen because starting this year they must pass the Maryland High School Assessments in order to graduate.

According to Thomas, the newly combined funds will help the system “play catch-up.”

“There wasn’t enough money twenty years ago to build new schools, and increase teacher pay, but now we have an opportunity to get money in the schools that need it and inside the classrooms where it matters.”

Heather Faison, Staff Writer

Posted: 7/21/05

When the towering Arthur Fletcher entered the offices of the Greater Washington Urban League in 1970, he immediately caught the eye of employee and recent law school graduate Maudine Cooper “He had kind of a booming voice that demanded attention,” said Cooper, now league president and CEO.
Cooper worked along side the man the nation now remembers as one of the architects of affirmative action programs. Fletcher, an adviser to Republican Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan and George W. Bush, died of natural causes at his home in Washington, D.C. last Tuesday. He was 80.
“He pursued affirmative action and minority participation with a vengeance, while staring down the faces of a reluctant Nixon administration,” Cooper recalled. “He wasn’t afraid of the Republicans or the Democrats.”
While serving as President Nixon’s assistant secretary of wage and labor standards, Fletcher devised the “Philadelphia Order” that put the issue of fair hiring practices into America’s legal lexicon in 1969.
William Taylor, chairman of the Citizen’s Commission for Civil Rights, worked with Fletcher on the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights during the 1960s. He said he admired Fletcher’s integrity while standing up for rights that were not appreciated by his party at the time.
“Fletcher moved the ball forward,” said Taylor. “A Republican African American has to work very hard to follow his values and on not being used,” he said. “But Fletcher was true to himself, and he served his people and all Americans.”
For decades, Fletcher wielded great influence in establishing equal employment standards in government, companies and labor unions. Yet, when he died, there were no special honors or recognition for a man who held such a pivotal place in America’s history.
“I am disappointed that as a life-long Republican, the Republican administrations have never done anything to honor him,” said Raynard Jackson, political consultant of Washington, D.C.-based Raynard Jackson & Associates. “President Bush spoke at the Indiana Black Expo last Thursday, a fitting moment to pay tribute to Arthur Fletcher, “He didn’t. Most of those at the expo were beneficiaries of Fletcher’s legacy.”
John Mack, president of the Prince George’s County Young Democrats, was equally disappointed. “It’s a shame that leaders today don’t have the integrity of Fletcher and that in his passing he is not acknowledged the way he should,” Mack said.
Mack, Jackson and other area residents praised Fletcher as a pioneer and visionary who saw that if the country did not deal with the inner-city problems of the 1960s and ’70s, especially rampant unemployment, America would not be where it is now.
That vision drove the affirmative action initiatives signed into law in September 1965 by President Johnson as Executive Order No.11246. The order required government-funded contractors to “take affirmative action” in hiring minorities in all areas of employment.
That law created opportunities for Blacks, transforming communities like Prince George’s County into bastions of affluent middle-class Blacks.
Floyd Wilson, a transplant from Louisiana, recalls the days when he walked into segregated airports, bus and train stations. Now he is executive director of Prince George’s Office of Equal Opportunity.
He oversees compliance with the county’s programs promoting equal opportunities for minorities and women in employment and contracting. “Prince George’s County is an example of the legacy of Arthur Fletcher,” Wilson said. “The county residents have education, money and good homes, thanks to Fletcher’s contributions to affirmative action.”
As for the future of affirmative action, all agree that major challenges lie ahead. Fletcher’s brainchild has been criticized, rejected, and in Fletcher’s words even “demonized.” Though he lauds Fletcher for holding down the fort during his hey day, political consultant Jackson doesn’t see such a policy having future relevance.
“Affirmative action is done,” Jackson said. “It has run its course. We can’t have a 21st [Century] version,” he said. “Affirmative action has outlived its usefulness.”
Mack and Wilson disagree. When there are still segregated country clubs in our state, that’s obvious that affirmative action has not run its course,” Mack said, referring to Baltimore’s Elkridge club that has come under recent controversy after Gov. Ehrlich held a fund raiser at the club that has not had an African American member in its 127-year history.
“There is still work to be done,” Mack said, noting that more people need to stand up as Fletcher did. Wilson adds: “If affirmative action is taken away, there is going to be chaos and instability. It will set us back 50 to 60 years.”
On his part, Rep. Albert Wynn (D-Md.) sees the future of affirmative action in race-neutral solutions and emphasis on setting goals and reaching them without set asides. Although concerned, Reginald Turner, president-elect of the National Bar Association, is not worried about the future of Fletcher’s legacy.
Turner said that affirmative action programs got a significant boost from the Supreme Court’s ruling in the University of Michigan admission case of June 2003 that race could be used as a factor to create a diverse student body. “Justice Sandra D. O’Connor was the swing vote in that ruling. We owe a lot to Justice O’Connor and Fletcher,” Turner said.

Heather Faison, Staff Writer

Posted: 2/9/06

Barbara married Dennis Goodson in 1979. In 1996, he walked out on her and their son, Joe. She thought he’d be gone from their Upper Marlboro, Md., home for only a week or so. But he was gone for a year and half. When she took him back, he told her he was expecting a daughter from another woman.

“It was really devastating. I felt abandoned,” said Barbara, trying to keep her composure as she recalled the hurt and betrayal she felt.

But instead of heading to divorce court, Barbara did what many these days would not fathom – she fought through the problems in her marriage.

In a time where divorce is commonplace and the institution of marriage is publicly scorned, the attacks on marriage can be overbearing. Yet the resilient spirit of couples who have endured their trials gives encouragement to those looking to tie the knot and others trying to keep it tight.

Marriage researchers say that lasting unions result not from an absence of problems but from couples’ reaction to the inevitable.

“Couples that know how to resolve their problems and are committed to making the marriage work are successful,” said Nisa Muhammad, the founder of the Wedded Bliss Foundation, a national initiative to promote marriage in the Black community.

The Goodsons started their healing process with counseling from their pastor, who helped Dennis regain Barbara’s trust and include his daughter, who is now eight years old, into their lives.

“He told me to make certain that I establish with the child’s mother that I had no further interest in her and to make absolutely certain that anytime I was over there that my wife was with me,” Dennis said.

Today, the Goodson’s teach pre-marital classes at the marriage ministry of Reid Temple AME church in Glenn Dale, Md.

Debbie and Greg Lambert grew up in two very different households. Debbie is the oldest of three siblings and Greg is an only child. They had no idea how their diverse upbringings would effect their marriage until they moved in together in 2001.

“It was the little stuff,” Debbie said, referring to what agitated the newlyweds, like Debbie throwing her coat on the couch after work, and Greg’s ‘only child’ complex that made him more possessive of his things.

Debbie retells the story of how Greg was furious after her siblings ate the last of his cereal. What seemed like childish behavior to her turned out to be a matter of comfort for Greg. “All I thought was, why is he tripping over cereal? she said.

These annoyances increased and it was a problem that they confronted in marriage counseling.

Today, Debbie and Greg playfully pick on each other’s peeves and realize that “sometimes you have to learn how to laugh at each other” to make the marriage last.

Patricia Barnes married Melvin in May 2002 after her 13-year marriage. All of a sudden, Barnes found herself not only as a mother to her son Emmit, 27, but also as a stepmother to Melvin’s two daughters, Shalyta, 24, and Christina, 21.

“Before the wedding we all got along pretty well,” she said. “But the thing with blended families is that things change after you live in the same house together.”

Patricia soon found herself “locking horns” with her oldest stepdaughter, who was 21 at the time and had taken on the role of provider and companion to her father in her mother’s absence.

To resolve the problems, the family arranged monthly meetings to vent their feelings and family fun nights to relieve tension. The Barnes also went on retreats that allowed them to spend time alone.

“Communicating our feelings open and honestly, whether we liked what the other person said or not, was a very important practice that helped us overcome the obstacles,” Patricia said.

Patricia and her stepdaughters, who now call her ‘Mama Pat,’ have a healthy and growing relationship, and her son and Melvin have also developed a close bond.

James Vidale, a Bowie, Md., resident who has been married to his wife Ann for 25 years, said that married couples should simply try to prepare for the inevitable obstacles that life will throw at them.

“Marriages face so many challenges,” Vidale said. “It takes a great deal of work and patience to make it last.”

At the opening ceremony of Urban Trust Bank at 14th and Eye streets in Washington. From L-R, an Urban Trust employee, Washington city council member Kwame Brown, Dwight Bush, CEO of Urban Trust, Bob Johnson and D.C. delegate to the U.S. congress, Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.).

Heather Faison
NNPA Special Correspondent

WASHINGTON (NNPA) – Independence Federal Savings Bank, one of the nation’s oldest Black-owned financial institutions, based in Washington, D. C., was taken over in an aggressive buyout by a White developer last week, sending a chilling message to the already diminishing Black financial industry.

“This was quite a loss and unfortunately when one Black bank closes there is a big sore, but when one bank from a majority-own closes it is not as devastating,” said Norma Hart, President of the National Banker’s Association.

Less than two decades ago there were nearly 50 Black-owned banks. But, according to the Federal Reserve there were only 31 certified operations in 2006.

That number decreased when the takeover of Independence Federal Savings in Washington, DC, by developer Morton A. Bender, was finalized. After a ruthless five year battle during which Bender held up the bank in multibillion-dollar lawsuits, federal regulators allowed him to acquire 51 percent of the company’s stock which gave him control of the bank’s executive board.

“That’s really a sad day; especially since the owner believed in the community and had he still been alive I believe that would not have happened,” said Hart.

Black-owned banking institutions have opened doors of financial opportunities to African Americans since the Jim Crow era when White-owned banks denied service. Whether it was helping a small business get off the ground or a family move into their first home, these institutions have a legacy of service to communities and neighborhoods and are fighting to maintain ownership and keep their doors open.

The Consolidated Bank & Trust Company of Richmond, Va. was founded in 1903 by Maggie L. Walker, an African-American who was the first female Bank President in the United States. Consolidated had been the oldest continually operating Black-owned bank in the nation until two years ago, when the struggling bank merged with Abigail Adams National Bancorp, Inc., the parent company of The Adams National Bank.

Growing in a fickle economy that is challenging large majority-owned banks, many Black-owned banks are struggling with decreases in mortgage lending, loan delinquency, and recovering from the brunt of Hurricane Katrina.

These institutions are also vying for customer attention against White-owned goliath banks that have become one-stop shops, wooing more customers with an assemblage of financial services. True to their traditions, Black-owned banks have remained stable, offering basic checking, savings and mortgage services but several of these institutions are diversifying their portfolios and maximizing profits.

“These banks, providing a greater array of financial products, will help secure their survival and help them be more competitive in this age of mergers and consolidation,” says William Michael Cunningham, a social investment advisor for Creative Investment Research, Inc.
Not all Black-owned banks are suffering.

In recent years, several Black-owned banks have expanded their financial services by breaking the boundaries of traditional services. Assets at the 25 Black-owned banks highlighted in Black Enterprise Magazine’s Annual Report on Black Business published this month, have increased 7.4 percent to more than $5.7 billion since 2005.

The Boston-based OneUnited bank ranked at number two on the top 25 list and was lauded for the successful launching of the first Black-owned internet bank. The bank received national attention in 2006 when they announced their online saving accounts with an annual percentage yield of 5.3 percent, which was above the national average. The additional online accounts brought close to $42 million in deposit growth according to Black Enterprise. Their online presence puts the bank on the playing field with mega online financial companies, such as ING Direct.

“These banks offer all the services of a majority owned bank. People should understand that these banks are regulated by the same folks that work with majority owned banks and are FDIC regulated,” said Hart.

Billionaire entrepreneur Robert L. Johnson plans to revive Black-owned banking with Urban Trust Bank, which opened its Washington, DC headquarters in September. The bank is federally charted and owned by RLJ, a development company headed by the BET founder. Urban Trust has $30 million in assets, chiefly because of Johnson’s personal wealth, and plans to expand to branches nationwide including Wal-Mart stores.

Urban Trust is focusing on lending services including student loans, mortgages, and credit cards for underserved urban communities, a clientele that analysts say is virtually untapped by Black-owned banks.

“There defiantly is a niche for African-American owned banking institutions in these communities. Our study clearly showed that there are not enough banks of any kind to meet the need of those in that community. The banks that are there are regional or national,” says David Berenbaum, Executive Vice President of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. He was referring to an NCRC study that recorded the shortage of banks in minority neighborhoods nationwide.

Berenbaum said that Black-founded banks like Independence Federal Savings have suffered by abandoning customers in disadvantaged communities where major retailers and White-owned banks have profited. He stressed that there was excellent opportunity for banks like Johnson’s Urban Trust to capitalize and better serve the needs of these people.

Although today African-Americans have the option of banking at White-controlled institutions, interest in Black-owned banks have sparked in light of recent discrimination lawsuits against powerhouse financial institution Bank of America where, according to the federal lawsuit, Black employees alleged that they were given inferior positions and steered from wealthy clients.

Cunningham said these discriminatory practices not only hurt the economy but also serve as a wake up call.

“It is true that African-Americans have more options other than Black-owned banks. But given the Bank of America class action suits you have to consider just how viable these options are.”

Heather Faison, Staff Writer

Posted: 9/1/05

Wearing fatigue shorts, a crisp white T-shirt and shoulder-length locks tucked under a backward royal blue Philadelphia Phillies baseball cap, rising real estate broker Bradley Anderson is proof of how deceiving looks can be.
The Philadelphia-bred businessman is the CEO and founder of Austin Capital Investing LLC, a commercial lending company that also specializes in venture capital and business consulting.
“I’m used to the looks,” Anderson said, “but I know when to put on the suit and tie.”
Anderson has brokered 10 deals and accumulated more than $500,000 in annual revenue since its inception in January 2005. He is working on one of his most anticipated deals with Vanessa Cole, owner of Esco’s & Joe’s Que On Jazz, the Concoction Center’s marquee restaurant in Reston, Va.
His dream job began after graduating Howard University in 2002 with a marketing degree. Intrigued by Wall Street, Anderson landed a $38,000 job with Bank of America in Arlington, Va. But he soon became bored.
“I was basically going in everyday and giving people financial advice. I started to feel like just your average banker, and that’s not where I wanted to be.”
He was intrigued by the loan officers who frequented the bank. “I admired their financial prosperity, and the level of autonomy they were awarded in the field,” Anderson said.
After a brief stint as a residential mortgage broker at City Bank of Laurel, Md., Anderson was hired at Cross Town mortgage in Silver Springs, Md., focusing primarily on residential lending.
While working there, Anderson received a call from a customer who wanted to acquire a 10-unit D.C. apartment building. Instead of passing him off to another lender, he searched the Internet for advice and met Kimberly Jones, an Atlanta commercial mortgage broker with 20 years of experience. Jones, who Anderson affectionately calls “Mama,” was impressed by his drive and compiled a list of documents to present to the client. “I could not have done it without her, and she didn’t charge me anything,” said Anderson.
Anderson eventually secured a $3 million loan for the client. Motivated by the experience, Anderson grew more interested in commercial lending and realized that the only way he could service more clients was to become his own boss. “I spent my time and my energy and they profited from it,” said Anderson expressing his attitude towards unfair balance between the employer and employees.
He turned in his letter of resignation in March 2005 and started Austin Capital using $35,000 of his own money. Currently he has ten clients, including a $3 million acquisition for Golf Coast Fuels Inc. of Houston, Texas, and a $9.6 million acquisition for Ford Nursing Homes also in Texas.
Anderson hopes that Austin Capital will become a fully operated mortgage company in five years and encourages more Blacks to consider working in commercial and residential mortgage broking and become entrepreneurs.
“There aren’t a lot of African Americans that own and operate financial companies, but I would advise for any one looking to break in the business to always network and surround yourself with successful people in the field because they will be motivating examples.”

NNPA Special Correspondent

Adrian Aguirre, an administrative assistant for the U. S. Department of Labor, left her desk in tears after being told that the job she held for 15 years had been terminated.

Her supervisor sat her down in May 2006 and assured her the letter that warned of a possible lay off was “not a serious problem.” Yet after meeting with the head of Human Resources, she learned that she should prepare for a possible termination.

“We are were told, ‘You have to turn in your badge and find another job in six months.’ That’s not enough time for people who have worked here for years! Nothing makes sense,” said Aguirre during a protest with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE).

Aguirre is one of thousands of employees in federal government agencies who has been affected by a “competitive sourcing” process called A-76. This process allows positions held by government employees to be contracted to a private sector. The Department of Labor started participating in the private-public competitions in 2003. Last year the department contracted out 258 administrative support services position.

Aguirre, along with members of the AFGE Local 12, Labor Department employees and supporters, rallied in front of the United States Capital Building earlier this month to take a stance against this controversial contracting process.

The AFGE filed an institutional grievance this month against the Labor Department claiming that the results of the ongoing competition disproportionately affected African-Americans and female employees.

“The face of contracting out is black. It’s minorities, it’s women,” said John Gage, National President of AFGE. “We’re going to litigate it. We think it is discriminatory the way they are contracting out.”

The private-public competition is a part of the Bush administration’s five management initiatives implemented in order to achieve higher performance at lower cost to the federal workforce, according to University of Maryland researcher Jacques Gansler.

Under the guidelines, all federal government departments are mandated to submit reports of their performance to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which monitors these agencies.

Agency executives and appointed secretaries have the choice of putting commercial positions up for competition against the private sector. Both the federal government and the contractor places a bid and must prove that they can do the work more efficiently and with less money. The winning bidder gains the contract and control of the positions.

Only commercial jobs that can be performed by the outside market can be placed in competition. The A-76 competitions have been implemented in more than 13 federal agencies and have drawn a line between federal government employees and government regulators.

Proponents of the public-private competition say that the process increases accountability in the federal government and that results of the reform have proven to generate significant savings for agencies and taxpayers.

According to a report released by the OMB, competitions completed in fiscal year 2006 are expected to save the federal government more than $1.3 billion over the next five to ten years.

“There have been lots of testimonies, lots of reports that show that performance is better and the average cost of savings is over 30 percent. In recent competitions the public sector has won, the savings have been larger,” said Gansler, director of the Center for Public Policy and Private Enterprise at Maryland’s School of Public Policy.

This process has not always proven to be more cost efficient. In June 2006 A-76 competitions in the Department of Defense (DOD) were blocked when the review went over the imposed time limit of 30 months.

Instead of the estimated savings of $7 million to taxpayers, the contracting services would have cost nearly $22 million according to a cost estimate prepared by Walter Reed Hospital because of the time violation where the DOD review took 68 months. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) argued that the review was “wasteful” and convinced the House to pass an amendment to block the competition.

The Labor Department estimates savings will exceed $5 million over five years as a result of the agency’s most recent competitions, said Edward C. Hugler, deputy assistant secretary of labor for administration and management.

Pam Ward, whose position as a legal technician was lost in competition, is insulted by the possibility of having to train a contractor to do the work of experienced federal government employees.

“I don’t see how they can just have a contractor do our work,” said Ward who worked in the department 19 years. “I am a dedicated legal tech. I’ve been doing my work with high honors every year.”

Long-time employees of the department expressed their anger at the rally. But most of all, many felt their loyalties betrayed by the way the A-76 announcements were handled. Donna Davis, of the department’s wage and hour division, said that several employees received their A-76 letter informing them of the terminations while on leave. Jane Sewell, a researcher in the department for 33 years received her letter while at home recovering from a surgery to treat her cancer.

“A lot of what’s related to this process is this administration’s disrespect for the federal sector itself. I do believe that career employees, free of political cohesion, knowledgeable in their area, are much more effective than private sector workers attempting to do public sector responsibility,” said Bill Lucy, president of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU).

Lucy also noted that contracting jobs from experienced federal government employees resulted in mismanagement as seen at Walter Reed Hospital and in response to Hurricane Katrina.

“Take a look at those things that fell short during Katrina. Water, transportation, shelter-things that were privately soured activities,” says Lucy.

While union leaders and opponents argue that competitive sourcing is slanted against federal employees, Gansler says that the results of the competitions show that the process works in their favor.

“The public sector has won about 87 percent of the times in recent competitions, so how can it be a privatization process if they keep winning?” Gansler said.

Since starting cost comparison reviews, employees in the Labor Department have won 23 out of 26 competitions, according to Hugler who said that out of the completed competitions to date, there have been only six employees who were laid off as a result of the private contracting.

Yet, in the department’s pending competition of administrative support services positions, Hugler says there is an increased possibility of more layoffs because of the competition size.

“Certainly with the larger competition … the risk does go up,” Hugler said. “And I am not going to predict any particular outcome here. But we’re gonna work darn hard to see that we can make the best of this situation for our employees.”

To offset the negative impact of competition results, the department has established a placement assistance program, which includes priority placement for vacant jobs in the agencies. Employees who qualify also have the option of early retirement.

Aguirre said she has yet to receive an official layoff date. She said that the department is more concerned with the incoming contractors than meeting the needs of outgoing employees.

“The federal government is not assisting us,” Aguirre said. “All the career center is saying is ‘sell yourself.’ That’s obvious!”