King letter reading, Delta education, Skid Row music

Next, we have Mr. David McKnight reading a portion of the... Dr. Martin Luther King's letter from a Birmingham jail. Put your hands together for Mr. David McKnight. My dear fellow... My fellow clergymen, while confined here in the Birmingham jail, I came across your recent statements calling my present activities unwise and untimely. Seldom do I pause to answer criticisms of my work and ideas. If I sought to answer... If I sought to answer all the criticisms that come across my desk, my secretaries would have little time for anything other than such correspondence in the course of the day. And I would have no time for constructive work. But since I feel that you are men of genuine goodwill and that your criticisms are sincerely set forth, I want to try... I want to try to answer your statement in what I hope will be patient and reasonable terms. I cannot sit idly by in Atlanta and not be concerned about what happens in Birmingham. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. In any nonviolent campaign, there are four basic steps. Collection of the facts to determine... Whether injustice exists. Negotiation, self-purification, and direct action. We have gone through all these steps here in Birmingham. And there can be no gain saying the fact that racial injustice engulfs this community. Birmingham is probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United States. Its ugly record of brutality... Is widely known. We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor. It must be demanded by the oppressed. Never before have I written so long a letter. I'm afraid it is much too long to take your precious time. I can assure you that it would have been much shorter... If I had been right. I are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are you to forgive me. If I have said anything that understates the truth and indicates my having a patience that allows me to settle for anything less than brotherhood, I beg God to forgive me. I hope this letter finds you strong in the faith, and I also hope that circumstances will soon make it possible for me to meet each and every one of you, not as an integrationist or civil rights leader, but as a fellow clergyman and a Christian brother. Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away, and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear-drenched communities. And in some not-too-distant tomorrow, the radiant stars of love and love will be with us. Love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty. Yours for the cause of peace and brotherhood, Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. Martin Luther King's letter from a Birmingham jail read by the veteran stage and screen actor David McKnight. Welcome to the Qumran Report. May the peace and blessings of the life-giving creative spirit be upon you and upon your family. My name is Melvin Ishmael Johnson. This week we will be talking about education and non-violence in the Mississippi Delta with Dr. Hattie Johnson and James Johnson III. Also, a live interview and in-studio performance by the University of Michigan. I'm here with David McKnight, a veteran actor of over 70 films and stage performances. How you doing, David? I'm doing just fine, Mel. I'm sorry I couldn't be there with you right now, but I'm nursing a tennis injury, back injury, so I'll do the best I can. Hey, good to hear from you, good to hear from you. Yeah. Oh, look, David, can you tell us a little about the back? Background surrounding the writing of this letter from the Birmingham jail by Dr. King? Well, I sure can, Mel. I have had the opportunity to do some research in the process of bringing that reading about. And Dr. King was very much interested in desegregating Birmingham, Alabama. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. United States. Of course, there has been some controversy about that regarding relative to Mississippi perhaps being the most racially segregated city. But Dr. King's own words stated that Birmingham was the most racially segregated city in the United States. And as a result of his decision, along with the SCLC, Southern Christian Leadership Conference, to go in and try to demonstrate and desegregate Birmingham, of course, he landed in the Birmingham jail there. And one of the things that the public might be interested in knowing is that he wrote that letter, which is, if you read it aloud, it's almost an hour long. You know, it's a very long letter. And he wrote that letter, you know, without any reference material. Sitting in the prison cell without any reference materials, writing on scraps of paper, on the edges of newspapers and things like that. And when you have an opportunity to read the entire letter, you find out exactly how brilliant Dr. Martin Luther King was. I mean, quoting Socrates and Aristotle and all of that, you know, and having to sneak the letter out of the jail through, you know, his visitors who came to visit him from SCLC and family, etc. And then they put the letter together. But Dr. King had been on a, you know, a long, long journey of trying to desegregate all of the racially prejudiced cities around the South at that time. And then further, later on, he went on into Chicago. And when he went into Chicago, he almost wanted to change his mind about Birmingham being... So racist and segregated because of the treatment that he received in my hometown, by the way. Yes. My hometown, Chicago, Illinois. Mm-hmm. Dr. King, of course, you know, being a Nobel Peace Prize winner, was truly a dedicated African-American male who was led of God, in my opinion, to sacrifice his life, you know, for the benefit of human rights. Right. And civil rights. And it was also the most amazing thing to me about this letter, because this is a famous letter also. But this is one of the famous information that you have by Dr. King that you don't associate his voice with, like the speeches, the great speeches. Absolutely. Because it's, you know, he never did it oratorically. You know, he only wrote the letter. And I was myself even unaware, completely unaware. I've heard about the letter. I've heard about it before I actually read it and did it, you know. But I was not thoroughly familiar with it. And it's one of his most profound pieces, I believe. Mm-hmm. Because he was... I don't think that the general public is that much aware of that Birmingham jail letter. Yeah, because he was arrested on Good Friday, April the 12th, 1963. And he wrote a letter. Mm-hmm. I think he got... He got the final information out on April the... What was it? 16th. And he... Because he was released on the 18th. He spent eight days locked up. Now, let me ask you this, David. What do you think about Dr. King's message of nonviolence in the time period that we live in now? You know, I think that his legacy and message of nonviolence still holds. It's true today. Since Dr. King administered his nonviolent approach to civil rights and human rights, several other people have used that tactic. Let's see if I can remember. Well, they're doing it right now, as a matter of fact. Mm-hmm. The Occupy movement... Yes. ...is using a nonviolent approach to solve their problems. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. getting you up into the studio so we can do an in-depth interview about you and your work. And for those who like to contact you, what is your contact information, your professional contact information? Contact in reference to what? Performances. Telephone, you mean? Yes, yes. Email, contact. Email. Email. I can be emailed at davarino55 at hotmail.com. That's D-A-V-E-R-I-N-O 55 at hotmail.com. And people can reach me through your office at the Kumwam Report. Through Melvin Johnson can get in touch with me if it's something that's important. Yeah. Okay, David, thank you very much. David McKnight, veteran stage and screen actor here in Los Angeles, reading the letter. From the Birmingham Jail by Dr. King. Thank you, David. Thank you, Mel. Mm-hmm. Bye-bye. Happy New Year to everybody. Bye-bye. Same to you. Now, we will be honoring Dr. King at the upcoming Arts Walk, Thursday, January the 12th, 2012, and also on Sunday, January the 15th and 16th, 2012, at the Exchange, located at 114 West 5th Street, downtown. Los Angeles. We will give you all of the details in our community calendar. Now, on Monday, December the 26th, 2011, I did an interview in Greenville, Mississippi, with James Johnson III. He is a teacher at Greenville High School, and we talked about the state of education and violence in our high schools. Tonight, in our host corner, I would like to play part one of that interview. It's eight minutes long. We will hear part two of the interview on the upcoming shows. Here's James Johnson III, and he teaches at Greenville High School. Okay, I'm sitting here with James Johnson. He teaches at Greenville High School in Greenville, Mississippi. I'm so glad to have him. I'm so glad to have him as a guest on the Qumran Report. Thank you for being on the Qumran Report. It's my pleasure. Yeah. Could you tell us a little about your education background? Okay. Well, I graduated from high school here in Greenville, Mississippi, from O'Bannon High School. From O'Bannon, I went to Tougaloo College, where I majored in English, received a Bachelor of Arts in English from Tougaloo. From there, I went to Delta State University in Cleveland, Mississippi. Mm-hmm. I also obtained a Master of Education in English Education. I also, well, I'm finishing up the Educational Specialist in Educational Leadership. Mm-hmm. Oh, wonderful. Wonderful. Now, at Greenville High School, what do you teach? I have AP English for 11th graders, and I also teach regular English for 11th graders. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Now, let me ask you this, because this is my hometown, Greenville, Mississippi also, where when I was coming up, it was segregated. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. So, Greenville High was all whites and went to Greenville High School, and we went to Coleman High School, which was all black. Is it any special challenges now, you know, teaching where you have an integrated situation, both white and black students? Well, I think you'll be surprised to learn that it is still very much segregated. Mm-hmm. Because right now, Greenville High School, while in the past it was once all white, if you go there now, you'll see that 98% of the students are African American. So, there are not many white students. In fact, I've been there three years, and I've only taught two white students. Mm-hmm. So, the demographics have shifted, but it's still definitely segregated. Okay. So, where are all the white students now? Are they in private schools or something? They're definitely in private schools. Some of them have gone to the county schools, like Riverside, which is in the county school district. Mm-hmm. But I think I can contribute that probably to violence, maybe. A lot of the parents may be concerned about safety, because safety has been a concern for us over the last two or three years. Mm-hmm. Now, is this a statewide, you think this is something that's comparable to the entire state, or is it just a Greenville situation since integration came, what most of the students, you know, the white students, they're the move to private schools, most of the white students? Well, there are some schools, there are some public schools who have a majority white population. Mm-hmm. But you'll find that in the most affluent areas, like Madison, Madison County, Rankin County, places like that. Mm-hmm. But for the most part, any area where there's a huge black population, then generally you'll find that the public schools are mostly black. Mm-hmm. Now, some areas like the Gulf Coast is mostly, is more integrated than the rest of the state. Mm-hmm. Now, let's talk about the situation of violence in the high school, because we see a lot of that in California and a lot of the eastern schools that's dealing with, are you talking about violence in relationship to gangs, a situation like that? Definitely. Mm-hmm. Gang violence. I think it's more so, for our situation, it's more so a matter of, you know, Mm-hmm. leadership. I think if we had the right leaders in place who could mentor students, I think that we could see some results. Mm-hmm. Because school definitely should be a place where students can escape the community issues, break down social norms, in order to prepare for a better life after high school. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Is there any gang intervention programs in the high schools? Yes. In the greens of high school? Yes. Yeah. In the greens of high school? Yes. Yeah. We, in the middle of the high school, we have a gang intervention program. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And we have a gang intervention program. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. We have implemented a number of gang programs. In fact, we have ministers coming through to talk to some students. Teachers have gone through extensive training to deal with different issues. Counselors do small group sessions. So, there are mechanisms in place, but I guess you have to look at whether or not these things are effective. Mm-hmm. And if they're being effectively implemented. Mm-hmm. Yeah. See, and no doubt in my mind, the effect of violence lessen the chance of a student receiving a gang intervention. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. So, when violence is a concern, it definitely takes the focus away from education. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Oh, now, let me ask you this. How about the gender thing? You see violence both among the males and the females? Yes, definitely. Mm-hmm. You would think it's mostly a male thing. Yeah. But, I would say it's probably 50-50. Yeah, yeah. Just as many girls as boys. Yeah. Now, the situation of violence, is it in some of the earlier schools, like the junior high, they dealing with the same kind of situation also? I think they are, but on a smaller level. Yeah. So, what happened in Greenville about two or three years ago, they changed the setup of the high school. Mm-hmm. So, you have all ninth graders in the city going to a ninth grade academy. Mm-hmm. Then you have all 10th, 11th, and 12th graders going to the same school. Mm-hmm. So, when they separated the two high schools, which was T.O. Western and Greenville High, this is when we saw a surge in the gang violence. In the violence. Because we have people from different neighborhoods who appear to be very territorial, and so they come to school with community issues. Mm-hmm. And it definitely has an impact on the teaching and learning. Mm-hmm. Now, this is something I always wondered about, because in Los Angeles, the gang situation is, you know, a very sophisticated situation. Mm-hmm. And I work with an organization called Cease Fire, you know, which is a lot of the old gang members who have been to prison and all. Like, they put this together where they mentor youngsters, you know, about the threat of violence and all that kind of stuff, and getting into gangs. But one of the things that we have there is a huge Hispanic population. You got a lot of Hispanic gangs and all that kind of stuff. Here, is it just black gangs? Yes, it's mostly, primarily black, because this is a primarily, I hate to say it, black area. Mm-hmm. But there's not a lot of Hispanic. Mm-hmm. Or any other racial minorities. No. No. That's here. No. African American. Mm-hmm. Let me ask you this. As a teacher, what do you think that they can do to really, really address this problem of violence? So, so tell me. Yeah. So, the youngsters, the students and stuff, have a better chance to achieve, of getting a good education. So, when they move on, they have a better chance of going to a good college and hanging there. Yeah. Well, I think a lot of it begins at home. Yeah. But as you know, parenting is not what it once was. Yeah. So, I think it's very important for teachers, school administrators, ministers, parents, all of us to come together, sit down, have these tough conversations. Mm-hmm. If the school should provide parenting classes. Mm-hmm. Help parents who are having problems with their children at home. Mm-hmm. A lot of times, parents feel like the school is the enemy. Mm-hmm. When it really can be a friend. Mm-hmm. If we were to use things the right way. Mm-hmm. So, I definitely believe it begins at home. But if teachers have to basically kind of go home with students and help parents out, then that's what we have to do. Mm-hmm. Great. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Great. Okay. James Johnson III, who teaches at Greenville High School in Greenville, Mississippi. At this time, I would like to turn it over to Ms. Earlene Anthony for our community calendar. This is the community calendar for January. Thursday, January the 12th, starting at 7 p.m., Drama Stage School 1 will participate in the Arts Walk. Under enrollment. Dr. King with open mic and sounded off. Drama Stage is asking the poets and spoken word artists to come out and join us. The poets and special music guest artists will be performing on a continuous basis throughout the Arts Walk. Sign up for open mics at 630. The location of the exchange is 114 West 5th Street. For more information or to participate in this Arts Walk event, please visit artswalk.org. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. will be set up for service provider information. And all are welcome to come out and participate. The location is to be announced. Information contact on this is 323-850-4436. And on Sunday, January the 15th at 2 p.m., Drama Stage Kuhnwahn will be honoring Dr. King by performing a dramatic reading of I Have a Dream speech, an excerpt from the letter from the Birmingham jail. Special musical guests will be gospel singer Jamila, the location, The Exchange, 114 West 5th Street. This is a free event, and all are welcome to attend. Contact information 323-850-4436. Also on Monday, January the 16th at 2 p.m., Drama Stage Kuhnwahn, will honor Dr. King by performing a dramatic reading of I Have a Dream speech, an excerpt from the letter from the Birmingham jail. Special musical guests will also be gospel singer Jamila, and a special guest panel will be discussing Dr. King's view on nonviolence, followed by a Q&A. The location, The Exchange, 114 West 5th Street. This is a free event, and again, all are welcome to attend. Contact information is 323-850-4436. If you have a community event that you would like announced on our show, send the information to And once again, our call-in number for the show is Now back to our hosts. Thank you, Ms. Earlene Anthony. On Tuesday, December the 27th, 2011, in my hometown of Greenville, Mississippi, I interviewed my sister, Dr. Hattie Johnson, about the state of education and domestic violence in the Mississippi Delta. I would like to play part one of the interview. It's 20 minutes and 10 seconds. We will hear part two of the interview on upcoming shows. I'm here in my hometown of Greenville, Mississippi. Testing. One, two, three. Okay, welcome to the Coombran Report. I'm here in my hometown of Greenville, Mississippi, getting ready to do an interview with my sister, Dr. Hattie Johnson. Yes. So, Hattie, welcome to the Coombran Report. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. First thing I want to ask you about, I know you're a doctor, you got your Ph.D., et cetera, like that. Can you tell us a little about your educational background, your undergrad, and then when you got your master's, your Ph.D., and the subject matter, dissertation? Okay. Undergrad, Tougaloo College, bachelor's in psychology, graduated 1973. May 1973. Master's of education degree in counseling and guidance from Delta State University in June of 1979. It's been a while. And actually, I'm a dual Ph.D., Ph.D. in educational psychology and also in counseling psychology. University of Mississippi, August. August of 1986. What other information did you ask? What was your dissertation about? My dissertation was in the area of domestic violence, why battered women stay. Mm-hmm. And I was interested in that area, drawn to it for personal reasons as a formerly battered woman myself. Mm-hmm. I developed the first safe house network here, in the Mississippi Delta. And I also assisted in developing the first battered women shelter here in the Greenville, Washington County area. And that's been several years, back in 1979 and 1980. And many of those organizations are still in place today. Mm-hmm. I also pioneered the development of many of the curriculums, and frameworks for use among those high-risk populations. Mm-hmm. As I mentioned before, this is not something I do day-to-day anymore. And it's been a long time since I've actually thought about it. Mm-hmm. But it's an area that I still, you know, give much attention to. Mm-hmm. It's just more or less second nature now. Mm-hmm. Let me ask you this. You were talking about the subject matter, Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. they stayed. What did you reach any conclusion or anything close to a definite conclusion in terms of why battered women stay in situations of violence like that? Well, actually, what I learned was that there is no classic battered woman. And just as the woman stays in the dysfunctional relationship, it's also very important to try to determine why the batterer stays. Most of the attention is focused on the woman staying and being beat or battered or abused. But the man also stays to batter and abuse. So there was no one particular reason given. Mm-hmm. It's more or less on an individual basis. What I can say is that it is a very slow, very insidious process. It's not as if the batterer, who can be male or female, shows up to say, I'm going to beat you in three weeks or six months. They come in on their best behavior and very slowly break the other individual down. Mm-hmm. Chipping away at their self-esteem, their self-image in order to gain control. Mm-hmm. It is a form of violence, whether it's verbal or physical or mental, emotional. It's about power and control. Mm-hmm. So both parties are involved in the process. Mm-hmm. And that was primarily what I learned. Okay. Okay. Do you find any major differences? Do you find any major differences in these kind of nuclear family situations where if, just say you got a relationship where it's just the male and female, no children, as opposed to relationships where children is involved? Do any dynamics, differences come about among there? Well, there will have to be differences based on the family structure. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. But it has nothing to do. Mm-hmm. Really with economics. Mm-hmm. Or educational background or status of any kind. When I was actually practicing traditional psychology back some many years ago, most of my clients were the wives of doctors, lawyers, and judges. Mm-hmm. So it's not about being poor or not having other options. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. There are many instances that can bind a person in the situation. Mm-hmm. But it's about much more than that. Mm-hmm. And then if you have children involved, then of course another layer and another dynamic would be added. Mm-hmm. The age of the children might also play a significant role. It's different because domestic violence is not just between legal spouses. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. It's in any situation. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. It can be parent to child. It can be husband to wife. It can be child to parent. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. I mean, it literally runs the continuum. Mm-hmm. So for example, if we have a single mother who gets involved with someone, then that person comes in and... Mm-hmm. ...is involved with the child. Mm-hmm. And brings violence into that situation. And that mother is the parent of, say, a 14, 15-year-old son, a male child. And you bring in another male, and all of a sudden that son is expected to adhere to the rules and regulations that this new person is coming in with. Mm-hmm. If they're coming in to take over as opposed to come in and build a positive relationship, Mm-hmm. then they're likely to have some conflict there. So there... Am I being clear? Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. True. There's just no one answer. Mm-hmm. It would depend on a case by case basis. Okay. But the one thing that is constant in all of these dynamics is the element of control. One up stewardship. Yeah. Power and control. Power and control. Yeah. Okay. Excellent. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So, you know, the importance is an element of birth order in the family in terms of what order, you know, where's the first child, second child, third child, last child. Do that play any dynamics in that also? Well, it would, again, it would be on a family by family basis, but just with a very broad brush. Mm-hmm. So, you know, there's no, there's no specific, there's no specific, there may be some correlation. Mm-hmm. But none that you could just say, well, all middle children are likely to be abused. Okay. Or all firstborns are likely to be abused. Yeah. It's not like that. Okay. There are going to be some, again, primarily it's social. Mm-hmm. In as much as it's a learned behavior. Mm-hmm. You don't really go into the nursery of a hospital and say, well, I'm going to have a child. Mm-hmm. And then you have to go into the hospital and say, well, I'm going to have a child. Mm-hmm. And then you have to go into the hospital and say, well, I'm going to have a child. You don't really go into the nursery of a hospital. Mm-hmm. Where newborn babies are and have one baby beating up the other one. Mm-hmm. So it's a, you get what I mean? Yeah. It's a process that's learned and as such it can be unlearned. Yeah. But it's more learned behavior. Okay. Wonderful. Okay. The next subject matter that I would like to deal with is, you know, the whole educational concept starting here. And I would like to... I'd like to get your opinion in relationship to the education system in Greenville and then the state of Mississippi and then education in general in the United States of America. Starting off with here in Greenville, what do you think about the state of the education system here? Well, to put it frankly, the education system in Greenville... Mm-hmm. ...and the state of Mississippi and the nation as well is broken. Mm-hmm. The public education system. Mm-hmm. And in Greenville, it is much by design. Mm-hmm. There's a mindset about our children that we are just one step beyond the plantation. Mm-hmm. And that most of us cannot learn. It's a... This is the mindset. This is anything but the truth. Mm-hmm. I'm a product of this education system. Mm-hmm. But the educational system that I came through... Mm-hmm. ...is not the educational system of today. Mm-hmm. In many instances, most of the people teaching... And I can take the heat. Mm-hmm. Okay. Most of the... And I say that to preface what I'm about to say. Mm-hmm. Because most of the people that are teaching in our local school district here, Greenville, Washington County, and the state of Mississippi, they are not the people that are teaching in our local school district here. Mm-hmm. And I think that's a very important thing. Mm-hmm. And I think that's a very important thing. And I think that's a very important thing. As I see it, there's a lot of people that are teaching in our local school district Mm-hmm. They're teaching because they don't have any other choice. Mm-hmm. Because there's so many limited job opportunities. Mm-hmm. And the way the education system is set up is that when children come in now in kindergarten and first grade, we have three times... Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. the elementary schools that we do junior high and high schools because it's set up such that by the time the student is seventh grade they've been forced out of the system and seventh grade students come in and the the discipline rather than placing a student with behavior problems or educational difficulties into an alternative educational environment which is what the law mandates these students are repeatedly taken out of the educational environment for uh sent to the office uh suspended uh or expelled for you know for the rest of the year for minor infractions like uh going to sharpen a pencil without you know permission or looking at the teacher the wrong way or maybe even speaking back and and never ever are cultural differences addressed we really don't talk about culture anymore so the law in mississippi is that if you miss at least 20 days of school in any school year you cannot go to the next grade so after a certain period of time if you are held back if you're 15 and in the seventh grade then it's much better to be the class clown than the class dunny so you may actually disrupt be disrupted it does not speak to ability it speaks to opportunity and most of our teachers have not been adequately trained and they are not adequately prepared and many of them don't even like children um um um um um um um um um um um um um um um They certainly don't like our children. And this is not a racial issue. More of a class. It's a class issue. I'm glad you brought that up because a couple of things that we've been discussing and been thinking about in the past is what I call this whole brain drain thing. In the early 20s, Carter G. Woodson wrote an excellent book called The Miseducation of the Negro in which he really laid out that concept. And in a nutshell, what he was talking about, this brain drain, especially in relationship to like the 114 historically black schools that they got. And in this area would be like Jackson State, Alcorn, Tukaloo, et cetera, like that. Some of the schools in this area and the individual, the students who really excel, the A students, the B students, the real gifted students. When they graduate, opportunities that open up outside of the area, the majority of them take advantage of that and move out, leaving the C students and those on down, the average ones, who usually seem to become. The teachers and stuff in these particular areas and elementary and all like that. And so what do you think can be done to turn that around to get some of these gifted individuals, these A students, you know, to give them the incentive to come back, you know, and serve, you know, in their hometown, the area that produced them. There's an African proverb back to tradition is the first step forward integration. Integration. Forced integration, not desegregation. Forced integration is what has literally been shoved down our throats. And we are in we're entering the fourth generation of forced integration. And let's. Let me explain the difference. And before I move on to that, let me just simply say you mentioned historically black colleges. There is a real push right now in the state of Mississippi by the governor, the outgoing governor of the state of Mississippi as one of his last functions in his role as governor of the state to merge together. The Haley Barber. Yes. Haley Barber to merge together. Jackson State. Mississippi Valley State. And Alcorn. And to just put them all under one umbrella. And to do that would destroy the the very legacy that you just referenced. So I just want to throw that in. Now. My class, my high school class was the last graduating. Class from Coleman High School in 1970. Mm hmm. And after that, the next year we had forced integration. Now, this was based on Brown versus the Board of Education. Fifty. In 1954. It took until 1970 to, you know, finally force the merger of the public education system in Mississippi. Right. And what actually happened was the very epitome of white flight. We had all of the majority white schools. Then over that summer, they built academies and private schools. And so when school began in August of 1970, we had a 98, 99 percent black school district. Public school district. Hmm. Um. But the 53 percent of the of the teachers were still European. Mm hmm. But the student population was 98 percent black or African American. Mm hmm. So that the safe, nurturing, encouraging environment that we came out of. Mm hmm. Was literally gone with the. Mm hmm. With the signature of a pen on a piece of paper. Mm hmm. And it has been systematically deteriorated ever since. Mm hmm. When we came through, we had teachers like Miss Crawford. Yes. Miss Haynes. Yeah. You get what I'm saying. Yeah. Miss Jones. Right. Right. We don't have that. That does not exist anymore. Mm hmm. We have people who have set out to destroy our children. Mm hmm. To discourage our children. People like Newt Gingrich, who is, who would get up on a television and publicly state that our children should be taken out of an education environment to clean toilets and mop floors. Yeah. Well, he, I lived in Georgia for, in, in the Atlanta metro area for a lot, a lot of years. Mm hmm. And Newt Gingrich was the. Uh, Senator from Georgia. Mm hmm. And, uh, uh, Congressman from Georgia. Mm hmm. And, uh, at that time, I'm very familiar with his, with his mindset. Mm hmm. Okay. Interesting. And, and there's really no difference in him than, in the White Citizens Council. Yeah. Uh, you know, Georgia. Yeah. Definitely. Yeah. Without a doubt. So, that's the mindset. Mm hmm. So, we have, uh, Governor Barber, uh, Governor of the State of Mississippi. Mm hmm. Setting out in the 21st century. Mm hmm. To destroy black colleges. Yeah. You know, our higher education institutions. And the legacy. And we have. Mm hmm. Right. The legacy is there. Mm hmm. So, we have, we, back to tradition as the first step forward. Mm hmm. We're not better off. Mm hmm. We're way worse off. Mm hmm. Because our goal now is to assimilate. Mm hmm. And there's no room for us in assimilation. Mm hmm. A lot of us are no more than happy slaves. Mm hmm. We think that if we can. Mm hmm. And make enough money to qualify to get in enough debt. Because we can't, most of us cannot afford to buy things outright. Mm hmm. Then we have succeeded when just the opposite is true. Mm hmm. Just the opposite is true. Mm hmm. So. Beautiful. Okay. Dr. Hattie Johnson, Greenville, Mississippi. Thank you very much. Okay. Now, in the. Now, in the studio guest today is Mr. Harlan Bird. He is completing a music degree at Cal State LA. Harlan, welcome to the Cool Round Report. Thanks, Bill. Hey, can you tell us a little about your background? Your home, where you come from, et cetera, like that, that led you to Los Angeles? Well, I'm originally from a town in Ohio, Youngstown, Ohio, about 60 miles south of Cleveland. I had a great chance. I was a football player in my childhood. Mom, apple pie, Chevrolet, that kind of thing. Mm hmm. The steel mills were there. My dad was a football player, so I was a football player, and football was king in Ohio. Mm hmm. And, and so I was involved in sports for most of my youth. Graduated high school, played a little college football at Central State University. Mm hmm. And shortly thereafter, I, I went in the Air Force. Okay. Tell us a little bit about your military experience, Air Force. Air, Air Force, yes. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It was pretty cool. I, I enjoyed it. I did six months at Lackland Air Force Base. Mm hmm. Well, six weeks, six weeks. And then I went to Hawaii for about two and a half years. Mm. And then I came back stateside and went to Edwards Air Force Base for a short time, and actually got out of the Air Force and played another year of football at Antelope Valley College. Yeah. Yeah. Now, how did you get into music? Did you pick up music? Well, believe it or not. I mean, I are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are are guitar with me and my wife at the time was like you're never gonna learn to play it so it was one of those things well I'll show her and we separated physically in I guess it was January and school started in February Riverside City College and I just jumped into their program and just kind of fell in love with the guitar and the music idea it was really like a totally new experience at the age of 36 yes now what's the piece you're gonna the first piece you're gonna play for us this is a piece actually was written for I think one of the plays that you'd written and I live in downtown LA have lived in the Skid Row area for some time how about that Skid Row Studios hmm yeah I lived what's called Skid Row and you know I wrote it for one of your plays how about that okay right now Highland Bird he's got a song called Skid Row and I wrote it for one of your plays how about that Skid Row Studios and I'm gonna play it for you now here we go I'm gonna play it for you now here we go downtown Los Angeles has several city blocks known as Skid Row but those of us who live there call it the nickel it is what it is but we affectionately call it the nickel I got four walls got four walls here we go all right I got four walls a ceiling and a floor and a bathroom that belongs only to me I got a door that closes and shuts real tight it locks and locks unlocks only when I turn the key hits my shelter out of the storm way station along my journey somewhere to collect my thoughts and rest my mind and I'm gonna play it for you now here we go my bones but I ain't really really doing too much but this is where I call home but I'm trying to come up off the nickel because fifth and main ain't no place to be trying to come up off the nickel you gotta shake the spot when the time is right there's more left in life for you and me the central cities is a new given name while most of us are out there in the city of Los Angeles and we're not in the city of Los Angeles are are are Where lots of folks come downtown shopping And some use what they came for before they go But there's help down here They got churches and missions If that kind of help is what you seek Be careful hanging around down here Cause days do turn into weeks But I'm trying to come up off the nickel Cause Fifth and Main ain't no place to be Trying to come up off the nickel Gotta shake the spot when the time is right There's more left in life for you and me The nickel Okay, thank you, Mr. Holland. Bert, yeah, we're gonna be pushing that as the Skid Row National Anthem. We can't wait until you record that with all of the different sounds and stuff for it. Now, let's talk a little about the Skid Row era the, uh, uh, why is it so hard to There's some great musicians down on Skid Row I mean, some of the best that I've heard Why is it so hard to get these musicians to work together in this downtown area? Well, it's kind of like, uh, just like everywhere else You know, it's, musicians have egos and attitudes and, uh, the downtown area Some of its population are involved in drugs and that sort of thing or have been involved in it and, um, that just I don't know, highlights the idea of the ego and I want to be a superstar and I don't want to work with anyone else unless they're doing it my way and that sort of thing So there are some musicians downtown that are doing the thing and they work with others but, uh, it can be difficult to manage the egos What's the biggest challenge on being a musician? in the downtown Skid Row area? Well, one of the things with any musician or any person I guess that's pursuing a dream of, you know, in the arts You gotta have a roof over your head Mm-hmm That's real important because you can't, you know bounce out and do things when you don't have that But, um, you know, the facilities, uh You know, they think that you should be mainly working on becoming financially solvent And so sometimes music is considered as as something, a hobby or something like that Mm-hmm So they frown on, um, you spending time doing that as opposed to out getting a nine-to-five job Let me ask you this What is the biggest challenge on, um Now you're a musical student almost getting ready to graduate at Cal State L.A. Right What is the biggest challenge, uh, coming from the Skid Row area also in terms of, uh, coming in contact with all these young people in school? Well, I'm a bit older Um, and I'm from the era of people actually playing the instruments You know, back in the day when you had, uh, people who, um, groups that were together for four and five and six years Um, and they could actually develop music over time Whereas, uh, these days, um, they don't have the time or the energy The music labels Mm-hmm Don't have the time to pit into a group And they'll just take one person and bring them into the studio and have some musician create the music for them But I think that, uh, you know, musicians that stay together that grow together and develop music, uh, and let it grow and permeate Mm-hmm And blossom, uh, that, those kind of things That's, it's, to me, better quality of music Mm-hmm As opposed to just throwing some people together Now what's the next song you're going to, uh, play for? This is a song, um, uh, called Hello Mm-hmm And I, I wrote this, uh It's one of the, one of my first songs that I wrote And it's just about Frequently you walk down the street and, and people walk right past you And, and I can remember as a black person That you would, uh, you would have to acknowledge that person Mm-hmm And, you know, acknowledge the commonalities of, that you share with them And the struggles that you're going through And, uh, here in California it's a little bit different So, I thought I'd write something about it Mm-hmm Okay Highland Byrd playing Hello I saw you walking down the street the other day And I'd like to know your name You walk right hastily past my apartment building Left or right is where you came from I haven't seen you around this way before I've never seen your fluids sway And the sun shone quite mightily As you passed my way today But I'd like to say hi Share this moment from your day I'd like to say hi Oh, hello, anyway I saw you in the supermarket the other day Spinning some of your hard-on lute You had a basket full of notions and paper towels Vegetables and salted fruits And the express lane wasn't very express that day And, uh, come to think of it, neither was I We were both held hostage by the groceries And the other things we needed to buy But I should have said hi Thought of something clever to say I should have said hi Oh, hello, anyway I'm glad you could make it out today I don't believe that we've met And if our paths never cross again This is about as close as we'll ever get I've been an ally a few years now And, uh, I'm glad you could make it out today I'm glad you could make it out today I'm glad you could make it out today I've been an ally a few years now And, uh, I must say it's kind of strange Most folks here in such a hurry While the others just ask for change But I'd like to say hi Share this moment from your day I'd like to say hi Oh, hello, anyway Hello, hello, hello Hello, how you doing? Hola, mija, konnichiwa Good luck with your pursuing Ciao Mahalo Hello Yeah, thank you, Highland Great piece, great piece Hello by Highland Burt Now, Highland, for those that would like to get in contact with you about performing Just to talk to you From one artist to another What is your contact information? Um, yeah, you can reach my email Which is Highland Burt spelled H-Y-L-E-N-B-U-R-T All one word at yahoo.com Or, uh, my, my, myspace Highland Burt at, uh, myspace Uh, Highland Burt Thank you very much, Highland Thank you, Mel Now, I would like to send a special peace and blessings To my mother, Miss Hattie Johnson And all of my family members in Greenville, Mississippi Next week we will be talking about military veterans in the Mississippi Delta With Reverend Roosevelt Johnson Reverend Freddie Johnson And James Johnson, Jr. I would like to send out a special thanks to Dr. Hattie Johnson And James Johnson III of Greenville, Mississippi Our in-studio guests Musician Highland Burt And on the line with actor David McKnight And to Jeremy and the Skid Row Studios You can check out our past shows of the QMRAAM Report on iTunes, Facebook, and Twitter And to all of our other friends at Highland Burt And iTunes, Facebook, Twitter, Skidrow.LA Or www.DramaStage-QMRAAM.org Thank you for turning in to the QMRAAM Report And I leave you with David McKnight Reading from Dr. Martin Luther King's letter from a Birmingham jail Next we have Mr. David McKnight Reading a portion of Dr. Martin Luther King's letter from a Birmingham jail Dr. Martin Luther King's letter from a Birmingham jail Put your hands together for Mr. David McKnight My dear fellow clergymen While confined here in the Birmingham jail I came across your recent statements calling my present activities unwise and untimely Seldom do I pause to answer criticisms of my work and ideas If I sought to answer all the criticisms that come across my desk My secretaries would have little time for anything other than such correspondence in the course of the day And I would have no time for constructive work But since I feel that you are men of genuine goodwill And that your criticisms are sincerely set forth I want to try to answer your statement in what I hope will be patient and reasonable terms I cannot sit idly by in Atlanta And not be concerned about what happens to me in the future I are are are are of the facts to determine whether injustice exists. Negotiation, self-purification, and direct action. We have gone through all these steps here in Birmingham, and there can be no gain saying the fact that racial injustice engulfs this community. Birmingham is probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United States. Its ugly record of brutality is widely known. We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor. It must be demanded by the oppressed. Never before have I written so long a letter. I'm afraid it is much too long to take your pressure. It is a precious time. I can assure you that it would have been much shorter if I had been writing from the comforts of my desk. But what else can one do when he is alone in a narrow jail cell other than write long letters, think long thoughts, and pray long prayers? If I have said anything in this letter that overshadowed my life, I would not have been able to do it. I would not have been able to do it. I would have been able to do it. I would have been able to do it. I would have been able to do it. If I have said anything that overstates the truth and indicates an unreasonable impatience, I beg you to forgive me. If I have said anything that understates the truth and indicates my having a patience that allows me to settle for anything less than brotherhood, I beg God to forgive me. I hope this letter finds you strong in the faith. And I also hope that circumstances will soon make it possible for me to meet each and every one of you, not as an integrationist or civil rights leader, but as a fellow clergyman and a Christian brother. Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away, and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear-drenched communities. And in some not-too-distant tomorrow, the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty. Yours for the cause of peace and brotherhood, Martin Luther King, Jr. Thank you. Thank you.