The Fulton Four: A family of artists

  

The Fulton Four: Walter Fulton Jr., Gloria Fulton Singleton, Vickie Fulton, Jerome Fulton. 

 A current of creative energy flows through one Memphis family and sparks the imagination of four of the matriarch’s eight children. Decades ago, Willie Bell Fulton and her deceased husband, Walter Fulton Sr., would discover that something within four of their artistic children needed to be expressed on paper, canvas, fabric, furniture, wall, glass, wood or any other surface.

   Walter Fulton Jr. (also known as “Atoosie”), Gloria Fulton, Jerome Fulton and Vickie Fulton each possesses a talent for either drawing, painting, designing, illustrating, cartooning, quilting, sewing, upholstering, crocheting, and simply bringing to life works of art that depict their myriad experiences.

   Gloria Fulton calls their talent a “gift” and added that her parents bequeathed it to each one of them. “My mother had a thrifty hand; she was creative,” she said. “But painting and construction came from my dad. For example, I remember him painting a portrait of my mom.”

   Willie Bell Fulton, who was married to her children’s father for 64 years, busied herself in the early days cooking, cleaning and sewing clothes to make ends meet in the Hyde Park community. However, she wasn’t aware at that time that her children were budding as young artists – with the exception of Walter Fulton Jr.

   “The only child of mine that I really noticed with the talent for art was ‘Tootsie,” Ms. Fulton recalled. “I saw a creative spirit in him at an early age. He was a different child. But the others…I was busy at that time taking care of them.”

   Now they are making their own mark as individual artists and collectively as the Fulton Four.

Walter “Atoosie” Fulton Jr.:

In pursuit of opportunities

   It would be futile to try to define Walter Fulton Jr. or attempt to box him into a single category. He has the skills to move linearly or laterally in the art world and has no qualms about taking his art on the road or settling for a stint in a bustling city for artists.

   Fulton has lived in Florida 12 years; New York, 5; Los Angeles, 4 ½; Atlanta, 5; and Las Vegas, 2 ½. When he’s back in Memphis, he’s painting, drawing, cartooning, illustrating, designing fashions or sewing clothes and, to no one’s surprise, preparing to globe-trot to the next city for another adventure. 

   “All my life, I’ve been somewhere,” said Fulton, 64, always in pursuit of making a living even if opportunity isn’t knocking. “You might as well enjoy yourself. God will provide what you need.”

   Although Fulton generally follows the market that is conducive to his style of art, the thought he’s had of launching a line of clothing – after designing and manufacturing it – has not faded from memory since he first learned to sew. He hopes to develop the idea into a business and employ people. 

   “I love to paint and draw, but I would love to manufacture cotton clothes – shirts, pants, dresses and skirts – and be a viable player in the game (the fashion industry),” said Fulton, noting that Memphis is the purveyor of cotton, “so why not use cotton to manufacture clothing?”

   Fulton understands the world around him – its beauty, significance and functionality. “Everything you do has art in it,” he said. “The only thing is how do you take it and put it on the market.”

   When he was budding as an artist, Fulton received art scholarships from the 10^th to the 12^th grade at Douglass High School to attend summer school at the former Memphis Academy of Art. After graduating high school in 1968, he received another scholarship to the art school – this time as a bona fide college student.

   Like his siblings, Fulton has a spiritual side that radiates when he speaks. He recounted a story that he shared with homeless men, comparing stones to talent.

   “I work with the homeless and often tell them about the story of David, how he defeated the giant with five smooth stones. I tell them that the stones are talents and that they have to use their stones to defeat their giants.” 

Gloria Fulton Singleton:

Recycling discards into works of art

   If art is the explicit purpose of man’s existence on earth, then everything that Gloria Fulton Singleton sees in her mind’s eye can be transformed or repurposed as a work of art. She is the quintessential recycling artist who sees beauty and meaning in discards.

   A painter, muralist, interior designer and decorator, woodworker, upholsterer, art teacher and seamstress, Singleton parlays her skills into works of art that are useful, functional and appealing to the homeowner.

   “I’ve always been around creative people,” said Singleton, 62, adding a tagline to her style of art: “Fulton’s Art & Home Furnishings.”

   The artist attributes her creativity to her mother, a seamstress; her late father, a painter and woodworker; and her late grandmother, a shoemaker. She credits her brothers Walter and Jerome for hewing a path in the arts for her to follow and esteems Estella Cash, who taught sewing in the Hyde Park community.

   “If you wanted something, you made it, painted it, or recycled what you had,” said Singleton, drawing her experiences from her youth while growing up in a household of nine other family members. Those early influences, however, would enable her to harness her creative energies. 

   “I like a beautiful, peaceful and cohesive environment. That’s what I strive for,” said Singleton, who works with children at Mustard Seed Studio teaching them the art of sewing, crocheting and knitting. Her ultimate goal is to teach children and employ women. 

   Singleton graduated from Douglass High School in 1970 and afterward matriculated at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Ray Vogue School of Fashion Design in Chicago, the Tennessee Technology Center at Memphis to study carpentry, and the University of Memphis.

   Her current focus is on art and home furnishings.

Jerome Fulton:

Recreating the Old South in multi-media

   There’s a little history and antiquity in the artwork that Jerome Fulton creates. He’ll take you back to the Old South and elsewhere, where life for African Americans is seen through a kaleidoscope in cotton fields and roving landscapes, where multi-colored, multi-patched quilts are suspended from clotheslines while a slight breeze nip at their fringes, and where the blues reverberates from guitar strings.

   “I’ve always been fascinated with Africans, the drums, and their music. It’s part of who we are. It’s in our bloodline,” said Fulton, 60, whose varied images of the Old South speak the language that he conveys on paper, canvas and through various found objects that comprise some of his wood constructions.

   It was during the summer months in Clarksdale, Miss., that images of southern life would emerge and eventually become a focal point in some of Fulton’s mixed media paintings and drawings. An aunt, he said, lived in Clarksdale and visits there would open his eyes to a new world, which stirred his interest to recreate the era’s enduring legacy – albeit good or bad for African Americans. 

   “It was in Clarksdale that I learned to appreciate music, experience the great feel of country air and love for southern folks,” said Fulton. “The first sunset that I saw at the age of 8 inspired me to always look for beauty in colors.”

   Fulton is a graduate of Douglass High School. He’d dreamed of creating beautiful works of art on paper, but discovered a watercolor technique that he’d borrowed from his instructors – watercolorists Dolph Smith and Fred Rawlinson – at the former Memphis Academy of Art (Memphis College of Art), where he graduated in 1976.

   “I love watercolors,” said Fulton, who took what he learned from his instructors and breathed new life into the fluid technique of watercolors by inserting, transferring or adhering photographic images of rusty shacks, people and building to a watercolor board.

   After college, Fulton lived in Chicago for 28 years drawing and illustrating and returned to Memphis 5 years ago to give us a history lesson on southern culture. 

Vickie Fulton:

Communicating through patchwork quilts

   Hand gestures and a radiant expression frames Vickie Fulton’s face when she expounds upon her newly discovered talent for quilting. It had been a long time coming – an innate ability that was once dormant – but the creative urge to speak through her quilts has emboldened her and awakened the artist within.

   “When I’m sewing quilts, I’m singing, meditating, praying, and listening to God, and trying to solve the world’s problems,” said Fulton, 58, who took three quilting classes from Anne Harper and Andrew Hayes at the Josephine K. Lewis Center for Senior Citizens at the corner of Bellevue Boulevard and North Parkway.

   However, before finding solace in stitching quilts, Fulton taught in the Legacy Memphis City Schools for 25 years. She’d devoted considerable time in the classroom teaching the curriculum and imparting to her students a sense of history from an African-American perspective.

   Although the field of education was foremost Fulton’s passion, it is quilting that piques her interest of late and imbues her with sheer joy. “I’m still in the line of education,” said Fulton, who delights in designing each quilt in a way that educates, that tells a story.

   For example, in “Secret Code Quilt,” the artist stitched a colorful patchwork using images of African American slave quarters and abolitionist Harriett Tubman, each juxtaposed against vibrant colors symbolizing secret messages that were deciphered by slaves seeking to escape to freedom via the Underground Railroad.

   “When I wake up in the morning, I start quilting and don’t stop until the night,” said Fulton. “In my sleep I’m sewing. I’m always thinking about new projects. My spirit and soul are in my quilts. They are like children.

   “It’s therapy to me. I’m engrossed in thought on each piece,” said Fulton, noting that she hasn’t sewn since high school but picked it up in a snap. “I love it. It’s a lost art. And my goal is to bring it back.”

   Fulton graduated from Northside High School in 1974, from Southwestern Christian College in 1976 with an associate’s degree in social work, and from Lipscomb University in 1979 with a bachelor’s of art in social work.

Ministers in the hunt for votes

Dr. Kenneth T. Whalum Jr., Rev. Hubon Sandridge, Bishop Edward H. Stephens Jr., Bishop Brandon Porter

With the Democratic Primary for the Ninth Congressional District about two months away, ministers in dueling camps are taking a stand, leaving those in tune with their spiritual guidance to determine if that influence should extend to the voting booth.

While such division is not new, some are suggesting that this time around the stakes are higher for African Americans in the district represented by incumbent Steve Cohen since 2006.

In May, more than a dozen ministers convened near the National Civil Rights Museum to announce their support for Atty. Ricky Wilkins, who – along with community activist Isaac Richmond – is challenging Cohen in the Aug. 7th primary.

The names of a contingent of ministers backing Cohen were detailed recently in a widely circulated announcement, making it clear that they have a different perspective on what is needed in the district going forward.

So, while Greater Community Temple Church of God in Christ Bishop Brandon Porter is urging voters to embrace Wilkins and give “change a chance,” the Rev. Hubon “Dutch” Sandridge, pastor of Thomas Chapel Baptist Church, insists Cohen’s record of service and his political pedigree make him the clear choice. 

“You can’t take a novice and put him in a congressional seat,” said Sandridge, referring to Wilkins, former chairman of the Memphis Housing Authority. “He does not have a record to stand on. He doesn’t have the political record that can touch Steve Cohen’s record and years of service. Just saying I’m a black man doesn’t have anything to do with leadership.”

Noting the dozen-plus ministers who were named in the recent release and others that he asserts support him privately, Cohen, said, “I am proud that such a distinguished and diverse group of men and women have endorsed my candidacy.” 

For some clerics, making public declarations in support of one candidate over another is par for the course. They argue that their involvement in the political process is no more than an extension of their duties in and away from the pulpit. 

Bishop Edward H. Stephens Jr., senior pastor of Golden Gate Cathedral, said politics in its purest form has the ability to move people. He encourages his members to get involve and vote for the candidate of their choice. 

“The church is the voice for our community…the megaphone and mouthpiece…to get information out. You can’t complain if you don’t exercise your right to vote,” said Stephens, a prominent Wilkins supporter.

Stephens, who joined other ministers in the May public showing of support for Wilkins, reiterated that he has nothing against Cohen. It would be good for African American kids to see an African American occupying the congressional seat in Washington, he said matter-of-factly. 

“Cohen is a good man, but African-American people don’t have representation,” said Stephens, using as a hypothesis a non-Hispanic representing the Hispanic community. “Why would a black person represent the Hispanic community? Another Hispanic understands the community better.”

After introducing Cohen at the opening of his East Memphis campaign headquarters Saturday (May 31st), the Rev. Dr. Kenneth T. Whalum Jr., pastor of The New Olivet Baptist Church, railed against Cohen’s detractors, who he said maintain that a “Jew” cannot represent a predominately African-American district. 

“It’s the height of disingenuous presentation to suggest that a Jew cannot effectively represent black people,” said Whalum, a former school board commissioner. “Black preachers get in the pulpit every Sunday, every Wednesday in Bible study, and preach and teach about how a Jew has been effectively representing us in heaven for 2,000 years. 

“I just think it borders on stupidity,” he said. “Steve has been an excellent representative before he went to Congress.”

Wilkins, who has said “diversity of representation” should be appealing and valued by people regardless of their political affiliation, has emphasized his academic pedigree and his public and private career.

“There is a lot more to Ricky Wilkins than just being a black man,” he said the morning of the endorsements by the ministers. “I just happen to be a black man.”

Whalum says race is the issue, offering this context:

“Black people have been in charge politically for decades, yet the masses of black folks are worse off now than they were when Boss Crump was in office. That’s the race issue to me.” 

Is Wilkins the man to unseat Cohen?

A first floor suite in the historic 14-story Shrine Building at the corner of Front Street and Monroe Avenue is ground zero for The Law Offices of Ricky E. Wilkins. The architecture is exquisite and furnished with the trappings of success. But Wilkins is willing to trade much of it for a fulltime seat in Congress.

"I'm a lifelong Memphian who was raised in South Memphis. I want to give back to the community any way I can," he said. "I've been practicing law for 23 years and volunteered my time, talent and resources because I care about the community. So running for Congress is a natural extension of giving back."

Wilkins is challenging U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen for the right to represent Tennessee's Ninth Congressional District, an area entirely contained in Shelby County and includes the city of Memphis and portions of Collierville and Germantown.

Ricky E. Wilkins

The district is 60 percent African American and 33.5 percent white. Wilkins is mindful that basing his campaign solely on race likely would be counterproductive and lessen his chances of unseating Cohen in the Democratic Primary on Aug. 7.

"I'm planning on running this campaign based on my qualifications and the issues. The fact that I'm African American has nothing to do with it," said Wilkins, alluding to the hotly contested congressional races that pitted Cohen against Democratic challengers Nikki Tinker in 2008, Dr. Willie W. Herenton in 2010 and Tomeka Hart in 2012.

Undaunted by the incumbency on Cohen's side, Wilkins intends to run a grassroots campaign that highlights who he is, what he has been doing and what he plans to do for the Ninth Congressional District.

"Nobody thinks it can be done," said Wilkins. "We intend to prove them wrong."

Wilkins' supporters include Randy Wade, Cohen's former friend and one-time district director of his Memphis office. Wade parted with Cohen last year after the congressman filed an ethics complaint linked to Wade's support of a state representative's re-election bid.

Wilkins pulled a petition for Congress on Jan. 3rd, bringing onboard Wade at the onset of the campaign.

"Mr. Wade is an active and enthusiastic supporter of mine in my quest for Congress," said Wilkins. "I appreciate Mr. Wade's support and his continued efforts to help me identify other supporters in the community."

Wilkins said those who have confidence in him are stepping up to help.

"I'm encouraged by that and intend to bring on new supporters," he said, "people who have not been a part of the political process."

Two other Democrats besides Wilkins and Cohen have pulled petitions to run in the Democratic primary and two Republicans have placed their names in contention for the Republican primary. Only one candidate has filed so far.

The qualifying deadline for both Democratic and Republican primaries is April 3rd at noon.

Fighting the tough fight...

Wilkins said a change in leadership is needed to solve the district's problems.

"The economic conditions in this community must not be ignored," he said. "It must be a front-burner issue, and I intend to spend an appreciative amount of time working hard."

After graduating from Carver High School in 1983, Howard University in 1987, and Vanderbilt University School of Law in 1990, Wilkins said the South Memphis community where he grew up is still blighted and neglected.

"I'm embarrassed. And my heart hurts every time I drive through the community," he said. "Thirty years later, the community in some areas looks like a war zone."

As congressman, Wilkins said he'd bring new ideas, new approaches, and new alliances to improve the district. "Those who have served I respect and appreciate, but we're taking this to another level," he said.

The level Wilkins is referring to comprises his campaign platform, which includes growing small businesses, providing economic opportunities, improving education, fixing the crime problem, making provisions for veterans, and uplifting people in the district.

"Education is the great social equalizer," he said. "Everything that I am goes back to the educators who believed in me, guided me, and set me on the right path. I'll make sure they (the school system) get the support of the congressional office."

If elected, Wilkins said he'd bring federal dollars to the district and work cohesively across the aisle with others in Congress with opposing views. He used as an example the federal dollars the Memphis Housing Authority obtained to dismantle public housing during his 20-year stint as chairman of the board of commissioners.

"I understand the need to work across the aisle," said Wilkins, pointing also to his experience as a trial lawyer. "I'll make sure Memphis gets its fair share of federal dollars. And I'm going to be very successful in doing that."

Political pundits and observers have noted in past congressional races that a hefty war chest would be needed to get one's message across or make a sizable impact in the race. In the 2008 race, Cohen raised $1.2 million according to opensecrets.org. In 2010, he raised $1.1 million; and in 2012, more than $800,000.

During those races, the money raised by Cohen's opponents paled in comparison. Wilkins, however, said raising funds wouldn't be a problem and that people would be curious to see his financial disclosure form.

"We're reaching out to our supporters, not just locally, but outside of Memphis as well," said Wilkins.

Cohen, is a career politician, said Wilkins, stressing that he on the other hand is looking for an opportunity to serve the people and not a job.

He also pointed out other differences between he and Cohen.

"Steve Cohen has never been married, never had kids that I know of, and never has been responsible for employees and helping them pay their mortgage."

Wilkins was married 18 years and has two daughters.

The Ninth Congressional District needs leadership that motivates and inspires people to reach their fullest potential, which subsequently uplifts the entire community, said Wilkins, vowing to be that leader.

Running for Congress is a sacrifice, he said, and, no doubt an uphill battle in this instance.

"I'm a guy that grew up around welfare and food stamps to a teenage mother who dropped out in the 10th grade. So fighting an uphill battle is not new to me," he said. "It's a part of my DNA. I've been taught that if you work hard and have faith in God, there's no mountain you can't climb."

A man stands up and speaks to what he believes and goes forward regardless of what people think, said Wilkins.

"You have to be strong enough to stand up to the opposition."

About Ricky E. Wilkins...

Ricky E. Wilkins is a native Memphian who graduated from Carver High School in 1983. He went on to graduate from Howard University in 1987 and Vanderbilt University School of Law in 1990.

After law school, he was the first African-American attorney to make partner at Burch, Porter & Johnson. He left in 2003 to start his own law firm, The Law Offices of Ricky E. Wilkins.

Wilkins served 20 years as chairman of the Memphis Housing Authority Board of Commissioners. He is a past president of the Ben F. Jones Chapter of the National Bar Association, past president of the Memphis Bar Association, and past president of Tennessee Board of Law Examiners.

He is a life member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Vanderbilt Alumni Association, the NAACP, and a member of New Life Missionary Baptist Church.

‘Oldest African-American living in Elaine, Ark.’ is a world-class woman of excellence

She has lived more than the Bible's promise of three scores and 10. In fact, Sarah Jackson Bobo, born April 28, 1924, in Hookpur, Ark., is poised to celebrate yet another milestone. On Sunday, April 27th, her children will help celebrate her 90th birthday at the Double Tree by Hilton Hotel at 185 Union Ave.

"My mother has lived almost a century," said Derome Bobo Sr., the 11th of his mother's 17 children and chairperson of the Sarah Jackson Bobo birthday gala. She birthed five daughters and 12 sons. One of them, Sgt. Edward Lee Bobo, was killed in August 1967 while serving his last tour of duty in the Vietnam War. He was scheduled for discharge that year in October.

Sarah Jackson Bobo

"She's the oldest remaining member of the family and, I believe, the oldest African-American living in Elaine, Ark. She only has cousins left, and she's the oldest of them all," said Bobo, operations manager for the Memphis Postal Service.

In 10 years, Ms. Bobo will be ranked a centenarian and eligible for the Smuckers birthday salute with the "Today's Show" Willard Scott. Until then, the proclamations and citations that she's received from the U.S. Postal Service and the following luminaries will suffice: President Barack Obama, William "Bill" Jefferson Clinton and Hillary Rodman Clinton, U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, Arkansas State Sen. Stephanie Flowers, and Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr.

Ms. Bobo is unaware of the slated birthday gala in her honor or the attention she's receiving. She lives alone in Elaine, about 90 miles from Memphis, and continues to live life to the fullest without assistance from her children.

"She has a memory like a book and walks without a cane," her son said. "She washes her own clothes and takes care of her house. She's self-sufficient."

Ms. Bobo was still driving at age 88, Bobo remembers, and would still be driving her vehicle if her children hadn't taken the keys. She has glaucoma and her eyesight is quickly growing dim.

Ms. Bobo lost her husband, Leroy Bobo Sr., when she was 56 years old; he was 60 and the father of 14 of her 17 children. They were together for 36 years. She never remarried. The years, however, seemed to multiply, but the matriarch remained strong in character and the family pillar, her son said.

She is the grandmother of 61 grandchildren, the great-grandmother of 142 and the great-great grandmother of 20. "She is kind, gentle, understanding and has stood the test of time being the back bone for her children, grandchildren and extended family," Bobo said.

He recalled stories his mother often would tell about times when life was a little unbearable for her and the family in the segregated South when Jim Crow reigned.

"When she was a younger woman, there was a boy who supposedly liked a white woman. My mother smuggled him back to his parents, driving him to his parents' home in another small town outside Elaine. Back in those days, you didn't mess with white girls.

"She had another experience with a white man. He thought my mother couldn't read or write," said Bobo, retelling the story about an abusive white man whom his mother worked for in the cotton fields.

"She worked for 75 cents a day and they paid by the pound. He tried to cheat her. But my mother was strong and vibrant. She stood up to men and women."

Strength and courage...

Ms. Bobo's parents, the late Robert and Grover Kelly Jackson, worked as sharecroppers on the Green and Demoret plantations. She joined them in the fields after withdrawing from Elaine Industrial School. She was a ninth-grader then and would soon marry at the age of 16.

After giving birth to twins – one would survive – Ms. Bobo moved to Chicago determined to be successful so she could support her siblings (one sister and three brothers) by supporting her parents. She worked in a box factory and lived with her great aunt. One year later, she moved back to Elaine and birthed another child.

On May 28, 1944, she married Leroy Bobo Sr. The children kept coming. She raised them to be independent and successful. Several have earned college degrees and are successful entrepreneurs, managers and high-ranking officials in various government agencies.

When the children were young, Ms. Bobo worked various jobs – as a field worker and maid – starting each morning at 4 a.m. She also worked in the home cooking, washing, ironing and cleaning, often ending her "day" at midnight.

Living in Elaine in the 1940s was challenging, Bobo remembers his mother telling him. Everything was segregated – blacks living on one side of town, whites on the other. Long before school integration found its way to Elaine, black parents were permitted to sign a parental consent form for their children to attend Elaine's all-white middle and high schools. Bobo said his mother, although apprehensive, gave permission for three of her children to attend those schools. Her own educational pursuit had been cut short due to the daily grind and the need to eke out a living.

In 1965, Ms. Bobo drove a school bus for Elaine Industrial School (renamed the Elaine School System) and continued to work as maid. She also became a study hall instructor for grades 9th through 12th. While working, Ms. Bobo opted to get her high school diploma, having relayed to her children that a good education was the key to success. She set the example by enrolling in Phillips County Community College at night.

She retired from the school system after 39 years.

Tragedy struck in August 1967. That's when her son, Sgt. Edward Lee Bobo, was killed in Vietnam. Two other sons were serving active duty in the United States Army during this time. One of them was sent to Vietnam immediately after the funeral.

In honor of her son's sacrifice, Ms. Bobo was given the Purple Heart. On Sunday, her remaining children – and a few dignitaries who admire her strength and courage – will pour out their heart with a special birthday salute arranged to acknowledge her excellence and to simply say, thanks.

‘Debt Relief & Reparations for HBCUs’

The enslavement of African Americans in the United States is an atrocity that Orlando Matthews abhors and doesn't mind talking about. He spoke about that desolate period in human history during a recent two-day conference and community town hall meeting in Nashville on "Debt Relief & Reparations for HBCUs."

The conference was held on the campus of Tennessee State University and organized to save Historically Black Colleges and Universities from budget shortfalls, to restore Africana Studies on HBCU campuses, and to keep the focus solely on educating African-American students.

Though Matthews was one of several conference facilitators, there were others of note, including U.S. Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), who conducted workshops during the community town hall meeting at Ray of Hope Community Church and emphasized the urgency for reparations to keep HBCUs solvent to avoid going defunct.

The focus of Matthews' discussion, however, oscillated between the birth of reparations, the early proponents of reparations (or government recompense for crimes against humanity), and the movement in Tennessee.

"The United States is guilty of crimes against humanity," said Matthews, pointing to the book "My Face Is Black Is True: Callie House and the Struggle for Ex-slave Reparations," which he used as a point of reference in his discussion.

"The early reparations struggle in Tennessee was led by Mr. I.H. Dickerson and Mrs. Callie House, who lived and worked in Nashville in the late 1800s," said Matthews, a longtime proponent of reparations and community activist.

Rep. John Conyers, Camille Mabry and Orlando Matthews.

House, an ex-slave, "mulatto," widowed washerwoman and mother of five, lived in Nashville and died 70 years before the advent of the civil rights movement. She was the ringleader of a movement in Nashville that demanded justice and reparations for ex-slaves for centuries of unpaid labor.

Dickerson also was active in reparations for ex-slaves. He and House headed the National Ex-slave Mutual Relief, Bounty and Pension Association, but were investigated by the United States Bureau of Pension for their part in an alleged scheme to defraud "ignorant" blacks.

The movement that House and Dickerson led in Nashville, which preceded Marcus Garvey's United Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League, was the precursor to the civil rights movement and recently Conyers' unsuccessful attempt to get a reparations bill passed in Congress.

Conyers first introduced bill H.R.40 – Commission to Study Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act – in January of 1989. He has re-introduced the bill in every Congress "and will continue to do so until it's passed into law."

     The conversation about reparations eventually segued into the struggle to keep the country's more than 100 HBCUs on solid financial footing. Matthews said many of them are under attack due to funding shortages and changes in legislation – particularly the dismantling of affirmative action in some states.

"In the last 10 years, they've brought in white presidents and white students into these HBCUs in the name of diversity," said Matthews, a 2001 delegate at the World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa.

Matthews was one of 400 delegates to address the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade as a crime against humanity. He termed the financial hemorrhaging of HBCUs as the government's change in policy to merge HBCUs into the mainstream of higher education in order to comply with uniform admissions standards.

Have black colleges and universities thus outlived their usefulness? Matthews pointed to past atrocities against African Americans and said HBCUs are still relevant today. Other conference speakers and workshop facilitators agreed.

Dr. Abdul Alkalimat, who teaches Africana Studies at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Campaign, titled his discussion, "Reparations and the Mission Essential Need for Africana Studies at HBCUs." Dr. Raymond Richardson, a professor in the mathematics department at TSU, followed with the topic, "The Maryland HBCU Case Verdict and Its Implications for HBCUs in Tennessee."

In the Maryland HBCU case, U.S. District Court Judge Catherine Black issued a 60-page ruling last year that said in part there was no discrimination in the state's capital expenditures between HBIs (historically black institutions) and TWIs (traditionally white institutions). This was a blow to the HBIs (the plaintiff), who sought more money per student vs. TWIs (the defendant) from the state of Maryland.

In his spiel to the workshop participants, Conyers continued advocating for African Americans to receive reparations and debt relief for the nation's HBCUs.

The conference and town hall meeting were dedicated to House; the late Jackson, Miss., mayor Chokwe Lumumba; the late Dr. Harold R. Mitchell, who taught speech pathology and audiology at TSU; and the late Edward H. Wisdom Jr., director of Management Information Systems for 37 years at TSU.

The dedication read: "They gave the last full measure in the struggle for truth, love, education, justice and reparations for the sons and daughters of 'Mother Africa.'"
Sponsors included Save TSU Community Coalition (STCC), Nashville Black Covenant Coalition (NBCC), African American Cultural Alliance, HERU Fraternity Inc. & Het-HERU Sorority Inc., Tennessee State University College of Liberal Arts – Department of History, Political Science, Geography, and Africana Studies.

‘Christen, don’t give up!…’

Katherine Williams drew in a deep breath and exhaled following a morning salute to graduating seniors at Craigmont High School. One of the graduates – her son, Christen Walker Dukes – weighed only two pounds at birth, was diagnosed with sickle cell anemia, and wasn't expected to live.

The grim report that Williams had received from the doctors at Methodist University Hospital 18 years ago was superseded by her son's dogged determination to survive and overcome the malady that threatened his life.

"He was a preemie at birth and underdeveloped," said Williams, who birthed her son after a 24-week gestation period. "He was born on a Thursday, around 3 p.m., and the doctors said he wouldn't live throughout the night."

Dukes was hospitalized for three months before he was allowed to go home. He had defied the doctors' prognosis, but there would be a revolving door to and from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, where he would go periodically for routine checkups. Along the way, he would summon the wherewithal to succeed at most endeavors and do it so well that admirers would heap accolades upon him.

His mother is his biggest admirer.

"He has been an honor student from the first-grade through the 12th grade," said Williams, basking in the light of her son's achievements, both medically and academically. "The doctors said he wouldn't make it, but he's accomplished a lot.

"He'll be wearing several ribbons and medallions around his neck at graduation."

Graduation Day

On Saturday, May 17th at the Memphis Cook Convention Center, 178 graduating seniors bid farewell to their alma mater and looked toward the future. As he had done at the salute to seniors two days earlier, Alvin Wright, Dukes' pre-calculus and honors teacher, made a special presentation that surprised Dukes. Wright spoke fondly of his student and presented him with the "Beat the Odds" award at the graduation.

Christen Dukes receives the "Beat the Odds" award.

"I was shocked and surprised. I wasn't expecting it," said Dukes, who graciously accepted the plaque as a memento for the years he's struggled to survive.

With Dukes by his side on the commencement stage with school officials and political leaders, Wright implored the senior class to point in Dukes' direction and say, "Christen, don't give up!"

"At times I thought my situation would stop me from certain things," said Dukes, who rides the wave of good and bad days. "But the fact that I have faith in God, I'm inspired and motivated to do the things I do."

Dukes, a musician with impeccable skills, plays the trombone and baritone horn – a talent his mother said budded when Dukes was around 8 years old. He took music in the 5th grade, played in the band in middle school, and then performed in the marching band in high school. He plays jazz, rhythm and blues, and fusion.

"Music is my passion. It speaks to me and gets me through the day," said Dukes. "It comes from the inside, but whoever listens to it, it can speak to them as well."

The Dukes vita...

The wellspring that Dukes draws inspiration from comes from the jazz music of Grammy-winning saxophonist Kirk Whalum, the former Stax Music Academy's artist in residence and current president and CEO of the Soulsville Foundation.

Dukes has studied at Stax Music Academy for five years after auditioning in the 8th-grade and receiving a scholarship. His tenure is over at the end of June and then he's off to Bethel University in McKenzie, Tenn., where he will join the Renaissance band and continue to study music.

"I've learned a lot over the past five years," said Dukes, who aspires to be one of the greatest trombone players of his time. "I learned to stay humble, always put God first in whatever I do, and believe He will work everything out. I also learned a whole lot of music knowledge."

Dukes' academic success and his prowess as a musician have catapulted him farther than he'd ever expected. His vita is replete with accomplishments – artistic pursuits, social activism and community service – that would rival a seasoned professional.

Last year, in December, Dukes was invited to attend Nobel Week for a three-day awards ceremony at Stockholm University in Stockholm, Sweden, on behalf of the National Society of High School Scholars, which recognizes academic excellence.

He also spent five weeks in the summer of 2013 as an intern at Berkley College of Music in Boston, Mass., on behalf of Stax Music Academy. In 2012, he performed at the WattStax Music Festival with his peers from Stax Music Academy for the festival's 40th anniversary.

Citations, awards and honors abound. He was a recipient of the Jefferson Awards Students In Action for public service, selected for the People to People Ambassador Programs for academic excellence, and has been a member of the National Honor Society since middle school.

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr., Shelby County Mayor Mark H. Luttrell Jr. and U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen all have cited Dukes for his commitment to St. Jude, where he serves on the teen advisory board, volunteers for St. Jude, and produces an annual concert to benefit the children. He also advocates for The Sickle Cell Foundation of Tennessee.

The 'rock'...

When Dukes is off to college, he'll be missed by his mother, who hopes he will continue to excel academically and improve his musicianship.

"I always told him to follow his dreams, be committed to what he's doing, know that there are no limitations, keep God first, and know that he can do anything that he wants to do in life," said Williams.

"My mom is my rock," said Dukes. "I wouldn't be where I am if it wasn't for her help and strength. I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing."

It got hard sometimes, he said.

"But my mom stayed strong for me to help me get through my medical problems. She stayed positive."