Opinion
What Parents Must Do This Summer
“Challenging People to Shape
a Better Future Now”
B ERNIE F OSTER
Founder/Publisher
B OBBIE D ORE F OSTER
Executive Editor
T ED B ANKS
Advertising Manager
J ERRY F OSTER
Account Executive
L ISA L OVING
News Editor
H ELEN S ILVIS
Multimedia Editor
D AVID K IDD
Graphic Designer
M ONICA J. F OSTER
Seattle Office Coordinator
J ULIE K EEFE
S USAN F RIED
Photographers
T
here is a 3 year gap between
Black and White students.
Many people love to believe
it’s due to income, fatherlessness,
educational attainment of the par-
ent and lack of parental involve-
ment. I believe that a major reason
for the gap is that we continue to
close school for the summer - as if
we were an agrarian economy.
And I doubt that many Black
youth will be farming this sum-
mer. If you multiply 3 months by
12 years you will see the 3 year
gap. It is my opinion that Black
youth would have fewer academic
challenges if their schools
remained open during the summer
and/or their parents kept them aca-
demically engaged.
Middle-income parents who
value education enroll their chil-
dren in some type of academic
experience during the summer.
They also visit libraries, museums,
zoos and colleges. Other parents
allow their children to sleep
longer, play more video games,
watch more television and play
basketball until they can’t see the
hoop. These students will have to
review the same work they had
mastered in May, when the school
year begins in September.
Black parents cannot allow their
N OTHING W RONG
Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu
children to lose 3 months every
year. Black parents should not say
they cannot afford to take their
child to the library. It’s free! Most
museums have discounted days. A
male friend of mine shared his
am appealing to every mother to
make other arrangements, if the
father cannot or will not take the
children.
We need for every parent to
make sure that their child reads at
least one book per week and to
write a book report. I am reminded
of the formula Sonya Carson used
to develop Ben Carson to become
the best pediatric neurosurgeon.
I am appealing to every father to take
his children to the library this summer,
and to include a visit to the museum,
and the zoo
experience with me when he took
his family to the museum. He
wondered why so many people
were staring at him. His wife and
children had to tell him he was the
only Black man in the building! I
am appealing to every father to
take his children to the library this
summer, and to include a visit to
the museum, and the zoo. And I
This low-income single parent,
with a third grade education, had
enough sense to tell her sons to
turn off the television, read a book
and write a report that her sister
would grade!
I have a theory. I believe that I
can go into your house and within
5 minutes tell you the type of stu-
dent who lives there and predict
his/her future. I believe that the
items needed in the home of engi-
neers, doctors, lawyers, account-
ants etc., are very different from
the ballplayers, rappers, and crim-
inals. I am very concerned about
that when I visit a house that has
more CDs and downloads than
books. My company African
American Images has designed a
special collection of books for
boys. The specific set that I am
referencing is titled, Best Books
for Boys. We also have one for
parents and teachers. We have
found the sets to be very resource-
ful since research indicates that
one of the major reasons why boys
dislike reading is because of the
content.
Let’s work together to close the
gap. I look forward to your chil-
dren’s teacher asking them how
they spent their summer … and
your children proudly answering
by saying that they went to the
library, museum, zoo, colleges and
other great educational institu-
tions.
Enjoy your summer!
Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu is the
author of over 35 books including,
“There is Nothing Wrong with
Black Students,” and “Raising
Black Boys.”
Rodney King Symbolized Police Brutality
The Skanner Newspaper, established
in October 1975, is a weekly publica-
tion, published each Wednesday by
IMM Publications Inc.,
415 N. Killingsworth St.,
P.O. Box 5455, Portland, OR 97228.
Telephone (503) 285-5555.
E-mail: info@theskanner.com
World Wide Web site:
http://www.theskanner.com
Fax: (503) 285-2900
The Skanner is a member of the
National Newspaper Pub lishers Associ-
ation and West Coast Black Pub lishers
Association.
All photos submitted become the
property of The Skanner. We are not re -
spon sible for lost or damaged photos
either solicited or unsolicited.
© 2012 The Skanner. ALL RIGHTS RE SERVED.
REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART
WITHOUT PERMISSION PROHIBITED.
To see The Skanner
News on your smart
phone go to
theskannermobile.com
or scan this QR code
with your app.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Local news
Opinions
Jobs, Bids
Sports
Entertainment
Music reviews
Bulletin board
RSS feeds
R
odney King would be the
first to tell you that he was
no Martin Luther King, Jr.
or Malcolm X. His lifelong bout
with alcohol and drugs – battles
that he always seemed to lose –
and frequent run-ins with police
did not qualify him for icon status.
Yet, that’s what he achieved in
1991 at the age of 27 because of
one video clip. It was graphic
footage filmed by a bystander
showing at least four Los Angeles
policemen savagely kicking and
beating King with police batons,
landing at least 50 blows as the
unarmed King was sprawled on
the ground or struggling to stand
up.
In the video, the officers were
seen teeing off on King as though
they were holding baseball bats or
golf clubs. Several other officers
stood around, doing nothing to
halt the repeated assault on the
helpless King.
More than any other event, the
brutal beating of Rodney King, an
unemployed construction worker,
forced America to see what many
did not want to believe existed –
police officers, hiding behind a
badge and a gun, brutalizing citi-
zens who pose no immediate
threat to them or the public.
King was found dead early Sun-
day morning at the bottom of his
swimming pool at his home in
Rialto, Calif. No foul play was
suspected.
His entry into the national spot-
light has its roots in an incident
that took place in 1989. King
robbed a grocery store in Mon-
terey Park, Calif. He took $200
and was sentenced to two years in
prison. On the night of March 2,
1991, following hours of drinking
with friends, King was spotted
speeding in the San Fernando Val-
ley area of Los Angeles. When
cops tried to pull him over, he tried
Page 4 The Portland Skanner June 20, 2012
T HE C URRY
R EPORT
George E.
Curry
to elude them by driving even
faster, up to 100 miles per hour,
fearing that he would go back to
jail for violating his parole.
After a high-speed chase joined
by other officers, King was cor-
nered and ordered out of his vehi-
cle.
The
two
passengers
accompanying him, Bryant Allen
being struck 56 times and kicked a
half-dozen times, King was hand-
cuffed and dragged to the side of
the road on his stomach to await
the arrival of an ambulance. King
later reported that he had suffered
11 skull fractures, permanent brain
damage, kidney damage and bro-
ken bones and teeth.
Four of the officers – Koon,
Powell. Timothy Wind and
Theodore Briseno – were charged
with excessive use of force. The
trial was switched from Los Ange-
les to Simi Valley, a largely White
community in Ventura County. On
April 29, 1992, a jury that con-
tained no African Americans
acquitted three of the officers and
was unable to reach a verdict on a
fourth.
Los Angeles exploded upon
hearing the verdict. At the end of
More than any other event, the brutal
beating of Rodney King, an
unemployed construction worker,
forced America to see what many did
not want to believe existed
and Freddie Helms, immediate-
ly complied with the order to exit
the car and lie face down on the
ground. King delayed his exit and
when he emerged, he acted
strangely, waving at police heli-
copters that had been part of the
chase and giggling uncontrollably.
Sgt. Stacey Koon, the supervis-
ing officer, fired a Taser into
King’s back, causing him to drop
to his knees. Officer Laurence
Powell hit King in the head,
knocking him to ground, and con-
tinued striking King. Other offi-
cers moved in as well, pummeling
King with their night sticks. After
six days of unrest, there were 53
deaths, 2,383 injuries and property
damage was nearly $1 billion.
In an effort to end the violence,
Rodney King appeared in public to
utter his now famous, “Can we all
get along?”
After the Los Angeles prosecu-
tor failed to win a conviction
against the four officers, the feder-
al government obtained indict-
ments charging the officers with
violating the civil rights of King.
Koon and Stacey were found
guilty and sentenced to 32 months
in prison; Wind and Briseno were
acquitted. The city of Los Angeles
settled a civil suit brought by Rod-
ney King for $3.8 million.
Later, it became clear that the
Rodney King beating was not an
aberration.
Feb. 4, 1999 – Amadou Diallo
was killed by New York City
police officers who claimed they
thought he was reaching for a gun.
Four officers were indicted for
second-degree murder, but were
acquitted.
Sept. 2, 2005 – Following Hurri-
cane Katrina, Henry Glover was
shot to death while near a strip
mall shopping for baby clothing.
Two cops were sentenced to more
than 15 years in prison for shoot-
ing Glover, tossing his body into a
car and setting it on fire.
Nov. 26, 2006 –Three unarmed
Black men, including Sean Bell,
were shot a total of 50 times by
New York police officers. Bell,
who had been celebrating at his
bachelor’s party, died in the hail of
bullets. Three officers charged
with manslaughter were acquitted.
Jan. 1, 2009 – Oscar Grant was
shot in the back by Officer
Johannes Mehserle while on the
ground at a train station in Oak-
land, Calif. The officer was found
guilty of involuntary manslaugh-
ter, but served only 11 months in
prison.
There are dozens, if not hun-
dreds, of cases similar to the ones
above. Thanks to Rodney King,
the public is not as quick to
believe police officers who abuse
their power and violate public
trust.
George E. Curry, former editor-
in-chief of Emerge magazine, is
editor-in-chief of the National
Newspaper Publishers Associa-
tion News Service (NNPA) and
editorial director of Heart & Soul
magazine. He is a keynote speaker,