Volume 4 Issue 4…Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race… February 2, 2001

Note: The DISH is based on themes from T.H.I.N.C. (Teaching Humanity In New Consciousness): The Chrysalis of Evolution. According to the President's Initiative on Race, "The issues that this book brings to the forefront are important in our efforts to achieve the goals set forth by the President for the Initiative. This work will serve as a solid resource for us as we begin to examine these critical issues." For your copy of T.H.I.N.C., The DISH or to submit comments, contact ICIM, Inc. at (404) 244-6023. The DISH © 2000

Yellow Flower

(A poem for the Luiseno woman)

by Yohannes Sharriff Smith

Grown wild and sweet in hard country, honeybees and butterflies say her name is Yellow Flower.

West Coast flavor and Decatur funk birthed a writer woman warrior not quite sure of her own power.

Full of promise,

Yellow Flower often pondered death just to escape the next breath of pain that squeezed until she threw up blood.

Distilled nectar...

Yellow Flower bled melancholy gray on paper made of sand and said it was her favorite color.

In a quiet corner, hope grew for younger brother James.

Both forsaken at a young age,

Yellow Flower prays, one day he will over-stand his ways.

Stained by childhood pain,

Their present haunted by an abusive past, so black you can't explain the blue.

Candle-lit shadows hid this lover of art in a womb of darkness.

Yellow Flower's harden shell protected the scarred heart of a black star sparkling with hints of Native American gems densely mixed in the sedimentary soul of a Capricorn.

She wore her story.

On her face, tears pour like grains of sand thru an hour glass frame.

So much shame and hurt passed before her blackened eyes.

At times it seemed impossible to find the sun.

She said, "He was my sun.

He ran thru my veins.

Despite his ways, he became the reason I began the new day."

Yellow Flower swore to never be like her.

Her adoptive mother had to duck the punches thrown by dunk boxers disguised as husbands and lovers.

Yellow Flower prayed for rainbows and sunrays to ease the gray.

A day without worry, a place in sun, a space to call home, a lover to stay a lifetime.

Abandoned, even by herself,

Yellow Flower swallowed sorrow spiked with sleeping pills and a half a pint of gin, to ease the pain of missing him...missing her reflection...missing herself.

Grown wild and sweet in hard country, honeybees and butterflies call,

"Yellow Flower," echoing a home….

by Current, Williams & Freidel

Resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) in Atlanta (1915) occurred at the height of intolerance. The KKK's rebirth drew its strength from the south and west. At its height in the mid-1920's, the Klan claimed 5 million members. They professed to stand for Christianity, morality and Americanism.

White robed, hooded, often masked, Klansmen used fiery crosses, threats, torture, and even murder to intimidate people they considered immoral or un-American. The targets and victims were mostly members of minority groups, especially Roman Catholics and blacks.

In 1926, hundreds of robed and hooded Klansmen marched down Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House; they carried American flags, rather than the Confederate battle emblem normally associated with Klan activity. Powerful, the KKK openly opposed blacks, Catholics, Jews, foreigners and unions. The KKK epitomized white supremacy.

The Dark Knight-Batman/White Ninja/Zorro, when asked for comments, rolled his eyes and replied, "Grandma, I have to do my homework. I don't have time to talk to the public!"

Disgruntled feels: Only thing in the middle of the road is road-kill! Sen. Zell Miller (D-GA) acts and sounds Republican. If he does the ethical thing and switch, Democrats can have a choice in the next senatorial election.

Disgruntled wants to know: Who is writing a book about Voter News Service, Election 2000 and how the presidency was stolen?

Disgruntled says: A Georgia GOP state house member tried to get legislation passed to curb exit polls. On November 7, 2000, Voter News Service (VNS) polls reflected the will of Florida voters. However, victory went opposite voter intent. Those trying to stop exit polling just want to keep the public ignorant.

The Richard L. Kirksey, Jr. Memorial Foundation drafted a letter to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan requesting his assistance in the wake of the bogus U.S. presidential selection. Written by Yohannes Sharriff Smith, it is aimed at garnering international support.

It begins, "Again, we seek your assistance. The chasm of inequality widens. Our worsening condition places us in such a precarious position that only the United Nations and the International Court of Justice offer any hope for bettering our drastic situation. Based wholly on its history, the United States of America cannot be trusted to honor its pledge to end racial discrimination. As with treaties the U.S. government made with its indigenous people, if all goes according to past practices, this pledge too will be unilaterally broken. Having trusted the white man to do the right thing, American Natives hang on the brink of extinction on reservations, or they hide in the hues of Americans in the chasm of inequality. The once great nations have been destroyed. When the Supreme Court turned equal protection on its head to rule in Bush v. Gore, America's pledge to end racial discrimination became worthless."

It concludes, "We steadfastly believe that had the votes been counted and included in the final tally, we accomplished our mission. Blacks elected Clinton, then we elected Gore. Yet, Bush is the president. How do we secure a democratic victory? Will your organization intervene as you did last year in Haiti? Will you urge a full and accurate count? Like all Third World countries, we are at the mercy of those who have traditionally held power in this country. Without your assistance, we cannot hope to peacefully end racial discrimination. We are helpless against American institutionalized racism. The world must not be silent. We respectfully request your assistance in the name of democracy for Americans." (The full text is available upon request at icim@bellsouth.net.)

by Dot

On Mondays, the Atlanta Journal Constitution publishes comments on its op-ed page written by individuals ages 15-22. Several offer hope and evoke the quote, "a child will lead them." If these comments are indicative of the leadership we have to look forward to, then we are in good hands. The insight of these young people places them heads and shoulders above the current mob selling the public short.

On January 22, 2001, Caitlin Hanzlick wrote, "All organized religion fits definition of 'cult,'" an indictment of the zealotry and rituals of organized religion. Cultism leaves the spirit of Christ out of organized religion. Christians are supposed to believe the Holy Spirit is all around and within us - the individual, yet organized religion's emphasis is on the Church and its rituals. Kudos to Caitlin for seeing the dichotomy of organized zealotry. More adults should review their faith. What purpose is served by rituals, when we ignore Jesus’ teachings?

On January 8, 2001, Jessica Grimes, a senior at Roswell High School, wrote, "Fed up with shallow Britney wannabes." Grimes lambastes the shallow members of her generation. She calls them Britney (Spears) wannabes, but it is the Valley Girl mentality that dominates social intercourse at her high school. You are "in" based on the labels on the clothing your wear. She wrote, "People like that are responsible for perpetuating the myth that all teenagers are self-centered and shallow. Perfumed and over-processed hair is not a substitute for personality. I would prefer people remember my name rather than the label on my shirt." Kudos! Kudos!

The Confederate battle emblem is a sign of institutionalized racism. It is the banner of white supremacy, and as such, it is as infamous as the German swastika to black Americans. Americans fought to have the black and white signs, which were prominently displayed during Jim Crow segregation, removed, but the mindset remained. Like those signs, if we cannot change the symbols, how do we hope to change the mindset that makes the signs necessary?

Black elected officials and those who claim the mantle of moral leadership tell us, when we dare complain about the asinine deals with the devil they make in our name, such as this one, "You need to come down to Capitol Hill; you don't understand the process." We respectfully submit; it is they who do not understand, or just do not care. They capitulate and compromise us into inferior positions, which have us honoring swastikas. While, the electorate lacks first hand experience horse-trading away principles, we would not sell them, if we knew more about what goes down beneath Georgia's golden dome. The ground swells and Georgia's boycott continues. We invite Marty King and the rest of the Georgia black leaders to join the groundswell for change or be swallowed.

It's official. BATT-PAC is ready for action. This week we register with the Secretary of State. BATT-PAC will focus on education and action. If you are ready for 'real' change, join the BATT-PAC today; it is what we make happen that will change the face of America. Become a BATT-PAC member! Join a political action committee with an agenda for 'real' change. Email us at battpac@netscape.net.

Over the next few weeks, we will make fund-raising plans and decisions on our next course of action, which will include a website and mailing list. Suggestions and assistance are appreciated. As the first BATT-PACer to take action, I filed suit in federal court opposing the compromise to reduce the size of the Confederate battle emblem in Georgia's state flag. (The full text of that suit is available upon request.) The Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina boycott continues. We ask our readers to THINC about the motives behind a secret deal to reduce rather than remove the Confederate battle emblem. Make the boycott a part of your efforts to bring change to Georgia and America.

Georgia white Democrats did not vote for Vice-President Al Gore - the party's candidate. Nor did they campaign for him. The state's party distanced itself from the party's base - blacks, and proceeded to give Bush the state. Like confused Floridians, black Georgia voters were still standing in line to vote when the media declared Bush had won our state. Blacks voted overwhelmingly (90%) for the Democratic ticket, which included Zell Miller. Zell looks, acts and sounds Republican. Republicans in Democrat drag bushwhacked Georgia voters.

News You Use

Before the environmentalists that have been threatening to sue the Atlanta Regional Council (ARC) and the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority (GRTA) over the state's transportation proposals, John Burl Smith filed suit in federal court citing equal protection.

The state needs matching funds to qualify for federal transportation dollars to finance regional public transportation. Through GRTA, the state planned to use the MARTA sales tax, which is only assessed in predominantly black DeKalb and Fulton Counties, which includes the city of Atlanta, as the state's matching funds.

The scheme is a jewel. First, GRTA takes over MARTA. The move deprives the two counties of ownership and control of their public transportation system and its financing. MARTA is the only rapid rail system in the south. The sales tax, fares and federal dollars have funded MARTA all these years. Public transportation will go to areas outside the two counties footing the lion's share of the bill. The state extended the obligation for them to 2047 and did not require other counties to share the burden by paying the MARTA sales tax.

This is the kind of unequal treatment we have come to expect living under the Confederate swastika. Mr. Smith went to court because our elected officials provide no leadership or representation on the MARTA sales tax issue. They are sticking their heads in the sand. We are victims of taxation without representation on the MARTA sales tax and Georgia public transportation issue. (For a copy of his federal complaint, email icim@bellsouth.net or fax us at 404-244-6023).

Hail to the Thief

by John Burl Smith

The dreary damp overcast day matched the mood of the country, as George W. Bush, Jr. was sworn in as the first United States President of the new millennium to take office without winning it through the vote of the American people. The gray day gave a surreal haze, like an old 1933 newsreel of Adolf Hitler's installation. Even their addresses were filled with the same symbolism and flanked by the same military-industrial-complex financiers.

After robbing the nation of it birthright, President-select Bush had the unmitigated gall to lecture the people on "Civility." With the Constitution and democracy trampled at his feet, Bush said, "America at its best matched a commitment to principle with a concern for civility. A civil society demands from each of us goodwill and respect, fair dealing and forgiveness." Obviously, this is right wing conservative code for "get over it, so I stole the election and you can't take it back."

However, unlike Germans, Americans have never rolled over in the face of tyrants. Those born of the true American spirit see the vote as the great equalizer and will never surrender that birthright to any cult of elitists. Some Americans have been fighting slavery since 1619 and the battle goes on today. We will not allow a vote of any court to hijack the only means of change in America. The cry for civility from George W. Bush, Jr. is a demand that the people "shut up and take it like good loyal subjects." If, Bush knows anything at all about Americans, he should know we never give in to oppression. Americans ridded themselves of their last foreign king in 1776. Now it must rid itself of its first homegrown king in 2004, if not before. Hail to the thief! John 2001

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