1909

by Curmilus Dancy II

2nd Vice President & Life Subscribing Member

The Rocky Mount NAACP along with churches, community-based organizations, service-oriented organizations and individuals in the Eastern North Carolina African American community invite you to a joint community worship service at 5 PM on Sunday October 23, 2005 at the New Morningstar Church 225 S. Glendale Ave. Rocky Mount NC Bishop R.T. McCarter is the senior pastor. The event is being held to respond to the needs of the Hurricane Katrina Victims.

Pastor Shelton McCarter of the Greater Cleveland Christian Church Disciples of Christ of Winston-Salem will be the guest minister for the occasion accompanied by his annointed and powerful choir.

The goal for the event is to collect $25,000 and all proceeds will directly benefit the hurricane victims. Each pastor is asked to bring a personal offering of $200 and to bring an additional $500 from their congregation.

Each attending pastor and selected officers are asked to join in a unity procession to begin at 4:45 PM.

Rev. Dr. Elbert Lee is the pastor of North End Missionary Baptist Church Rocky Mount NC.

In light of the most recent shooting event that occurred in Rocky Mount over the weekend, the local Branch of the NAACP is holding a Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, October 19, 2005 in the Fellowship Hall of Mt. Zion First Baptist Church at 320 W. Thomas Street at 6 p.m. President Andre’ Knight stated, "We are deeply saddened over the unfortunate shooting incident. A life was lost and the entire City’s heart goes out to the families impacted. We are calling for a fair and impartial investigation of the shooting and ask our citizens to remain cool until we hear from the SBI. This meeting will give our citizens an opportunity to hear from City officials and from the family. We want to work together to the benefit of all our community."

The public is invited to attend.

Posted by Curmilus Dancy II

2nd Vice President & Life Subscribing Member

See what The Political Agitator had to say about the meeting on The DCN News Blog.

On behalf of the members of the Rocky Mount Branch of the NAACP, parents throughout the Nash/Rocky Mount School System and for concerned citizens and community leaders throughout our entire Twin County region, we vocally and adamantly oppose the appointment of any individual in the role of Superintendent without a comprehensive national and internal search.

Your Board policy states that "when there is a vacancy in the position, the Board will post the vacancy and conduct an active search both within and outside the school system to find the person it believes can most effectively translate into action the policies of the Board and aspirations of the community." We believe that the children of the Nash/Rocky Mount School System deserve your best and most thorough efforts to find, thoughtfully consider and impartially interview a wide range of applicants for the most important position in our entire school system.

It has been widely discussed throughout the entire Twin County area that the candidate under consideration tonight is a friend to individual School Board members and an associate of existing senior staff within our current administration. While this is not necessarily a negative factor, the lack of a national search conducted within a credible process reeks of impropriety and cronyism.

The NAACP strongly asserts that the proposed action, should you choose to take it tonight, to install someone in the Superintendent’s position without looking for the right and best person, discriminates against unknown and qualified individuals within the system and around the United States. It also is a directly discriminatory action in that you have not allowed, nor given credence to, applicants of diverse ethnic, gender or cultural backgrounds.

In addition, the entire community deserves the right to know that their elected officials have truly acted on behalf of our aspirations, as your policy so eloquently states. We feel that any action to negate a national search acts against the wishes of the overwhelming majority of citizens through the Nash and Edgecombe counties area.

If Mr. McMahon is your candidate of choice and if he possesses the qualifications that you so eagerly are willing to accept without comparison or careful evaluation, then let him compete against other candidates for the job. A search conducted five years ago is not relevant today, nor fair to Mr. McMahon to prove his capability.

Doris McBride was the second leading vote getter in the most recent District IV School Board election. When Mary Lewis Foote was appointed, this Board did not even allow Ms. McBride to be interviewed. Mr. McMahon is allowed the opportunity to be appointed although he was the second leading vote getter five years ago. How ironic that you can turn the hands of time back for a white male and not use your same logic in appointing a peer who is a black female. The Nash/Rocky Mount School Board appears to take action that is expedient with your wishes without adhering to sound process or policy.

We will not accept this action without reprisal.

Andre Knight

President

Posted by Curmilus Dancy II

2nd Vice President & Life Subcribing Member

As President of the Rocky Mount of the NAACP, I welcome you to tonight's 32nd Annual Freedom Fund Banquet. Tonight, we celebrated the work of individuals in our twin county area and in the Rocky Mount Branch for their untiring and hard work on social justice issues. This year, our Branch has tackled many tough issues. Some in our community consider what we'ved done unpopular, but we remain unwavering in our stand and committed to our mission of eliminating race prejudice and removing all barriers of racial discrimination through democratic processes.

However, we can truly say that we have made more allies than enemies along the way. Thank, you, NAACP'ers, friends and supporters, for your dedication and encouragement to do what is right for ALL citizens of Rocky Mount and the twin county area, regardless of race, creed, ethnicity or background. Thanks also to all of our 2005 corporate sponsors who find continued value in investing in us as we work for the betterment of humanity.

I hope that everyone who participates tonight will be refreshed and renewed by our program and will commit with me and the other members of the Rocky Mount Branch that we will "Speak Truth to Power" until "Justice is Won!"

Sincerely,

Andre' D. Knight